Erstad Delivers Win for Angels

The Angels, who haven’t been able to match up a good pitching performance with a strong offensive outing very often this season, got a quality start from Chuck Finley, some solid relief pitching and two clutch hits from Mo Vaughn on Monday night.

The result?

Well, it wasn’t enough to win in regulation, but in the 11th inning Darin Erstad led off with a home run into the right-field seats off reliever Nerio Rodriguez for a 4-3 victory over Toronto in front of what was left of a crowd of 17,324 at Edison Field.

“Some days you get no pitching and plenty of hitting and some days you pitch great and get no hitting,” Manager Terry Collins said before the game. “That’s what makes this game great. If you get both on the same day, you’re going to win, but what you have to do to be successful is win some of the others.”

For the Angels, sometimes even a fairly healthy portion of both isn’t enough. Their newest power broker got two clutch hits and their longtime ace struck out seven and allowed just five hits in 6 2/3 innings and still they had to battle into extra innings.

The last time Finley faced Toronto--which was only last Tuesday--he said he had the best stuff he has had all season, but it seems he temporarily forgot the foundation of his longtime success, throwing 100 pitches and giving up five runs in 4 2/3 innings when he chose to start busting the Blue Jays inside rather than tattooing the low, outside corner of the plate.

Monday, Finley returned to his comfort zone--away, away, away down south in the strike zone--and sailed through the Blue Jays’ lineup until the seventh. Toronto never had more than one runner on base in the first six innings, but he struggled with his control in the seventh.

He hit Carlos Delgado leading off the inning and then walked Tony Fernandez. After Alex Gonzalez struck out, designated hitter Anthony Sanders lined a two-run double down the left-field line. One out later, No. 9 hitter Pat Kelly walked on four pitches and Collins went to his bullpen, summoning Mark Petkovsek. Shannon Stewart greeted Petkovsek with a run-scoring single to right and the Blue Jays went ahead, 3-2.

The Angels tied the score in the bottom of the seventh when Randy Velarde walked with one out and came all the way around to score on Vaughn’s double off the fence in the right-field corner. Vaughn, still playing on an obviously painful left ankle injured on opening day, was removed for a pinch runner.

The Angels had a chance to regain the lead in the eighth after loading the bases with two outs on a hit batter, a single by Huson and a walk, but Velarde flied out to left.

The Angels did manage to get a couple of lucky breaks.

The first bit of good fortune came in the fourth, after Finley had retired the first nine Blue Jays in order. Stewart sent a shot right over the pitching rubber and the ball hit Finley--a legendary line-drive magnet--in the lower left leg. But the glancing blow apparently did no damage.

An inning later, the Angels, who hit .174 with runners in scoring position while losing four of five games on last week’s trip, finally took advantage of a scoring opportunity, using a nice piece of hitting by Vaughn and a Toronto miscue to grab a 2-0 lead.

Jeff Huson, starting in place of shortstop Andy Sheets who has been slumping offensively and defensively, slapped a one-out double into the right-field corner. Erstad walked and Velarde flied out to right, with Huson taking third. Vaughn’s line drive to left dropped in front of a diving Stewart to score Huson with Erstad taking third. Erstad scored on Chris Carpenter’s wild pitch.

The Angels’ road woes picked up where they left off in the first inning. Erstad lined a single to left, Velarde walked and Erstad moved to third when Vaughn flied out to deep right-center.

Tim Salmon followed with a sharp grounder up the middle, but Velarde was going on the pitch and Toronto second baseman Pat Kelly--who had broken to cover second--scooped up the ball, stepped on second and doubled Salmon at first. In the fourth, with one out, Vaughn was hit by a pitch and Salmon walked. Garret Anderson hit a drive to right that hooked just outside the foul pole, a couple of feet from a home run. Then he flied out. Troy Glaus singled to right, but the hobbled Vaughn was held at third. Todd Greene struck out on three pitches.