#20
- May 15, 1973: Nolan Ryan throws his first no-hitter
By
Ricardo Ramos, Angelswin.com Contributor
When
Nolan Ryan stepped on the mount at Royals Stadium
on May 15, 1973, none of the 12,205 in attendance
could have had any clue they were about to witness
history. Ryan, after all, was coming off a terrible
start in which he gave up five runs to the White
Sox, failing to get out of the first inning (0.1
IP, 4 H, 5 ER).
His
next start, however, could not have been any
different. On this night, Ryan was special, recording
the first of his seven career no-hitters.
Before
he threw his first pitch, Ryan's teammates had
already staked him to a 2-0 lead. He then started
off his night by striking out the side in the
bottom of the first. Ryan would strike out at
least one Royals hitter per inning, save for
the fifth, fanning a dozen altogether.
Ryan,
who despite his strikeout dominance, was always
capable of painting himself into a corner with
bases on balls, avoided trouble all night, spreading
his three walks out over the first, third and
eighth innings. In fact, Ryan was so overpowering
that third baseman Al Gallagher, left fielder
Vada Pinson and shortstop Rudy Meoli fielded
only two balls between the three of them, both
by Meoli.
With
the Angels leading, 3-0, Ryan faced the top of
the Kansas City order in the ninth. Shortstop
Freddie Patek fouled out to first and right fielder
Steve Hovley struck out. That brought outfielder
Amos Otis to the plate. Angels announcer Don
Drysdale made the call:
"The
one strike pitch, high fly ball, this could do
it. Barry going back, to the warning track, to
the wall, MAKES THE CATCH! … Nolan Ryan
has pitched his first no-hitter of his career!"
Telling
that Drysdale specifically called it Ryan's first,
as if it was inevitable there would be others
- which of course, there would be.
"From
the sixth inning on, I was given a lot of space
in the dugout." Ryan said after the game, "The
Angels believed in the old saying: Don't bother
a pitcher who's got the no-hitter going. Don't
even talk to him."
Ryan
became the first Angels right-hander to throw
a no-hitter and it was the first no-hitter thrown
at Royals Stadium, which had only opened the
previous month.
"I
never honestly felt I was the type of pitcher
to pitch a no-hitter," Ryan said. "My
curveball isn't overpowering and after you've
gone through the lineup once or twice, the hitters
can get on the fastball better. A lot of that
is timing. I don't have the type of fastball
that really moves. A lot of guys have that explosive
type of fastball that really moves. Also, I jam
the hitters a lot so the really strong guys can
bloop it over the infield for singles."
One
wonders if you'd have told him then he'd throw
six more, would he have believed it?
Nolan
Ryan no-hitter trivia: Angels second baseman
Sandy Alomar made the first out of this game.
18 years later, his son Roberto Alomar struck
out to end Ryan's seventh no-hitter.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/KCA/KCA197305150.shtml
#19
- Aug. 18, 2000: Erstad is 'incredible'
By
Geoff Bilau, Angelswin.com Senior Editor
Few
who are familiar with recent Angels history would
be surprised that the man at the center of the
team's most memorable comeback of the 2000 season
was Darin Erstad. Even though his teammates were
hitting home runs at a record pace, there was
never any question about who was that season's
MVP.
And
no game better illustrated the magic of that
year than this shocker in the Bronx.
Early
on, it was like so many Angels/Yankees games
of the past, with the Angels scoring one run
and the Yankees answering with two. And two more.
And two more. After the sixth inning, New York
led, 8-3, and Roger Clemens found his groove,
retiring the Angels in order in the seventh and
eighth.
And
though he'd already thrown 119 pitches, Clemens
came out for the ninth. Singles by Troy Glaus
and Bengie Molina sent him to the showers, however,
and reliever Jeff Nelson was summoned to quell
this minor uprising. Nelson retired Adam Kennedy
on a flyout, but walked Kevin Stocker to load
the bases, convincing Joe Torre to go to his
bullpen ace, Mariano Rivera. And when Erstad
hit into a fielder's choice at third, the Angels
gained a run, but were now down to their last
out against the game's premier closer.
But
then the Angels grabbed a bit of that Yankee
Stadium "mystique and aura" for themselves
when Orlando Palmeiro laced a double into right
field to score Stocker and cut the Yankees lead
to 8-5. Two pitches later, Mo Vaughn launched
an 0-1 Rivera cutter into the upper deck in right
field, tying the game and bringing the Angels
all the way back from an 8-3 ninth inning deficit.
"Until
the game is over, you keep battling," Erstad
said. "How many times are you going to see
that kind of comeback in your career, against
one of the best pitchers ever and one of the
best closers in the game? That's why we play
until the last out."
The
Yankees didn't quit, either, and appeared poised
to snatch back the victory in the bottom of the
tenth when pinch runner Luis Polonia reached
third with two outs and Derek Jeter was intentionally
walked in favor of Jorge Posada. Posada smashed
a drive into the left-center gap that had walk-off
written all over it. Somehow, Erstad, motoring
from over near the left field line, managed to
get close enough to make a full-extension dive
on the ball already past him, reaching out and
hauling it in before crashing violently onto
the outfield grass.
"I
thought it split the gap when he hit it," Angels
manager Mike Scioscia said. "All I can say
is incredible."
Many
Yankees had already spilled out of the dugout
to celebrate, most then lingering in amazement
that they had not just won the game.
"I
thought the game was over," Clemens said. "That
was one of the top three catches I've seen in
my years in the game."
Instead
the Angels players were the ones celebrating,
greeting Erstad in foul territory and mobbing
him in the dugout.
"They
wouldn't leave me alone, and I'm like, 'I've
got to go hit, leave me alone,'" Erstad
said.
Due
up second in the eleventh, the Erstad Show was
primed for an encore. After Stocker's failed
bunt attempt, Erstad lofted a Mike Stanton offering
high into right field and just over the fence
to give the Angels a 9-8 lead. The Yankees went
1-2-3 in the bottom half and the Angels won a
game they twice seemed sure to lose.
"Posada
smoked that ball," Erstad said of his catch
in the tenth. "It was just one of those
things. You just react and let your ability take
over."
Whether
it was ability, luck, grit or some combination
of all three, Erstad's 2000 season is arguably
the greatest offensive (and defensive) performance
in franchise history. He batted .355 with 240
hits (No. 13 all-time), 121 runs scored, 39 doubles,
six triples, 25 home runs, 28 stolen bases and
an unprecedented 100 RBI, all from the leadoff
spot, the first player ever to reach the century
mark from the top of the order.
He
was eighth in the A.L. MVP voting and won a Silver
Slugger award.
In
a word, Erstad in 2000 was incredible.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYA/NYA200008180.shtml
#18
- June 10, 1997: Jim Edmonds makes "The
Catch."
By
Geoff Bilau, Angelswin.com Senior Editor
Jim
Edmonds' catch in Kansas City won't be remembered
because it contributed to a division championship
or turned the momentum of a postseason series.
It did neither. It won't even be remembered because
it helped win a game - which it incidentally
did; the Angels defeated the Royals, 6-2, that
night.
No, "The
Catch" will be remembered quite simply because
it was an unforgettable display of physical prowess
that might never be duplicated.
In
the fifth inning of a 1-1 tie at Kauffman Stadium,
David Howard came to the plate with two on and
two outs. Howard lined a Jason Dickson fastball
to straightaway center field on a frozen rope.
Edmonds, who always played a shallow center,
turned, put his head down and charged back to
where his instincts told him the ball might land.
As
the ball sailed over his head, Edmonds threw
his body in the air and blindly reached out his
gloved hand as far as he could and, as Angels
television broadcaster Steve Physioc called it …
"A
long run for Jim Edmonds … OH, HE MADE A
CATCH! UNBELIEVABLE!"
Edmonds
wound up on the edge of the warning track, rolling
onto his back with his legs in the air, left
hand reaching up to display the ball.
"I
looked up and saw it come over the bill of my
cap and thought I might as well lay out for this
one, the game's on the line here," said
Edmonds, who doubled home the go-ahead run in
the ensuing inning. "I heard (Tim) Salmon
screaming and I saw Luis (Alicea) throw his glove
up in the air and (Gary) DiSarcina had a blank
look on his face.
"I'm
thinking, 'Man, I got the ball in my hand. Is
there something else I've got to do?' I had to
sit there for a second and think about it."
What
everybody else thought about it was they'd never
seen anything like it.
"That
was one of the greatest plays ever," veteran
umpire Dave Phillips told the Kansas City Star. "That
made Willie Mays' play look routine."
"It's
one of the greatest catches I've ever seen, and
95 percent of the guys in here will tell you
that," Howard said. "People don't just
dive on their face with their back to the infield
as they're heading into the wall."
"The
angle of the ball directly over his head, diving
away from home plate … tells you what a
great player this guy is," Angels manager
Terry Collins said. "He's a brilliant outfielder."
The
play helped Edmonds net the first of two Gold
Glove Awards he'd win for the Angels. He won
six more playing for the St. Louis Cardinals.
USA
Today in 2002 ranked the catch as the third-most
amazing play of all-time, behind Mays' 1954 World
Series grab and Ozzie Smith's barehanded magic
in 1978.
#17
- Sept. 27, 1973: Ryan strikes out 383 to pass
Koufax
By
Geoff Bilau, Angelswin.com Senior Editor
Heading
into his final start of the 1973 season, Nolan
Ryan had already accomplished more than most
pitchers these days can claim in two or three
seasons.
38
starts. 25 complete games. Four shutouts. 20
victories. 22 games with 10 or more strikeouts.
Heck, he even recorded a save, pitching the final
two innings a day after the shortest start of
his career (0.1 inning) to secure an Angels 6-5
victory on May 12.
And,
oh yeah, he also tossed two no-hitters, on May
15 and July 15.
With
all of that already under his belt, it seems
almost absurd that Ryan saved his best for last.
You see, while he was ringing up all of those
strikeouts, they were adding up to something
potentially very special.
During
his first five September starts (all complete
game victories), Ryan struck out 53 batters,
giving him 367 strikeouts for the year - 15 shy
of Sandy Koufax's Major League record 382 in
1965.
Nursing
a torn calf muscle, Ryan took the Anaheim Stadium
mound in front of just 9,100 fans looking to
make history one more time in 1973. When the
Twins immediately jumped out to a 3-0 first inning
lead, it didn't seem likely he'd stick around
long enough to collect the requisite strikeouts
- though he did fan the side in the inning.
The
Angels answered with three in the bottom of the
first and Ryan had new life. Through five innings,
he had 11 strikeouts and the Angels led, 4-3.
In the sixth, the Twins pushed across the tying
run, which would prove fortuitous for Ryan later
in the night.
In
the seventh, he again struck out the side, giving
him 14 strikeouts, one shy of tying Koufax. But
he'd also walked six batters, allowed seven hits
and was piling up a lot of pitches on an aching
leg. In the eighth, Ryan struck out Steve Brye
to end the inning, tying Koufax with No. 382.
After
nine innings, the game remained tied, 4-4, with
Ryan stalled at 15 punchouts. And when he pitched
a scoreless 10th, sandwiching a fly ball between
two groundouts, fans wondered if he had enough
left for one more inning.
With
reliever Steve Barber warming in the bullpen,
the Angels went 1-2-3 in the bottom of the inning.
Announcer Dick Enberg made the call.
"The
crowd is standing in anticipation, watching the
bullpen gate," Enberg said, pausing in his
own anticipation. "And here he comes!"
Ryan
jumped ahead of Brye, 1-2, but the center fielder
grounded out to short. Ryan's body language couldn't
disguise his fatigue or his frustration.
"Ryan
now is like the heavyweight fighter with a knockout
punch that has gone so many rounds that he has
his opponent staggering and staggering but doesn't
have enough left to deliver that one blow that
will knock him to the canvas and put him away," Enberg
said. "He's getting the two strikes on hitters,
but can't get the third."
Next
up was Rod Carew, who struck out only 55 times
in 1973, though three of them came earlier in
this game. Carew drew a walk, Ryan's seventh
of the game, bringing manager Bobby Winkles to
the mound. The crowd bristled, but Enberg was
unfazed.
"He
is going to let Nolan Ryan pitch as long as he
wants," Enberg said.
During
Tony Oliva's at-bat, Carew broke for second,
drawing a throw - and a gasp from the crowd,
which did not him to be thrown out, thus robbing
Ryan of an opportunity for the 16th strikeout.
Carew was safe. Oliva, however, flew out to center
field, bringing up light hitting Rich Reese,
who'd pinch run for Harmon Killebrew in the ninth.
"You
can feel through the crowd a vibration saying,
'Maybe this is the guy,' " Enberg said.
Reese
swung and missed at Ryan's first two pitches,
another two-strike opportunity for the right-hander.
On Ryan's 0-2 pitch…
"Swung
on and missed! Nolan Ryan is the Major League
strikeout king of all time! He walks off the
mound, his teammates come over to greet him one
by one, the fans stand cheering.
"Ladies
and gentlemen, we have seen one of the finest
young men to ever wear a baseball uniform record
one of the most incredible records in Major League
history. Three hundred and eighty-three for Nolan
Ryan!
"Fans
are shaking hands with each other as if they're
all part of this great night, as if to say, 'Yes,
we saw it. We saw it all.' "
With
their ace now the strikeout king, the Angels
rewarded Ryan with the victory when pinch hitter
Richie Scheinblum doubled home Tommy McCraw with
the game-winner in the bottom of the 11th.
Ryan
finished 1973 with a 21-16 record, 2.87 ERA and
finished second in Cy Young Award voting to Jim
Palmer. But it was the last pitch he threw that
season that remains his most memorable.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CAL/CAL197309270.shtml
#16
- Sept. 30, 1984: Witt produces perfection
By
Kurt Swanson, Angelswin.com Contributor
On
the final day of the 1984 season, the Angels
found themselves playing out the string, division
also-rans to the Kansas City Royals. They would
wrap the season in Arlington, facing the last
place Rangers in front of a small crowd of 8,375.
Angels
starting pitcher Mike Witt came into the game
with a record of 14-11 after going 7-14 the previous
season. Even before this game, 1984 had been
a breakout season for the lanky right-hander
as he'd doubled his win total from each of the
previous three seasons and already enjoyed a
16-strikeout performance against the Seattle
Mariners on July 23.
Witt,
who made his Angels debut at 20 in 1981, had
a great curveball and fastball, and was able
to change speeds effectively with both. From
1984-1987, Witt led the Angels in victories,
starts, complete games, strikeouts and innings
pitched. In his best season, 1986, Witt won 18
games with a 2.84 ERA, finishing third to Roger
Clemens and Teddy Higuera in A.L. Cy Young voting.
Unlikely
as it seemed at the time, his last start of 1984
would prove to be the gem of Witt's career.
Witt
and Texas knuckleballer Charlie Hough were locked
up in a scoreless pitcher's duel through six
innings. Hough had allowed the Angels just three
hits, but Witt was quite a bit better. He was
perfect, retiring all 18 batters he faced.
In
the seventh, the Angels broke the deadlock with
an unearned run scored on Reggie Jackson's fielder's
choice. Witt retired the Rangers again in order
in the seventh and eighth and took the mound
for the ninth having fanned nine batters. The
sparse crowd at Arlington Stadium rose to its
feet and cheered as Witt went to work.
A
first pitch strike to Tom Dunbar put his nerves
at ease.
"When
I walked out there for the ninth," Witt
said, "I was as nervous as I was in my first
big league game. But once I threw that first
strike, I got right back into it."
Two
more pitches and Dunbar was quickly strikeout
No. 10, but more importantly out No. 25. Pinch
hitter Bobby Jones hit a routine grounder to
Rob Wilfong at second for No. 26. And on a 1-1
pitch to pinch hitter Marv Foley, Witt got another
easy grounder to Wilfong, who tossed it to Bobby
Grich at first for the final out - and baseball
immortality for Witt.
"It
probably won't be until tomorrow and the next
day, and every day this winter, that I'll be
saying to myself, "Hey, I did that," Witt
said after the game. "I mean, to get 27
straight batters out is unbelievable. For me
to be able to say it is unbelievable."
Witt's
perfecto is the only such game pitched on the
final day of the regular season and only the
second no-hitter with that distinction. (Four
Oakland A's - Vida Blue, Glenn Abbott, Paul Lindblad
and Rollie Fingers - combined to no-hit the Angels
on Sept. 28, 1975.)
The
game took just one hour and 49 minutes to complete
and Witt needed only 94 pitches to finish it,
70 of them strikes.
Witt
was an All-Star in 1986 and 1987 and had the
Angels within one strike of the World Series
in 1986. He combined with Mark Langston on April
11, 1990, to throw the most recent no-hitter
in Angels history, becoming the only pitcher
to participate in a collective no-hitter while
also throwing his own.
Witt
ranks third all-time in Angels victories (109),
fifth in games (314) and third in innings (1,965.1)
and strikeouts (1,283).
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/TEX/TEX198409300.shtml
#15
- Oct. 11, 2009: Vlad Finishes Some Business
By Geoff Bilau - AngelsWin.com Senior Editor
It was a moment almost exactly 23 years in the
making and the principle players couldn't have
been dreamed up any better:
Angels and Red Sox. Fenway Park and October. Vladimir
Guerrero and Jonathan Papelbon.
So much history between the two teams, almost
all of it favoring Boston. Recently it was the
ALDS sweeps in 2004 and 2007 and the gut-wrenching
walk-off hits in those series and again in 2008.
All of those, of course, were merely aftershocks
to the debacle that was the 1986 ALCS, specifically
Game 5 on Oct. 12, 1986.
Anybody
with more than a passing interest in Angels baseball
understands that what happened in the
ninth inning of Game 3 of the 2009 ALDS wasn't
just a clutch hit off a dominant closer. It was
the hit many fans had wanted to see for more than
two decades — dare I say it was the hit they
needed to see.
Though the Angels had already jumped out to a
commanding 2-0 series lead on the strength of dominant
pitching performances by John Lackey and Jered
Weaver in Games 1 and 2 in Anaheim, no Angels fan
took a series victory for granted. How could they
after all that had happened in the past?
And when the Red Sox, back home in their comfy
bandbox, roughed up Scott Kazmir and took a 5-2
lead into the eight inning of Game 3, Angels fans
were already fast forwarding to Game 5 and Josh
Beckett.
Red Sox reliever Billy Wagner, however, allowed
the Angels to mount a threat in the eighth, forcing
Boston manager Terry Francona to summon Papelbon
for a four-out save. In 26 postseason innings,
the Red Sox closer had not allowed a single run.
But with runners on second and third, Juan Rivera
drove Papelbon's first pitch to right field, drawing
the Angels to within one, 5-4.
All hope seemed to die moments later, however,
when pinch runner Reggie Willits was picked off
first base to end the inning and the Red Sox added
an insurance run in the bottom half of the inning.
Papelbon made quick work of Maicer Izturis and
pinch hitter Gary Matthews Jr. to start the ninth
and Game 4 seemed assured. But Erick Aybar, 2008
ALDS goat, lined an 0-2 Papelbon offering into
center field to keep the Angels alive. Chone Figgins,
in the midst of a horrible series (0-12) worked
a seven-pitch walk.
When Bobby Abreu slapped a 1-2 pitch over left
fielder Jason Bay's head, the Fenway crowd grew
so quiet the sound of the ball slamming into the
Green Monster echoed throughout the stadium. Aybar
scored, the Angels trailed, 6-5, and Game 1 hero
Torii Hunter was due up.
Francona
elected to walk Hunter and load the bases for
Guerrero. The face of the Angels franchise
for much of the most successful period in team
history was no longer the same "Super Vlad," injuries
and age sapping much of his power and presence.
A likely free agent at season's end, there was
every indication this might be Guerrero's last
hurrah with the Angels.
To nobody's surprise, Guerrero swung at Papelbon's
first pitch, a knee-high 95 mph fastball, and served
into into center field, where it dropped in front
of a fast-charging Jacoby Ellsbury. Figgins and
Abreu scored, giving the Angels a 7-6 lead, and
Guerrero stood safe at first base with the biggest
hit of his postseason career.
Papelbon walked off the Fenway Park mound to a
chorus of boos.
A few minutes later, Brian Fuentes retired Boston
in order in the bottom of the ninth and the Angels
completed an unbelievable series sweep of the Red
Sox.
Though
they would succumb to the eventual World Champion
Yankees, 4-2, in the ALCS (though not
before providing two more memorable victories),
there was undoubtedly a sense that the Angels had
indeed completed some "unfinished business," thanks
in huge part to the ninth inning heroics the man
who may one day become the first player enshrined
in the Hall of Fame as an Angel.
#14
- Oct. 2, 2004: Angels rally for A.L. West
crown
By
Geoff Bilau, Angelswin.com Senior Editor
It
would come down to this: the best two out of
three takes the division.
The
Angels, 2002 World Champions and 2003 underachievers,
along with their new owner and an unprecedented
number of fans, would converge on Oakland in
a tie with the A's atop the division and three
games to play. No tie-breakers, no one-game playoffs;
just the simple math. Win twice or go home.
Despite
their World Series title two seasons earlier,
the Angels still had some unfinished business,
having not won an American League West championship
in 18 years. (The 2002 team entered the postseason
as a wild card.) Arte Moreno, who acquired the
team 17 months earlier, promised a winner, spent
$145 million buying players to help build one
and appeared on the verge of delivering the goods.
But
the games were going to be played in Oakland
and the Angels would have to go through the A's "Big
Three" starting pitchers - Mark Mulder,
Barry Zito and Tim Hudson - to get there.
The
series' Friday night opener turned out to be
a laugher, with the Angels roughing up Mulder
with four in the second and little Alfredo Amezaga
delivering the knockout punch to Joe Blanton
with a grand slam in the sixth. The Angels rode
seven shutout innings from Bartolo Colon to an
eventual 10-0 victory, and were now in the driver's
seat needing only to win one of the following
two games.
Hours
before the first pitch of Saturday's matinee,
Moreno proudly sifted about the lower sections
of McAfee Coliseum, wearing a big smile and happily
chatting up any Angels fan who approached him
- and there were a lot of them. An Angels victory
would represent a coronation of sorts for the
man who talked a big game and seemed poised to
back up his lofty aspirations with results.
With
the stadium filled with more red than the blood
typically spilled at a Raiders game, Zito and
Kelvim Escobar locked horns in a tightly contested
duel. Escobar would be the first to blink, giving
up one-out singles to Mark Kotsay and Eric Byrnes
ahead of Eric Chavez's double to score both of
them and give Oakland a 2-0 lead.
Zito,
meanwhile, was dealing. Through five innings,
the Angels had managed only a hit and walk off
the 2002 Cy Young Award winner. In the sixth,
however, the Angels' would-be MVP evened the
score. With two outs and Chone Figgins at first,
Vlad Guerrero took the first pitch from Zito
and crushed it over the tall fence in center
field, bringing a subdued Angels fan contingent
back to life.
But
the A's answered quickly in the bottom half of
the inning. Catcher Damian Miller doubled home
Jermaine Dye with the go-ahead run, sending Escobar
to the showers. Brendan Donnelly struck out Bobby
Crosby for the second out, but frequent thorn
in the Angels' side, Marco Scutaro, singled to
score Miller and give the A's a 4-2 lead. And
when Zito retired the Angels in order in the
top of the seventh, it looked like the series
would become a winner-takes-all affair on Sunday.
Donnelly
did his part, getting the A's 1-2-3 in the seventh.
Zito, who'd allowed just three hits in seven
innings, however, told manager Ken Macha his
legs felt tight and suggested he go to the bullpen.
The Angels, apparently sensing a reprieve, wasted
no time in making that decision a bad one.
With
Jim Mecir now pitching, Bengie Molina led off
with a groundball single to left and Josh Paul
pinch ran. Curtis Pride, pinch hitting for Amezaga,
struck out looking, but Figgins singled to center,
moving Paul to second. Macha summoned lefty Ricardo
Rincon to face Darin Erstad.
Rincon
would warm up for several minutes in order to
deliver one actual pitch - a fat one right in
Erstad's wheelhouse that he drove deep into right
field about a foot from the top of the wall for
a double to drive in Paul and Figgins and again
tie the score. Rincon would issue an intentional
walk to Guerrero before being relieved by A's
closer Octavio Dotel.
"I
asked (pitching coach) Curt (Young) if he was
confident in the bullpen right now and he said
yes," Zito said. "In retrospect, it
was the wrong call. But my legs were tightening
up for the last couple of innings. I have to
trust myself. I'm going to pitch as long as I
can."
After
Troy Glaus flew out to right for the second out,
Garret Anderson rolled Dotel's 1-1 offering through
the infield, just out of the reach of a diving
Scutaro, and Erstad slid across home plate ahead
of the throw from Dye to give the Angels their
first lead of the game, 5-4. Erstad was greeted
by the entire Angels roster outside the dugout
as Angels fans reached a fever pitch.
"I
knew our guys weren't going to melt," manager
Mike Scioscia. "We have a lot of very, very
talented players."
Francisco
Rodriguez pitched a scoreless eighth and Troy
Percival came on in the ninth to close it, inducing
three straight fly balls to Jeff DaVanon in left
field, the last giving the Angels their first
division title since 1986.
"What
we did to be at this point, nobody expected it," Figgins
said. "It's motivation. We were down four
or five games, but we still had to play in our
division. When you still have to play in your
division and it's coming down to the home stretch,
you get a little more energy."
Angels
fans who made the trip north lingered long after
the game, congregating behind the visitor's dugout
and celebrating while the players, coaches and
Moreno showered each other in champagne in the
clubhouse. The Angels were once again the kings
of the West and Moreno was bestowed a crown of
beer and champagne for helping them get there.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/OAK/OAK200410020.shtml
#13
- Oct. 26, 2002: All the way back
By
Brent Hubbard, Angelswin.com Contributor
Angels
fans everywhere in despair. After the 16-4 pounding
the Halos took in Game 5 of the 2002 fall classic,
the series shifted back to Anaheim for the possible
final game of the season.
But
the team that had made a habit of coming back
late all season long had yet another one up their
collective sleeves. And while a home run by a
certain red-bearded first baseman figures largely
in this particular game, it would have all been
for naught without more heroics in the eighth
inning. (We'll get to the aforementioned home
run soon enough.)
The
top half seemed to be played in a haze. Emotions
high. Thunderstix booming. Hope restored. Fans
again allowing themselves to believe.
Angels
manager Mike Scioscia brought in rookie Brendon
Donnelly to replace uber-rookie Francisco Rodriguez.
Donnelly promptly walked leadoff hitter Benito
Santiago after putting him in a 1-2 hole. When
J.T. Snow drove the first pitch he saw to center,
for a second, for one brief moment, memories
of Game 5 came flooding back. But Darin Erstad
settled under the routine fly ball and there
was one out.
Five
more to go.
Donnelly
next faced Reggie Sanders, firing in a first
pitch fastball that Saunders couldn't lay off
for strike one. A foul ball made it 0-2. Next
pitch: strike three, swinging.
Four
more to go.
Next
up, David Bell. Two quick foul balls signaled
that Bell was dialed in. Two pitches out of the
zone evened the count and Donnelly stared Bell
down, sweat dripping from his cap. Strike three,
swinging.
Three
outs remained. Time for the Angels new mascot,
the Rally Monkey, to go back to work.
Erstad
would lead off the eighth for the Halos. Tim
Worrell, who'd made quick work of David Eckstein
to end the seventh, remained on the mound.
First
pitch: Ball one. Second pitch: Erstad out in
front, foul. Next pitch: Crack! Over the right
field wall on a frozen rope. 45,000 fans at once
erupted. 5-4, Giants.
Tim
Salmon, Mr. Angel, came to the plate. On a 1-0
pitch, he lined it into center field and the
tying run was 270 feet from home. Rally time.
Chone
Figgins came in to pinch run for Salmon. Everybody
in the stadium knew he was going - but on which
pitch?
As
it turned out, he wouldn't get the chance. After
smoking a foul ball into the stands, Garret Anderson
blooped a Worrell pitch down the left field line.
With Figgins tearing around second base and heading
for third, Barry Bonds in left juggled the ball
twice, allowing Anderson to hustle into the second.
Giants
manager Dusty Baker motioned to the bullpen for
closer Robb Nen for what would turn out to be
the three-time All-Star's final appearance. He'd
face third baseman Troy Glaus.
Nen's
first three pitches were nowhere near the strike
zone, though Glaus helped him out by swinging
at and missing the second one. On a 2-1 count,
Glaus hammered a poorly placed offering toward
the left center field gap. Bonds, galloping back
to the warning track, stretched his glove over
his head in a vain attempt to catch the ball,
but he'd have needed another 10 feet of reach
to snare it.
Figgins
and Anderson scored, and the Angels led, 6-5,
Glaus pumping his fist as he retreated to second
with the double. The Angels saved their best
comeback of the season for last.
Nen
then retired the side without additional damage,
but with Troy Percival warmed up and ready for
the ninth, the damage was already done. There
would be a Game 7 and momentum was back with
the Angels.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ANA/ANA200210260.shtml
#12
- Oct. 5, 1979: "Yes We Can" one
more time
By
Geoff Bilau, Angelswin.com Senior Editor
Yes
they had. It took 19 mostly frustrating, often
painful, at times utterly heartbreaking years,
but the California Angels were finally playing
in October.
Unfortunately,
the Baltimore Orioles weren't the sentimental
type and felt no guilt in dropping the Angels
into an 0-2 ALCS deficit that to that point in
MLB history had never been overcome. (The Angels
would play an unfortunate role in changing this
three years later.) Following 6-3 and 9-8 defeats
in Baltimore (each in its own way gut wrenching),
the Angels returned home to a down, but not out
fan base, for which "Yes We Can" had
become more than a chant. The sentiments were
palpable, exemplified by the sheer audacity of
the word "we."
Fan
use of "we" when talking about their
favorite sports team is an acceptable misnomer,
but rarely means anything literal. For the 1979
Angels and their fans, at times it did indeed
seem to be a group effort. This night would define
the "we" of that season.
The
Angels got a gutsy five innings from Frank Tanana
and four outstanding innings of relief from Don
Aase, but reached the bottom of the ninth inning,
three outs from elimination, trailing Dennis
Martinez, 3-2.
Don
Baylor, whose solo home run in the fourth briefly
gave the Angels a 2-1 lead, flew out to left
field for the first out. But Rod Carew drove
a ball into the left center field gap for a double.
The crowd of 43,199, again picked up the refrain: "Yes
we can! Yes we can!"
Orioles
manager Earl Weaver summoned reliever Don Stanhouse,
despite the fact he'd thrown 33 pitches and nearly
lost the game the day before in Baltimore. Brian
Downing worked an eight-pitch walk and Angels
fans raised the decibel level another notch,
prompting broadcaster Dick Enberg to observe
that he'd never heard Anaheim Stadium any louder.
Bobby
Grich lined a Stanhouse offering that center
fielder Al Bumbry broke in on late and mishandled,
allowing it to drop to the grass. Carew hustled
around third and beat Bumbry's throw home to
tie the score, Downing advancing to second. Bumbry
would later admit the crowd noise prevented him
from hearing the crack of the bat, contributing
to his miscue.
"Yes
we can! Yes we can!"
Then,
on the second pitch he saw from Stanhouse, outfielder
Larry Harlow slapped a line drive to Bumbry's
left and Downing charged home with the winning
run, making a wide turn at the backstop and continuing
right into the dugout to celebrate with his teammates.
The Angels staved off elimination, winning their
first ever playoff game, 4-3.
Angels
fans lingered in the afterglow long after the
game and continued to chant "Yes we can!" as
they exited the stadium.
It
hardly mattered that 20 hours later it was all
over, Scott McGregor pitching a six-hit shutout
to send the Orioles to the World Series. For
the Angels and, more importantly their long-suffering
fans, that one victory might as well have been
the whole World Series. For one more incredible
night, yes, they did.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CAL/CAL197910050.shtml
#11
- Aug. 12, 1974: Ryan fans 19
By
Victor Varadi, Angelswin.com Contributor
Nolan
Ryan started his career with the Mets and was
mostly a relief pitcher and spot starter, never
quite able to crack the Mets' outstanding rotation
for good during his four seasons in Queens. Ryan
was a young flame-thrower, but he had control
issues and it appeared that he would languish
in the Mets bullpen despite flashes of brilliance
in the 1969 postseason.
At
the conclusion of the 1971 season, Ryan, who
never felt comfortable in New York, expressed
a desire to be traded. The Mets needed a third
baseman and felt Angels veteran shortstop Jim
Fregosi could make the switch. They offered Ryan,
along with catcher Frank Estrada, pitcher Don
Rose and outfielder Leroy Stanton. The Angels
wisely accepted. Some would argue it was the
best trade the Angels franchise ever made.
By
the time the 1974 campaign rolled around, Ryan
was on his way to becoming one of the most dominant
pitchers in baseball history. The season prior,
Ryan threw two no-hitters, fanning 12 and 17,
respectively. And while critics point to his
paltry winning percentage as a reason why he
should not be cast in the same breath as Sandy
Koufax and his ilk, Ryan was dominating hitters
while mired on bad teams.
On
June 14, 1974, Ryan fanned 19 Red Sox in 13 innings
(also walking 10 and earning no decision for
his effort.) On Aug. 20, he did it again, striking
out 19 Tigers, this time through 11 innings of
a four-hitter he'd go on to lose, 1-0.
But
it was two starts prior to that one that Ryan
produced one of the most dominating performances,
not only of his career, but in American League
history.
On
Aug. 12, five weeks before he would stifle the
Minnesota Twins for his third no-hitter, Ryan
struck out 19 Red Sox in a nine-inning game (walking
only two), breaking an American League record
held for 36 years by Bob Feller, who fanned 18
Detroit Tigers on Oct. 2, 1938. And this time,
the Angels would actually make Ryan a 4-2 winner.
Ryan
would strike out the side three times and fanned
five of the final six batters he faced, a fly
ball to right field by Rick Burleson to end the
game preventing Ryan from breaking the Major
League record he then shared with former Mets
teammate Tom Seaver (April 22, 1970, vs. San
Diego) and lefty Steve Carlton (Sept. 15, 1969,
vs. New York).
Three
players have since struck out 20 batters in a
nine-inning game*: Seven-time Cy Young winner
Roger Clemens (twice), Kerry Wood and five-time
Cy Young winner Randy Johnson.
(*
Johnson's 20 strikeouts came in the first nine
innings of a game that would eventually be won
by the Diamondbacks in 11. MLB has recognized
Johnson's effort as equaling the record.)
Despite
his numerous feats of dominance, Ryan was inducted
into the Hall of Fame in 1999 having never been
awarded a Cy Young. But then maybe some day baseball
will recognize Ryan by naming a strikeout award
after him.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CAL/CAL197408120.shtml
