Angels Beat Yankees in the 11th : Joyner’s Sacrifice Fly Gives California a 4-3 Victory

From No Name to No Runs, the incredible Lee Guetterman saga continued Monday night at Anaheim Stadium, with the New York Yankees’ journeyman reliever pitching three more scoreless innings to drag his team into extra innings against Angels. The Angels ultimately won, 4-3, in 11 innings on Wally Joyner’s sacrifice fly.

Guetterman, whose career record read 12-10 and 5.11 on Opening Day, took a 0.00 earned-run average into Monday’s game, having strung together 23 shutout innings, which eclipsed Mel Stottlemyre’s old Yankee standard of 22 2/3 scoreless innings at the outset of a season.

And after Roberto Kelly’s ninth-inning home run off Bryan Harvey forged a 3-3 tie, Guetterman was able to extend that streak to 26.

Guetterman took over for starter Dave LaPoint, who left after seven innings, trailing, 3-2. Guetterman worked a perfect eighth inning, pitched out of jam in the ninth and retired the Angels in order in the 10th before giving way to Lance McCullers in the bottom of the 11th.

The Angels threatened in the ninth when Brian Downing led off with a bloop single and, one out later, moved to second on a single by Lance Parrish. But at that point, Guetterman came back to get Wally Joyner to force Parrish at second and Dick Schofield to tap back at the mound.

Through eight innings, the story of this game had been a tale of two first basemen. Tony Armas was back in the lineup after spending more than a month on the disabled list with a strained hamstring, and Joyner was on the bench, sidelined with a strained batting average.

Joyner, slogging through a five-for-26 slump, took a .218 average into Monday’s game--and Angel Manager Doug Rader figured it would be a good night for him a rest with Joyner’s left-handed nemesis Dave LaPoint on the mound for New York. Joyner has a career batting average of .174 (four for 23) against LaPoint.

“I’ve been resting him against the guys he’s had absolutely no success against,” said Rader, who also kept Joyner out of the starting lineup Saturday against Tommy John.

“I’m trying to do the right thing for the guy. He’s getting close. It’ll come.”

And it finally did--although not before Armas had homered off LaPoint, committed an error at first base and re-aggravated his hamstring, all within six innings.

In his first at-bat since April 9, Armas sent a 2-2 pitch by LaPoint over the left-field fence in the third inning, slicing a 2-0 New York lead in half.

But in the top of the sixth, with Yankee runners on first and second base and no outs, Ken Phelps hit a roller to first that Armas immediately bobbled. The real damage, however, was done when Armas reached for the loose ball and made vain attempt to tag Phelps with a swipe of his glove.

Phelps was safe on the error, loading the bases, and Armas was sprawled on the ground in pain. It was the hamstring again, bringing an abrupt end to Armas’ comeback.

Joyner replaced Armas at first base, and after Jesse Barfield forced Sax at home, Joyner was on the receiving end of an inning-ending double play off the bat of Mike Pagliarulo.

Then, after the Angels tied the game at 2-2 in the seventh, Joyner broke the deadlock with a run-scoring single off LaPoint in the seventh. Chili Davis had singled and advanced to second on Lance Parrish’s walk before Joyner delivered his one-out single to right.

The RBI was Joyner’s 12th of the season.

But the Angels’ lead wouldn’t hold up. After seven innings, Angel starter Bert Blyleven was out of the game, giving way to Bob McClure, and before the eighth inning was complete, McClure had given way to Harvey.

And in the top of the ninth, Harvey surrendered a one-out home run to Yankee center fielder Kelly to even the score again at 3-3.

For Harvey, it was his second rough outing in as many appearances. After blowing a 2-0 ninth-inning lead last Wednesday in Detroit, winding up a 3-2 loser, Harvey walked the first two hitters he faced Monday--on eight pitches--and then squandered a second consecutive save opportunity in the ninth.

The Angels, however, had a chance to get Harvey a victory in the bottom of the ninth. With one out, the Angels had Brian Downing on second base and Parrish on first, but failed to capitalize when Joyner forced Parrish and Schofield tapped out to Guetterman.

Angel Notes

Angel owner Gene Autry underwent successful cornea transplant surgery on his right eye Monday at the Estelle Doheny Eye Clinic Hospital in Los Angeles. According to the Angels, Autry could be released from the hospital as early as today and is expected to be on hand when Jim Fregosi is inducted in the Angel hall of fame before Wednesday night’s game against the Boston Red Sox.

The Toronto Globe and Mail, in today’s edition, lists Angel pitching coach Marcel Lachemann among the candidates to replace fired Toronto Blue Jays Manager Jimy Williams. When this was brought to Lachemann’s attention before Monday’s game, the coach laughed. “They might’ve got me mixed up with Rene,” he said, referring to brother and former big-league manager Rene Lachemann. “I don’t know where I’d fit in any list of candidates. I thinks they’re just picking names.” Lachemann said he has not been approached by the Blue Jays, but conceded, “I think it’d be ridiculous not to talk to anybody if they did. But these people have been very good to me here. My home’s here. I’ve still got a lot to learn about the job I’m doing right now.”

Dick Schofield missed a second consecutive start after sustaining a groin injury Saturday, but filled in at shortstop in the eighth inning after Dante Bichette pinch-hit for starting shortstop Kent Anderson. Bichette’s plate appearance, incidentally, was the first by an Angel pinch-hitter since May 4, when Wally Joyner batted for Bill Schroeder. Yes, the days of Little Ball in Anaheim are long gone.

Angel catcher Lance Parrish ran into a different kind of obstacle while running down the line to back up a play at first base in the fourth inning. Parrish and the visitors’ bat boy got tangled up around the on-deck circle, sending Parrish tumbling toward the photographers’ well next to the Yankee dugout. Parrish and bat boy emerged unscathed and the out was recorded at first base without complication.