BOSTON -- This one had all the makings of another Angels playoff disaster against the Boston Red Sox, with the requisite failure to cash in on numerous opportunities, a blown defensive play that cost them three runs and a baserunning gaffe that killed a potential ninth-inning rally.
But a strange, almost crazy thing happened as an eerie fog rolled into Fenway Park past midnight Sunday, with the Angels appearing on the way to another American League division series sweep at the hands of their October nemeses.
The Angels didn't fold.
A catcher clubbed a pair of early home runs, a stout bullpen combined for 7 1/3 innings of scoreless relief, a shortstop who was hitless in 13 series at-bats delivered a game-winner, and a starter making his first career relief appearance threw two scoreless innings for the win.
It all added up to a thrilling 5-4, 12-inning Game 3 victory that ended the Angels' nine-game playoff losing streak and their 11-game playoff losing streak to the Red Sox, and kept them alive in a best-of-five series they now trail two games to one.
Game 4 is tonight in Fenway, where Angels ace John Lackey will oppose Red Sox left-hander Jon Lester.
"We're a new team, we have a new spring in our step," said Angels pitcher Joe Saunders, who gave up four runs in 4 2/3 innings. "We're still in a hole, but I like where we're at right now. We just got a whole lot more confident."
Part of that confidence stems from an offense that banged out 16 hits, including a pair of home runs by Mike Napoli, whose two-run shot off the light standard above the Green Monster in left field in the third inning tied the score, 3-3, and whose solo shot to left-center in the fifth gave the Angels a 4-3 lead.
Napoli also sparked the winning rally with a leadoff single to center against reliever Javier Lopez in the 12th. Howie Kendrick bunted Napoli to second, and Erick Aybar, hitless in the series, stroked a soft single to center to score Napoli for a 5-4 lead.
Jered Weaver, who did not make the playoff rotation and last pitched in an Arizona Instructional League game a week ago, walked David Ortiz to open the bottom of the 12th.
But the right-hander got Kevin Youkilis to fly to center, struck out Jason Bay looking and got Alex Cora to ground to third baseman Chone Figgins, who made a nice backhanded stop and threw to first to end the 5-hour 19-minute marathon.
