Angels play it safe this time in 9-7 victory
The game over, the Angels’ victory secure, Howie Kendrick rounded third base and jogged toward home plate after hitting a walk-off, three-run homer in the ninth inning.
There was no one waiting to greet him.
The party rules have changed. The team that lost its best hitter in a freak celebratory mishap perfected its do-over Sunday at Angel Stadium, where the Angels stayed off the dirt that encircles home plate following their second consecutive walk-off victory.
A day after first baseman Kendry Morales fractured his lower left leg when he gleefully leaped into the air and landed awkwardly following a 10th-inning grand slam, Kendrick planted his left foot uneventfully on home plate at the conclusion of the Angels’ 9-7 victory over the Seattle Mariners.
“I wouldn’t say it was strange, but it was safe,” Kendrick, who also homered in the seventh inning, said of no one being at home plate. “If that’s going to keep guys from getting hurt, I’m all for it.”
Kendrick hugged first baseman Mike Napoli and exchanged high-fives and pats on the back with teammates in a muted version of the festivities from the previous day. Manager Mike Scioscia had set new rules before the game for on-field celebrations, which typically involve lots of leaping and teammates piling on top of one another.
For most of the game, it seemed as if the Angels would have to wait for another day to put the guidelines into practice.
Seattle shelled Joe Saunders for 10 hits and seven runs in 4 1/3 innings, taking a 7-2 lead in the fifth inning before the Angels rallied for their second consecutive victory when trailing after the sixth inning. They had no such triumphs in their first 50 games this season.
“You saw good at-bats all the way through,” said Scioscia, whose team had 10 hits and drew nine walks. “The potential is there to score runs.”
The Angels believe Morales could again be part of their offense in 2010, the slugger’s injury not expected to sideline him for the rest of the season.
“I don’t think September is out of the question,” said Lewis Yocum, the Angels’ team orthopedist.
A more definitive timetable for Morales’ return will be established once he undergoes surgery, which has been delayed to allow the swelling in his leg to subside.
Napoli made his first major league appearance Sunday at first base, a position he played 68 games in his minor league career. He was also in the middle of the Angels’ ninth-inning rally against Seattle closer David Aardsma.
With the Mariners clinging to a 7-6 lead, Aardsma walked leadoff hitter Hideki Matsui on a full count. Juan Rivera followed with a drive to the warning track in left-center that Franklin Gutierrez caught for the first out.
That brought up Napoli, whose line-drive single off Aardsma’s glove put runners on first and second for Kendrick. Aardsma threw six consecutive fastballs, running the count full. Then he threw a seventh fastball that caught too much of the plate and Kendrick crushed it over the wall in right-center field.
It was the first time the Angels hit walk-off homers in consecutive games since Dick Schofield and Doug DeCinces did it on Aug. 29-30, 1986.
The Angels poured out of their dugout as usual after a winning hit, only to pause near the grass about 15 feet from home plate. From his spot in the on-deck circle, Torii Hunter yelled, “Calm down! Wait! Let him touch the plate.”
Then the Angels practiced their own version of the safety dance, with Matsui placing his fingertips lightly on Kendrick and jumping up and down.
“We got through the celebration unscathed, and that’s a step forward,” Scioscia said. “I hope we practice this a lot.”
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