Angels Do Everything Wrong but Somehow Win

BOSTON — The outlook wasn’t bright for the Angels Friday night. Roger Clemens was pitching for the Red Sox. Johnny Ray and Chili Davis were making their debuts in the Fenway Park outfield. Chuck Finley started for the Angels, and by the time he had finished pitching to Boston’s first four batters, the Red Sox had one run in and the bases loaded.

“That’s something I wouldn’t recommend to someone else,” Finley advised.

And that was just the first few minutes. By the time three hours had passed, the Angels had watched:

--One of their outfielders commit two errors on one play.

--One of their baserunners miss home plate on a perfectly executed squeeze bunt.

--One of their catchers drop an inning-ending third strike, resulting in a gift run for Boston.

But get this: The Angels won, 4-2, in 10 innings.

“Something went in our favor tonight. . . . and we still don’t know what it is,” Angel catcher Butch Wynegar said. “I think everybody on the club knows it did something special tonight.”

That’s one word for it. Against all odds and against perhaps the league’s finest pitcher, the Angels did so many things wrong that it worked out right, which, these days, can only be described as the Angel way to play baseball.

And how did they win it? About the only way feasible--on a 10th-inning RBI double by Wynegar, the man who played Mickey Owen for a night and dropped the third strike that allowed Boston’s Dwight Evans to score the game-tying run in the bottom of the eighth.

But before that, there was more, so much more.

All of Angel Manager Cookie Rojas’ darkest fears about Ray and Davis playing together under the shadow of the Green Monster were confirmed in a matter of seconds. Marty Barrett, the Boston leadoff hitter, opened the bottom of the first by lining a ball into the left-field corner--Ray country--and Ray kicked it into a double.

Ed Romero, the Red Sox’s second hitter of the game, followed with a line-drive single to right--Davis territory--and Davis immediately responded with his seventh and eighth errors of the season.

First, Davis bobbled the ball, enabling Barrett to score from second base. Then, he fired the ball wildly past cutoff man Mark McLemore, enabling Romero to replace Barrett at second.

Greetings, Mr. Finley, from Fenway Park. Two batters, two ugly attempts at defense, two errors.

“That’s the first time I’ve ever had two errors on one play,” said an amazed Davis. “I’m doing things this year I’ve never done before. The way I’m playing, I’m making my way toward being a DH.”

Finley, understandably rattled, immediately walked the next two batters, Wade Boggs and Dwight Evans, to load the bases with no outs.

Yet, no more Red Sox runs would score that inning. Finley got Mike Greenwell to hit a shallow fly to right--Davis caught this one--and then wriggled his way out of the predicament on a double-play grounder off Jim Rice’s bat.

“The game could’ve been a blowout right then,” Finley said. “You don’t spot Roger Clemens a four-run lead. But I thought I handled it well. I stayed within my self and pitched out of the jam.”

And not once, but twice. In the second inning, Finley did it again--loading the bases before getting an inning-killing double play, this a line drive by Romero that McLemore snared and then doubled the runner off second.

Due to the two runs Clemens (6-2) yielded in the top of the second, Finley was able to work with a 2-1 lead until his removal at the end of the seventh. At that point, Rojas summoned DeWayne Buice . . . and then had to summon some courage to watch.

Evans reached first base and continued to second on a throwing error by shortstop Dick Schofield. After two outs, Evans had maneuvered his way to third. Up stepped Rice and with one mighty swing, he apparently struck out to snuff another Boston threat.

But only apparently. Wynegar couldn’t find the ball in the dirt and let it bound through his legs. Suddenly, Rice was at first base and Evans was crossing home plate, and the score was tied, 2-2.

“The ball just squirted under my glove,” Wynegar said in disgust. “Ninety-nine times out of 100, I catch that ball. They gave DeWayne a wild pitch on that, but it should’ve been a passed ball.”

In the top of the ninth, Wally Joyner doubled and moved to third on an infield out. For the second time in as many nights, Rojas called for a squeeze play--and this time the batter, Davis, laid down a perfect bunt.

Clemens charged the ball and made a hurried throw to catcher Rick Cerone. Joyner would have scored had he slid. But he tried to get the run standing up--and that wouldn’t get it done.

Cerone had the plate blocked, and his right leg tripped Joyner, who missed the plate as Cerone missed the tag. Joyner staggered about 8 feet away from home, and Cerone tagged him with his glove, but the ball was in his right hand. Joyner then tried to sneak back--only to find Clemens waiting for him after taking a toss from Cerone.

“My job is to slide there, and I didn’t,” Joyner conceded afterward. “I have to make sure I touch the plate on that play. It was my fault.”

That out helped send both teams into a 10th inning, and the Angels, at last, wore down Clemens. Chico Walker drew a leadoff walk, and Wynegar followed with his amends-making double down the right-field line.

The Angels, stunningly, were on their way to their third straight victory.

Angel Notes

Chuck Finley’s record remained at 2-6 despite leading Roger Clemens, 2-1, after seven innings, during which Finley allowed 7 hits and 5 walks while striking out 2. But when Butch Wynegar couldn’t hold strike three on Jim Rice in the eighth inning, allowing Boston to tie the score, Finley was left holding a no decision. “The first thing I thought about was Chuck,” Wynegar said. “If it wasn’t for bad luck, Chuck would have no luck at all.” And Finley’s reaction from the dugout? “It was like, ‘Look, what’s it going to take to break this ‘2’ thing?” Finley said. “I was stuck on 2 all of last year (Finley went 2-7), too, but I thought, ‘Tonight’s the night.’ I worked out of some jams and I deserved the win, but at least the team got the win. The team winning takes care of everything else.”

Wynegar on Finley’s narrow escapes from bases-loaded jams in the first and second innings: “He pulled some Houdiniacs out there.” . . . Finley suffered a badly scrapped knee when he lost footrace with Brady Anderson to first base in the second inning. “I wish I would have broken to the bag a little sooner. I would have eight inches of skin on my knee I don’t have now.”

Wired In: Just before Wade Boggs stepped in to bat in the ninth inning, most of the crowd at Fenway Park rose to its feet and broke into raucous applause. The response was for the news they had just received from their transistor radios: Celtics 102, Hawks 100. “I had a feeling it was for the Celtics,” Wally Joyner deadpanned. “I’m looking around thinking, ‘There can’t be this much enthusiasm for the Red Sox here.” . . . Angel Manager Cookie Rojas named his starting pitcher for Sunday. Willie Fraser, after one week’s service in the bullpen, will return to the rotation and will face Jeff Sellers.