BASEBALL DAILY REPORT : ANGELS : Anemic Offense Makes Lind the Odd Man Out

Jose Lind’s glove was an asset, but his bat made him expendable. So the Angels released the second baseman and recalled reserve catcher Andy Allanson from Class-A Lake Elsinore.

Manager Marcel Lachemann wanted to add a third catcher to the roster by today so Allanson would be eligible for postseason play, and with a surplus of infielders, Lind, with his .163 average, was an obvious target.

Rex Hudler and Spike Owen will play second, and with shortstop Rod Correia being called up from triple-A Vancouver on Friday, the first day teams can expand rosters, there’s a possibility shortstop Damion Easley might move back to second.

Lachemann also said Dick Schofield, signed when shortstop Gary DiSarcina injured his thumb, might be called up from Vancouver later in September.

Other roster additions Friday will be pitchers Shawn Boskie and Mike Bielecki, third baseman Eduardo Perez, outfielder Orlando Palmeiro and reliever Mark Holzemer.

Perez, the starting third baseman before his May 31 demotion, hit .325 with six homers and 37 RBIs at Vancouver. Correia, who played 10 games with the Angels in July and August, hit .303 with 39 RBIs at Vancouver.

Palmeiro, who appeared in five Angel games this season, hit .307 with 47 RBIs and 16 stolen bases at Vancouver. He’ll add depth to the outfield. Holzemer gives the Angels two left-handers in the bullpen.

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Center fielder Jim Edmonds looked as if he could have used a day off Wednesday, but he played despite the pain from a strained lower back muscle.

“It got better as the day wore on,� said Edmonds, who winced after three swings during his first-inning at-bat, which ended with a fly out. “I can tolerate a little pain, but I’m not effective. I don’t want to come out of the lineup, but we’ll see how it goes.�

Edmonds played much of the first half of the season despite a slight stress fracture in his foot and has now strained two lower back muscles in the last two weeks.

“This is the same as with my foot--if it’s not going to get any better or worse, I’m going to go out and play,� said Edmonds, who is batting .297 with 30 homers and 97 RBIs but is mired in a one-for-22 slump.

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Lachemann used his revamped lineup for the second consecutive game, the shortstop moving into the No. 2 hole, Edmonds moving from second to third, Tim Salmon moving from third to fifth, and J.T. Snow and Garret Anderson dropping to sixth and seventh, respectively.

New order, same results: The Angels had five hits for the second consecutive game and now have only 25 in their last five games. They are batting .230 (105 for 456) in the last 14 games, scoring an average of 3.6 runs. The pitching staff, meanwhile, has posted a 6.10 earned-run average.

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Hudler and third baseman Tony Phillips provided two defensive highlights Wednesday, Hudler diving to his right to snag Wade Boggs’ grounder and throw him out in the eighth inning and Phillips leaping high to grab Boggs’ liner with two out and two on in the fourth.

“How about that hang time?� Phillips said, proud of the spring left in his 36-year-old legs. “I stayed up there for about 15 minutes. That was my Michael Jordan impression.�

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Some good news for the Angels: Pitcher Mark Langston threw for about 10 minutes in the bullpen and felt no discomfort from the mild case of tendinitis in his shoulder and elbow. The left-hander is expected to make his next start Saturday in Boston.

Reliever Mike James struck out Bernie Williams in the sixth inning, ending the Yankee center fielder’s string of eight consecutive times on base. Williams had three singles and two walks in Tuesday night’s victory and a double and two singles in his first three at-bats Wednesday.