No Deal a Big Deal

Baseball’s trading deadline came and went Thursday night, and the Angel most often rumored to be headed elsewhere stayed put, in left field, in the heart of the batting order.

Garret Anderson is not now a member of the Oakland Athletics, Kansas City Royals, Chicago Cubs, Texas Rangers or Minnesota Twins.

The man so many presumed was going places is instead standing still today. Anderson remains an Angel, and he’s happy. So, too, are the Angels.

The Angels got Ken Hill, the starting pitcher they say they need for the stretch drive, and didn’t break up their superb outfield by trading Anderson to get the deal done Tuesday.

Thus ended the trading deadline blues, by now something of a midsummer ritual for Anderson.

“The other day in Oakland we just swept four games from them and all anybody wanted to talk about was trade rumors,” he said.

He would have rather discussed his swing, since his batting average continues to be well above .300. He would have preferred to chat about his fine running catches or strong throws from the outfield. Instead, all anybody wanted from Anderson were his thoughts about getting shipped to Oakland for Mark McGwire or to Chicago for Terry Mulholland.

“It just gave me a sour taste,” said Anderson, batting .315 with five homers and 65 runs batted in going into a 10-game homestand that began Thursday against the Chicago White Sox.

If the rumors and scuttlebutt kept Anderson up nights, it certainly didn’t show on the field. If anything, he played better as the Angels started a torrid streak that led to 18 victories in 23 games before Thursday.

As the last harried days passed before the deadline for clubs to make trades without having to pass players through waivers, Anderson rapped out hit after hit and made one fine defensive play after another.

By the end of the Angels’ 10-game trip that took them to New York, Boston and Cleveland, Anderson had emerged as perhaps their most dangerous hitter.

He batted .308 (12 for 39) with three home runs--including a grand slam--12 RBIs, a double, a triple and eight runs. That’s the sort of production the Angels couldn’t bear to part with.

On the other hand, catcher Jim Leyritz was deemed expendable because he hadn’t delivered an extra-base hit since June 26. To be sure, there were other reasons Leyritz was dealt Tuesday to Texas for Hill, but it’s far easier to trade a player who’s not producing than one who is.

“We weren’t considering moving any of the four outfielders,” General Manager Bill Bavasi said, referring to Anderson, center fielder Jim Edmonds, right fielder Tim Salmon and former outfielder and current first baseman Darin Erstad.

Of course, it was easier for Bavasi to say in the wake of Tuesday’s deal, but he realized the impact trade rumors could have on a young player such as Anderson, 25.

“The tough thing in baseball is having your name constantly mentioned like that,” Bavasi said. “I can’t sit them down and say, ‘It’s not true.’ ”

Otherwise, Bavasi would have spent his days and nights in July playing nursemaid.

“Sure, clubs asked for [Anderson],” Bavasi said. “But we would have been hard-pressed to move any of the outfield guys.”

Anderson said he doesn’t read newspapers, but acknowledged it was difficult to miss his name being bandied about in print and on radio and TV.

“The writers ask me, so I know what they’re writing about,” Anderson said.

He tried to shut it all out, figuring Bavasi would tell him when or if he was about to be traded. In the end, he never heard a word about a deal.

“He never came out and said he was shopping me,” Anderson said. “Until the GM says it, I’m not being shopped. He’s not baby-sitting me. He doesn’t have to tell me anything.

“I have a job to do and I go out and do it. It’s only a distraction when I’m asked about it.”

Chalk up his attitude to maturity.

Last season, and in the off-season, Anderson was rumored to be heading in all manner of directions. Instead, two-time Gold Glove first baseman J.T. Snow was traded to the San Francisco Giants for starting pitcher Allen Watson.

As with his run-scoring line drives to the outfield and fine catches, Manager Terry Collins has been impressed with Anderson’s ability to focus on the game rather than the rumor mill.

“He approached it in a very businesslike manner,” Collins said. “But, as he told me, ‘I’ve been through this before.’ ”