History’s Not Repeating Itself

The Angels made history last year, winning their first World Series title after four decades of frustration. They could make history again this year, this time in a particularly ugly way.

Since the start of division play in 1969, no team has won the World Series one year and finished in last place the next year, with the exception of the Florida Marlins, whose owner voluntarily took a cost-cutting ax to his team.

The Angels returned virtually intact to defend their title, but they have fallen out of contention. And, after starter John Lackey blew a 5-0 lead in Tuesday’s 10-9 loss to the Boston Red Sox, the Angels are just 5 1/2 games out of last place in the American League West.

“I’d rather finish third than last,” infielder Scott Spiezio said. “I’d rather finish first than third. But, if we start thinking about that, we’re thinking about the wrong thing.

“Our goal all along was to make it to the playoffs. That chance is slim, but there’s still a chance. We’ll focus on winning as many games as we can. We just want to go out there and play the way we can play and not worry about what the final standings are going to be.”

The Angels got three home runs Tuesday, including two in an inning for the first time since June 28. They built their first five-run lead in 12 days. They scored three runs in an inning for the first time in 93 innings.

Nonetheless, Lackey coughed up that 5-0 lead in startlingly quick fashion, when the Red Sox scored seven runs in the third inning, all with two out. Boston scored the winning run off All-Star reliever Brendan Donnelly in the seventh inning, on a two-out single by Trot Nixon.

Said Donnelly: “We score nine, we give up 10. We score four, we give up five. Par for the course.”

The Angels are five games under .500 and 15 1/2 games out of first place, both season lows. They are 4-15 since the All-Star break, a skid that recalls the horrors of so many Angel Septembers before the last one.

“No matter if you’re 40 games out of first place or two games out of first place, you try to have the same mentality every day,” outfielder Darin Erstad said. “I don’t even look at that stuff.”

Spiezio and Adam Kennedy homered in the second inning, and the Angels added three more runs in the third. Garret Anderson also homered for the Angels, in the fifth.

Lackey gave up nine runs in all, on nine hits, two walks and two wild pitches. He got 12 outs. In his last two starts, he has given up 16 runs in 10 2/3 innings, inflating his earned-run average from 4.96 to 5.60.

“I’m just struggling,” he said. “I’ve got to figure things out on my own.”

That is the last thing the coaches want Lackey to do. Manager Mike Scioscia and pitching coach Bud Black have counseled Lackey, not only with pitching tips but with encouragement meant to restore his confidence.

Black called this season “a continuing education” for a pitcher who won Game 7 of the World Series as a rookie but who still is 24, in his first full major league season.

“I think that’s been forgotten this year, based on what happened last year,” Black said. “It’s still a learning curve. There are still some growing pains he has to go through.”

That third inning reflected two of his challenges, an inability to avoid big innings and to stop walks from hurting him. In the third, one walk preceded a three-run homer by Nomar Garciaparra and another walk preceded a three-run homer by Kevin Millar.

As Millar’s ball left the bat, Lackey hid his face in his glove.

“It’s frustrating for him right now,” Scioscia said. “There’s no doubt in any of our minds that John is going to be a terrific major league pitcher. Right now, it’s tough for him to understand that.”