Rally in Eighth Gives Angels 6-4 Victory

Some games, it’s better to be lucky than mediocre.

The Angels seemed to be meandering their way to another loss Saturday night. Then the Baltimore Orioles lent a hand and the Angels walked away with a 6-4 victory in front of 39,261 at Edison Field.

It was a gift from one of the worst fielding teams in the American League. The Orioles took a 3-2 lead into the bottom of the eighth, then got generous, aiding and abetting the Angels in a four-run inning.

“We got the opportunities, but they only count if you cash them in,” Scott Spiezio said.

The Angels spent most of the game stranding runners--13 in all--before getting the breaks they needed in the eighth with help from the Orioles.

Angel first baseman Shawn Wooten hit a pop fly down the left-field line to lead off the inning. Oriole shortstop Brian Roberts got under it in foul territory but dropped the ball.

Two pitches later, Wooten homered, tying the score, 3-3.

“I got under that first one,” Wooten said. “I was just hoping it would make the seats. I saw the ball hit the ground and went, ‘Thank you.’ I don’t know if I ignited anything, but we had a new lease on life.”

One out later, Adam Kennedy walked and David Eckstein followed by driving a ball to the gap in right-center. Center fielder Larry Bigbie and right fielder Chris Richard played I-don’t-want-it-you-take-it and the ball went to the wall. Kennedy scored and Eckstein ended on third.

Then Darin Erstad was walked intentionally and Troy Glaus grounded out, scoring Eckstein. Garret Anderson followed with a run-scoring double.

“We got a break . . . two breaks,” Spiezio said. “We made the most of them.”

Until that point, about the only thing that fans were worked up about was the absence of Cal Ripken, who was not in the lineup.

Oriole starter Willis Roberts limited the Angels to two solo home runs by Spiezio. Roberts left with two outs in the sixth, after collapsing on the mound because of a knee injury.

Angel starter Pat Rapp was solid, again, giving up three runs in six innings.

The Orioles certainly didn’t smack Rapp around, but he had trouble with the Orioles inexperienced players.

In the fourth, Jay Gibbons walked with one out and Tony Batista followed with a single. Rapp then gave up run-scoring singles to Bigbie and Fernando Lunar, who combined have 54 major league games between them.

Bigbie, whose broken-bat single in the 10th inning won Friday’s game, led off the sixth by driving a 1-1 pitch into the right-field seats for his first major league home run.

“Once you look past Pat’s record, the hits he’s given up and the innings he’s worked, his numbers started are great,” Scioscia said. “It’s unfortunate that wins and losses are the bottom line for a pitcher, because that’s the one stat they have the least control over.”

The Angels offered no support again, with the exception of Spiezio.

He homered to lead off the fourth and hit the first pitch in the sixth into the right-field seats for his fourth multiple home run game of his career and second this season.

Spiezio hit two home runs against Colorado on July 8. He is batting .373 in his last 17 games. He has six home runs in that span after hitting only two in his previous 64 games.

“The last two weeks or so have been great,” Spiezio said. “I hope [Scioscia] leaves me in there.”

Not only will Scioscia leave him in there, he might ask Spiezio to give hitting lessons.

Eckstein struck out with the bases loaded in the second. Anderson struck out, leaving runners on first and third, in the fifth. And Erstad fouled out to leave the bases loaded in the sixth.

“Sometimes you get some breaks,” Wooten said. “ We got a couple and were able to do a little damage.”