Final Score in Arizona: Angels 2, Diamondbacks 1
With his team down 1-0 in the top of the 6th inning, Angels shortstop Erick Aybar lead off with a bunt single attempt. Nine seconds and Two throwing errors later the score was tied.
With the feather of owning the 4th longest homerun in the history of the D-Backs' home stadium already in his cap, Mike Napoli broke that tie score with just a medium sized bomb to the deepest part of the park in the top of the 9th inning.
Call it an inside the park bunt, a comedy of errors or just another unearned run in a tight pitchers' duel... whatever it was (and the official scoring was a bunt single, a two base error on the throw to 1B and one base error on the throw to 3B) it was a precious run for starter John Lackey, who would not last to receive the decision. Darren Oliver pitched a scoreless 8th and Brian Fuentes followed with the same in the bottom of the 9th for his MLB-leading 21st Save.
"Thunder Mountain" Lackey had 9 strikeouts and looked as good as he has since starting the season two months late with a forearm strain. The Angels have won four straight, but why talk about that when the Fox National Broadcast can parade out the vile Joe Buck and senile Tim McCarver to pimp Fox's upcoming All-Star Game... fellas, as terrible as you are a brodcast duo, I am watching a Saturday baseball game between the Angels and D-Backs, I am stuck with your monopoly on selling advertising in between at-bats, why remind me of how much your stupid corporate "Brand" has molested the beautiful game of baseball?
0 recs | 51 comments
I guess Homeruns really do win ball games sometimes....
Light it.
BryanHarvey'sMoustache - June 27, 2009
Fuentes? Lackey?
Love that we found a way to win this one!
Brody - June 27, 2009
Fuentes did his job
Lackey was good, but the game hinged on Napoli’s bomb.
halofan4life - June 27, 2009
Lackey gave up 0 ER with 9 Ks
That is better than good. Fuentes also has been nails, and he should get credit for shutting down games with 1-run leads, especially on the road where there is no second chance.
This is not to take anything away from Naps. He should definitely be in the conversation as well, and maybe deserves top billing. But Lackey and Fuentes should be voting options.
Brody - June 27, 2009
AXE
and you shell receibo aqui!!!!!
Rev Halofan - June 27, 2009
Thanks!
But I already voted for Naps! Oh well, I think he probably deserves it anyway.
Brody - June 27, 2009
Yeah Me too.
deejayelleseven - June 27, 2009
Good call. You are right about Fuentes.
As per FanGraphs WPA, Fuentes contribution was almost equal to that of Lackey.
Lackey: .299
Fuentes: .209
Fan Since 1981 - June 27, 2009
I'll agree with Lackey and Fuentes being a part of the conversation.
But I wouldn’t change my vote from Naps.
halofan4life - June 27, 2009
Nipples
Aybar’s “HR” = Lucky
Napoli’s HR = HUGE
It was nice having a catcher in the lineup who consistantly made good contact, and hey, he called a good game too.
halofan4life - June 27, 2009
Aybar did good by paying attention. But Naps HR won the game.
angelsfan777 - June 27, 2009
My POTG is Lackey - that's my gut feeling
No way the Angels win this one without his performance. His 9 Ks in 7 innings was superb.
Now to go to FanGraphs and check out their POTG (via WPA).
Not close. Maybe that feeling in my gut was the full rack of ribs I ate.
Napoli: .438
Lackey: .299
Fuentes: .209
Aybar: .008
Fan Since 1981 - June 27, 2009
was on the way home from last night's game
but i did get to hear Nappy’s homer… and that was enough for me.
great game last night too. and btw, all-you-can-eat-seats are awesome.
howiestheman - June 27, 2009
Didn't see it because I'm in London
(Sorry highland I don’t think I’ll be free) but it seems like aybars hr is like the one in Angels in the Outfield where the crappy guy hits the ball like 5 feet and scores of errors. Maybe we should do the wings whenever aybars up to bat now
anaheim angels - June 27, 2009
Results Up
scottnak - June 27, 2009
Wait i was actually at the game!!!
But wasn’t it mark grace annoucing? Hes my favorite color analyst in baseball(not counting scully) This was a great game anyone else there today?
WillGoAngels27 - June 27, 2009
I was there
as well. There was a very strong Angel representation today. I’d be willing to bet it was not much more than 2-1 Dbacks to Angel fans. Everyone was great today. It is a really good situation we have trying to debate who was better, Naps, Big John and Brian. Most teams would like one performance like that in a game let alone 3. Go halos!
fack54 - June 27, 2009
Fox doesn't even compare in badness to ESPN
At least they didn’t spend all their time during Angels at-bats talking about former members of the other team, like ESPN did last weekend with Sandy Koufax (they must have assumed I guess that he was the only current or former player on either club in that game that the viewers would know or care about – or he was the only player on either SoCal team they knew anything about). Mark Grace and his announcer sidekick were much better.
Fred Fredrix - June 27, 2009
Less worse
Not much better.
rspencer - June 27, 2009
Light up the saguaro!
rspencer - June 27, 2009
Are you trying to say were all mexicans down here?
haha
WillGoAngels27 - June 27, 2009
Please don't let me be misunderstood
There are saguaro in Arizona. Bob Boze Bell said so!
rspencer - June 27, 2009
haha i know!
Just messin with ya
WillGoAngels27 - June 27, 2009
Mike Napoli hit that homerun all the way to Tempe just like I said he would in the gamethread at the very beginning of the game. Amazing! Good outing for Big John with the 9K.
44FAN - June 27, 2009
Can any one tell me.......HOW is Morales going to get better against LHP if he DOESN'T start?
Q sucks those things on Wipeout, and Morales is an ORIGINAL Right Handed Hitter were he has MORE POWER……But I guess we will never see that cus of Mike Freakin Scioscia. I think Morales is going to have to convert to a full time Left Handed Hitter to play every day.
BTW i give the POTG to Nipples!!!!!
acuda27 - June 27, 2009
I could'nt agree more.
Q must be holding something over Scioscia’s head that would either ruin his marriage, or damage his career in some way. That, or Soth is worried about Kendry’s star rising too quickly and overshadowing Torii and Vlad.
44FAN - June 27, 2009
HAPPY NAPPY!
Doesn’t Q’s swing look like a T-Baller’s swing?
HALO N BRIMSTONE - June 27, 2009
How?? I'll tell you how!
ON HIS OWN DAMNED TIME, that’s how!! On the job training is for Spring. If there is a lefty on the mound, I want somebody up to bat who already knows how to hit lefties.
Stirrups - June 28, 2009
Morales is much more likely to get even a random hit compared to Q's chances.
44FAN - June 28, 2009
(Actually, they are both hitting pretty much the same versus lefties so far this season...)
Stirrups - June 28, 2009
which begs the question...
why not just give Morales more chances to learn how to hit lefties? why play the Q-Suck? if K-Mo is your full-time first baseman (which he is), you should stick with him and let him learn
howiestheman - June 28, 2009
To quote RevHalofan, "EXACTLY!"
44FAN - June 28, 2009
don't you mean
“E X A C T L Y” ?
hahaha
howiestheman - June 28, 2009
For the same reason that I don't believe
in sending Mathis up to the plate in order to eventually learn how to hit anything.
Stirrups - June 29, 2009
Hello to first place again LAA........
you’ve been missed……
special thanks to the Fathers down south for dispatching the Strangers…..
norcaliangelsfan - June 27, 2009
Bunt HR = Little League Play
The D-Backs RF, Upton, made a HUGE mistake not backing up first base on the pitcher’s throw to try to get Aybar. If Upton backs that up, Aybar gets second base, at most. Then, Upton chucks the ball to third so high that only Manute Bol could have caught it.
Thanks to Upton. He’s the player of the game.
Downing Rules - June 27, 2009
if only that got me points in fantasyland
TheTypingFiend - June 27, 2009
Don't you mean "Manuel Boot?"
I remember that guy!
rspencer - June 27, 2009
“Unless thats Shaquille O’neal at thrid base that ball is over his head and aybar scores.”
“Renyolds is going to need a Rocket it up his ass to catch that ball”
WillGoAngels27 - June 27, 2009
Missed the game.
Aybar with a bunt HR? We must be in a groove.
Funke5ive - June 27, 2009
Or he was playing Mattel’s “Intellivision” baseball game… it would, on rare occasion, allow bunted homeruns. Gotta love early 80’s video game consoles.
Downing Rules - June 27, 2009
Missed most of the game returning from Chicago...
…first place all alone looks, smells, and tastes great!!!
This team has endured more challenges to reach the top since Russel Crowe in “The Gladiator”!
sothball - June 27, 2009
LESS FILLING!!!!
red floyd - June 28, 2009
TASTES GREAT!!!!!
sothball - June 28, 2009
It says here the winner is Bubba Smith
red floyd - June 29, 2009
anybody have video of the 2006 Napoli homer
that went 470 ft???
i heard that they played it on the telecast, but i couldn’t see the game… i really wanted to see that homer.
howiestheman - June 27, 2009
Their "replay"
was typcal terrible Fox camerawork – closeup of the batter, so you only see the swing after the ball has been hit and then it is cut to a long shot of the ball flying in an arc and you never see it land. Then the same thing happens in the 9th inning today. Fox is terrible – they chinse on # of cameras and place wide shots to make life easy on the lazy ass director.
Rev Halofan - June 27, 2009
gotcha
i saw the video of today’s homer… couldn’t tell where it hit off the wall. stupid Fox. but i can tell you that 428 (or whatever they estimated it at) is probably conservative.
which general area did the ‘06 homer go to? i was at Chase on Friday, so I’m just trying to get an idea of how far it really went.
howiestheman - June 27, 2009
Hit halfway up the green.
Little more then halfway closer to the Scoreboard.
WillGoAngels27 - June 27, 2009
dang i miss the game
and aybar gets a “home run”?
JoseGuillenSux - June 27, 2009
Naps for Panther
Aybar’s little league bunt homer was great. Check out the video on the Angels site of Aybars bunt/score. Check out that woman’s expression about 27 seconds into the video. Ha ha great stuff.
vladtheimpaler - June 28, 2009
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