After finishing fifth in the American League’s 2007 Rookie of the Year balloting, Angels outfielder Reggie Willits is being sent down to Triple-A Salt Lake. With a log jam in the outfield and just one at-bat this season, a two-run double filling against the Texas Rangers, the Angels made the move to discard from a position of strength to improve an area of need. In place of Willits, the Angels brought up reliever Alex Serrano from the same Pacific Coast League club.

“Reggie can use some at-bats to stay sharp,” said manager Mike Scioscia. “He’ll be back; he’s a valuable part of our club.”

Willits, who appeared in just five games this season, was reduced primarily to pinch-running and backing up in the outfield in the late innings. This was a major adjustment for Willits, who played a big role in the team’s run to the 2007 AL West title and set club rookie records with a .293 average and a .393 on-base percentage.

“It’s kind of hard to get any playing time with all the guys we have here,” Willits said in a interview with the team’s official web site. Willits was competing with veteran Juan Rivera for the fifth outfielder spot behind Guerrero, Garret Anderson, Torii Hunter and Gary Matthews Jr.

By calling up Serrano, the Angels are adding a right-handed middle reliever who performed well in Cactus League play. A 27-year-old native of Venezuela, Serrano was 2-0 with a 2.70 ERA in 6 2/3 innings for Salt Lake. Due to the heavy work load of Darren Oliver, Justin Speier and Scot Shields, there is a strong possibility that Serrano could be put into some key situations.

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