For Perisho, Not Winning Is Relative

MINNEAPOLIS —  There’s no doubt Matt Perisho has the potential to be a very good major league pitcher, but is replacing Mark Langston in the Angel rotation too big a burden for a 21-year-old who was throwing to double-A hitters three weeks ago?

There was no definitive answer Saturday night after the Angels’ 6-1 loss to the Minnesota Twins before 16,395 in the Metrodome, where Perisho gave up six runs--five earned--on 11 hits in 4 1/3 innings, but showed Manager Terry Collins just enough to warrant another start.

“Whether it’s a 21-year-old or a 27-year-old, any time you’re asked to take the mound in the major leagues there’s pressure involved,” Collins said. “But Matt made some strides tonight. He showed when he makes good pitches he can get people out.”

But, like he did in his first two starts, Perisho showed that when he doesn’t make good pitches he can give up runs in bunches.

Take the first inning Saturday night. Perisho struck out three, but he didn’t exactly strike out the side. Between outs, Minnesota rattled off five hits, including a run-scoring double by Paul Molitor and RBI singles by Ron Coomer and Greg Colbrunn, to take a 3-0 lead.

One of Perisho’s objectives was to get ahead in counts and minimize walks, but the Twins seemed to sense that and took a more aggressive offensive approach--Molitor, Terry Steinbach and Coomer had consecutive hits, each on first pitches, in the first.

Perisho settled down and pitched three scoreless innings, not allowing a runner to second. But more trouble came in the fifth when the Twins loaded the bases with no outs on shortstop Craig Grebeck’s error, Molitor’s single and Steinbach’s walk.

Coomer singled to right for one run, and Marty Cordova’s fielder’s choice--a potential double-play ball that third baseman Dave Hollins bobbled--scored another.

Colbrunn singled sharply to left to load the bases, and when Grebeck lost Darrin Jackson’s pop in the Metrodome roof, it bounced between the shortstop, center fielder Jim Edmonds and left fielder Garret Anderson for an RBI single and a 6-0 lead.

Collins went to his bullpen for Shigetoshi Hasegawa, who got Pat Meares to hit into a game-ending double play and then added three scoreless innings, giving up two hits.

“That one inning [the fifth] we didn’t catch the ball,” Collins said. “In the first inning Matt got too many balls in the middle of the plate. But other than that, I thought he pitched pretty well. . . . The second, third and fourth innings, his ball had good movement.”

Perisho admitted being nervous at the start of the game but said some advice from pitching coach Marcel Lachemann, who “told me to challenge hitters,” helped settle him down.

“From that point on it was like another game, as opposed to me thinking, ‘Oh my God, I’m in the big leagues,’ ” Perisho said. “That’s the biggest step I can take, getting comfortable and thinking I can do this.

“It’s a maturing process. It’s not good to lose a game, but I made some big strides. Confidence is no longer a problem. I know I can do this. The relaxation factor is what I was having a hard time with, but I think I overcame that today.”

His teammates, however, could not overcome Minnesota right-hander Brad Radke, who is developing a reputation as an Angel killer. Radke went the distance on a six-hitter Saturday night, striking out six and blanking the Angels until Darin Erstad’s double and Tim Salmon’s two-out, RBI single in the ninth.

Radke, who has given up the most home runs (72) in the major leagues in the past two seasons, has a 3-1 career record and a 1.59 earned-run average against the Angels. Against the rest of the American League he is 24-34 with a 5.07 ERA.

Radke is no Roger Clemens or Randy Johnson--he doesn’t have one dominant pitch or a trick pitch that fools opposing batters--but he had excellent control Saturday night and was backed by two double plays.

“He was pretty basic, he wasn’t overpowering,” Edmonds said. “He threw strikes, mixed his pitches well and made good pitches when he had to . . . plus, we can’t hit.”