Thigpen’s Record Save ‘Unbelievable’ : Baseball: Manager predicts that the reliever will ‘annihilate’ the mark of 46 set in 1986 by Dave Righetti.

“I was so emotional I couldn’t talk,” White Sox reliever Bobby Thigpen said after he set a major league record with his 47th save Monday in a 4-2 victory over the Kansas City Royals.

“I was at a loss for words. I never thought I’d be that emotional. I never figured on anything like this. It was an unbelievable moment.”

Once the shock wore off, he was more philosophical.

“Personally, it’s just a number,” he said. “I hope I can put up a bunch more. We play a lot of close games.”

Thigpen, who tied Dave Righetti’s record when he picked up his 46th save Saturday night in California, said he knew what was coming when Carlton Fisk led off the sixth inning with his 15th homer to break a 2-2 tie. (Baseball roundups, C4.)

“The sixth inning is too early for me to even start thinking,” Thigpen said, “but when Pudge hit the homer, I zoned out.”

Barry Jones, Thigpen’s personal setup man, finished off the seventh inning for winner Wayne Edwards (4-3) and then waded through the eighth before handing the ball to Thigpen.

By then the White Sox had added a run to make it 4-2.

Thigpen retired pinch batter Kevin Seitzer on a ground ball, gave up a single to Brian McRae and then got the dangerous George Brett to hit into a game-ending double play to break the record set by Righetti with the New York Yankees in 1986.

Thigpen was mobbed by his teammates on the field.

But as far as manager Jeff Torborg is concerned, it was just the beginning.

“I believe he’s going to annihilate the record,” said Torborg, who was a bullpen coach with the Yankees when Righetti set the record.

Fisk was happy to have a big part in the event.

His upper-deck shot was the 351st home run of his career. Fisk also doubled to help set up two runs in the fourth inning.

“Bobby’s a regular guy, not goofy with crazy peculiarities like some relievers have,” Fisk said. “You like to see nice things happen to a nice guy.”

But Fisk was also realistic enough to realize that the White Sox are made to order for a relief ace to pile up numbers.

“It’s too bad the team has to play that brand of baseball,” Fisk said. “It’s not like we can go out and get 19 hits and 15 runs. But we’re ahead, and that’s what counts.”

“Bobby compares favorably with Righetti,” Torborg said. “Both are tough, super tough but not nasty tough. And both aren’t concerned about stats. I remember Righetti didn’t want a save once because it was a cheap one.”

Manager John Wathan of the Royals said: “That’s twice we’ve been victimized by history. There was the game with the Griffeys (Ken Jr. and Ken Sr. in the same game Friday night in a 5-2 loss to Seattle) and now Thigpen. He’s had a great year, and he’s a real workhorse. You have to give him a lot of credit. He has great stuff.”