ANGELS NOTEBOOK: QUITE SIMPLY STATED, ERSTAD 'INCREDIBLE' SCIOSCIA SEES HIM AS TOP MVP CANDIDATE.

Byline: Joe Haakenson Staff Writer

SAN DIEGO - Manager Mike Scioscia is always full of praise when talking about his players, but when it comes to Darin Erstad, Scioscia can't say enough.

``When I say incredible, it's incredible,'' he said. ``What he's done is incredible.''

Erstad is on pace to put up many record-breaking numbers, but none is as prestigious as the single-season hits record. George Sisler had 257 hits in 1920 for the St. Louis Browns. Erstad has 155, on pace for 267.

The most hits by a player in the 1990s was 227 by Lance Johnson of the New York Mets in 1996. The last player with 240 hits was Wade Boggs in 1985 for Boston. The last player with 250 hits was Bill Terry of the New York Giants in 1930.

``I've seen Tony Gwynn from a distance, but I've never seen first-hand anybody hit .380 for this long,'' Scioscia said. ``You put together every part of his game and he's the leading candidate for MVP. I can't see how he could be overlooked.

``Some guys have more RBI, some guys have more home runs, one guy is hitting for a higher average. Nobody plays a better defensive left field. When you package it together, nobody means more to his club than Darin Erstad.''

--Hasegawa stands out: Shigetoshi Hasegawa has probably been the best reliever in what has been a solid bullpen this season. He is 6-2 with two saves and an ERA of 4.40. He leads the pitchers with 40 appearances, and in his past nine outings he is 1-0 with a 0.57 ERA and 16 strikeouts.

``This guy is resilient,'' Scioscia said. ``He's evolved to where he is flexible. He can pitch middle relief or be a set-up guy. His stuff is very, very good to be a set-up man. And the good thing about Shige is he can get the last out of the sixth and still get you to (closer Troy) Percival (for the ninth inning).''

--Salmon set to return: Right fielder Tim Salmon had a cortisone injection in his left shoulder Monday and remained in Anaheim. He is expected to be in the lineup tonight against Texas at Edison Field.

Salmon has an inflamed left shoulder, which he aggravated Sunday in San Diego when trying to make a sliding catch.

After missing the past two games, Salmon has now missed only four of the club's 94 games this season.

--Minding their own business: The Angels finished 12-6 in interleague games this season, but Scioscia said it doesn't matter much at this point in the season whether they are playing National League teams or American League teams.

``We're still a long way away from scoreboard watching,'' he said. ``It still comes down to realizing these games have a bearing on the outcome of your season. It still doesn't matter who you're playing or where you're playing, it's how you're playing. If you're playing well, you can go into a visiting ballpark and beat good pitchers like Kevin Brown and Matt Clement. That's still our focus right now.''