#31 - Wally World Opens In Anaheim
By
Eric Denton, Angelswin.com Senior Writer
"WALLY!
WALLY! WALLY!"
In
1986, the tenure of long-time All-Star first baseman
Rod Carew came to an end and Angels fans finally
had a home grown star to call their own.
Wallace
Keith Joyner burst onto the scene and nearly won
the 1986 Rookie of the Year Award. Joyner, with
his free and easy left handed swing, put up some
impressive numbers batting .290 with 22 home-runs
and 100 RBI while the Angels as a team conquered
the AL West for their third division title.
It
wasn't only California Angels fans that embraced
Joyner. Wally was the first rookie voted in as a
starter for an MLB All-Star Game, beating out the
Yankees Don Mattingly, who'd driven in 145 runs
and been named the American League MVP the year
before. Joyner enjoyed the honor of batting third
for the American League squad, which won the game,
3-2, at Houston's Astrodome.
Joyner
also thrilled fans by tying New York Mets phenom
Daryl Strawberry in the All-Star Home Run Derby.
Joyner
followed up his rookie campaign with an even better
season in 1987. His home run totals went up to 34
and he drove in 117 runs. Joyner continued to man
first base for the Angels until the 1991 season,
during which he had his last big year in the big
leagues, hitting .301 with 21 homers and 96 RBI.
After
the '91 season, Joyner left the Angels as a free
agent for the Kansas City Royals. He also played
for the San Diego Padres and Atlanta Braves. But
in 2001, Wally returned home to the then Anaheim
Angels.
On
June 14, 2001, Joyner played the final game of his
career and retired from the game as an Angel. Joyner
is now the batting coach for the San Diego Padres,
but he will forever be one of ours in the hearts
and minds of Angels fans.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CAL/CAL198905170.shtml
#32
- May 17, 1989: Rookie Abbott bests Clemens
By
Geoff Bilau, Angelswin Editor
No
Angels draft pick arrived with more notoriety and
instantaneous fan support than Jim Abbott. Even
before the team made the lefthander its first-round
pick (No. 8 overall) in the June 1988 amateur draft,
Abbott was already known outside of strictly baseball
circles. And when he led the 1988 U.S. Olympic team
to the gold medal at the Summer Games in Seoul,
Korea, he became a household name.
His
exploits on the baseball field, of course, lent
to Abbott's celebrity, but not as much as the fact
he accomplished all of them without a right hand.
Born with a genetic defect, Abbott overcame his
disability and became an inspiration to thousands
of children and adults living with disabilities
around the world.
Following
the 1988 draft and Olympics, Abbott arrived at Angels
spring training in Palm Springs, Calif., having
never thrown a pitch as a professional. There was
some question entering camp as to where Abbott,
26-8 in three years at the University of Michigan,
would begin the season: in the minor leagues or
in the Angels rotation?
When
the Angels broke camp, they took Abbott with them
to Anaheim, making him the 15th player to make his
professional debut in the Major Leagues. Abbott
lost his first start, 7-0, April 8 at home to future
teammate Mark Langston and the Seattle Mariners.
He earned his first victory April 24 at home against
the Baltimore Orioles.
Heading
into his May 17 match up in Anaheim with two-time
Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens, Abbott had
experienced mixed results, entering with a 2-3 record
and 4.50 ERA. Had the Angels misjudged the lefty's
preparedness for big league hitters? Did he need
more seasoning in the minor leagues?
Abbott
answered both questions with a resounding "No."
The
Red Sox went down in order in the first and Clemens
retired Angels leadoff hitter Claudell Washington
on a strikeout to start the Angels half. But then
Johnny Ray and Devon White singled and Wally Joyner
drew a two-out walk to load the bases for Chili
Davis, who doubled down the left field line to clear
the bases. Catcher Lance Parrish followed with a
blast to deep left field, giving Abbott and the
Angels a 5-0 first inning lead.
Clemens
began the third inning by issuing a walk to Brian
Downing and single to Joyner before being pulled
for reliever Dennis Lamp. The outing was the shortest
of Clemens' career to that point.
Abbott,
on the other hand, was dominant. He got into a two-on,
one-out jam in the fourth, but Jim Rice lined into
a double play to end the inning. Only two Red Sox
reached base the rest of the game.
As
Abbott came out to pitch the ninth inning, the Anaheim
Stadium crowd of 31,230 stunned fans rose to its
feet to cheer the rookie on. Not only had the mighty
Roger Clemens been rudely dispatched in the third
inning, but also the kid for whom everybody liked
so much to cheer was three outs from his first complete
game and shutout.
The
inning began with a Wade Boggs come backer that
Abbott was unable to field cleanly for an infield
hit. The crowd briefly stirred, wondering if the
miscue would throw off Abbott's concentration. Their
fears were soon quelled, however, as Abbott used
his cut fastball to induce Marty Barrett into a
5-4-3 double play.
And
when Ellis Burks grounded out to third, the crowd
erupted. Abbott (9 IP, 4 H, 2 BB, 4 K) had the shutout,
Clemens lost for the first time at Anaheim Stadium
and the Angels improved to 26-13 on the year. With
the shutout, the Angels' ninth of the season, Abbott
lowered his ERA almost a full run to 3.56.
For
Abbott, it was the best game of a rookie season
that saw him post a 12-12 record with a 3.92 ERA,
good for fifth in A.L. Rookie of the Year voting.
The 21-year-old had proven he belonged in the big
leagues and would soon cement his status as a fan
favorite with his infectious smile, selfless personality,
inspirational attitude and, oh yeah, some pretty
darn good pitching in subsequent seasons with the
Angels.
But
for this fan, the night Abbott beat Clemens will
always be one of the greatest moments in Angels
history.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CAL/CAL198905170.shtml
#33
- June 2, 2004: Guerrero's monster night
By
Adam Dodge, Angelswin Senior Writer
If
2004 was the "Year of Vlad," then June
2 was Independence Day, Christmas morning and New
Years Eve all rolled into one. Vladimir Guerrero
won the 2004 American League MVP in large part due
to his monstrous performances down the stretch,
but there was no better day for Bad Vlad than the
one he gave the Angels against the Boston Red Sox
in early June.
With
Red Sox ace and future Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez
on the mound, runs would certainly seem to be at
a premium. Unfortunately for Pete and the Sox, no
one told Vladdy, who torched Boston, driving in
nine runs, a Angels franchise record at the time,
to lead the Angels to a 10-7 victory.
Guerrero
got started early, hitting a two-run homer to left
field in the first.
With
the score knotted, 2-2, in the bottom of the third,
Guerrero stepped to the plate with two men on and
laced a double into left, scoring both Chone Figgins
and David Eckstein.
Down,
7-4, in the fourth inning, Guerrero came up with
the bases loaded and lined a ball sharply to Red
Sox right fielder Kevin Millar. Bengie Molina scored
on the sacrifice fly. It was Boston 7, Guerrero
5.
With
the Angels still trailing in the bottom of the sixth
inning by the same 7-5 score, Guerrero once again
entered the batter's box, this time with two men
on, and ripped a Mike Timlin offering just over
the green wall in left center field. Guerrero's
three-run shot and second home run of the game gave
the Angels an 8-7 lead. Guerrero had driven in all
eight Angels runs.
An
inning later, after an Eckstein hit-and-run double
into right center field scored Bengie Molina from
first base - one of the game's other miraculous
events - Figgins singled, setting the table for
Guerrero to drive in his team-record ninth RBI of
the game. Guerrero delivered with a sharp single
just out of the reach of Boston shortstop Pokie
Reese to push Eckstein home for the fourth time
in the game.
As
a fan in attendance at the Big A that night, I can
honestly say it was the single greatest performance
I'd ever seen on a baseball field. I was glad to
share the moment with my father from the right field
terrace section.
A
little later in the list, we'll feature the man
who broke Guerrero's record.
Stay
tuned.
#
34 - April 19, 1966, Official Opening of Anaheim
Stadium
By
Geoff Bilau and Eric Denton, Angelswin Editors
When
the Los Angeles Angels were born in 1961, home was
a more transient notion than a place for them to
call their own.
They
spent their inaugural season at tiny Wrigley Field,
a former minor league ballpark ill suited for Major
League play with its 345-foot power alleys and paltry
20,457 seating capacity. The next year, the Angels
moved into newly constructed Dodger Stadium, or
Chavez Ravine as the American Leaguers called it,
where they appeared as sub lessees who got to use
the field while the "real" tenants were
away.
The
Angels needed their own home.
In
the ensuing years, Angels owner Gene Autry was courted
by many southland cities, including a strong wooing
from Long Beach, but eventually settled on Anaheim,
which offered a 160-acre parcel near the intersection
of three freeways. Ground was broken Aug. 31, 1964,
on the $24 million facility, and 19 months later
it was ready for the Angels to move in.
The
new stadium featured 43,204 seats and outfield dimensions
derived from a scientific study intended to insure
offensive balance. But the real calling card was
the $1 million "Big A" scoreboard in left
field. At 230 feet, it was the tallest structure
in Orange County at the time and featured a state-of-the-art
video display that could not only show fans the
score and lineups, but also lead cheers and highlight
statistical milestones.
The
Angels hosted the San Francisco Giants for a pre-season
exhibition at their new stadium on April 9, 1966,
during which Willie Mays hit the "unofficial"
first home run in Anaheim Stadium history.
Ten
days later, the stadium officially opened Major
League play, with Tommy John and the White Sox facing
off against Marcelino Lopez and the Angels. Outfielder
Rick Reichardt connected for a solo home run, the
stadium's first, in the second inning, giving the
Angels a lead they'd hold until the sixth. But the
Sox tied it on a Tommie Agee solo homer in the sixth
and took the lead with two in the eighth to hand
the Angels a 3-1 defeat in their home opener. Jim
Fregosi's first inning double was the stadium's
first hit.
The
Angels notched their first Anaheim home victory
the next night, defeating the White Sox, 4-3, in
11 innings.
The
new location and facility were both a hit with fans.
The Angels drew only 566,727 fans during the 1965
season at Chavez Ravine, but nearly tripled that
figure to 1.4 million their first year in Anaheim.
Since
that first season, the venue has hosted the 1967
and 1989 MLB All-Star Game and the 2006 World Baseball
Classic. It has also witnessed Hall of Fame achievements
such as Don Sutton's 300th victory, Rod Carew's
and George Brett's 3000th hits, and Reggie Jackson's
500th home run. While tenets in Anaheim/Edison Field/Angels
Stadium, the Angels have won six division titles
and one World Series Championship.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CAL/CAL196604190.shtml
#35
- July 15, 1973: Ryan throws second, most-dominant
no-hitter
By
Geoff Bilau - Angelswin.com Editor
Nolan
Ryan pitched far more than one man's fair share
of dominant games while wearing an Angels uniform,
including all of those games with 10 or more strikeouts,
six one-hitters and, of course, four no-hitters
- none, perhaps, more dominating than this game
in Detroit.
Two
months to the day after tossing his first no-no
in Kansas City, Ryan again seemed up to the task
from the get-go. He struck out seven of the first
10 Tigers he faced, including fanning the side in
the second inning.
A
Vada Pinson sacrifice fly in the third inning gave
the Angels an early 1-0 lead, but it would be all
Ryan would have to work with for most of the game.
On this day, it was plenty.
Ryan
fanned the side in the fourth and added two more
strikeouts in the fifth. In the seventh, he struck
out the side again.
In
the top of the eighth, the Angels erupted for five
runs and the drama over who would win the game was
mostly gone. But by this point, the focus had shifted
to the zero in the Tigers' hit column and the 16
in their strikeout column.
Detroit
went 1-2-3 in the bottom of the inning, the middle
out coming on Ryan's strikeout of shortstop Ed Brinkman.
It was Ryan's 17th strikeout of the game, the highest
total of any of his no-hitters and one short of
Bob Feller's American League record at the time.
After
retiring Mickey Stanley on a groundout and Gates
Brown on a soft liner to start the ninth, Ryan needed
only to get 15-year veteran first baseman Norm Cash
to seal the deal. Having struck out in each of his
previous three plate appearances, Cash strode up
to home plate carrying not his bat, but rather a
table leg he'd grabbed from the Tigers clubhouse.
The
umpire immediately ordered Cash to return with a
regulation bat, an order to which he begrudgingly
complied, telling the umpire it wasn't as if it
mattered anyway.
With
his regular bat, Cash hit a harmless pop up to Angels
shortstop Rudy Meoli and Ryan completed the second
no-hitter of his career.
"This
was definitely a bigger thrill than the first one,"
Ryan said after the game. "I had better stuff
today and I knew what a no-hitter meant. I was a
little more nervous, but I probably had as good
as stuff today as I've had all year."
Ryan
thoroughly tamed the Tigers in 1973, finishing the
season 4-0 with a 1.15 ERA and 44 strikeouts in
39 innings.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/DET/DET197307150.shtml
#36
- 1993: Salmon named Rookie of the Year
By
Chuck Richter - Angelswin.com Senior Editor
A
year after putting some hurtin' on Pacific Coast
League pitchers, hitting .347 with 29 home runs,
105 RBI and a ridiculous 1.141 OPS for the Edmonton
Trappers, the Kingfish headed upstream to Anaheim
and won a unanimous vote for the American League
Rookie of the Year Award in 1993 .
Salmon,
a notorious slow starter who holds the unique distinction
of having the most home runs of any player never
selected to an All-Star team, was no different during
his rookie campaign as he started the '93 season
in the shadow of rookie sensation J.T. Snow, who
got off to a tremendous start. The second half was
always much kinder to Salmon, as it seemed that
his bat heated up with the weather and, boy, did
he put a pounding on the Texas Rangers.
Salmon,
not Snow, wound up winning the award, representing
a first for the California Angels. He batted .283
with 31 home runs and 95 RBI, along with 35 doubles,
93 runs scored and a slugging percentage of .536.
He was also tied in A.L. outfield assists with 12.
Snow started the 1994 season in the minors after
struggling badly in the second half of Salmon's
ROY campaign.
Salmon
quickly became a favorite of the Angels organization
and a household name among the team's fans thereafter.
Timmy played a crucial role in the Angels' playoff
and World Series run in 2002, hitting two key home
runs in Game 2 of the World Series against the San
Francisco Giants, a moment in Angels history that
fans will never forget.
The
King Fish was hampered by injuries late in his career
and was forced to retire in 2006. Salmon played
his final game on Oct. 1, 2006, against the Oakland
Athletics. He is the Angels' all-time leader in
home runs (299), runs scored (983), walks (965)
and slugging percentage (.499). He finished his
career second in franchise history with 1,012 RBI,
behind only Garret Anderson.
To
this day, Tim Salmon remains the only Angels player
that has won a Rookie of the Year Award, though
when Angels fans remember him, it won't be just
the stats, big home runs or awards that they think
of, but Tim Salmon the person. Tim Salmon was the
quintessential gentleman of the game of Baseball.
Career
Highlights, Awards, and Accolades:
*
Named 1992 Minor League Player of the Year by Baseball
America
* Named 1992 Minor League Player of the Year by
The Sporting News
* Named 1993 AL Rookie of the Year by Baseball Writers
of America
* Named 1993 AL Rookie of the Year by The Sporting
News
* Named 2002 AL Comeback Player of the Year by The
Sporting News
* Named outfielder on The Sporting News AL All-Star
Team in 1995 and 1997
* Named outfielder on The Sporting News AL Silver
Slugger Team in 1995
* Member of the World Series Champion Anaheim Angels
in 2002
* Hit 30 or more home runs in five seasons
* Compiled a lifetime .883 OPS
#37
- Big Klu leads Angels to first victory
By
Victor Varadi - Angelswin.com Columnist
#37
- April 11, 1961: Big Klu leads Angels to first
victory
It
was a great story. Gene Autry had purchased an expansion
baseball franchise, naming it the Los Angeles Angels.
Then the reality set in.
The
Angels would have to field a team and then go out
and compete. Without free agency, the odds were
against any team in that era being able to start
from scratch and compete. This is not the part of
the story where the young scrappy team goes on to
win itself a championship in its inaugural season
- again, a great story, but not part of the reality.
Not
only were the Angels expected to compete in the
tough American League, where the mighty Yankees
and the M and M boys, Maris and Mantle, were perennial
favorites for the Word Series crown, but their first
game would be against the Baltimore Orioles, a team
that would contend every year until finally winning
it all in 1966.
The
Angels were led by big Teddy Kluszewski, a .298
career hitter and 4-time All-Star who once cut off
the sleeves of his uniform to alleviate the restrictions
on his large biceps as he took rips with the bat.
But Kluszewski, who had 3 times hit more than 40
homers and 8 times batted at least .300, was at
the end of his career and had been so plagued by
injuries that he was left unprotected in the expansion
draft. The Angels made Big Klu their first baseman.
Kluszewski
was true to form in the curtain lifter of what would
turn out to be is final season. In the first inning
of the Angels inaugural game at Baltimore's Memorial
Stadium, Kluszewski came to the plate with two outs
and a young Albie Pearson on first. The big lefthander
hit a homer down the right field line, quickly giving
the Angels their first ever lead. But Klu wasn't
done. In the second inning, he came to the plate
again, this time with two men on, and hit a blast
to deep right field that put the Angels up 6-0.
Bob Cerv would later add a solo homer and the Angels
went on to an easy 7-2 victory.
Kluszewski
finished the game 2-for-4 with two home runs and
5 RBI. He would finish the season batting .243 with
15 homeruns. The 1961 Angels won 70 games, the most
ever by an expansion team in its first year.
#38
- Trio of Hall of Fame moments
By
Geoff Bilau - Angelswin.com Editor
Sept.
17, 1984: Reggie hits No. 500
Aug. 4, 1985: Carew collects No. 3,000
June 18, 1986: Sutton wins No. 300
For
three consecutive seasons, one each year, Angels
fans were treated to a player reaching a Hall of
Fame milestone while wearing an Angels uniform.
More impressively, each accomplished the feat at
Anaheim Stadium.
First
up was Reggie Jackson. The self-proclaimed "straw
that stirs the drink" arrived in Anaheim two
years earlier, signing as a free agent and bringing
with him 425 home runs in 14 previous seasons.
Jackson
immediately delivered to his billing, whopping 39
home runs in 1982 and helping the Angels clinch
their second division title. Jackson slumped badly
in 1983, batting .194 and hitting only 14 home runs.
But he was now just 22 home runs shy of 500.
In
the waning days of the 1984 season, with the Angels
in a pennant chase with the Twins and Royals, Jackson's
pursuit of No. 500 gave the season some additional
drama. In the seventh inning of a foggy Monday night
game against the Royals, with the Angels trailing,
7-0, Jackson connected, driving Bud Black's first
pitch deep over the right field fence. (It was one
of only three hits Black would allow the Angels
on the night.)
"My
first thought was, 'That's it,' " Jackson told
reporters after the game. "My second was, I
wish we could be winning. I wished it could've been
a seven-run homer to tie the score."
The
home run came 17 years to the day that Jackson hit
his first homer, as a member of the Kansas City
Athletics against the Angels at Anaheim Stadium
in 1967.
Jackson
would hit 123 of his 563 career homers for the Angels,
none more memorable than this one.
The
following August, Rod Carew was also chasing baseball
immorality. A seven-time batting champion in 12
seasons with the Twins, Carew came to the Angels
in 1979 with 2,085 hits.
Though
he was never a great run producer for the Angels
as he had been with the Twins, Carew could still
bat .300 in his sleep and his .339 average in 1983
was a team record that held up for 17 years.
As
the 1985 season, and his career, wound down, Carew
landed himself in the exclusive 3,000-hit club.
With his patented slap swing, Carew lined No. 3,000
to left field off Minnesota Twins lefty Frank Viola.
Most Angels fans can vividly recall the image of
Carew reaching up to secure his helmet as he trotted
to first base under a bright Sunday afternoon sky.
"He
threw me a tough pitch (a slider down and away),"
Carew said. "If I hadn't stayed with that pitch
and taken it, I would have been called out on a
third strike. Fortunately, I was able to get the
bat on the ball and place it in left field."
Carew
retired following the 1985 season with 3,053 hits.
His .314 average with the Angels is second only
to Vladimir Guerrero's .327.
And
finally, Don Sutton, in the midst of his 21st Major
League season, was closing in on his own place in
baseball history.
Acquired
during the Angels ultimately fruitless stretch run
in 1985, Sutton came to Anaheim having already won
293 games. He won two more in 1985 and entered the
1986 season five shy of the milestone.
On
a Wednesday night against the visiting Texas Rangers,
sitting on 299 victories, Sutton pitched like a
man half his age. Through six innings, he'd allowed
only one hit and carried a three-hitter (one run)
into the ninth.
More
than 37,000 fans climbed to their feet as Sutton
took the mound for the ninth inning. He quickly
retired Scott Fletcher and Oddibe McDowell on flyouts.
In a fitting finale, Sutton struck out Gary Ward
to end it. Sutton had pitched a complete game, three-hitter
to win his 300th game.
"It's
remarkable how time after time it's been proven
how special people do special things," manager
Gene Mauch said. "I imagine that Don is proud
that No. 300 was this kind of game rather than just
another win."
Sutton
won 15 games in 1986 and 11 in 1987 before finishing
his career back with the Dodgers in 1988, retiring
with 324 victories.
Carew
was inducted into baseball's Hall of Fame in 1991,
his first year of eligibility. Jackson was enshrined
in 1993, also his first eligible year, and Sutton
in 1998. And though none of these players went in
representing the Angels, their milestone moments
will forever be part of Angels lore.
#39
- Nov. 8, 2005: Colon awarded Cy Young
By
Adam Dodge -Angelswin.com Senior Writer
Despite
the dynamic runs of Nolan Ryan and Frank Tanana
in the '70s and the marvelous Angels careers of
guys like Mike Witt, Chuck Finley, Mark Langston
and Jim Abbott in the '80s and '90s, it had been
41 years since Dean Chance took home the Angels
franchise's only Cy Young award in 1964.
The
Angels had quite possibly their busiest off-season
before the 2004 campaign, signing four of the most
highly touted free agents, including Jose Guillen
and Kelvim Escobar, and top prizes, Vladimir Guerrero
and Bartolo Colon.
Guerrero
did not disappoint in 2004, taking home the American
League MVP award. A year later, after earning a
league best 21 victories against just 8 losses,
Colon became the second Angel to win a Cy Young
award, easily beating out Yankee closer, Mariano
Rivera and Twins ace, Johan Santana.
Without
the statistical dominance of Cy Young winners past
- Colon was eighth in the A.L. with a 3.48 ERA,
tenth in complete games, seventh in innings pitched
and eighth in strikeouts - it was Colon's consistency
and ability to win that propelled him to the A.L.'s
top honor for pitchers in 2005.
While
a bad back and shoulder limited Colon to just 8
innings in the 2005 ALDS, and kept him out of the
ALCS altogether, his 2005 regular season will go
down as one of the greatest in Angels history.
#40
- Sept. 5, 2004: Molina with the no-look pass
By
Eric Denton, Angelswin.com Senior Writer
With
the Angels trailing the Oakland A's by three games
in early September, every game and every out was
huge.
This
particular day at Jacob's Field in Cleveland, catcher
Bengie Molina and pitcher Francisco Rodriguez combined
for one of the most impressive defensive plays in
Angels history.
In
the bottom of the eighth inning, the Halos clung
to a 2-1 lead on the back of an outstanding effort
by John Lackey. Then set-up man Rodriguez was summoned
to get the Angels out of a jam. With the tying run,
Cleveland's Ronnie Belliard, only 90 feet away and
two outs, Rodriguez bounced a slider that Molina
blocked about 10 feet behind him to the left. Belliard
bolted for home.
The
Gold Glove catcher pounced on the ball and made
a no-look, behind-the-back throw to Rodriguez, who
was simultaneously sliding in to cover the plate.
All in the same motion, Rodriguez made the catch
and applied the tag. Belliard was out at home and
the Angels hung on for the victory.
"That
play," said Angels manager Mike Scioscia, "was
flat out unbelievable."
"Instincts,"
Francisco Rodriguez added. "By far, that's
the best play we've ever made."
"We
do it sometimes joking around (in practice),"
Molina said. "This was no joke."
"It's
got to be one of the best plays I've seen,"
said Lackey, for whom the play earned a victory.
Indeed,
it was one of the best plays ever which is why it
made this list. Clips of it are still shown during
highlight reels at Angel Stadium to this day.
http://www.mlb.com/news/wrap.jsp?ymd=20040905&content_id=848999&vkey=wrapup2004&fext=.jsp&c_id=ana
