ANAHEIM
It’s merely a flesh wound.
Like the Black Knight in Monty Python’s ‘Holy Grail,’ the Angels shook off the Yankees’ near-fatal blows with more conviction than circumstances warrant but lived to fight another day with a 7-6 victory in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series Thursday night at Angel Stadium.
The win forces a Game 6 at Yankee Stadium Saturday night (start time 4:57 p.m. PDT).
But it took a three-run rally in the bottom of the seventh inning to shake off a six-run blow by the Yankees in the top of the inning.
Angels starter John Lackey cruised into the seventh inning with a 4-0 lead only to run into the kind of moment that would have been debated for months to come.
The second-guessing began even as Scioscia was approaching the pitcher’s mound to replace Lackey. TV cameras clearly caught Lackey saying, “This is mine, Sosh. This is mine. Are you (kidding) me? This is mine.”
Lackey’s swan song began with a one-out double by Melky Cabrera. When home-plate umpire Fieldin Culbreth called his low-and-inside fastball on full count to Jorge Posada a ball, Lackey reacted angrily.
The call seemed to stick with Lackey who walked Derek Jeter on four pitches to load the bases. When Johnny Damon flew out and Cabrera scampered back to third base, Lackey used the opportunity to discuss the call some more with Culbreth as the pitcher backed up home plate.
Lackey had thrown only 104 pitches but Scioscia had seen enough and came out to get Lackey, much to Lackey’s consternation.
Scioscia brought in left-hander Darren Oliver to face switch-hitter Mark Teixeira. It was a matchup that had recent history on the Angels’ side – Oliver had not given up a run in his first six innings this post-season while Teixeira was 3 for 21 without an RBI in this series.
But Teixeira ripped Oliver’s first pitch, a curveball, to the wall in left-center field for a three-run double. After an intentional walk to Rodriguez, Yankees DH Hideki Matsui singled to center, scoring Teixeira with the tying run.
Scioscia brought in right-hander Kevin Jepsen to face left-handed hitting Robinson Cano and Cano tripled to center field, driving in Rodriguez and Matsui with the go-ahead runs.
But the Angels had an answer in the bottom of the inning.
Held in check by Yankees starter A.J. Burnett after scoring four times in the first inning, the Angels started their rally from the bottom up – No. 8 hitter Jeff Mathis singled (his club-record sixth consecutive post-season at-bat with a hit) and Burnett walked No. 9 hitter Erick Aybar before giving way to the bullpen.
Chone Figgins bunted both runners over and Mathis scored on Bobby Abreu’s ground out to first, cutting the Yankees’ lead in half.
With two outs, Yankees reliever Phil Hughes walked Torii Hunter and gave up an RBI single to Vladimir Guerrero that tied the game. Kendry Morales followed with a ground-ball single through the right side of the infield, driving in Hunter with the go-ahead run.
Oliver and Jepsen having cracked in the seventh inning, Scioscia turned to Jered Weaver in the eighth and the right-hander retired the Yankees in order, striking out two.
But in the ninth he went with closer Brian Fuentes who retired Damon and Teixeira quickly – then intentionally walked Rodriguez, putting the tying run on base with two outs.
When Fuentes also walked Hideki Matsui, the tying run moved into scoring postion. When he hit Robinson Cano with an 0-and-1 curveball, the bases were loaded with the tying run at third and the go-ahead run in scoring position.
Fuentes got ahead of Nick Swisher, 0-and-2, but Swisher worked the count full before getting him to pop out to shortstop.
There is no ALCS game until Saturday, maybe longer, so let’s jump ahead.
