Blyleven Can’t Join Angels, So He Beats Them

MINNEAPOLIS — Some of the most beneficial trades are the ones that are never made. The Red Sox know. They headed off the Wade Boggs trade rumors at the pass before last season, and look what happened.

Then, there is the case of Bert Blyleven and the Angels: Another trade that was never made.

The Angels in general--and Jim Slaton in particular--are still paying for it.

After spending most of 1985 unsuccessfully trying to pry Blyleven from the Cleveland roster, the Angels watched the Indians send the veteran right-hander to Minnesota. With the Twins, Blyleven could continue to wreak his personal havoc on the Angels in American League West competition.

Friday night at the Metrodome, Blyleven was it again, beating the Angels for the 25th time in his career, this time 7-4.

If Blyleven isn’t the Angels’ public enemy No. 1, he has to be close. He is 25-12 against them overall, and before Friday, his career earned-run average against them was 2.34.

For the Angels, there was sound reasoning behind their attempts to deal for Blyleven. If you can’t beat him, get him to join you.

On this night, Blyleven (2-0) was at least hittable. In nine innings, the Angels managed eight hits and four runs against him, including Reggie Jackson’s 535th career homer, which put him ahead of Jimmie Foxx and in sole possession of seventh place on the all-time list.

“I would have liked to know before the game started that we’d have scored four runs off him,” Angel Manager Gene Mauch said.

Slaton would have liked to have seen four runs scored behind him in his 1985 encounters with Blyleven. Slaton and Blyleven paired off twice last season, with Blyleven winning on a three-hitter, 2-0, and on a four-hitter, 2-1.

But Friday night, Slaton was presented with leads of 2-0 and 3-2 against Blyleven. Rare stuff--and Slaton was unable to cope with it.

Four straight singles in the third inning erased the 2-0 lead. Consecutive hits by Greg Gagne, Kirby Puckett, Randy Bush and Kent Hrbek tied it at 2-2 in a hurry.

Then in the sixth, Slaton was finished off by the Metrodome. After walking Hrbek, Slaton got Roy Smalley to hit a 360-foot fly ball that was nearly as high as it was long. The Metrodome fences are 327 feet down the line.

Home run, Smalley. Lead to Minnesota, 4-3.

“I made one mistake on Smalley,” Slaton said. “That isn’t out of too many ballparks, but in the Metrodome, it’s going to cost you.”

Right fielder Ruppert Jones seemed to have a bead on the ball. He backed up, backed up a little more . . . and then his back was at the wall. All he could do was watch.

“I thought it had a chance to stay in, the way Ruppert was looking at it,” Slaton said. “It was hit really high. It fell straight down, but it reached the (overhanging) seats.”

A single by Gary Gaetti followed, and that was it for Slaton (2-1). He would lose again to Blyleven.

“Last year, I felt snakebitten against him,” Slaton said. “Tonight, I tried to put that in the past. I know he’s a great pitcher. I’ve been going up against him for 15 years. I know you can’t give him anything.”

Wally Joyner had a hand in three of the Angels’ runs against Blyleven, going 3 for 4 with two doubles. His bunt single in the first inning moved Rick Burleson to third, and from there Burleson scored on a ground-out by Doug DeCinces. Joyner’s third-inning double was followed by an run-scoring single by DeCinces. And his sixth-inning double was matched by a double by Brian Downing.

This can be explained. Joyner is a rookie. He’s new to the curse of Blyleven.

But he has heard of it.

“I know we’ve had trouble with Blyleven,” Joyner said. “You have to be sharp against him. If he gets ahead of you (on the count), he’ll go right at you.

“Tonight, I had a couple of questionable pitches go my way and I got ahead of him. The pitches he normally aims for the corners got out more over the plate.”

This time, Blyleven needed some help against the Angels. A three-run seventh inning did it for the Twins, with Ken Forsch yielding run-scoring singles to Hrbek and Brunansky and a run-scoring double to Smalley.

But the Angels saw some traditional Blyleven, too. Blyleven retired the side on five pitches in the fourth inning and on four pitches in the fifth.

“That was important,” Blyleven said. “Jim Slaton was struggling; he threw a lot of pitches and had to come right back out.

“I know when I’m struggling, I kind of want a little breather. When you don’t get one, it can wear you down.”

Angel Notes

The Standings Are Thicker Than Blood: Gene Mauch is Roy Smalley’s uncle, which made for pleasant dugout conversation when both were members of the Minnesota Twins. Friday night, however, the nephew had a good night, which meant the uncle didn’t. “We were unbelievably close for many years,” Mauch said. “Now, it’s altogether different. Let him get his hits off somebody else. We’re here to beat you. He knows that, he understands that.” Said Smalley: “I don’t like the situation. It’s not in the comfort zone. I love him like a father. But it’s something else I have to deal with. I try to put it out of my mind for four at-bats.” . . . Mauch has noticed some change in Smalley over the years. For instance, his ability to hit curveballs. “(Jim) Slaton threw him a fastball for a strike, and (Smalley) just spit at it. He just watched it,” Mauch said. “Then, we come in with a curveball. For years, Roy didn’t know how to lay for a breaking ball. Obviously, he does now.”

Arson Squad Midwest: Minnesota’s bullpen is off to a horrendous start (22 earned runs in 20 innings, 9.90 ERA), and although the season is less than three weeks old, the Twins are starting to get nervous. This week they have dabbled in the retread route--signing 31-year-old Roy Lee Jackson to a minor league contract and giving a tryout Friday to 28-year-old Frank Pastore. Pastore, released by Cincinnati this spring, worked out Tuesday in Anaheim in a tryout arranged by the Angels’ minor league director, Bill Bavasi. The Angels told Pastore thanks but no thanks. Minnesota’s needs are more critical, however. Pastore threw for 12 minutes at the Metrodome Friday, was clocked in the 80- to 87-m.p.h. range and had little movement on his fastball. But the Twins have asked Pastore to stop by for another look today. “He’s not in shape,” Minnesota pitching coach Dick Such said, “but he showed enough for us to see him again.” In seven major league seasons, Pastore had a career ERA of 4.07.

Rick Burleson scored the 600th run of his career when Doug DeCinces’ first-inning ground-out drove him in from third. . . . Did Not Play: George Hendrick is batting .409 but because of Gene Mauch’s platoon system in right field, he has not started since April 17. Hendrick sits against right-handed pitchers, and the Angels have faced seven straight right-handers. . . . Reggie Jackson’s home run, which moved him within one of Mickey Mantle on the all-time list, increased his hitting streak to nine games. Jim Slaton’s loss was his first in the month of April since 1981. He had won nine straight April decisions.