Orioles prove formidable opponent in majors’ extra-inning title
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Hollister – One minute, the Angels were on the doorstep of defeat. And the next, they were piling up the runs on their way to the championship.
After registering just one run through seven innings and surviving a scare by the Orioles in the bottom of the seventh, the Angels thundered to a five-run eighth and the Majors’ American League title with their 6-1 victory at Veterans Park on Wednesday.
“It was a big win for us,” Angels manager C.R. Gonzales said of the extra-inning thriller. “It was a huge win.”
And it was a win that very nearly didn’t happen.
After the Orioles placed the winning run on third with no outs in the bottom of the seventh, the Angels looked sure to fall in heartbreaking fashion. But reliever Kevin Salvas calmly regrouped to strike out the next three batters to give his team’s hitters another chance.
And, despite being unable to break through against the Orioles all evening, the Angel bats came through when the team needed them the most. Daniel Gonzales drew a leadoff walk in the eighth and then Tyler Pina delivered the decisive blow, a two-run home run that staked the Angels to a 3-1 lead.
“It was a good pitch by our pitcher,” Orioles manager Steve Gessell said. “It came down to a good strong swing. (Pina) just muscled it out of the park.”
Tyler Quinby followed with a solo home run that pushed the Angels’ advantage to 4-1 and then a two-run single by Josh George with two outs put the finishing touches on the team’s championship.
Strong pitching reigned throughout the regulation six innings as neither team could muster more than one run. Pina pitched the first six innings for the Angels, allowing only four hits. Jacob Cabral was just as effective for the Orioles, allowing an unearned run on an infield throwing error in the fifth.
When Orioles catcher Skyler Shaw-Fuss walked to open the bottom of the seventh and took second and then third on a pair of passed balls, it appeared that the Orioles would prevail in the rubber match of the teams’ hotly-contested battles this season. But Salvas’ remarkable composure proved the difference.
“That could’ve been the end of the game,” said Gonzales, the Angels’ manager. “They score, you’re done. (But) we didn’t even need our infield in. He just settled down.”
The Orioles got a leadoff double from Victor Danvelos in the bottom of the eighth, but Salvas struck out the next two batters and then induced a comebacker to ice the title.
Gonzales said his team’s perseverance showed plenty about the Angels’ character.
“They learned to play together as a team,” the manager said. “Not as individuals, but as a team. I’m just really proud of them. They worked real hard this year.”
For Gessell and the Orioles, it was difficult to fall short despite holding the Angels to one run through seven innings.
“Obviously, it’s pretty tough,” Gessell said. “I can’t say we didn’t have our chances. … If we’re going to lose a game, we might as well lose a tough one like that.”
The Orioles scored the first run of the game on an infield error by the Angels in the second.
In the teams’ two previous meetings, the Orioles prevailed 5-0 in the first game and the Angels took the second, 2-1.
By reaching the AL Championship Game, both teams already qualified for the Tournament of Champions, set to begin on June 24. As league champions, the Angels have their pick of the two brackets and have the option of facing another Hollister team or an out-of-town opponent in their opener.
Still enjoying his team’s victory Wednesday night, Gonzales was undecided which path he and assistant coaches Rod George and David Quinby would choose.
“It’s tough when you’ve got to go against one of your own teams,” Gonzales said of the possibility of facing another Hollister squad, “so at least we get to choose whether we do that or not.”
The Mets and Rockies are set to battle for the Majors’ National League Championship Game at Veterans Park today at 5:30pm.
