Team Pursuing Alfonseca

ST. LOUIS â€”  The Angels, seeking bullpen help, are pursuing a deal to acquire Chicago Cub closer Antonio Alfonseca, a baseball source said Wednesday.

The recent shaky performance of setup man Al Levine has prompted General Manager Bill Stoneman to discuss trade proposals with many clubs, hoping to bolster that area before the July 31 non-waiver trading deadline.

Although the Angels are considering several relievers, Alfonseca’s name has emerged atop their list because they believe he could best fill the role in front of All-Star closer Troy Percival, and the struggling Cubs are willing to move him to cut payroll. Alfonseca is owed the remainder of his $3.55-million salary and can become a free agent after the season.

The 6-foot-5, 250-pound right-hander--acquired May 27 from the Florida Marlins in a six-player deal--is 1-1 with 10 saves and a 2.25 earned-run average in 28 games.

Alfonseca, who has 24 strikeouts in 32 innings, has limited opponents to a .220 batting average--.169 against right-handed batters. He was 4-4 with a 3.06 ERA and 28 saves last season, and led the major leagues with 45 saves in 2000.

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Manager Mike Scioscia played 15 seasons in the majors, so he knows the benefit of an occasional day off.

After watching Troy Glaus struggle for about a month, Scioscia decided to give him a break, benching the All-Star third baseman in the St. Louis Cardinals’ 6-2 victory at Busch Stadium.

“Troy’s been pressing a little bit; we want him to take a step back,� Scioscia said. “Hopefully, he’ll be able to relax a little bit, and he’ll get right back out there [today].�

Glaus missed his fourth game of the season, and first because of performance reasons, having sat out twice while serving a suspension for fighting in spring training and once because of a problem with his contact lenses.

His current problem is a 12-for-90 slump. After batting .306 in April and .280 in May, Glaus is hitting .119 (seven for 59) in 16 games this month.

Glaus’ average has dropped to .246. He leads the club with 52 runs batted in and is second with 13 home runs.

“There are probably eight, nine, 10 balls that he’s hit right on the screws, but he doesn’t have much to show for it,� Scioscia said. “We’ve got a long stretch of games left here [on an 11-day, 11-game trip]. In Texas, we’ve got five games in four days, so there’s a lot of baseball to be played.�

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Bobby Jenks, 21, the Angels’ top pitching prospect, is expected to report to Class-A Rancho Cucamonga this week.

TODAY

ANGELS’

SCOTT

SCHOENEWEIS

(5-5, 5.06 ERA)

vs.

CARDINALS’

BUD SMITH

(0-4, 8.74 ERA)

Busch Stadium, 1 p.m. PDT

Radio--KLAC (570), XPRS (1090).

Update--Ramon Ortiz was scheduled to pitch today, but the Angels altered the rotation so that the right-hander would work between left-handed starters Schoeneweis and Jarrod Washburn. Smith’s ERA is 3.38 ERA at home, 10.38 on the road.