The first wild-card World Series is already living up to its name, providing more twists and turns than a Tom Clancy novel.
Anaheim exploded in one inning and imploded the next, while San Francisco alternated between sleepwalking and moonwalking, with no apparent rhyme or reason.
Game 2 on Sunday was a made-for-October spectacle that lasted late into the night. It finally concluded with an 11-10 Anaheim victory on Tim Salmon’s two-out, two-run homer in the bottom of the eighthbefore an emotionally drained gathering at Edison Field.
Barry Bonds hit a monster home run in the ninth before Angels closer Troy Percival retired Benito Santiago on a popup to end the game.
On a night when the unexpected became the norm, the Angels blew a five-run, first-inning lead, starters Kevin Appier and Russ Ortiz failed to last past the second, DH Brad Fullmer became the first player in 38 years to steal home, and a couple of guys named Rodriguez dueled in the late innings under a full moon in Anaheim.
All that, and Bonds, too.
The game got off to an auspicious start when the first four Anaheim batters got hits, leading to the first five-run first inning in a World Series since Baltimore did it to Pittsburgh in Game 1 in ’79.
David Eckstein kick-started the offense with a leadoff single, followed by a run-scoring double by Darin Erstad. After Tim Salmon’s single advanced Erstad to third, Garret Anderson singled home the second run. One out later, Fullmer lined a shot to center that Kenny Lofton couldn’t reach with a diving attempt, making it 3-0.
Scott Spiezio’s broken bat single brought in the fourth run, and the Angels ended the scoring on a double steal, with Fullmer cruising home without a play when Santiago’s throw sailed into second. It was the first time a player stole home in the Series since Fox broadcaster Tim McCarver accomplished it for St. Louis in Game 7 of the ’64 Series against the Yankees. With a 5-0 lead and a patient attack, the Angels appeared virtually unstoppable.
“Every guy that goes up there thinks their at-bat is the most crucial in the universe at that time,” Spiezio said.
But the universe is always expanding, not unlike the length of postseason games, and this game was only just beginning. After breezing through the first on only 10 pitches and being staked to the five-run lead, Appier collapsed like a quasar in the second. Reggie Sanders’ three-run shot to left, his second of the Series, pulled the Giants to within two, and David Bell followed with a solo homer to make it 5-4.
Salmon’s two-run homer off Ortiz in the second, the Angels’ 20th of the postseason, increased the lead to three runs again and set a postseason record. But Jeff Kent countered with a solo homer off Appier in the third, and one walk later, Appier was history.
The strategy of letting anyone but Bonds beat you came back to haunt Angels manager Mike Scioscia in the fifth, when he ordered an intentional walk to the Giants’ slugger with a man on second and one out, putting the tying runs on base. After Santiago singled off Ben Weber to load the bases, J.T. Snow’s two-run single tied the game at 7-7. Bell grounded one up the middle that Adam Kennedy nabbed with a dive to his right, but his flip to second for the force was late by a millisecond, scoring Santiago for the Giants first lead.
Shawon Dunston’s RBI single made it 9-7, and the Angels looked like they were gasping for air. San Francisco left-hander Chad Zerbe, who wasn’t on the roster in the Division Series and didn’t make an appearance in the National League Championship Series, entered in the second inning and held the Angels in check until the fifth.
But Troy Glaus led off the fifth with a single and took third when Kenny Lofton bobbled the ball on Fullmer’s single to center. Spiezio’s sacrifice fly cut the deficit to one run, and Zerbe was removed after Erstad’s two-out double in the sixth. After a walk to Salmon by Jay Witasick, Anderson tied it again with an RBI single off Aaron Fultz.
Angels rookie phenom Francisco Rodriguez and Giants right-hander Felix Rodriguez took over from there, leading to a wild, wild finish.
