Diagnosis Stunned Salmon

Tim and Marci Salmon had left the doctor’s office, and Marci told her husband how calmly he had handled the bad news. Actually, he simply hadn’t processed it yet.

The doctor had told Salmon the injured ligament in his left wrist was torn to a far greater degree than expected. Instead of preparing to return to the Angel lineup in a few days, Salmon walked out of the doctor’s office Wednesday with his wrist in a soft cast and a prescription to sit tight for a few weeks.

“I was shellshocked,” Salmon said. “I don’t think I really was able to comprehend what they were telling me. I was like, what?”

An arthrogram had revealed what multiple MRI exams had not: Salmon had a grade two sprain, meaning more than half the fibers in the injured ligament were torn. If he played, he risked a complete tear and season-ending surgery.

The Angels hope Salmon can return in late June.

Salmon, a notoriously slow starter, hit seven home runs last April before a foot injury forced him on the disabled list. He is hitting .347 with seven home runs and 25 RBIs this season, all team highs.

“I guess I’ll take slow starts and being healthy,” he said.

*

As Salmon talked, former player and current TV analyst Rex Hudler asked Salmon how he felt about not being able to help his team. Salmon gave Hudler a quizzical look.

“Hud, you were a player,” Salmon said. “You’ve been there. You don’t need to ask me that.”

Said Hudler, “I’m a journalist now. I have to ask you that.”

*

The Angels are strongly endorsing a proposal that would bring a fall developmental league to Southern California.

If approved, the Angels’ California League affiliate in Lake Elsinore would join Lancaster, Rancho Cucamonga and San Bernardino as a site in the four-team league. Those four cities, with new stadiums and booming suburban populations, rank among the top draws in Class-A baseball.

Major league baseball operates two fall leagues for top prospects--one in Arizona, primarily for double-A and triple-A prospects, and one in Maryland, primarily for Class-A prospects. By replacing the Maryland league with the Southern California league, major league officials could save money, because no overnight trips would be required. And, in a season that runs from September into November, the climate is not conducive to baseball in Maryland.

“No one’s looking to get rich on this,” California League President Joe Gagliardi said. “The major leagues have a need for this, and I think our situation is the best suited for it of anybody’s in the country.”

TONIGHT

ANGELS’ KEN HILL (1-2, 4.02 ERA)

vs.

DEVIL RAYS’ TONY SAUNDERS (2-3, 8.67 ERA)

Edison Field, 7

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

* Update--Hill leads major league pitchers in walks allowed, with 33 in 40 innings. Saunders also ranks among league leaders with 24, in 27 innings. Saunders, the first pick in the 1997 expansion draft, makes his first start since returning from a week in the minor leagues. Todd Greene’s three-game suspension ends with tonight’s game; he will catch knuckleballer Steve Sparks on Sunday and could play right field in Baltimore on Tuesday.

* Tickets--(714) 663-9000.