ANGELS FIND A WAY WASHBURN BRINGS ORDER TO PITCHING STAFF IN CHAOS ANGELS 6, KANSAS CITY 4.

Byline: Joe Haakenson Staff Writer

ANAHEIM - It was a typical night in Anaheim on Friday, with another Angels pitcher going to the disabled list and the offense slamming four home runs.

The difference, though, was the performance by starting pitcher Jarrod Washburn in the Angels' 6-4 victory over the Kansas City Royals before 26,561 at Edison Field.

Jason Dickson was the latest pitcher to land on the disabled list, making his second trip there because of a strained left hip. Troy Glaus hit two homers, and Garret Anderson and Tim Salmon each hit one.

Troy Percival pitched the ninth for his 11th save, but it was all set up by Washburn.

Washburn (1-1) gave up four runs (three earned) in 6 1/3 innings. It was significant because it was the first quality start (six or more innings, three earned runs or fewer) by a starter other than Kent Bottenfield since April 26 (Scott Schoeneweis).

Other than Bottenfield, the Angels rotation has been a mess, as injuries have torn the staff apart. Ken Hill, Kent Mercker and now Dickson are on the DL. Ramon Ortiz is in the minors trying to find his control.

``Getting him to pitch into the seventh inning effectively was big,'' manager Mike Scioscia said. ``It was the right timing. We've gone through a lot of guys in the bullpen.''

Washburn himself was injured earlier this year and started the season in the minors. Friday's start was only his second of the season with the big club.

``To me, every start is equally important,'' Washburn said. ``I don't look at it any differently if guys are going down or not.''

Washburn admits he sometimes has a tendency to overthrow, but he needs to make an impression on Scioscia, who hasn't seen him pitch much when healthy.

``He really hasn't seen me pitch so he's got to go off things he's heard,'' Washburn said. ``I have to prove to him I can pitch. I know I can and I think he knows, too.''

The Angels got a big boost from the bullpen as well Friday. Shigetoshi Hasegawa retired all five batters he faced and Percival got the save despite giving up two hits in the ninth.

A key play in the ninth came when the Royals had runners on second and third with one out. Johnny Damon hit a chopper down the line at third, where Glaus fielded the ball and caught Mark Quinn leaning too far off the bag. A rundown ensued and Quinn was tagged out for the second out. Jorge Fabregas flied out and the game was over.

``That was just like a game of pickle in your backyard,'' Glaus said.

Glaus spent much of Friday night playing pepper with the relievers in the bullpen beyond the left-field fence. Home runs Nos. 12 and 13 tied Mo Vaughn for the team lead. Glaus and Vaughn are on a pace for 50. No player in Angels history has ever hit 40.

When asked about a competition with Vaughn, Glaus looked out of the corner of his eye at Vaughn and answered: ''Don't say that. . . . We'll say stuff just joking around, but it's nothing serious.''

The Angels took a 3-0 lead, getting two runs in the second inning when Anderson tripled and Glaus followed with his first homer of the night. Anderson made it 3-0 with a solo homer (No. 9) in the fourth.

Meanwhile, Washburn had everything working early, retiring the first 10 batters he faced before Jeff Reboulet's one-out single in the fourth inning. Washburn worked his way out of that inning unscathed, but he wasn't so fortunate in the fifth.

Carlos Beltran homered to start the inning and the Royals added two more runs to tie the game at 3. An error by shortstop Benji Gil led to another run in the sixth, but a big throw by Salmon in right stopped the Royals from scoring more.

With runners on first and second and nobody out, Quinn hit a fly ball into the right-field corner where Tim Salmon made the catch. Joe Randa tagged from second and reached third on the play, but Salmon's throw to second was on the money to nail Beltran, who slid past the bag trying to go from first to second.

In the bottom of the sixth, Salmon turned a 4-3 deficit into a 5-4 lead with a two-run homer, his 10th of the season.

``You hear everyone say he's struggling, he's struggling,'' Scioscia said of Salmon, who is hitting .245, ``but he just hit his 10th home run. When he gets hot and puts it together, he's going to be where he should be at the end.''

Royals starter and former Crespi High star Jeff Suppan (1-4) got the loss.

ANGELS vs. KANSAS CITY

Time: 7:05 p.m., at Edison Field

TV/Radio: Fox Sports Net; KMPC-AM (1540), KIK-FM (94.3), XPRS-AM (1090)

Matchup: Al Levine (1-0, 3.03 ERA) will make his first start of the season for Anaheim. Levine is replacing Jason Dickson, who was placed on the disabled list Friday. Levine will become the eighth pitcher to start a game for the Angels this season. Mac Suzuki (1-0, 3.86) will start for Kansas City.

- Joe Haakenson

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Box: Angels vs. Kansas City (see text)