ANGELS BATS COME TO LIFE; TEAM JUMPS ALL OVER 42-YEAR-OLD MARTINEZ : ANGELS 18, SEATLE 3.

Byline: Marc J. Spears Daily News Staff Writer

The Angels entered this 10-game homestand having lost five in a row.

Now that it's over, they are one of the hottest team in the major leagues.

The Angels hammered the Seattle Mariners 18-3 Wednesday night in front of 20,295 fans at Anaheim Stadium.

The Angels set season-highs and franchise-highs against the Mariners in runs and hits (21). The victory also gave Anaheim a 9-1 record on the homestand, which accounted for the team's best such mark since going 10-5 during a July 16-30, 1992 span.

The Angels entered the homestand with a 14-19 record. Wednesday's victory put Anaheim (23-20) percentage points ahead of Seattle in second place in the American League West, 1-1/2 games behind Texas.

``We had a great homestand,'' said Angels manager Terry Collins. ``There is no other way to put it. We played three (top-notch) teams and played well. These guys really picked it up and played hard. You can't even say more than that.

``It is nice to beat (Seattle) two out of three. We were behind them and we caught up.''

During the Angels' ambush:

Gary DiSarcina matched career-highs by getting four RBI and four hits.

In the second, Garret Anderson singled in the second to extend his career-high hitting streak to 16 games.

Jim Edmonds hit safely in his 10th straight game, getting three hits, including a two-run homer in the fifth.

Jack Howell and Craig Grebeck hit solo homers. Grebeck's last homer was on May 4, 1996 at Colorado.

Every Anaheim starter had at least one hit and one run scored.

The Angels' offensive outburst helped Chuck Finley (2-3) cruise to his second straight win. In seven innings, the left-hander struck out seven and allowed seven hits and three runs (all earned).

``I was basically not trying to get all wrapped up in the runs we were scoring,'' Finley said. ``I kind of just kept my mind on what we had to do.''

While Finley cruised, Dennis Martinez cringed.

The 42-year-old had a performance he would rather forget, and one that may have ended his stay with the Mariners.

In his eight previous starts, Martinez had just one victory and the Mariners were eager to take a peek at Triple-A pitcher Derek Lowe. After Wednesday's start, Martinez and Seattle manager Lou Piniella were expected to evaluate the pitcher's future.

In just 1-2/3 innings, Martinez surrendered a hefty seven runs (all earned) on seven hits and two walks.

After the game, Martinez said, ``I can still pitch.''

But Piniella plans to meet with the pitcher about his future with the club Friday at Kansas City.

``We'll just take (today) and not think about baseball,'' Piniella said.

Notes: Tim Salmon missed Wednesday's game to take care of a family problem, but he is expected to meet the team in Toronto and play on Friday. . . . Angels pitcher Mark Langston said he felt more mobility in his left elbow and the inflammation is going down. Langston will miss Saturday's start at Toronto. Either Dennis Springer or Shigetoshi Hasegawa will replace him Tuesday at Detroit. . . . Bill Robertson, Angels director of communications, said he was hopeful that the club will get a deal completed with a Spanish-language radio station before the All-Star break. . . . It was the second-most victories the Angels have had during the same homestand.

CAPTION(S):

2 Photos

Photo: (1--color) The Mariners' Jay Buhner is safe at home after knocking the ball out of the hands of catcher Jim Leyritz.

Associated Press

(2) MARTINEZ