Angel Bullpen Gets the Job Done

Angel pitcher Scott Schoeneweis bent down to stretch his back and hamstrings before Thursday night’s start against the Chicago White Sox and couldn’t get up. Really.

The left-hander’s lower back locked up, and he was scratched because of intense spasms, leaving it up to the Angel bullpen--the same relief corps torched in Wednesday night’s loss to Chicago--to provide a lift.

There were some brush fires, but closer Troy Percival doused the White Sox over the final two innings, and the Angels tapped a few surprise power sources for a 7-6, 10-inning victory before 12,684 in Comiskey Park.

Garret Anderson ripped a two-run homer in the second, and Orlando Palmeiro and Jose Molina, the eighth and ninth batters, hit consecutive homers in the fifth, Palmeiro’s third career homer in 1,004 major league at-bats and Molina’s first in the big leagues.

Leadoff batter David Eckstein had three hits, including a key RBI single that gave the Angels a 6-4 lead in the seventh and a single to spark the game- winning rally in the 10th.

Eckstein took third on Darin Erstad’s hit-and-run single to left in the 10th and scored on Tim Salmon’s RBI fielder’s choice. Percival pitched a scoreless ninth and retired the side in order in the 10th for his first two-inning stint since July 25, 1999. Al Levine, who gave up Jose Valentin’s game-winning RBI double in the ninth Wednesday, was the emergency starter Thursday, giving him the rare opportunity to throw the Angels’ last pitch one day and first pitch the next.

The right-hander allowed a two-run homer to Ray Durham in the third and a solo homer to Magglio Ordonez in the fourth but gave the Angels three-plus innings before yielding to Ben Weber (one run in three innings), Mike Holtz ( 2/3 scoreless innings), Shigetoshi Hasegawa (two runs in 1 1/3 innings) and Percival.

“Schoeneweis’ injury really took us by surprise,” Scioscia said. “But the bullpen really sucked it up and did a great job.”

Well, not exactly. Scioscia tempted fate when he summoned Holtz and Hasegawa in the seventh to face No. 9 batter Chris Singleton and the top of the White Sox order.

This was almost an exact replica of Wednesday night’s moves, which backfired when Durham walked and Valentin bunted for a single off Holtz and Ordonez ripped a game-tying, three-run double off Hasegawa in an eventual 6-5 Chicago victory.

But Holtz and Hasegawa made amends Thursday, Holtz striking out Durham and getting Valentin to ground out after Singleton’s leadoff double and Hasegawa retiring Ordonez on a comebacker to protect a 6-4 lead.

Hasegawa struck out Paul Konerko and Carlos Lee to open the eighth before walking Herbert Perry. Percival had been throwing throughout the eighth and was ready, but Scioscia stuck with Hasegawa.

Bad move. Sandy Alomar lined Hasegawa’s first pitch, a slider, into the left-field seats for a two-run homer--Chicago’s fourth homer of the game--and a 6-6 tie.

“Hasegawa hadn’t thrown many pitches, and he was throwing the ball well,” Scioscia said. “I was trying to get as much out of Hasegawa and keep Percival in his [ninth-inning] role.”

As it was, Percival had to throw the ninth and the 10th, an extended appearance that he wouldn’t have even attempted in 2000, a season marred by shoulder and elbow injuries.

“When I’m healthy, two innings doesn’t bother me at all,” Percival said. “This was the first time I’ve ever pitched [as a closer] in a tie game on the road, but it was a neat experience because the crowd was so into it. One run can win the game, and when a guy gets on base, the place goes nuts.”

That happened in the ninth, when Valentin singled and stole second, but Percival silenced the crowd by blowing a fastball by Ordonez to end the inning. One more scoreless inning by Percival, and the heavy lifting was complete.

“These are the fun games, when you have to bear down and pick up your teammates,” Erstad said. “That’s the best way to play.”