Escobar Hopes to Put Off Surgery

Pitcher Kelvim Escobar acknowledged Wednesday that he would need surgery at some point to shave down the bone spur in the back of his elbow, but the right-hander plans to pitch as long as he can in hopes of holding off on surgery until after the season.

Escobar, who has been on the disabled list twice this season, threw a 35-pitch simulated game to Angel hitters Wednesday, and barring any setbacks, he will be activated Saturday to pitch against Kansas City. He will probably be limited to about 80 pitches.

“I feel good, but the bigger test is Saturday because a real game and a simulated game are definitely different,” Escobar said. “There’s 40,000 fans, a lot of adrenaline.”

If Escobar suffers another setback Saturday, he wouldn’t rule out the possibility of immediate surgery, which would knock him out for at least six weeks. “Hopefully, I won’t have to do it during the season,” he said. “But sooner or later, I will have to.”

When Escobar returns, rookie Ervin Santana, who threw a five-hit shutout to beat the White Sox on Monday night, will probably head back to the minor leagues.

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Cuban defector Kendry Morales may not be at Class-A Rancho Cucamonga for long. Morales went four for six with a game-tying home run in the ninth inning Tuesday night and was batting .474 (nine for 19) with two homers and six runs batted in in his first four games, a performance that could soon earn him a promotion.

-- Mike DiGiovanna