Downing, Pettis Left Stunned by Defeat : 2 Angels Collide on Sacrifice That Gives Brewers 4-3 Win in 10th

The final out was a jarring one, leaving the Angels to pick up the pieces--and a couple of outfielders--in the wake of their 4-3 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers Saturday.

Paul Molitor’s sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 10th inning decided it, bringing home Rick Manning with the winning run before a crowd of 11,674 at County Stadium. Center fielder Gary Pettis, who caught the ball, had no chance of throwing out Manning at the plate.

At the time, both Pettis and left fielder Brian Downing were lying face-down on the outfield grass. Their first order of business was regaining their senses. They had just collided in shallow left-center field while giving chase to Molitor’s fly, sending both fielders sprawling and the Angel trainers running from the dugout.

Downing and Pettis lay there for several minutes after Manning had crossed home plate before finally being helped to their feet. Downing reported some numbness in the area around his nose and eyes. Pettis said he had the wind knocked out of him.

Nothing serious, they insisted.

It only looked serious.

“That was scary,” said losing pitcher Donnie Moore (1-2), who yielded the fly to Molitor. “That was my concern. Bleep the game. We have a lot of games to go. We need those guys.”

As soon as Molitor made contact, the game appeared over. With the game tied, 3-3, and the bases loaded with one out, the Angels had their outfield playing in. Molitor’s ball wasn’t hit deep, but it was in the gap.

Downing and Pettis had to turn away from home plate as they set chase. Keeping their eyes on the ball, they lost track of each other.

“I saw (Downing) before the play, and that was the last time I saw him until he was right on me,” Pettis said.

Downing said: “There was no time to communicate. The ball was equidistant from both us. You’re going back and you don’t know where the other guy is.”

Downing tried to pull up as Pettis lunged to backhand the ball, but Downing’s momentum carried him into his teammate. Downing’s face struck Pettis just below the left arm.

Both players, and Downing’s glove, went flying.

“I’m just glad Downing didn’t hit him with his forearm or his shoulder,” Angel Manager Gene Mauch said. “I don’t know if his face is strong, but the rest of his body is. When Brian Downing runs into you, who knows if you’re going to be all right.”

Pettis called it the worst collision he has been involved in. Downing said he was glad he gave up wearing glasses in the outfield before the start of the season.

Both players doubted that the game could have been saved had there been no collision.

“There’s always a chance, but it wouldn’t have been a good chance,” Pettis said. “No matter who catches it, we’re both running away from home plate.”

Downing said: “It would have been a difficult play. Both of us were going away from the play. But I didn’t think about that. Maybe the guy (Manning) might leave too soon. You can’t just give up.”

It has been a rough week for Downing. He beat up an outfield fence in Toronto Wednesday. He did it twice more Friday night, robbing Milwaukee’s Charlie Moore of extra bases once but not twice.

And Saturday, he ran over a teammate.

“I want to catch again,” Downing said jokingly. “I never got this banged up catching. Here, I’m running into walls, smashing my wrist. . . . “

Of course, Downing and Pettis would have avoided each other entirely had Moore been able to protect a 3-1 lead for starter Ron Romanick in the bottom of the ninth. Moore allowed the Brewers to tie it at 3-3 in regulation, forcing a 10th inning.

After lasting just two innings in his previous start, Romanick limited Milwaukee to one run on five singles through eight innings. But when he opened the ninth by surrendering a double to .143-hitting Randy Ready, Mauch decided to make a change.

Moore came in to walk pinch-hitter Jim Gantner, who was replaced by pinch-runner Charlie Moore. One out later, the Angels’ Moore yielded a single to Earnest Riles on a 1-and-2 pitch, bringing in Ready from second base.

Then came the one that really hurt.

Moore worked the count to 0-and-2 against the next hitter, Cecil Cooper. Then, he threw four more strikes.

Cooper fouled three of them off.

The fourth, he lined into left-center, scoring Charlie Moore with the tying run.

“That’s the game,” the Angels’ Moore said. “You can’t make anybody hit the pitches you want.”

Milwaukee nearly ended it moments after Moore intentionally walked Robin Yount to load the bases. Billy Joe Robidoux followed with a grounder to the left of the mound. Unless it’s a double play, Riles scores the winning run.

Shortstop Dick Schofield ran in, scooped up the ball and made a balletic move to touch second base himself. He then twirled in midair and fired to first base to complete the double play.

“That was awesome,” Moore said. “That saved the game there. I thought we’d do it again.”

But in the bottom of the 10th, Moore found himself surrounded by Brewers again. Milwaukee loaded the bases on a single by Ben Oglivie, who was replaced by pinch-runner Manning, and walks to Juan Castillo and Charlie Moore.

“When I walked the second baseman (Castillo), I knew I was in trouble,” the Angels’ Moore said. “I could see walking Cooper or Oglivie, but not him.”

That helped bring Molitor to bat for the sixth time in the game, including a walk. Downing and Pettis would have preferred to have kept it to five.

Then came the crash--and the Angels’ 10th loss in 24 games.

Downing tried to laugh about it. “Is that what you call the agony of defeat?” he said.

Nothing doing. It still hurt when he laughed.

Angel Notes Saturday marked the second time in three appearances that Donnie Moore let an Angel lead slip away. Moore had also pitched in six of the Angels’ last seven games. “I was tired,” he admitted. “I didn’t feel overpowering at all. But I thought I had enough stuff to get ‘em out. You can’t come in for short relief and start walking guys.” . . . Manager Gene Mauch, on Moore: “I can understand (Cecil) Cooper getting a hit off him, but the hit (Earnest) Riles got off him is enough to make you cry. That’s a double-play ball, but nobody could reach it. It was just a squib off the top of the bat. Donnie made about as good a pitch as you can make.” . . . Dick Schofield’s acrobatic double play that got Moore out of his first bases-loaded jam duly impressed Mauch. “Schofield’s got a chance to be an outstanding player,” Mauch said. “One of these days, I think, it’s definitely going to happen. It looks to me like he’s on the verge of it right now.” . . . First baseman Wally Joyner hit his seventh home run of the season, this one in the sixth inning, equaling his entire home run output of 1985. While playing first base last season, Rod Carew hit two home runs, Juan Beniquez four and Bobby Grich one.

All in the family: When Angel pitching coach Marcel Lachemann walked out to the mound to make a pitching change in the ninth inning, he was booed loudly by the County Stadium crowd. Brewer fans haven’t forgotten the job that Lacheman’s brother, Rene, did while managing Milwaukee in 1984: 67-94, seventh place, 36 1/2 games out of first. . . . Reggie Jackson, on pitcher Don Sutton’s struggles in his quest for 300 career victories: “When I was going for 500 (home runs), I was stuck on 497 for weeks. I didn’t think I’d ever hit it. I’d drive home at night thinking, ‘Well, 497 ain’t a bad career.’ It hangs over you. You just can’t get it out of your mind.” Jackson also said a player’s age becomes an increasingly popular topic of discussion as the milestone remains unreached. “When you don’t do it and you’re 40, they say ‘You should retire,’ ” Jackson said. “When you’re 40 and you’re doin’ it, it’s, ‘He’s experienced.’ ” . . . The Angels’ Kirk McCaskill (2-1) faces the Brewers’ Ted Higuera (3-1) in today’s series finale.