Angels stunned by Mets in extras

NEW YORK -- Brendan Donnelly managed to crack a knowing grin and get even a bit philosophical after serving up a game-winning three-run home run to Cliff Floyd with two out in the bottom of the 10th inning Saturday night in Shea Stadium.
The New York Mets slugger fouled off pitch after pitch before launching a full-count split-fingered fastball -- the ninth pitch of the at-bat -- deep into the night, giving the Angels a particularly painful 5-3 loss before what remained of a crowd of 33,889.

The Mets partied at home plate, the celebratory Shea big apple rose up from the top hat beyond the center-field fence and Donnelly went to his locker, where he pondered the baffling reality of the Angels' most bizarre loss of the season.

"You keep showing up and keep doing your thing," Donnelly said, when asked how he would handle being unable to protect the Angels' second one-run lead late in the game.

"Every game's weird. You never know what to expect."

The Angels hardly could have expected what transpired Saturday.

First, the game started 84 minutes late because of a summer rain shower.

Then, much later, the Angels were poised to win the game -- twice. But that's when the really weird stuff started happening.

With the Angels up, 2-1, in the bottom of the ninth, closer Francisco Rodriguez had gotten one out when he faced pinch-hitter Marlon Anderson. The backup infielder hit a gapper to right-center field that dropped and kicked off Angels center fielder Steve Finley's leg like a Superball, and rolled toward the right-field corner.

Finley chased it down and relayed it to second baseman Adam Kennedy, who threw home, but Anderson was running the whole way and barely beat catcher Jose Molina's tag for a rare, crowd-pleasing, game-tying inside-the-park home run. It was the first hit of its kind by a Met in Shea since Darryl Strawberry did it in May 1989.

"It tipped off the end of my glove and hit my knee," Finley said. "It was just a tough-luck play. What can I say? It was a freak play. You can't really defend that."

Angels manager Mike Scioscia agreed with that assessment, saying he didn't have a problem with Finley playing the ball aggressively instead of letting it drop and stay in front of him to protect the one-run lead.

"You're trying to win," Scioscia said. "He had a bead on it. Any time you can catch a ball, you try to catch it."

The play didn't seem to bother the Angels too much, though.

Rodriguez struck out the next batter to escape further damage, and with the game tied at 2 in the top of the 10th, Darin Erstad laced a ball down the left-field line off Mets closer Braden Looper, scoring Jeff DaVanon for a 3-2 lead.

That opened the bullpen gate for Donnelly, who allowed the first two runners to reach base before striking out Carlos Beltran and Mike Piazza, both on splitters.

With Floyd in the middle of the epic game-winning at-bat, Mets shortstop Jose Reyes took off from second base and advanced to third during what appeared to be a break in the action. Donnelly said he thought time should have been called, and with Reyes standing on third and a full count to Floyd, the pitcher said he didn't want to throw his nastiest splitter for fear of a game-tying wild pitch.

He left one up in the zone and Floyd left the yard.

"That was just a bad pitch, that last pitch," Scioscia said.

And a heck of an at-bat, according to Donnelly.

"I tip my hat to Floyd," Donnelly said. "It seemed like I was pitching him forever. He's never seen me, which makes it even more impressive."

For a while Saturday night, impressive pitching and defense allowed the Angels to be on the verge of stealing a victory.

Jarrod Washburn / P
Born: 08/13/74
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 195 lbs
Bats: L / Throws: L

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Jarrod Washburn pitched 6 1/3 innings of six-hit, one-run ball and Kennedy saved two runs with one of the Angels' best defensive plays of the year, a diving, inning-ending forceout with the bases loaded in the second.

The Angels had taken a 1-0 lead in the top of the second when Garret Anderson led off with a double, moved to third on a Dallas McPherson single and scored when Bengie Molina bounced into a double play.

In the bottom of the inning, the Mets kicked off a rally with Piazza and Floyd singling in succession. Washburn got two outs, but then suddenly lost his control and walked Kazuo Matsui and Benson on eight straight balls, tying the game for the Mets before Kennedy's play ended the threat.

"It's weird, when you're pitching sometimes," Washburn said. "All of a sudden, you can't pitch. Usually it lasts four pitches. Tonight I lost it for eight. For eight pitches there, I had no idea.

But it didn't seem to matter three innings later, when the Angels took the lead. McPherson led off with a double, moved to third on a Bengie Molina groundout and scored on a Kennedy sacrifice fly.

As tough as the loss might have seemed, especially with a quick turnaround before a day game against Pedro Martinez on Sunday, the Angels kept their 2 1/2-game lead in the American League West intact when the Texas Rangers lost to the Florida Marlins, their fifth consecutive defeat.

And according to Scioscia, the Angels' defensive wizardry and late-inning resolve to forge those two short-lived leads were positives to be taken from this effort.

Washburn summed up the mood of the quiet clubhouse perfectly, though.

"Any time you lose a game you should win, it's tough to take," the left-hander said. "It's pretty frustrating.

"It wasn't meant to be for us tonight, I guess."

Source: http://losangeles.angels.mlb.com/