Matsui, Aybar back in field and fold for Angels
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TEMPE, Ariz. -- Hideki Matsui gets his first taste of playing the field Monday when the Angels travel across Phoenix to play the Dodgers. Manager Mike Scioscia has been bringing Matsui and his gimpy knees along slowly this spring but feels it is important to have Matsui available to play the out field on a spot basis. That way he can rest his other out fielders -- Juan Rivera, Torii Hunter and Bobby Abreu -- while keeping their bats in the lineup as the designated hitter.
Matsui did not play in the field at all last season with the Yankees.
Shortstop Erick Aybar will also be back in the field for the Dodgers game. Aybar has been limited to just 14 Cactus League at-bats because of elbow and forearm problems this spring. The progression of both Aybar and Matsui is important for Scioscia, who said he would like to have his regular lineup on the field together by the end of this week. The only regular hitter missing Monday was left fielder Rivera, who had the day off.
Another regular who didn’t make the trip to Camelback Ranch to face the Dodgers was left-hander Joe Saunders, Monday’s scheduled pitcher. Instead, the Angels held him back to pitch in a minor league game at their training complex in Tempe. Pitching coach Mike Butcher said there were a lot of reasons for the change -- none of them relating to injury. For starters, Butcher said, Saunders can get his ‘five ups and downs in’ a lot easier. That’s baseball talk for pitching five innings. In a camp game, the Angels can control everything from the time between innings to the batting order, having the same hitters come up in the same order every inning if they want. That will gave Saunders more freedom to work on certain pitches. Plus, playing in a National League park Saunders would have to bat. In a camp game he won’t.
Right-hander Matt Palmer will take Saunders place.
Angels lineup:
SS-- Aybar
RF -- Abreu
CF --- Hunter
LF -- Matsui
1B -- Morales
2B -- Kendrick
C- Napoli
3B -- Wood
P- Palmer
-- Kevin Baxter