Angels, Kennedy Stay Hot

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- The American League batting leaders, in order:

First, Mike Sweeney of the Kansas City Royals, a three-time All-Star.

Second, Bernie Williams of the New York Yankees, a five-time All-Star.

Third, Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners, the defending most valuable player.

And, fourth, Adam Kennedy of the Angels, a guy who can’t even get a full-time job.

Kennedy, the hottest hitter in the major leagues, cranked out three more hits and drove in the winning run Wednesday in the Angels’ 4-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. Kevin Appier won his fifth consecutive start, and the Angels jumped 3 1/2 games ahead of the Mariners in the wild-card derby.

The Angels (84-54) are 30 games over .500 for the first time in franchise history. They can lose as many as 14 of their last 24 games and still set a club record for victories in a season. The 1982 division champions won 93 games.

Kennedy is hitting .324 overall, .416 since Aug. 1 and .511 during his 12-game hitting streak.

“He’s, like, 20 for 15, or something like that,� Appier said. “It’s incredible.�

Not bad for a guy who platoons at second base with Benji Gil. The platoon is over, at least for a day. Kennedy is expected to start tonight, against Tampa Bay left-hander Joe Kennedy.

It’s about time. Kennedy hit .242 in 99 at-bats against left-handers last season, but he’s hitting .293 in 58 at-bats against them this season. Gil is hitting .274 against left-handers, in 73 at-bats.

Manager Mike Scioscia repeatedly stressed that Gil won playing time against left-handers last season more than Kennedy lost it, but a platoon by any other name still is a platoon. Kennedy bristled about the platoon last year but kept quiet and hit this year.

“The platoon thing, he could easily have had a bad attitude about that,� outfielder Darin Erstad said. “He took it to heart. He went out there to prove everybody wrong, and he’s done a great job.�

Said Kennedy: “I’ve always felt I could play like this. I got a little frustrated. Now I’m starting to play well on an everyday basis the past couple weeks, and at an important time.�

Kennedy figured prominently in the rally that moved the Angels another day closer to their first playoff berth in 16 years.

With the score tied 2-2 and one out in the seventh inning, Bengie Molina singled. Molina took second on a wild pitch, and Kennedy singled him home with the winning run. Kennedy then stole second, and David Eckstein singled him home with an insurance run. Eckstein had three hits too and is batting .412 during his 11-game hitting streak.

That hitting made a winner of Appier again. He gave up two runs and six hits, all singles, over seven innings. In his last five starts, Appier is 5-0 with a 1.09 earned-run average.

Scioscia told Kennedy that the surest way to more at-bats was better defense, and he took that to heart too, working with his double-play partner, Eckstein, and with infield coach Alfredo Griffin for endless hours during spring training. The Angels rank among the top three teams in the league in double plays, and only the Mariners have given up fewer unearned runs.

Kennedy, 26, is not the most valuable player in the league, but he might be the most improved. He has displayed dramatic gains on offense and defense in his third full season in the majors.

“You say improved, but he’s still young,� Erstad said. “He’s still getting comfortable in the big leagues. You have to find your groove, and he’s in the process of finding it.�

If he’s grooving with Williams, Sweeney and Ichiro, he’s pretty close to finding it.

“You try not to say ‘wow’ about it,� Kennedy said. “You see stuff in this game turn around quickly.

“Those guys are up there every year. It’s nice to be near the top, but I have to try to keep on like that.�