Another Comeback Victory for Angels

How dreadful are the Royals? The Angels spent another ninth inning gleefully counting the ways during a 5-3 come-from-behind victory Monday night that completed a four-game sweep at Kauffman Stadium.

There was the wild pitch that moved runners to second and third after pinch-hitter Josh Paul had popped out on a sacrifice bunt attempt.

There was the wild pitch that allowed pinch-runner Alfredo Amezaga to score the tying run and prompted Angel closer Troy Percival to intensify his preparations in the bullpen.

And there was the shoddy throw from second baseman Ruben Gotay that skipped past catcher John Buck, allowing two more runs to score as the Angels put the finishing touches on a four-run ninth and their first four-game sweep of the Royals in franchise history.

“At some key moments we had the door cracked open for us and took advantage of the opportunities,” said Angel Manager Mike Scioscia, whose team opened a one-game lead on the Boston Red Sox and Texas Rangers in the wild-card standings after notching its fifth consecutive victory.

The Angels also moved into sole possession of second place in the American League West, 1 1/2 games behind the Oakland Athletics.

It was Anaheim’s third consecutive comeback victory and second straight in its final at-bat.

“It shows a lot to us, that we never give up, no matter what the score is or the inning is,” said Chone Figgins, whose single to right-center drove in the Angels’ first run in the ninth. “We just try to get runners on and make things happen.”

The Angels’ prospects for a sweep seemed bleak after reliever Kevin Gregg, who had unfurled four wild pitches in one inning July 25, endured another blooper-reel moment in the eighth. Gregg caught a cleat on the mound during his delivery and stumbled awkwardly toward home plate without releasing the pitch, allowing Gotay to trot home from third base after a balk was called.

With a 3-1 lead, the Royals appeared on their way to victory.

But Robb Quinlan, whose seventh-inning single extended his hitting streak to 20 games, opened the ninth with a single to left. Pinch-hitter Tim Salmon dropped a bloop single to right before Paul popped out on the first pitch he saw from Royal pitcher Jaime Cerda.

Cerda then accomplished what Paul could not, moving the runners up one base on a wild pitch. David Eckstein walked to load the bases before Figgins delivered his run-scoring single that made it 3-2.

Kansas City Manager Tony Pena summoned right-hander Scott Sullivan to face Vladimir Guerrero, but Sullivan’s wild pitch allowed the Angels to tie the score. Guerrero tapped the ball to a drawn-in Gotay, who fired the ball home wildly as Eckstein scored from third, also allowing Figgins to score.

Percival pitched a perfect ninth for his 21st save and third in four days for the surging Angels, whose winning streak is their longest since they won nine in a row in early May.

“The guys are starting to put together the timely hits, which is huge,” said Percival, who turned 35 on Monday. “I see the confidence in the ninth inning. It doesn’t matter how far we’re down -- they feel like they have a chance.”

It’s getting hard not to feel that way against Kansas City, which made seven errors in a series it could have swept. The Royals, whose 39-71 record is their worst in franchise history through 110 games, pressured the Angels on Friday but suffered from poor baserunning decisions; they squandered a 3-1 lead Saturday; and they committed two errors during the Angels’ three-run ninth Sunday.

“These guys came after us with everything they had,” Scioscia said. “It easily could have been four losses.”