ANDERSON BREAKS HIT STREAK MARK : ANGELS 10, NEW YORK 5.

Byline: Joe Haakenson San Gabriel Valley Tribune

The New York Yankees have been dominating throughout the season, but they're not perfect.

The Angels showed the Yankees there is always room for improvement by taking a 10-3 lead through seven innings Wednesday night before 38,829 at Edison Field.

That is precisely why a team like the Yankees - despite a 74-27 record - is hot on the trail of Mariners pitcher Randy Johnson. Reports of a six-player trade involving Johnson and Yankees pitcher Hideki Irabu among others circulated throughout the press box during Wednesday's game.

The Angels took control of the game with an eight-run fourth inning, knocking around Cuban defector Orlando ``El Duque'' Hernandez (5-3). He gave up 10 runs and 13 hits in 3-1/3 innings.

Angels right fielder Garret Anderson not only set an Angels record by hitting in his 26th consecutive game, the Kennedy High graduate did so by getting four hits. Orlando Palmeiro, batting leadoff and playing left field, had a career-best four-hit game.

The Angels got another solid performance from knuckleballer Steve Sparks. Sparks (4-2) gave up solo homers by Darryl Strawberry, Derek Jeter and Tino Martinez, but he retired 11 hitters in a row between the third and seventh innings.

While Hernandez was getting ripped, the Yankees front office continued to work on landing Johnson. The Indians also had been in the running, but Yankees manager Joe Torre says the Yankees shouldn't trade for Johnson just to keep him from going to Cleveland.

``That's the wrong reason to do it,'' Torre said before the game. ``There has to be a spot for him. If we could use him and make the proper deal, yes. But that should be the purpose of it.''

The Yankees have one of the deepest starting rotations in the majors, but after Hernandez's performance Wednesday, the Yankees could surely squeeze Johnson into the rotation. Before Wednesday, Hernandez had not allowed more than four earned runs in any of his nine starts.

But he was shaky for the first three innings Wednesday, allowing two runs and five hits. Then in the fourth, the Angels offense exploded.

Hernandez pitched to all nine Angels hitters in the inning, and eight of them got hits. Only Phil Nevin didn't, striking out.

Anderson led off the inning with a double, and Dave Hollins followed with a slow roller into right field that he turned into a leg double, driving in Anderson for a 3-2 lead.

After Nevin struck out, the Angels poured it on, getting seven consecutive hits, the first six off Hernandez and the seventh off reliever Darren Holmes.

The final hit off Hernandez was a two-run homer by Tim Salmon, his third home run in three games. Anderson followed with a single, becoming the first Angel this season to get two hits in an inning.

The seven consecutive hits tied an Angels club record, the previous two times also coming against the Yankees - in 1979 and 1988.

By the time the fourth inning was done, the Angels had scored eight runs on nine hits to take a 10-2 lead.

It wasn't the type of game the Yankees are used to. Not when they're on a pace to break the major-league record for wins in a season. For things to go so well, the Yankees have been both lucky and good.

``Obviously, when you win as many games as we have, you've got to get some breaks and be lucky,'' Torre said. ``And we've had quality starts from our pitchers more so than most other teams. That's why we've won so many games.''

Torre, however, admitted that no matter how many games the Yankees end up winning during the regular season, it won't matter much unless they win the World Series.