Autry’s Enjoying the Ride With Surprising Angels

Just finished updating my appointments calendar for Aug. 11-13. All it took was an eraser the size of an eight-track tape and a new-found respect for the Angels.

Here were my plans before the Angels decided to confound preseason predictions with this unlikely run at the AL West title:

Friday--Trim toenails. Drive up to cousin Luther’s house for garage sale. Saturday--Listen to Dodger game. Clean rain gutters. Sunday--Check newspaper to see if Angels have been mathematically eliminated from division race yet. Of course, that was before the Angels swept through April, May, parts of June, July and now August as if they actually thought they could win this thing. It was before Chuck Finley reversed his fortunes of a year ago; before Bert Blyleven rediscovered his curveball; before Jim Abbott proved he didn’t need the minors; before Kirk McCaskill could throw without pain and Mike Witt could pitch without always having to win.

It was pre-Doug Rader, the manager who now finds a halo around his mug in national magazines. And it was pre-Team Unity, perhaps the most telling reason for the Angels’ success.

Be honest, you didn’t really think the Angels would be in a pennant race with 45 games remaining in the season, did you? And please tell me I’m not the only one who thought this weekend’s series against the Oakland Athletics would have all the drama of a “Punky Brewster” episode.

Noted philosopher and reliever Dan Quisenberry once said, “The future is much like the present, only longer.”

That’s how I felt about the 1989 Angels: once a fifth-place team, always a fifth-place team. The Angels, I decided, were a collection of uncertainties and could-have-beens destined for a 162-game descent into the standings. The future had the same look as the present--dismal. But, as Quisenberry said, only longer.

Now you can’t keep your eyes or your interest off the Angels. They’re hotter than the Anaheim Stadium parking lot on a summer afternoon. What should have been a meaningless three-game series has become the centerpiece of the major leagues this weekend. The Angels. In August.

Unbelievable.

Even the chairman of the board himself, Gene Autry, is a bit mystified by the turnaround. After all, he and Angel Vice President Mike Port traveled to the winter meetings in Atlanta with wallets wide open and still couldn’t convince Nolan Ryan or Bruce Hurst to sign. Nor did the Angels have a true leadoff hitter or cleanup man and who knew what to expect from the new and improved Rader.

Now he knows and he said he couldn’t be happier.

“I’ll say this much for Doug Rader . . . this is the first time in a long time that the team is playing like a team,” Autry said Friday evening. “They’re playing for each other, they’re trying to do their best.”

Isn’t fate wonderful? At one point during the off-season, Autry wanted Gene Mauch (if Mauch were healthy) to return as Angel manager. But a series of conversations convinced him otherwise. “I think he was burned out,” Autry said. “He just felt that he needed to get away from baseball for two or three years. I can understand that.”

With Mauch no longer a candidate, Autry considered several other options, including personal favorite Jim Fregosi. Enter Port and a heartfelt recommendation of Rader.

Port argued that Rader’s managing and coaching experiences in Texas and Chicago “had taught him a great lesson,” that he was a professional. Said Port to Autry that day: “I don’t think you’ll be sorry if you say, ‘OK, let’s go get him.’ ”

Sorry? Autry is ecstatic, enough so that he granted Rader a contract extension before half the season was finished.

“I think he’s far exceeded what we expected of him,” Autry said.

And what would have happened had the Angels gotten Ryan or Hurst or even Rickey Henderson? So far, it hasn’t seemed to matter.

Autry has been through this sort of thing before. His Angels are the Chicago Cubs of the American League. Teasers, that’s what they are. Remember 1979, 1982 and 1986? Autry can’t forget those seasons, no matter how hard he tries.

Now the chance for a first World Series appearance nips at his cowboy boots once more and Autry finds himself caught up in the excitement. During a recent vacation in Ireland, where news of the AL West arrives slowly, Autry had someone provide him with daily updates of his team on the other side of the world. As for this series against the A’s, Autry could hardly wait for the first pitch.

“I wouldn’t miss this one,” he said. “I’ve got to see it.”

And so he watches 24 overachievers attempt the improbable. If nothing else, it has been one interesting and unscheduled journey.

“If we can finish in the (World) Series, that will be great,” he said. “But if we don’t, we’ve had a lot of fun with it. We’ll just try to plug it up and go after them again next year.”

Just in case, I’m keeping October open on my calendar. I mean, you never know.