ANGELS UPDATE: GLAUS' DAYS IN ANAHEIM ARE OVER.

Byline: Gabe Lacques Staff Writer

The Angels and third baseman Troy Glaus have parted ways, the club ready to hand its third base job to young, talented and inexpensive Dallas McPherson and spend its money elsewhere this offseason. In so doing, they have bid farewell to their 2002 World Series MVP and single-season home run leader, who could command an eight-figure salary on the free-agent market.

When general manager Bill Stoneman called Glaus' agent, Mike Nicotera, on Friday, it was the first contact they'd had since February. So it came as little surprise to Nicotera that Stoneman informed him the Angels will anoint McPherson their new third baseman and pursue a center fielder, starting pitcher and possibly a middle infielder via trade or free agency.

``Was it something he was prepared for? Absolutely,'' Nicotera said of Glaus, who is vacationing out of the country. ``It's not acrimonious at all. He's got close friends there. He knew this was one of the ways this could go. He's proud of what he's accomplished and what that group of guys did, but the idea of being a free agent is important to him, too.''

Glaus, 28, is fourth on the Angels' all-time home run list with 182 and hit a franchise-record 47 in 2000, one of his three All-Star seasons. But his past two seasons were cut short by shoulder injuries, and the club was disappointed when he opted to undergo shoulder surgery last May.

He returned by late August after missing 97 games and hit seven homers in September. Glaus, who attended Carlsbad High, UCLA and lives in Corona, would have preferred re-signing here.

But Glaus, who made $9.95 million last season, could command upwards of $50 million on the open market. McPherson will make just more than $300,000 next season and is the consensus minor-league player of the year after hitting 43 homers at Double-A, Triple-A and with the Angels.

Although there are concerns with his defense and strikeouts, Stoneman summed him up in two words.

``He's ready,'' Stoneman said. ``He'll be low salaried for a while. It was a case of having someone who's ready, and a need to allocate resources to make our club better.''

Stoneman said he discussed with Nicotera whether Glaus would be willing to play first or designated hitter, as the Angels weren't convinced he could withstand playing third for the long term. Stoneman said they indicated ``loud and clear that he wanted to be a third baseman.''

So the Angels instead will make a run at multitalented center fielder Carlos Beltran or explore a trade possibility for Toronto's Vernon Wells, among others. They'd like to trade Jose Guillen, move Garret Anderson back to left field and, if Chone Figgins moves to center, likely would need a middle infielder as insurance for Adam Kennedy, recovering from reconstructive knee surgery.

Nicotera said several clubs already were in contact about Glaus.