JOY RIDE

You know who you are. You nod when you hear the words “rally monkey,” but you have no idea what a monkey has to do with a baseball game. You just noticed the old Dodger catcher is managing the Angels. You haven’t really been paying attention to the Angels because, well, nobody ever does, and all of a sudden the Angels are in their first World Series and you don’t know Tim Salmon from Steve Trout.

The Angel bandwagon is expanding by previously unimaginable proportions. It’s never too late, Angel first baseman Scott Spiezio says, for folks to wear red and jump aboard.

“As long as they’re supporting us, I don’t care when they came on,” he said.

For all those new fans, here’s a crash course in Angel lore. Call it Bandwagon 101.

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What’s all this about “winning one for the cowboy?”

Gene Autry, America’s legendary “Singing Cowboy,” bought the Angels as an expansion franchise in 1960. He is the only man with five stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame--for radio, records, movies, television and live stage performance--but the world might have been deprived of those talents had he hit well enough to pass a tryout with the St. Louis Cardinals. For four decades, he dreamed of seeing his Angels in the World Series, just once. He died in 1998, at age 91.

So Autry always wanted to own a baseball team?

Actually, no. When the Dodgers moved their broadcasts off Autry’s radio station in 1960, Autry heard that the American League planned to expand to Los Angeles. He headed to the owners’ meetings intending to acquire the radio rights to the new team. He got the rights ... and the team.

For Los Angeles? Or Anaheim?

The Angels were born in Los Angeles, playing at a minor league ballpark (Wrigley Field) in 1961 and sharing Dodger Stadium from 1962-65, calling it Chavez Ravine to spite the Dodgers. They moved to Anaheim Stadium in 1966, changing the team name from the Los Angeles Angels to the California Angels. Disney bought the team in 1996 and changed the name to Anaheim Angels in 1997. The next year, they sold naming rights to the renovated ballpark and renamed it Edison Field.

What color is the halo on the logo?

Which logo? The Angels used a silver halo, then a yellow halo, then no halo at all, then brought back a silver halo this year. In 42 seasons, the Angels have had more logos (seven) than division championships (three).

The Angels’ checkered history also is reflected by the six uniform numbers they have retired. Three numbers were retired in honor of men who never played for the team--Autry, beloved coach Jimmie Reese and Jackie Robinson, whose number has been retired by every major league team. Two other numbers were retired in honor of men who entered the Hall of Fame wearing caps of other teams--Rod Carew (Minnesota Twins) and Nolan Ryan (Texas Rangers). Jim Fregosi is the other player whose number has been retired.

Nolan Ryan played for the Angels?

Sure did, from 1972-79. Anaheim was the place where Ryan evolved from a kid who could throw wondrously hard into a pitcher who set the major league record for strikeouts in a season (383) and a career (5,714) and threw four no-hitters.

Why did he leave?

After Ryan went 16-14 during an injury-plagued 1979 season, General Manager Buzzie Bavasi scoffed at Ryan’s request for $1 million per year and suggested he would be easily replaced.

“All we have to do is find two 8-7 pitchers,” Bavasi said, the most infamous words uttered in Angel history.

Amid suspicions that the power pitcher might soon run out of power, Ryan signed with the Houston Astros as a free agent. In 1988, at age 41, the Angels tried to bring him back as a free agent.

As the Angels partied Sunday, their ticket stamped for the World Series, Salmon talked about “those stories about one strike away.” What does he mean?

In 1986, the Angels’ last playoff appearance before this one, they were one strike away from the World Series. They led the Boston Red Sox, 5-4, with two out in the ninth inning and two strikes on Dave Henderson. But Henderson homered, and the shocked Angels lost three consecutive games--and their Series berth--to the Red Sox.

The long-suffering Angel fan also winces at two other phrases: “one win away” and “11-game lead.”

“One win away” refers to 1986 and also to 1982, when the Angels were one victory away from the World Series and lost three consecutive games to the Milwaukee Brewers.

In 1995, the Angels coughed up an 11-game lead in six weeks and missed out on the playoffs. Never has a major league team lost so large a lead so quickly.

What’s the deal with the monkey?

The rally monkey was born two years ago, when two kids on the video crew were goofing around. They slapped the phrase “rally monkey” over a clip of a monkey jumping up and down, from the movie “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective,” then threw the image up on the video board. The crowd roared. The Angels came back to win.

Nothing manufactured by Disney. Nothing forced. Just sheer fun.

Should we believe in the power of the rally monkey?

The Minnesota Twins do. They took a 5-3 lead in the top of the seventh inning Sunday. In the bottom of the inning, the monkey was unleashed. The Angels scored 10 runs and headed for the World Series.

Do I need a rally monkey?

Only you can answer that question, but Disney will be happy to sell you a stuffed monkey for $20, and they’re selling fast. The Thunder Stix -- those big red things everyone bangs at the ballpark--are free.

With fans wearing red and waving red sticks, the stands resemble a sea of red. Much easier to see, and much easier to say, than a “sea of periwinkle,” the goofy shade of blue Disney mercifully abandoned this year.

Since when is the old Dodger catcher managing the Angels?

This is Mike Scioscia’s third year as the Angel manager. He and two Angel coaches, Mickey Hatcher and Alfredo Griffin, played for the Dodgers’ World Series championship team in 1988.

How many playoff games have the Dodgers won since 1988?

None. But you knew that.