ANGELS INSIDE LOOK: A SEPTEMBER TO REMEMBER TOUGH STRETCH RUN FOR ANGELS VS. WEST TEAMS.

Byline: Jill Painter Staff Writer

ANAHEIM - Six games with Oakland and seven games with Texas should make for an eventful September for the Angels.

Or a tough one, at least that's the way Angels manager Mike Scioscia sees it.

The Angels have just two off days in September, when they will make trips to Boston, Cleveland, Oakland and Texas. Only 2 1/2 games separate Anaheim, Texas and Oakland in the AL West race.

``We're going to have to earn our way into the playoffs,'' Scioscia said. ``It's probably the toughest schedule of anybody. We'll have to earn our way through it. I like the challenge and I think we'll be ready for it ... I think you can point to Texas and Oakland and they'll say the same thing.''

The Angels appeared ready for the challenge as they swept the New York Yankees in New York last weekend. Then they returned to Angel Stadium for a six-game homestand, only to struggle to a 7-5 win over the hapless Kansas City Royals.

The consensus is that there's not just one thing the Angels must do to make the playoffs. It's everything. To have Jarrod Washburn back in the rotation and Troy Glaus back in the lineup, and both are expected soon, would clearly help.

``For us, it's all the little things, starting pitching and then if our offense puts pressure on the other team,'' said second baseman Adam Kennedy, a Cal State Northridge product. ``Those combinations are a good thing.''

Starting pitching is a strength for the A's, as is home-field advantage. Oakland, which had a half-game lead over the Angels before Tuesday's game, plays its final seven games at Network Associates Coliseum and the Angels are on the road. The Angels play the final three games of the regular season in Oakland and with such a tight three-team division race, that could be the defining series of the season.

Scoscia believes the Angels' schedule is perhaps the toughest down the stretch, but Oakland manager Ken Macha and Texas manager Buck Showalter could argue the same point. From Sept. 13 through the end of the season, AL West teams Oakland, Anaheim, Seattle and Texas play each other.

Pitching matchups will be interesting, especially if Oakland 17-game winner Mark Mulder starts when the teams play. The Angels pitching staff is so good, Scioscia has a predicament any manager would love. He'll have to decide who to take out of the rotation when Washburn (strained ligament) returns, most likely September 5. John Lackey, Bartolo Colon and Washburn all have at least 10 wins. Plus, there's Kelvim Escobar, Ramon Ortiz and Aaron Sele.

Then there's the prospect of the return of Glaus, who's on a rehabilitation assignment surprisingly soon since shoulder surgery, this time as the team's designated hitter. If Glaus is swinging the bat like he's capable, the Angels' heart of the order with Vladimir Guerrero, Garret Anderson and Jose Guillen will be awfully impressive.

Anderson believes the Angels must be clicking in all phases of the game in order to make the playoffs. That's how they won the World Series in 2002, as a wild-card entrant.

``Starting pitching, hitting, defense - you can't leave anything out when you're talking about championships,'' Anderson said. ``You can't win without doing all of those things.''

Jill Painter, [phone]

jill.painter(at)dailynews.com

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Season-long strong play from Vladimir Guerrero, above, has helped keep Angels in postseason contention.

Ric Francis/Associated Press