Orange County Register

Do you want the good news or the bad news first?

Good news — Erick Aybar is in the lineup today. Aybar took a pitch off his left hand last night but the swelling went down overnight and he was able to swing a bat and handle a glove today.

Bad news — Chone Figgins is probably headed to the DL after the game. Figgins is making slow progress in his recovery from a mild hamstring strain. But it has been a week since he was injured and there is no sign that he will be ready to play within the next few days.

The Angels can’t afford to continue with a short-handed roster so Figgins will go to the DL and they’ll reach down to Triple-A, most likely for hot-hitting Kendry Morales to fortify the bench.

Today’s lineup:

CF Gary Matthews Jr.

SS Erick Aybar

RF Vladimir Guerrero

DH Torii Hunter

LF Juan Rivera

C  Mike Napoli

1B Casey Kotchman

3B Brandon Wood

2B Sean Rodriguez

P Joe Saunders

 Saunders’ .724 winning percentage (21-8) in his first 40 starts as an Angel is the second-best in franchise history.  Two of his teammates are also in the top five:

John Candelaria — .759 (22-7)

Joe Saunders — .724 (21-8)

Jered Weaver — .704 (19-8)

Bert Blyleven — .692 (18-8)

Ervin Santana — .656 (21-11)

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