Word for Wise: Wait Goes On

TEMPE, Ariz. â€”  The call of the wild was interrupted by the call of the cell phone.

Matt Wise, on a duck-hunting trip, suspected the call might have something to do with baseball. He wondered whether he had been traded.

No, he was still an Angel. So was Aaron Sele, as Wise found out when he answered the call. And, the next day, Kevin Appier was an Angel, too.

When the Angels packed up for the winter, Wise believed his turn would come in the spring. After two solid seasons as a triple-A starter, Wise expected to join Jarrod Washburn, Ramon Ortiz and Scott Schoeneweis in the Angel rotation. In September, General Manager Bill Stoneman had said as much: “Matt is certainly ready to be here.�

At the time, little did Stoneman know that Disney ownership would reverse its game plan and approve the $24 million signing of Sele. And little did Stoneman know that he could get anything of value, much less a consistent winner such as Appier, for disgruntled slugger Mo Vaughn, who has not played in 17 months.

“They’re great additions for the ballclub,� Wise said. “They’re proven studs. It would be one thing if they went out and got two young pitchers, but these guys have been proven winners for a long time.�

So in came Sele. In came Appier. And out of the rotation went Wise, before he ever got in.

Manager Mike Scioscia, however, says he has not ruled Wise out of a rotation that appears to have no openings.

“This guy is a major league pitcher,� Scioscia said. “The five we’ve got are pretty solid, but Matt Wise is definitely going to get an opportunity to win a starting spot. At whose expense? We don’t really know.�

Wise, 26, would prefer not to return to triple-A Salt Lake City, although the Angels might be best served with Wise starting there in case of injury to one of the top five starters.

The Angels’ camp is overflowing with experienced relievers, but Wise would rather pitch in the bullpen--or do anything else in the major leagues--than return to the Pacific Coast League.

“I want to work my way into starting here,� Wise said, “whether it be by being in the bullpen or sweeping the seats.�

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As the defending American League West champion Seattle Mariners opened camp, Seattle Manager Lou Piniella picked his team to win the division again.

Scioscia declined to project the Angels as division winners but said his team expected, not just hoped, to contend for the title.

“I think we’re definitely going to contend,� Scioscia said. “You want to come to spring training knowing you’re going to be in a pennant race and that you can succeed in a pennant race. I’m very confident with the way we match up with the other clubs in our division, and in the league.�