FINLEY SETS RECORD; INNINGS LEADER LIFTS ANGELS PAST A'S : ANGELS 6, OAKLAND 3.Byline: Marc J. Spears Daily News Staff Writer Loyalty seems to be forgotten in this day and age of pro sports. As each season begins, an avid fan desperately needs a roster handy to become familiar with the many fresh faces. But today's norm isn't followed by Chuck Finley On Saturday afternoon, Finley's devout service paid dividends as he became the Angels' all-time leader in innings pitched In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is in the game. Three outs made is equal to one inning pitched. by surpassing Nolan Ryan Finley also paced the Angels to a 6-3 victory over the Athletics in front of 22,893 at the Oakland Alameda County Coliseum. ``That is the kind of stuff you look back on when you finish playing,'' said Finley, 34, who owns just a 7-17 career mark against Oakland. ``I've hung around for a while, took my turn every fifth day and have done decent enough to go out there and be given the ball. ``It is kind of freaky freak·y adj. freak·i·er, freak·i·est 1. Strange or unusual; freakish. 2. Slang Frightening. freak to do that in this day and age. Especially the last five years the way players have moved around and trades are made. I've just tried to be a quality player for this team and do some things for the organization. ``I tried to not let them down and they chose to hold on to me. It has worked out for both of us.'' The victory was Anaheim's fifth straight and 10th consecutive against Oakland dating back to last season (5-1 loss, Sept. 17). This season, the Angels are 9-0 against the A's and have outscored them 70-36. ``I don't think there is any answers, formula or secret,'' said Angels manager Terry Collins. Oakland manager Art Howe Arthur Henry Howe Jr. (born December 15, 1946, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) is the bench coach for the Texas Rangers. He is an alumni of the University of Wyoming. During his Major League Baseball career, he played as an infielder and also spent time as a baseball scout and said, ``It is not out of control, we're just getting outplayed.'' The second-place Angels moved within 3-1/2 games of front-runner Seattle in the AL West. The win also gave them a season-best four-game road winning streak Noun 1. winning streak - a streak of wins streak, run - an unbroken series of events; "had a streak of bad luck"; "Nicklaus had a run of birdies" . The Angels won five straight away from Anaheim on June 9-20, 1996. Finley's outing wasn't nearly as dominant as his previous two, which included one run allowed in 7-1/3 innings against Colorado at Coors Field • • [ (July 1) and a complete-game shutout, 13-strikeout performance against Seattle (July 6). Against the American League's worst team, he struck out five and allowed one run on seven hits. His numbers could've been much worse, considering he was aided by three double plays that got him out of jams in the second, third and fourth innings. ``I was in and out of sync all day,'' Finley said. ``A couple pitches felt good, but others felt bad. They had ample opportunity to score.'' In July, the left-hander has earned an impressive 3-0 mark with a 0.81 ERA after allowing just two runs in his past 22-1/3 innings. Prior to his hot streak, Finley (6-6) was 0-2 in his previous five starts. In the top of the first, the Angels scored two runs on Oakland starter Ariel Prieto Ariel Prieto (born October 22, 1969 in Havana, Cuba) is a former major league right-handed baseball pitcher. Prieto graduated from college in the city of Fajardo, and he immigrated to Puerto Rico soon after. with a Jim Edmonds James Patrick "Jim" Edmonds (born June 27, 1970 in Fullerton, California) is a left-handed batter who plays for the St. Louis Cardinals. Edmonds is affectionately known as Jimmy Baseball [1], "Lassie" and as "Hollywood"[2] among Cardinals fans. RBI RBI abbr. Baseball runs batted in Noun 1. rbi - a run that is the result of the batter's performance; "he had more than 100 rbi last season" run batted in double and Tim Salmon In the fourth, Prieto allowed two more runs, one on a Jim Leyritz RBI single and the other when he hit Dave Hollins with the bases loaded. After beaning Hollins, the right-hander's miserable outing came to an end with the Angels comfortably up 5-0. In only 3-2/3 innings, Prieto allowed five runs, six hits and three walks after facing just 21 batters. Angels shortstop Gary DiSarcina said: ``For us, every little mistake that the pitcher makes, we take advantage of. Well, at least against this team it seems that way.'' Angels Today Game time: 1:05 p.m. TV/Radio: Channel 9; KTZN-AM (710). Matchup: Angels RHP rhp abbr. rated horsepower Dennis Springer (4-3, 5.82) faces Oakland RHP Mike Oquist (2-2, 4.03) in the last of a four-game series at the Oakland Alameda County Coliseum. Springer, a knuckleballer, hasn't pitched since July 4 against Seattle because of the All-Star break. CAPTION(S): Photo, Box PHOTO Angels second baseman Tony Phillips throws to first to double up Oakland's Patrick Lennon as Damon Mashore tries to break it up. Associated Press BOX: ANGELS TODAY (see text) |
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