Angels Finally Removing Curse of Past Seasons
It is Friday the 13th, but why should the Angels be spooked considering they continue to scoff at the ghosts of so many other Septembers?
They did it again Thursday night.
They did it with the depth that is imperative for a championship club.
They did it with big hits from people named Scott Spiezio, Alex Ochoa, Orlando Palmeiro and Shawn Wooten, and with clutch relief from Al Levine, Scott Schoeneweis and Brendan Donnelley (who would give up a tying home run in the ninth inning but refuse to fold) and with Benji Gil coming off the bench to flash some leather.
They came back against Mark Mulder and ultimately defeated closer Billy Koch and the Oakland A's, 7-6, to emerge from this four-game showdown with their third straight win, a tie with the A's for the American League West lead and a bulge of seven games over the Seattle Mariners in the wild-card race.
There are 16 games left, and while neither the Angels nor the A's are making any claims or tallying magic numbers, it is safe to assume both will be playing in October.
The three-way race is basically down to two, and the only real question is whether the A's or Angels will win the division and avoid the Yankees in the opening round of the playoffs.
For now, the Angels have the ghosts and doubters on the run.
Jarrod Washburn, who has had other things to think about, thought about that and said:
"Maybe, when we were beating all those teams we should have been beating, there were still some people who thought we'd fold, but the way we played against the A's, I'd have to guess that any doubters now realize we're for real."
Washburn can enhance that perception tonight.
He no longer faces prosecution for alleged sexual assault, but he must deal with Alex Rodriguez and the Texas Rangers, who pushed the Mariners further down the plank with a four-game sweep while the Angels were winning three from the A's.
Washburn started twice while under investigation, but that was before the alleged incident became public. How the young ace handles the increased notoriety could be pivotal to the Angels' long-term hopes.
"Physically," Manager Mike Scioscia said, "I don't think there's any question.
"Mentally, he's been through an ordeal. It could still weigh on him, but I think he's strong enough to go out there and focus on his pitching."
Washburn agreed.
