ANGELS MANAGER: CAPT. SCIOSCIA CAPS OFF RIDE.

Byline: Gabe Lacques Staff Writer

ANAHEIM - Ever since he arrived here, amid a bickering clubhouse and a tradition of woe and misfortune, Mike Scioscia has preached two words to describe his team, a concept that was at first laughable, but eventually became fact.

Championship-caliber.

Scioscia sprinkles it liberally through his press briefings, amid the snickers and raised eyebrows of the media. But one by one, Scioscia's players bought in until it was reality. That reality arrived Sunday night, in the form of a 4-1 victory over the San Francisco Giants in Game 7 of the World Series, in front of a crowd of 44,598 at Edison Field.

And while credit was distributed throughout a clubhouse that has personified teamwork in this landmark season, it starts in the manager's office, where Scioscia inherited a dysfunctional clubhouse and slowly turned it into one that was indeed championship-caliber.

As champagne flowed late into the night Sunday, general manager Bill Stoneman, who arrived with Scioscia in the autumn of 1999, surveyed the scene and gave a gentle admonishment to those who didn't believe Scioscia and Co. were capable of achieving his lofty vision.

``Now you guys know what it's all about,'' said Stoneman, who last year extended Scioscia's contract through 2005, with a club option for '06. ``He's the cog for the whole wheel. Everything flows from Mike to the coaches. This year, it flowed to the fans, too.

``Mike's leadership is just terrific. I'm glad he's going to be a part of this for a long time.''

Scioscia's playoff run started dubiously, with a loss at Yankee Stadium that was a field day for second-guessers. Since then, he and the Angels have gone 11-4, finishing off the Giants thanks to a core of players who have been chastised or questioned at one point, but ended up contributing in a huge way.

Like a journeyman reliever who made his major-league debut at 31, gave up a psyche-crushing home run to Bernie Williams in Game 1 of the American League Division Series and then one night later, was given the ball again by Scioscia in a crucial spot.

Brendan Donnelly got that out, and Sunday night, he powered through the sixth and seventh innings to get the game that much closer to Troy Percival. Donnelly pitched 7 2/3 scoreless innings in the World Series, the most shutout innings from a reliever in 30 years.

``He did a hell of a job this year getting us to play the way we did, day by day,'' said Donnelly, who called Game 2 of the division series a turning point for him. ``That was huge. That just shows Scioscia does that all the time. You have a bad night, he comes back to you. It breeds confidence.''

Or the inconsistent center fielder who struggled through a miserable 2001 season, came back and regained his sweet stroke at the plate and his Gold Glove-quality defense.

``When I said I wanted to play for him the rest of my career, I wasn't joking,'' said Darin Erstad, who singled, scored the Angels' third run and made another outstanding catch in center field Sunday to cap a stellar postseason. ``Last year, when we stunk, he still supported his guys. From day one, he's brought an attitude. The term would be no-nonsense. You gotta have that.''

Let's not forget the rookie pitcher who made his major-league debut just more than four months ago but was handed the ball in Game 7 of the World Series, on three days' rest, to boot.

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Photo:

Angels manager Mike Scioscia gazes at the championship trophy, along with general manager Bill Stoneman, left.

Greg Andersen/Staff Photographer