Postgame Report
Angels 2nd Greatest Season Ends at 2nd Best
by Rev Halofan on Oct 25, 2009 9:02 PM PDT
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A close game in the Bronx saw a few bounces of the ball go against the Angels and deprive them of the chance to appear in their 2nd World Series.
Another night, another ridiculous strike zone as Yankees Lefty Andy Pettitte had his way with the outside of the plate to Angels right handed hitters.
Meanwhile Joe Saunders was squeezed to a point of ridicule with a Bases loaded walk on an obvious strike to Alex Rodriguez to put the Yankees ahead.
A season full of promise led to the franchise's 2nd greatest season, but a few miscues in a few games was all it took for a sad implosion.
To everyone who is a part of the Halos Heaven community, thank you for joining us. This offseason promises to be a great time to be an armchair Angels fan with many decisions facing the club and Halos Heaven will be leading the dialogue on the internet.
Congratulations to the New York Yankees on winning the American League Pennant. On the eve of the 7th anniversary of Scott Spiezio's Game 6 HR in the World Series, I can only envy that Yankee fans have a few more games of the magic ahead. Please enjoy the wonder and awe of the greatest game in the world. Baseball.
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Scioscia Dodges Bullet, Angels Live to Fight On!
by Rev Halofan on Oct 22, 2009 8:32 PM PDT
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Final Score in Los Angeles of Anaheim: Angels 7 Yankees 6
The Yankees were 8 outs away from the World Series but the Rally Monkey performed an enema that no spitball or conspiratorial umpiring would undo under the Los Angeles Thunderstick Tsunami of Anaheim.
The game featured easily the worst on-field managerial decision of Mike Scioscia's career: he pulled John Lackey in the 7th inning with 2 on and 2 out in a 4-0 game to bring in reliever Darren Oliver, whose first pitch cleared the bases. Shades of Gene Mauch '86... With a looming infamy staring him straight in the face, the Yankees scored four more times in the inning as Kevin Jepsen got out of trouble after allowing his inherited runners to score.
But instead of Scioscia facing a true fan firing squad for the first time in his Angel career, the Donnie Moore game again replayed itself as a 7-6 victory for the team down 3 games to 1.... YES... With 9 outs between them and the American League pennant, the New York Yankees bullpen (stroked Linda Lovelace style by mainstream baseball analysts as a dominant strength of the AL East champs) shriveled small-sack-style and coughed up three runs in the bottom of the same "magical" inning. Kendry Morales drove in the go-ahead run after the Angels big bats (Abreu, Hunter, Guerrero) had finally done their job to the satisfaction that they might get mentioned in between the non-stop media fawning over the Yankee lineup that was held in check by a Lackey who raged at his skipper on the mound, rage RAGE against the dying of the light, and they did not go gentle onto that good night!
And one funny note: the stereotype of SoCal fans as mellow was washed when Tim McCarver and Joe Buck's driveling analysis was regularly downed out by the loud Anaheim crowd.
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Umpires Greenlight Yankees Game 4 Victory
by Rev Halofan on Oct 20, 2009 8:38 PM PDT
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So two Yankees are tagged not standing on a base, what happens? One is called safe. This is just one of many instances this postseason where the most ratings-friendly team in baseball located in a favorable media market is being gifted more opportunities to score and to wear down the opposing pitcher.
Numerous calls that should have gone the Angels' way and a strike zone the ignored the knees and letters to an Angels starter, Scott Kazmir, who lives on the outer limits of the plate can only add to the frustration as anyone with an historical appreciation of the game can practically smell a media-industrial complex version of Arnold Rothstein collaborating to celebrate the 80th birthday of the Chicago Black Sox in corrupt style.
The soul-killing effect of knowing that the Yankees were getting all the calls while the Yankees were getting ther money's worth out of starter CC Sabathia drowned what was the biggest Angels threat of the evening. It began with a Kendry Morales solo homer and was suddenly two men on with nobody out - but the Angels reverted to their hacking of old and formerly nails-versus lefties Juan Rivera grounded a 2-1 pitch into a double play that was the twist of the knife on the game, and perhaps the season.
But John Lackey faces A.J. Burnett on Thursday night and 6 teams in baseball history have come back down 3 games to 1 to win a 7 game series, so the ALCS may be far from over. If only the phone records and bank statements of the umpiring crew could be more closely scrutinized prior to Thursday evening.
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Jeff Mathis Walk Off Double Beats Yankees in Extra Innings
by Rev Halofan on Oct 19, 2009 5:36 PM PDT
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Final Score in 11 Innings in Los Angeles of Anaheim: Angels 5, Yankees 4
A four hour plus game of extended action and intrigue ended on a booming hit and an even quicker exit from the national broadcasters terrified of interviewing players they know nothing about. Despite being the most dramatic postseason moment yet, FOX coverage of the game quickly split because Derek Jeter's jock did not need washing.
A grueling battle of men left on base, baserunning miscues, and lost opportunities, solo power shots and clutch hits was not wasted this time. The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim got a 2-out walk-off double in extra innings by their late-inning substitute catcher to drive in their platooning 2Bman who was sent to the minors mid-season.
In postgame comments, Yankee skipper Joe Girardi said he could not stretch out über-closer Mariano Rivera more than one inning and than stupidly replaced a no-name reliever (Hummerson? Roberta Smith? Fox broadcasters were so excited to go to a commercial for more money to send Rupert Murdoch's way that they barely discussed anything but the genius of the Yankee manager) in the 11th with 2 outs for Alfredo Aceves. He gave up a base hit to Howie Kendrick. that left Howie a double shy of the cycle and Jeff Mathis complied with booming walk-off double to the base of Left Field wall.
There were many moments in the game where the Angels tried to hand the Yankees the game. Call it a tightrope, call it fate, the Mathis double saved many many goats in red from being forever remembered a braying in the hay field. Kevin Jepsen let the Yankees tie the game with a solo HR to Jorge Posada on a pitch that the average little leaguer would have hit over the centerfield wall. Bobby Abreu turned a leadoff double turn into a leadoff out as he was picked off trying ot get back to 2nd after deciding not to stretch it into a triple. Even worse than the out it caused, it allowed Fox to slobber love drool over Jeter for a routine pick-off - in fact Melky Cabrera's great fielding was ignored in order for Fox to lovingly chew Jeter's sack once again.
All of the Yankee runs were solo homers. But no way this overpaid lineup invests in better living thru chemistry. No way, you can bet the Brooklyn bridge you just bought from Tooth Fairy Realty on it.
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Angels Throw Another Away, Yankees Win In 13
by WiHaloFan on Oct 17, 2009 10:13 PM PDT
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Game Two Final Score - 13 innings: Los Angeles Angels 3, New York Yankees 4
Once again, fighting the rain, the cold, the Yankees and their umpires, the Angels did themselves in by playing sloppy defense and stranding 458 runs on base. Okay, it wasn't that many (actually it was 16), but it felt like the game was over after the Yankees scored their first run.
Wasting a great start by Joe Saunders, and solid relief work by Kevin Jepsen and Darren Oliver, Brian Fuentes surrendered an opposite field home run to Alex Rodriguez in the bottom of the 11th after the Angels had managed to take their first lead of the series.
ALDS Game 3 hero Vladimir Guererro stranded 8 runners, twice leaving the bases loaded and ending the Angels final threat by hitting a weak groundball with two runners in the 13th.
The Angels head to Anaheim, down two games to the Yankees.
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Angels Frozen in Place, Drop Game 1 to Yankees
by Rev Halofan on Oct 16, 2009 8:17 PM PDT
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Final Score in New York: Angels 1, Yankees 4
A night of sloppy fielding from the normally sharp Angels gifted the Yankees enough runs to take Game 1 of the 2009 ALCS. The Angels had the tying run on deck in the 9th, so it is not like they got dominated, in fact, the Yankees were pretty flat all night and a precision defensive outing would have yielded a win.
But just like in the 2002 and 2005 postseason, the Yankees took game 1 of the series form the Angels. John Lackey pitched fantastic, Jason Bulger and Matt Palmer each did the job of holding things in place, but CC Sabathia scattered hits far enough apart from each other to avoid any trouble.
It didn't look like the Angels when Erick Aybar and Chone Figgins looked at each other on a first inning popup instead of looking at the ball. The national broadcast hardly named them as it was so intent on stroking the Yankees. A FOX broadcast truck in the Yankee Stadium parking lot had gallons of lube at the ready should the game have gone into extra innings, but it wasn't necessary, as the Angels threatened but did not score off of Mariano Rivera.
The Angels got a RBI single from Kendry Morales in the 4th inning to score Vladimir Guerrero who had led off the frame with a double that almost cleared the plexiglass centerfield wall. It was that kind of night for the Angels ... a lot of invisible almosts that are now just whisps blowing around the L in the scorebook.
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Angels Comeback Destroys Red Sox Curse
by Rev Halofan on Oct 11, 2009 1:00 PM PDT
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Final Score in Fenway Park: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 7, Boston Red Sox 6
If you tuned in for an exciting baseball game, you wouldn't know it by the saddened sound of NESN announcer Don Orsillo, pouting a mumble of would've-could've-should've plaudits to his beaten and bruised Red Sox. Tell the equally tin-eared Buck Martinez that no matter how much lube he warms up for Clay Buchholz, the Angels did it.
In dramatic fashion against Jonathan Papelbon, baseball's 2nd best closer, the Angels scored 3 runs in the top of the 9th inning to stun a Fenway Park crowd of smug and entitled chowds into deadened mute agonizing silence. And it is going to be a long cold winter of silence. Maybe Red Sox owner John Henry can get Dave Henderson to throw out the first heating bill of winter for his lonely mansion as he bitterly relives the TEAM OF THE DECADE destroying his mythological masterpiece in the final Fenway game of the decade.
Monday will be the 23-year anniversary of the fabled Donnie Moore Game. But it will be the first day of the rest of the franchise's life!
Genius manager Terry Francona walked Torii Hunter to get to Vladimir Guerrero and for every idiot who whines about taking the first pitch, Vlad swung for your ignorance and dropped a base hit into Centerfield to give the Angels THE lead. The rally started with two outs and TWO strikes to Erick Aybar. Four minutes later the previously untouchable Papelbon had surrendered three runs and the lead.
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Jered Weaver Handles Red Sox, Angels Go Up 2-0 in ALDS
by Rev Halofan on Oct 9, 2009 9:51 PM PDT
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Final Score in Los Angeles of Anaheim: Angels 4, Red Sox 1
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