A Bad Getaway Day for Angels

This isn’t Dave Henderson, but it’s close.

Henderson ranks as perhaps the most infamous villain in Angel history, with his one-strike-away home run that prevented the Angels from beating the Boston Red Sox in the 1986 playoffs and advancing to the World Series. The Angels have yet to return to the playoffs, and another Boston outfielder struck a dagger into the hearts of long-suffering Angel fans Monday.

Johnny Damon is his name, a name no doubt cursed in Orange County from the moment he thrust his fist into the air in celebration. After the Angels’ dreadful ninth inning, in which closer Troy Percival blew a four-run lead and blew the save as well, Damon led off the 10th with a home run off rookie Scot Shields, good for a stunning 10-9 Boston victory.

There wasn’t much good for the Angels to think about on the long flight home. They left home leading the American League West, but they lost four of seven games in New York and Boston and return in third place in the division and in second place in the wild-card standings.

For only the second time this season--and the first time since April--Percival failed to protect a ninth-inning lead.

The Angels, a resilient bunch all season and a team that has resolutely refused to say any one game is bigger than another, insisted the loss would not devastate a team one-half game out of a playoff spot with 32 games left--or three, if players strike Friday and do not return this season.

“Unless I wake up and we have two losses from tonight’s game,” Angel Manager Mike Scioscia said, “this loss has no more meaning.”

Just another game? Not to the Red Sox, who were one strike away from falling 4 1/2 games back in the wild-card race. As the home run cleared the wall--and not by much, even at an only-in-Fenway distance of 315 feet--Damon circled first base and pumped his fist high into the air. As he crossed the plate, his teammates jumped up and down around him, and onto him.

Damon called it the biggest hit of his career. Grady Little, Boston’s rookie manager, called it the biggest victory of his career.

And the Angels?

“That’s going to happen every once in a while,” first baseman Scott Spiezio said. “I’m not worried about this team at all.”

That the Angels even needed to use Percival was embarrassing enough, on a night the Red Sox made four errors. The Angels had 17 hits and stranded 13 runners.

Al Levine had gotten the final two outs in the eighth inning. With a 9-5 lead, Scioscia asked him to pitch the ninth.

Manny Ramirez singled, his fifth hit of the game, and so did Cliff Floyd. With Percival now eligible for the save, Scioscia removed Levine.

Percival threw nothing but fastballs, 31 in all, each pitch clocked at 97 or 98 mph.

Shea Hillenbrand smacked a two-strike single up the middle, loading the bases. Percival got two strikes on Brian Daubach, then walked him, forcing home a run. Jason Varitek struck out, the first out.

Trot Nixon hit a sacrifice fly, scoring Floyd and shrinking the Angel lead to 9-7. On the sacrifice fly, Hillenbrand advanced from second to third. That left pinch-runner Rickey Henderson on first with an open base ahead of him and Percival, with a high leg kick even from a stretch, on the mound.

Naturally, Henderson stole second. Then Rey Sanchez worked the count full, fouled off two more pitches, then drilled a line drive into left-center field.

Hillenbrand scored from third and Henderson from second, tying the score, 9-9.

While the Red Sox trail the Angels and Seattle Mariners in the wild-card race, the September schedule offers Boston a generous chance to catch up. While the Angels, Mariners and Oakland A’s beat up on each other in the AL West, the Red Sox are scheduled to conclude their season series with the Yankees next week and play their final 25 games against teams with losing records.