The Angels needed that one

It’s not my goal to turn this into an Angels-only blog. I love them, but I love watching the entire league and other sports too. But after big games I will talk about the Angels like the homer I am.

What a game. For those of you who missed it, the Angels won the 2nd game of a doubleheader against Boston in dramatic fashion. After losing Game 1, they were up in the second game 4-1 going into the bottom of the eighth, when the Red Sox scored four in the inning. But then the Angels scored three in the top of the ninth off of Eric Gagne, and held on to win.

Whew. That was one of the most fun games I’ve seen all-year long.

And the Angels desperately needed it. They couldn’t afford a doubleheader sweep, especially when the second game was theirs. They couldn’t afford to drop two games against the team with the best record in the American League (but only by one game over the Angels). And they couldn’t afford to drop the first two games in a ballpark they historically play badly in.

Of course, all ESPN focused on was how the Red Sox played, Gagne blew it, and the missed call in the bottom of the ninth where Kevin Youkilis got called out on strikes even though he fouled the pitch off. Red Sox fans seem to forget they get so many calls at Fenway because when the umpires finally call one the other way, they complain and go nuts.

But Sox fans, you were already losing. Just face it — the Red Sox have competition and aren’t alone atop the American League. It’s not just about you guys and the Yankees. The Angels can play a bit too.

Friday Links

The Original Mudpuppy is my hero for putting together a fabulous spreadsheet with a complete NCAA Football schedule by conference and by week. I’m not doing it justice. If you’re a big-time college football fan, you need to download his spreadsheet. Thanks Mudpuppy! (The Original Mudpuppy)

Stef at Either Relevant or True has an excellent live blog of Dan Patrick’s last show at ESPN Radio. Check it out. It’s so sad he’s done at ESPN, but I can’t wait for his new show to begin.

Lance Niekro, a former Giants’ first baseman, son of Joe Niekro and nephew of Phil Niekro is going to try pitching now — throwing the knuckleballer of course. OSQ is a fan of the knuckleball and hopes to see as many knuckleballers in the league as possible. (Enjoy the Enjoyment)

Video of Barack Obama playing high school basketball (Sports Rumblings)

An excellent analysis of why people like me root for David Wells and fat guys everywhere (Real Men of Genius)

Friday sports preview

GAME(S) OF THE DAY:

Los Angeles Angels at Boston, doubleheader, 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. PT

When the two best teams in the majors meet for a doubleheader, it has to be a big day. It’s not exactly a fair fight in terms of rest though — the Red Sox are coming off of a day off, while the Angels won a night game against Toronto on Thursday, meaning they not only had to fly at night, but they had to clear customs and wake up earlier for a day game the next day.

The Angels were hot before their recent series loss to Toronto, and won 2 out of 3 against Boston last week. Both teams have called up someone from the minors to pitch today, with Ervin Santana making his return to the Angels and Clay Buchholz getting a start today. Weirdly, they’re not facing each other (Lackey vs. Buchholz in Game 1, Santana vs. Beckett in Game 2).

OTHER BIG BASEBALL GAMES:

Arizona at Atlanta, 4:30 p.m. You have to check out Mark Teixiera’s new song. Brandon Webb looks to extend his consecutive scoreless innings streak of 33. Probables: Webb vs. Lance Cormier

St. Louis at Chicago Cubs, 11 a.m., nationally televised on WGN. Don’t look now, but after the Cardinals and Cubs wins yesterday, the Cardinals are only one loss worse than the Brewers and Cubs in the NL Central. (Milwaukee’s 62-59, Chicago’s 61-59, St. Louis is 58-60). When was the last time a Cardinals-Cubs series was meaningful for both teams? Probables: Braden Looper vs. Rich Hill

Detroit at New York Yankees, 4 p.m. Carlos Guillen’s grand slam gave the Tigers a win in the series opener on Thursday. Detroit moves into first place by 1/2 a game, the Yankees remain tied with the Mariners for the wild card (and only 1/2 a game in front of Cleveland). Probables: Nate Robertson vs. Andy Pettitte

Colorado at Los Angeles Dodgers, 7 p.m. The Dodgers have won two in a row! Stop the presses! This Dodger Blues post is a day old, but the headline still applies. (If he updates his site, it’s the Aug. 15 headline) Probables: Josh Fogg vs. Mark Hendrickson

OTHER SPORTS:

Tonight there’s 4 NFL preseason games, including Minnesota at the New York Jets on FOX at 5 p.m.

The Little League World Series is on pretty much all day on the ESPN family of networks. It’s just not the same without Harold Reynolds. Though the kids will have someone else they’d rather be looking at.