Colon Lacks a Certain Quality

It would be asking too much of Bartolo Colon to throw a shutout against the New York Yankees, a team with a $183-million payroll that still has one of baseball’s most lethal lineups, even though it’s not totally clicking offensively.

It would not be asking too much of the Angel right-hander to provide a quality start, which he failed to do Thursday night, when he was rocked for six runs and nine hits, including two home runs, in five innings in the Angels’ 6-2 loss to the Yankees in front of a sellout crowd of 43,810 in Angel Stadium.

No one expects Colon to carry the Angels, though his 5-foot-11, 260-pound frame certainly seems built for heavy lifting.

But when you’re supposed to be the ace of the staff, and your injury-depleted offense has scored all of five runs in 43 innings through Thursday night, and you’re matched against formidable Yankee right-hander Mike Mussina, who allowed one run and seven hits in 7 2/3 innings to improve to 5-4, a step-up performance is required.

Isn’t this why the Angels gave Colon a four-year, $51-million deal last winter, to get a pitcher who could go toe to toe with another staff’s ace and keep his team in the game?

The Angels, in need of a front-of-the-rotation hammer, hoped Colon would deliver the extraordinary this season. What they got Thursday night -- and what they’ve received from Colon for the much of the last three weeks -- has been ordinary.

In his last five starts, Colon (4-3) has been roughed up for 24 earned runs and 33 hits, including six home runs, in 27 innings for an 8.00 ERA. A pitcher who routinely approaches 200 strikeouts per season has struck out 22 in his last five games.

Another concern for the Angels, who have lost three of four games: Colon was supposed to be an inning-eater -- he threw 242 of them last season for the Chicago White Sox -- but he’s lasted five innings or fewer in four of his last six starts.

“I feel bad because I’ve let the guys down,” Colon said through an interpreter. “... I haven’t been able to put it all together and do what I want for this team.”

Colon left his last start in Baltimore after five innings and 84 pitches because of lower-back stiffness, a condition he said contributed to control problems in a five-run, five-hit, four-walk performance. He said his back was a little tight Thursday, “but I can’t use it as an excuse. I actually felt a little better than last time.”

He walked one, but command of the strike zone was definitely an issue. Colon threw too many pitches that looked as fat as those beach balls that fell on the field during the game, and a veteran Yankee lineup feasted on the offerings.

Derek Jeter, who came in with a .187 average, an 0-for-17 slump and one hit in his last 26 at-bats, smashed a solo home run in the third inning for a 2-0 lead. Hideki Matsui followed Gary Sheffield’s fourth-inning single by driving a flat 88-mph pitch over the wall in dead center for a two-run home run and a 4-0 lead.

Alex Rodriguez singled with one out in the fifth and took third when Sheffield smoked a two-out double to left. Jorge Posada followed with a double to right for two more runs and a commanding 6-1 lead.

“If I had to attribute it to anything, it’s my location -- it’s bad,” Colon said. “If I’m high in the strike zone, I’m going to get hammered, and I was tonight.”

Echoed Manager Mike Scioscia: “Bartolo is struggling to get his pitches in good zones on a consistent basis. They got into a lot of hitting counts, and he never got a chance to take control of the game.”

Colon allowed only four earned runs in 22 innings in his first three starts but hasn’t looked the same since. His fastball, known to hit 98 mph in the eighth and ninth innings, topped out at 94 mph Thursday night and seems to have lost its consistent zip, though Scioscia doesn’t seem all that concerned.

“When he wants velocity, it’s there, so his arm is sound,” Scioscia said. “At the start of the season, he was throwing the ball about as well as we could expect. He’s had a run of games where he hasn’t been consistent, but when he gets on a roll, he can reel off some wins just like [Jarrod] Washburn has.

“Bart hasn’t pitched to his capabilities in his last few starts, but there’s nothing physical there that would make you concerned. He’ll find it, and that will be good for us in the long haul.”