ANGELS FINALLY SHOW SPARKS; PITCHER IS SCORCHING IN VICTORY, WHILE TEAM SUFFERS AGAIN AT PLATE : ANGELS 2, MINNESOTA 1.

Byline: Joe Haakenson Staff Writer

Angels pitcher Steve Sparks' knuckleball danced and darted so much Sunday night it made the Minnesota Twins look like, well, the Angels.

Sparks pitched no-hit ball for six innings before giving up a single to Terry Steinbach leading off the seventh. He gave up an unearned run in the eighth, but the Angels held on for a 2-1 victory before 24,045 at Edison Field.

The win was only the Angels' third in 17 games since the All-Star break.

The Angels offense was the same ol' thing despite efforts by manager Terry Collins to shake up the lineup. Mo Vaughn moved down to fifth in the lineup and Darin Erstad moved down to sixth.

Erstad had two hits, including his ninth homer of the season, but Vaughn went 0 for 3.

Still, because of the way Sparks pitched, Erstad's homer and Troy Glaus' RBI single in the second inning were enough.

Sparks made just 66 pitches through six innings, allowing three baserunners - two walks and a hit batter. But on his 67th pitch, Steinbach hit a sharp single up the middle to spoil the no-hit bid.

``Yeah, I was thinking about it,'' Sparks said. ``After five innings, I thought maybe, but, first and foremost, we were up by only one run.''

Steinbach, though, was erased on a double play and Sparks took a one-hitter into the eighth. Chad Allen got the Twins' second and final hit of the game with one out; Marty Cordova followed with a walk.

That brought out pitching coach Dick Pole to the mound, and whatever he said seemed to work. Sparks got pinch-hitter Torii Hunter to hit a chopper to Glaus at third, which should have been an inning-ending double play.

But Glaus bobbled the ball and had no play, allowing the Twins to load the bases with just one out. Sparks got out of it cheaply enough, allowing a sacrifice fly to Denny Hocking before getting Todd Walker on a comebacker to end the inning.

Troy Percival pitched the ninth to earn his 24th save. Sparks (5-7) gave up one unearned run and two hits in eight innings, beating Twins starter Joe Mays (4-4).

``I think it's the best game he's pitched all season,'' Collins said of Sparks. ``The use of his knuckleball was the best I've seen it. He slowed it down and threw it soft, and he threw it hard. And he threw both for strikes.''

Sparks, with the help of Pole, changed his mechanics since his last start, when he didn't make it out of the fifth inning despite a 6-1 lead. Sparks changed his delivery so that instead of a lot of arm action used by most pitchers, Sparks threw the ball as one would throw a dart.

``I take the ball out of my glove by my right ear and push it toward the plate,'' Sparks said. ``I don't feel like I pitched. It almost feels like I played soft-toss catch.''

Sparks said another key was changing speeds with the knuckleball. He threw it slowly early in the game, then mixed up speeds in the middle and late innings.

He acknowledged that even though the season is lost as far as the team is concerned, there are players who are playing for employment in 2000.

``There are a lot of people whose future is uncertain for next year, myself included,'' Sparks said. ``I'm very disappointed in how I've pitched. Mostly not pitching a lot of innings. That's where my value lies. It helps guys get the proper rest and doesn't expend the bullpen.''

Sparks handed the ball over to Percival to start the ninth, which was a rarity of late. Sunday's save was his first since July 9.

``It's frustrating because you've got a weapon like that down there and you can't use him,'' Collins said. ``It's been tough on everybody.''

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Photo

PHOTO Angels' Orlando Palmeiro steals second base as Minnesota shortstop Denny Hocking attempts the tag Sunday in the first inning.

John Hayes/Associated Press