Why the Angels Fans Loved the Angels

 

TRIVIA WINNER: Congrats to Kel Kissamis of Hampshire, IL, who revealed that Ron Perranoski was the Dodger reliever who was second to Phil Regan in Saves in 1966 with 6. The Prize: Starbucks Gift Card.

NEW TRIVIA CONTEST:  By answering the TRIVIA QUESTION CORRECTLY you are automatically entered into a weekly drawing for a Starbucks Gift Card.  Please enter via brillpro@gmail.com and please put your mailing address in with the answer so we can send you the gift card in the mail.

ANSWER to the Trivia question in the previous column: Ron Perranoski was the Dodger reliever who was second to Phil Regan in 1966 with 6 Saves.

EDS NOTE; Since we are trying to expand our mailing list and readership we want to build our mailing list. Readers on our email list receive the column each Monday directly into their mailbox. Please help us out by sending your email to brillpro@gmail.com. We DO NOT SELL your emails.

NOTE; At the top right corner of the side bar you will see a link to daily sports scores. We made an agreement with Baseball 24 in a mutual sharing situation.

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NEW TRIVIA QUESTION:  Which 1966 Angels player started his career with the Yankees and during a long career only played for one other AL team; the Angels?

 What made the 1966 Los Angeles/California Angels so interesting they would finish in sixth place in the American League but still finish first in attendance? While the team closed out the 1966 season 80-82, 1,400,321 fans went through the turnstiles of Anaheim Stadium. Bill Rigney's team did not have a .300 hitter or a batter with at least 20 homers. Aging Joe Adcock led the club with 18 in only 83 games. The club's leading hurlers each won 13 games (George Brunet and Jack Sanford) and ace Dean Chance was 12-17. So why did the fans turn out?

The team was never in danger of winning the pennant. They rarely won or lost more than five in a row. Their highlight was in mid-June when they won 11 of 13 and were seven games over .500. They were still eight games back of the Orioles but they were in fourth place. Then they dropped three in a row to Baltimore, another to Detroit and despite a four game winning streak which followed shortly thereafter, the season was essentially lost. 

They still played good baseball overall, and by the end of July they were still over .500. However they were 14.5 games back of first place Baltimore. Perhaps it was the fact the Angels, despite looking up to see down trying to overcome the Frank Robinson led Birds, never gave up. On July 30th Chance pitched the Angels to a 2-1 win over Cleveland to put the west coast team into its only day in second place. They were 13.5 back. It lasted 24 hours.

Brunet, always the hard luck pitcher would face even more hard luck in 1967 when the Angels competed for the pennant, Fregosi continued to play well and alongside Bobby Knoop they were among the best double play duos of the era. Chance would become an outstanding pitcher, especially after being traded to Minnesota. The Norm Siebern/Joe Adcock platoon was replaced by Don Mincher the following season. 

It was the slugging Adcock's final season and leading the team in homers at age 38 was pretty indicative of the 1966 Angels. Let's face it, this was a team of lovable players who were at a crossroads in a region hungry for a winner not named the Dodgers. They Angels were no match for the pennant winning team led by Sandy Koufax in his final season, Don Drysdale and fav's such as Wes Parker and Lou Johnson.

They really were every bit as talented as the Dodgers but were just not ready to eclipse the upper tier of the American League. The Orioles, the Red Sox and the Tigers were way too difficult for the team from Anaheim. They were never more than 3 games under .500, and as the 80-82 record indicated they played pretty evenly through the year. They had 9 walk off wins and 9 walk off losses which is pretty darn even. 

This was a club of lovable characters. There were new kids on the block like Rick Reichardt, Paul Schall, Jim McGlothlin, Jackie Hernandez, Clyde Wright and Minnie Rojas. There was a mix of real fan favorites such as Adcock, Bubba Morton, Lew Burdette, Jimmy Piersall, Jack Sanford and Ramon Lopez. 

Perhaps a real indication where this team of aging vets and young stars trying to shine is how they finished. One of the clubs best games was on Sunday October 2, facing Luis Tiant and the Indians. Knoop's 2-run triple in the bottom of the eighth plated the only runs of the game to back the 5-hit pitching of Jorge Rubio (WHO?). In the ninth, facing four batters, Rubio did not allow a fair hit ball. He walked Rocky Colavito and struck out Leon Wagner, Bill Davis and Fred Whitfield.

Rubio finished his career the following season with a 2-3 lifetime record in ten total career games. The Angels were a team waiting to happen with a fan base eager to see it happen. Or so one would think. The following season they were in the race for much of the year and finished 84-77 in 5th place. Attendance: Dropped off to fourth in the American League, down to
1,317,713. Some people just can't stand a winner.

TRIVIA CONTEST; After reading this column you can enter the weekly trivia contest for a chance to win a Starbucks Gift Card. Enter via the following email. Send 1) your answer to the trivia question at the top of the column, 2) your name, address and email so where we know where to send the card if you win 3) any comment you have on the column. One winner will be selected at random each week based on correct answers with the odds being based on the number of correct entries.  Please cut and paste or enter the following email into your email system.
                              brillpro@gmail.com 
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I've written more than a dozen books including at least two sports books. You can find these at my Amazon page or at my own website www.bobbrillbooks.com. Please take a look at the sports books, the western novel series or the "Tattoo Murder," which is a crime book set in Ventura, CA.

Use PayPal to brillpro@prodigy.net or contact us at the same email for other payment. 

Thank you to those of you who purchased my books after reading this column.  

 

Phil Regan; Destined to be the Vulture

 

TRIVIA WINNER: Congrats to Mickey Bauchan of Flint, MI, who revealed Zoilo Versalles led the AL three times in errors committed at shortstop. The Prize: Starbucks Gift Card.

NEW TRIVIA CONTEST:  By answering the TRIVIA QUESTION CORRECTLY you are automatically entered into a weekly drawing for a Starbucks Gift Card.  Please enter via brillpro@gmail.com and please put your mailing address in with the answer so we can send you the gift card in the mail.

ANSWER to the Trivia question in the previous column: Zoilo Versalles led the AL three times in errors committed at shortstop.

EDS NOTE; Since we are trying to expand our mailing list and readership we want to build our mailing list. Readers on our email list receive the column each Monday directly into their mailbox. Please help us out by sending your email to brillpro@gmail.com. We DO NOT SELL your emails.

NOTE; At the top right corner of the side bar you will see a link to daily sports scores. We made an agreement with Baseball 24 in a mutual sharing situation.

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NEW TRIVIA QUESTION:  While Phil Regan led the 1966 Dodgers with 21 Saves, which pitcher had the second most on the club that season?

 Sometimes a player is just out of position but someone realizes there is potential and lets him hang around until another someone realizes it too. Such is the case of Phil Regan. A starting pitcher when he arrived in the big leagues in 1960, he would split his time between starting and the bullpen. It was a common occurrence in that era. His first game in the Bigs was in relief but his second appearance was as a starter. He pitched well in a 4-3 loss to Baltimore, going eight innings and allowing eight hits and only three earned runs. He would not win a game that season. 

                                                      (Video from 2019)

In 1962 however, manager Bob Scheffing decided he would pretty much be a starter. While he did occasionally pitch out of the bullpen, he'd be considered a starter. In fact, he started 71 games in three years. He just wasn't very good at it. He did win 41 games from 1961-1964 but only once was his ERA under 4.0. That season, 1963, he was 15-9 but gave up 33 homers in 189 innings. The other years his ERA was massive, with three of those five years higher than 5.00. 

Then in 1966 the Tigers sent him to the Dodgers where manager Walter Alston put him in the bullpen. Regan quickly became L-A's closer. The "Vulture" as he was called baffled NL hitters and ended up 14-1 with a 1.62 ERA in 116 innings. He led the league in games finished with 48 and Saves with 21. He allowed just 6 home runs. It was a steal for Los Angeles who picked him up for journeyman Dick Tracewski. Sandy Koufax hung the nickname on him after leaving games tied 1-1 and seeing Regan come in to pitch the ninth when the Dodgers scored - the Vulture picking up the win.

Of course he was closing for pitchers Koufax and Don Drysdale at their pinnacle. The next year he still pitched well but it was a different Dodger club and his record didn't come anywhere near to his 1966 numbers. During the 1968 season he wasn't pitching well and the Cubs needed relief help. The club shipped him to Chicago where he regained his stride and led the league in Saves with 25 and Games finished. He tossed 134 innings with a 10-5 combined record and a 2.20 ERA. 

That was pretty much the end of the good years. He still pitched a lot of innings for Chicago over the next few seasons but never returned to the form of those two magnificent years. He finished 96-81 with 92 career Saves and a lifetime 3.84 ERA after 13 seasons. He retired after a year with the White Sox at age 35.

TRIVIA CONTEST; After reading this column you can enter the weekly trivia contest for a chance to win a Starbucks Gift Card. Enter via the following email. Send 1) your answer to the trivia question at the top of the column, 2) your name, address and email so where we know where to send the card if you win 3) any comment you have on the column. One winner will be selected at random each week based on correct answers with the odds being based on the number of correct entries.  Please cut and paste or enter the following email into your email system.
                              brillpro@gmail.com 
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I've written more than a dozen books including at least two sports books. You can find these at my Amazon page or at my own website www.bobbrillbooks.com. Please take a look at the sports books, the western novel series or the "Tattoo Murder," which is a crime book set in Ventura, CA.

Use PayPal to brillpro@prodigy.net or contact us at the same email for other payment. 

Thank you to those of you who purchased my books after reading this column.  

 

The Twins Fall from Grace

 

TRIVIA WINNER: Congrats to Dennis Cimpl of Wauwatosa, WI, who revealed three of the players highlighted in last weeks column all played for the Washington Senators at one time in their careers. The Prize: Starbucks Gift Card.

NEW TRIVIA CONTEST:  By answering the TRIVIA QUESTION CORRECTLY you are automatically entered into a weekly drawing for a Starbucks Gift Card.  Please enter via brillpro@gmail.com and please put your mailing address in with the answer so we can send you the gift card in the mail.

ANSWER to the Trivia question in the previous column: Frank Howard, Don Rudolph and Bob Allison all played for the Washington Senators at one time in their career.

EDS NOTE; Since we are trying to expand our mailing list and readership we want to build our mailing list. Readers on our email list receive the column each Monday directly into their mailbox. Please help us out by sending your email to brillpro@gmail.com. We DO NOT SELL your emails.

NOTE; At the top right corner of the side bar you will see a link to daily sports scores. We made an agreement with Baseball 24 in a mutual sharing situation.

===============================================================
NEW TRIVIA QUESTION:  How many times did Zoilo Versalles lead AL shortstops in errors?

 When a team wins a championship one year and then competes the following year but drops off substantially it drives the front office and the fans crazy. The 1960s were far from the Internet and one could only imagine the fallout for the Minnesota Twins from 1965 to 1966 would have played today. It would be a social media nightmare. 

The Twins won the American League pennant but lost the World Series to the Dodgers in 1965 after finishing with 102 wins. In 1966 the finished second with 89 wins, a drop off of 13 games. Frank Robinson's Orioles topped the AL that season but to explore the Twins demise you don't have to look far. The hitting really dropped off, as did the pitching and some new players did not perform as well as the aging guys they replaced. And then there was Zoilo Versalles. 

Versalles had a marvelous 1965 and was awarded the AL MVP Award. The shortstop was the Twins spark plug. He batted .273 but scored 126 runs, ripped 45 doubles, 12 triples and 19 homers. His 39 errors notwithstanding, he was the driver in 1965. In 1966 those numbers fell off drastically. He scored just 73 runs (a 40 percent drop), had 20 doubles (more than 50 percent less), and halved his triples with 6. His home runs fell by almost 60-percent to just 7. His BA went to .249 and he committed 35 errors. 

But he wasn't the only one. Earl Battey's BA dropped more than 40 points, Don Mincher went from 22 homers to 14, Bob Allison hit 23 dingers in 1965 but only 8 the following season. Ted Uhlaender and Bernie Allen became starters and neither were up to the task performed by their predecessors. Jimmie Hall dropped from .285 to .239 but matched his 1965 HR total with 20. Others who saw their production falter were Sandy Valdespino and Rich Rollins. 

The bright spots were Harmon Killebrew's 39 homers versus 25 from the previous season, Tony Oliva's consistency, batting .321 and then .307. He did up his homer totals from 16 to 25.  The real bright spot however was Cesar Tovar. He played just about every position and starred with a .260 BA in 134 games.

The big three on the pitching staff won just two less games 51-49 but flip flopped. Mudcat Grant went from 21 wins to 13 while Jim Kaat went from 18 to 25. Jim Perry won 12 instead of ll and Dave Boswell picked up the slack with a 12-5 season. The bullpen slipped a bit with ace closer Al Worthington seeing his 10-7 record with 21 saves and a 2.13 ERA go to 6-3, 16 Saves and 2.46 ERA. The club did improve it's fielding going from last in the AL with 172 Errors to fifth with 139.

TRIVIA CONTEST; After reading this column you can enter the weekly trivia contest for a chance to win a Starbucks Gift Card. Enter via the following email. Send 1) your answer to the trivia question at the top of the column, 2) your name, address and email so where we know where to send the card if you win 3) any comment you have on the column. One winner will be selected at random each week based on correct answers with the odds being based on the number of correct entries.  Please cut and paste or enter the following email into your email system.
                              brillpro@gmail.com 
 ==========================================================
I've written more than a dozen books including at least two sports books. You can find these at my Amazon page or at my own website www.bobbrillbooks.com. Please take a look at the sports books, the western novel series or the "Tattoo Murder," which is a crime book set in Ventura, CA.

Use PayPal to brillpro@prodigy.net or contact us at the same email for other payment. 

Thank you to those of you who purchased my books after reading this column.