SWEET PLAY SAVES ANGELS ANGELS 2, CLEVELAND 1.Byline: Gabe Lacques Staff Writer CLEVELAND - Bengie Molina Benjamin José ("Bengie" or "Ben") Molina (born July 20 1974 in Río Piedras, Puerto Rico) is the starting catcher for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball. After being initially regarded as a "good glove, no hit" catcher, Molina has developed into one of the better is the Gold Glove catcher, Francisco Rodriguez Francisco Rodriguez may refer to:
But in the throes throe n. 1. A severe pang or spasm of pain, as in childbirth. See Synonyms at pain. 2. throes A condition of agonizing struggle or trouble: a country in the throes of economic collapse. of a taut pennant race, with the Angels forced to win by any means necessary By any means necessary is a translation of a phrase coined by the French intellectual Jean Paul Sartre in his play Dirty Hands. I was not the one to invent lies: they were created in a society divided by class and each of us inherited lies when we were born. , the two engaged in a role reversal In psychodrama, role reversal is a technique where the protagonist is asked, by the psychodrama director, to exchange roles with another person (an auxiliary ego) on the psychodrama stage. The former assumes as many of the roles of the other as possible and vice versa. . They hooked up on a stunning defensive play with two outs in the eighth inning to preserve a one-run lead that became a 2-1 victory over the Cleveland Indians  Editing of this page by unregistered or newly registered users is currently disabled due to vandalism. on Sunday.
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. took a no-hitter into the sixth inning and put the skids on a monthlong funk, and 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). homered for the second time in three games. But should the Angels, who pulled within three games of first-place Oakland, eventually make the playoffs, they won't remember those details about this win. Rather, they'll recall an improbable connection by Molina and Rodriguez that inspired teammates to pour enthusiastically out of the dugout to congratulate them, like a bunch of collegians. After Lackey gave up a leadoff pinch-hit double to Ronnie Belliard in the eighth, he was removed one out later for Rodriguez, who inherited the potential tying run at third. But Rodriguez struck out Vizquel on three pitches, all sliders sliders a species of tortoise kept as pets. They have a black shell and a red stripe behind the eye. Called also Chrysemys scripta elegans, red-eared sliders. , and got two quick strikes on dangerous Travis Hafner. The next pitch bounced in the dirt, off the bottom of Molina's chest protector and toward the edge of the dirt cutout cut·out n. 1. Something cut out or intended to be cut out from something else. 2. Electricity A device that interrupts, bypasses, or disconnects a circuit or circuit element. 3. around home plate. Belliard, who took a large secondary lead off third, got a good jump and looked like he would score the tying run easily. The Angels had not gained a game on Oakland since Aug. 22, and now the chance to do so was slipping away. But the usually lumbering Molina pounced cat-like toward the ball and, with no time to spare, swept it in one motion from the ground toward home, blindly, behind his back. ``He was so far down the line,'' Molina said, ``that I didn't think I'd have time to wheel around. Sometimes I joke around and (no-look) the ball to home, but this was no joke. This was a game.'' Only half the equation was complete. Belliard still was going to beat the throw. ``I want to save that run, no matter what,'' Rodriguez said, ``either striking him out or blocking the plate In baseball, blocking the plate is a common technique performed by a catcher to prevent a runner from scoring. The act of blocking the plate accounts for most of the physical contact in baseball. . That run cannot score.'' So Rodriguez, like a Gold Glove catcher, put his body on the line, sticking his right leg in front of the plate. Belliard, sliding head first, got a face full of Rodriguez's leg and never reached home. Rodriguez and Molina were given heroes' welcomes upon returning to the dugout. Molina never saw the tag, fading away from home as he was, so he ducked into a tunnel and watched a replay. ``I don't think I've ever seen a combination like that,'' said manager Mike Scioscia, a catcher for 15 major-league seasons. ``Belliard was closing quickly. I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. if you like to see a pitcher put his body on the line like that, but it was a big run.'' Scioscia said the Angels practice that play in spring training, on the lower fields of their complex during the interminable drills he puts catchers through. Others were skeptical. ``Yeah, OK,'' first baseman Darin Erstad said. ``It's just pure instincts and athleticism. You're not going to see a better play than that.'' Molina and Rodriguez agreed as they exchanged mutual compliments. ``You cannot be surprised at a guy who wins two Gold Gloves in a row,'' Rodriguez said. ``Credit Bengie.'' Molina said: ``Frankie did everything. He caught the ball and blocked the plate.'' With Troy Percival barred from pitching three consecutive games, Rodriguez struck out two more in the ninth, equaling DeWayne Buice's club record of 109 in a season for a reliever, and earned his 11th save. It preserved the win for Lackey (12-11), who gave up two hits and struck out five after posting a 7.44 ERA in August. There's no win for Lackey, however, without a dose of relief from Rodriguez and Molina. ``It's the best play I ever made,'' Molina said, before catching himself. ``No, we ever made.'' Gabe Lacques, (626) 962-8811 gabe.lacques(at)sgvn.com CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Angels reliever Francisco Rodriguez reacts after tagging out Ronnie Belliard at the plate. Tony Dejak/Associated Press |
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