HEAVEN IN SEVEN ANGELS ARE CHAMPIONS OF BASEBALL.Byline: Joe Haakenson Staff Writer ANAHEIM - It used to be something that could only happen in a Disney movie, and even then it required some sort of divine intervention. But fantasy gave way to reality on Sunday night Sunday Night, later named Michelob Presents Night Music, was an NBC late-night television show which aired for two seasons between 1988 and 1990 as a showcase for jazz and eclectic musical artists. when the real-life Angels beat the San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California that currently play in the National League West Division. New York Giants history Early days and the John McGraw era in the seventh game of the World Series 4-1 to capture the first championship in the 42 years of the franchise. An Edison Field crowd of 44,598 was on its feet when Angels closer Troy Percival Troy Eugene Percival (born August 9, 1969 in Fontana, California) is a Major League Baseball reliever on the St. Louis Cardinals. Percival came out of retirement on June 8, 2007 when he signed a minor league deal with the Cardinals[1]. got Kenny Lofton Kenneth Lofton (born May 31, 1967 in East Chicago, Indiana) is a Major League Baseball outfielder. He bats and throws left-handed. He currently plays left field for the Cleveland Indians, with whom he has spent 10 seasons during three separate stints. to fly out to center fielder Darin Erstad Darin Charles Erstad (born June 4, 1974 in Jamestown, North Dakota) is a first baseman/center fielder in Major League Baseball currently with the Chicago White Sox. Prior to 2007, he had played his entire career with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim franchise (1996-2006). for the final out, setting off a wild celebration on the field that spilled over into the clubhouse. Percival emerged from the pile of bodies near the mound in tears, and soon afterward right fielder right fielder n. Baseball The player who defends right field. Noun 1. right fielder - the person who plays right field outfielder - (baseball) a person who plays in the outfield Tim Salmon ``I said we've got to have Mr. Autry on the field any way we can,'' Salmon said. ``I thought his hat would be the best way to symbolize that. I know he's up their pulling some strings for us.'' Angels third baseman third baseman n. Baseball The infielder stationed near third base. Noun 1. third baseman - (baseball) the person who plays third base third sacker Troy Glaus Troy Edward Glaus (born August 3, 1976 in Tarzana, California) is a Major League Baseball player who plays third base for the Toronto Blue Jays. Previously, Glaus played with the Anaheim Angels (1998-2004) and the Arizona Diamondbacks (2005). , who hit .385 (10 for 26) with three homers and eight 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 , was named the series MVP (Multimedia Video Processor) A high-speed DSP chip from Texas Instruments, introduced in 1994. Officially introduced as the TMS320C80, it combines RISC technology with the functionality of four DSPs on one chip. . But the 2002 Angels were a team that relied on everybody throughout their magical season. ``You can look at our team and ask, `Are we the most talented team in baseball?' '' Percival said. ``No. But we're the best team in baseball. It took more than 25 guys, it took 32, 33 guys, guys that played for us at one time or another during the season and contributed but weren't on the playoff roster. ``We played three incredibly tough teams in the Yankees, Twins and Giants. We beat all three of them and that makes us the best.'' However, it didn't come easy for them against the Giants, and that includes Game 7. While the first six games of the series featured so much offense, the Angels won the final game with pitching, using three rookie pitchers who began the season in the minors. John Lackey John Derran Lackey (born October 23, 1978, in Abilene, Texas) is a major league baseball starting pitcher from Abilene, Texas. He has played for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim his entire career. gave up one run and four hits in five innings to become the first rookie starting pitcher Noun 1. starting pitcher - (baseball) a pitcher who starts in a baseball game baseball, baseball game - a ball game played with a bat and ball between two teams of nine players; teams take turns at bat trying to score runs; "he played baseball in high school"; in 93 years (Pittsburgh's Babe Adams Charles Benjamin "Babe" Adams (May 18 1882 - July 27 1968) was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1906 to 1926 who spent nearly his entire career with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Noted for his outstanding location control, his career average of 1. in 1909) to earn a Game 7 victory. Lackey gave up only a second-inning sacrifice fly to Reggie Sanders
Donnelly had bounced around the minor leagues for 10 seasons after he was drafted in 1992 by the Chicago White Sox before he finally made his , a 31-year-old rookie, pitched a scoreless sixth and seventh innings, running his World Series total to 7 2/3 scoreless innings. Twenty-year-old rookie Frankie Rodriguez, who looked human in recent outings, struck out the side in the eighth inning, sandwiched around a walk to Barry Bonds. And Percival, despite allowing the Giants to put two runners on base and bring the tying run to the plate, finished it off. ``We know Percival makes it interesting sometimes,'' Erstad said. ``I wanted that ball (final out) so bad. When I saw it hit I said, `This is going to be the hardest catch I ever made. Be sure to use two hands.' '' The big hit of the night came off the bat of Garret Anderson, who entered the game without an extra-base hit in the series. But his bases-clearing, three-run double off Giants starter Livan Hernandez snapped a 1-1 tie in the third inning. Neither team scored again. ``You're heart is heavy, your stomach is empty,'' Giants manager Dusty Baker said. ``You know, your head and your brains feel full right now. It's a very difficult time. On the other hand, I'm happy for (Angels manager Mike Scioscia) and (pitching coach Bud Black) and (third base coach Ron) Roenicke, (first base coach) Alfredo (Griffin), the guys on the Angels over there. ``I just wish it was us.'' Many fans remained after the game to witness the celebration. One fan held a sign that updated the 1979 slogan of ``Yes We Can,'' to ``Yes We Did.'' Even the even-tempered Scioscia seemed to get choked up in the moment. ``I've been in the game for a long time,'' said Scioscia, in his third season with the Angels. ``And I've never been around a group of guys so passionate about the game.'' Predictably, the Angels had to come from behind in Game 7. The Giants struck first, getting singles by Benito Santiago and J.T. Snow and a sacrifice fly by Sanders for a 1-0 lead in the second inning. But the Angels responded in their half of the second. With two outs, Scott Spiezio walked and scored from first on Bengie Molina's double to the left-center field gap. In the third inning, the Angels took the lead for good. David Eckstein and Erstad began the inning with consecutive singles and Salmon was hit by a pitch to load the bases for Anderson. Anderson went into the game with eight hits in the series - all singles. But he ripped a 1-1 pitch into the right-field corner for a three-run double to give the Angels a 4-1 lead. Meanwhile, Lackey worked his way through five innings almost flawlessly. He gave up a couple of one-out singles in the fourth but retired Snow and Sanders to get out of it. In the fifth, Lackey got help from Erstad, who made a diving catch on a liner hit to left-center by David Bell. After five innings, Lackey had made 86 pitches, and considering he was pitching on three days' rest and had already pitched more innings this season than any in his life, he handed the ball over to the bullpen. ``I got the opportunity,'' Lackey said. ``If you step up when you get the opportunity, you can be somebody in this game.'' PARADE INFO ANAHEIM - The city of Anaheim and Disneyland will pay tribute to the world champion Angels on Tuesday with a day-long celebration at several locations. The festivities fes·tiv·i·ty n. pl. fes·tiv·i·ties 1. A joyous feast, holiday, or celebration; a festival. 2. The pleasure, joy, and gaiety of a festival or celebration. 3. will begin at 10 a.m. with a parade down Disneyland's Main Street, USA. Angels players and coaches and manager Mike Scioscia and their families will join with Anaheim Mayor Tom Daly and Jackie Autry in the celebration. The official victory parade will begin at 11 a.m. in front of the Pond, across the Orange Freeway from Edison Field on Katella Avenue. The parade will travel west on Katella, then south on Douglas to Sportstown Drive and will conclude in the parking lot of Edison Field. There, the Angels will take a stage between the two giant red Angels helmets in front of the stadium's main entrance for a victory rally. Later, players will participate in another celebration at Disney's California Adventure Disney's California Adventure is a theme park in Anaheim, California, adjacent to Disneyland Park and part of the larger Disneyland Resort. It opened on February 8, 2001. The park is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company. , from 3 to 8 p.m. - Doug Spoon CAPTION(S): 3 photos, 3 boxes Photo: (1 -- cover -- color) HALOLUJAH! Angels win first World Series title Daily News (2) Darin Erstad is doused with champagne as he and his teammates go wild in the locker room after winning their first World Series. John Lazar/Staff Photographer (3) Darin Erstad, who had just caught a fly ball for the final out of the World Series, celebrates with teammate Alex Ochoa. Gus Ruelas/Staff Photographer Box: (1) PARADE INFO (see text) (2) ANGELS vs. SAN FRANCISCO World Series: Angels win series 4-3 (3) ANGELS 4, GIANTS 1 |
|
||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion