ANGELS CLINCH DIVISION

ARLINGTON, T.X. -- The Anaheim Angels clinched the AL West Title tonight in Texas in an 18-9 shellacking.  It marks the first time since 1986 that the Angels took the West.  Tragically, Angels reliever Donnie Moore took his own life a couple years after giving up a walk-off home run in the ALCS that season.  Anaheim had been 1 out away from advancing to the World Series for the first time ever before Moore blew it. 

So, uh, anyway, let's hope nothing like that happens again.  The Angels have had a magnificent season: they lead the league in hitting and ERA.  The were in 1st place every single day of the season except one (April 3rd) and basically had the division in their back pocket since May.  Relievers own an amazing 2.69 collective ERA. 

Garret Anderson has had a magnificent season: .317, 33 HR, 116 RBI and a lead-league 56 doubles.  His OPS stands at .951 and he ranks 2nd in AL MVP voting.

Congratulations on a great season by Anaheim.  It is still unclear who they will play in the play-offs.

A'S, HALOS SPLIT SERIES

OAKLAND -- Troy Glaus had 6 RBI's, including a big grand slam, as Oakland and Anaheim played to a 2-2 split in the weekday series.  The A's relievers, including Mike Venafro, Jim Mecir, and Ricardo Rincon were off their games tonight. The three pitchers combined to allow four earned runs.  Miguel Tejada booted a ball in the first inning which led to 2 runs.

Anaheim's magic number now stands at just 6 games after Seattle was spanked by Texas, 7-0.  Meanwhile, the Yankees won against Tampa Bay, 4-2.

In the NL Wildcard battle, both the Phillies and the Giants lost.  They are deadlocked at 90-63 each.

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BOXSCORE: 2002 Anaheim Angels At 2002 Oakland Athletics             9/19/2002

  Angels             AB  R  H RBI AVG     Athletics          AB  R  H RBI AVG
  D.Eckstein SS       4  1  0  0 .296     R.Durham DH         3  0  0  0 .258 
  D.Erstad CF         5  2  3  0 .297     S.Hatteberg 1B      4  0  1  0 .285 
  T.Salmon RF         4  2  1  1 .313     M.Tejada SS         4  0  0  0 .275 
  G.Anderson LF       5  1  2  1 .314     J.Dye RF            4  1  2  0 .294 
  T.Glaus 3B          4  1  3  6 .239     D.Justice LF        3  1  1  0 .236 
  B.Fullmer DH        5  0  1  0 .313     E.Chavez 3B         4  0  2  0 .262 
  S.Spiezio 1B        4  0  0  0 .309     M.Ellis 2B          2  0  0  1 .260 
  B.Molina C          4  0  1  0 .214     T.Long CF           2  0  0  0 .256 
  A.Kennedy 2B        3  1  1  0 .305   A-O.Saenz PH          1  0  0  0 .280 
                                        B-E.Byrnes CF         0  0  0  0 .257 
                                        C-J.Mabry PH          1  0  0  0 .219 
                                          R.Hernandez C       4  0  0  0 .251 
                     -- -- -- ---                            -- -- -- ---     
         Totals      38  8 12  8                 Totals      32  2  6  1

A-Pinch Hit For Long In 7th Inning
B-Subbed Defensively (CF) For Saenz In 8th Inning
C-Pinch Hit For Byrnes In 9th Inning

Angels.......... 2 0 0  0 2 0  4 0 0  -  8 12  0
Athletics....... 0 2 0  0 0 0  0 0 0  -  2  6  1

Angels (94-59)           IP       H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR  PC    ERA  SCORESHEET
K.Appier WIN(8-6)         5 2/3   6   2   2   2   5   0  86   4.24  A1 C6
B.Weber SAVE(3rd)         3 1/3   0   0   0   2   3   0  49   2.51  C7
Totals                    9       6   2   2   4   8   0

Athletics (86-67)        IP       H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR  PC    ERA  SCORESHEET
C.Lidle LOSS(10-7)        6       6   4   2   2   1   0  94   4.02  A1 C9
M.Venafro                 0       1   2   2   0   0   0   7   4.73  D1 D2
J.Mecir                   0       0   1   1   1   0   0   5   3.84  D3 D3
R.Rincon                  1       1   1   1   0   1   1  15   3.64  D4 D7
J.Tam                     2       4   0   0   0   1   0  26   6.44  D8
Totals                    9      12   8   6   3   3   1

ATTENDANCE- 40,907 DATE- Thursday, September 19th 2002 TIME- Day WEATHER- Average
UMPIRES- Bill Miller, Jerry Meals, Larry Young, Rob Drake
T- 3:02
LEFT ON BASE- Angels: 8  Athletics: 7
DOUBLE PLAYS- Angels: 1  Athletics: 2
ERRORS- M.Tejada
TRIPLES- G.Anderson(8th), E.Chavez(4th)
HOME RUNS- T.Glaus(28th)
STOLEN BASES- D.Eckstein(29th), D.Erstad(15th)
WALKS- T.Salmon, T.Glaus, S.Spiezio, R.Durham, D.Justice, M.Ellis-2
HIT BY PITCH- D.Eckstein, A.Kennedy
STRIKE OUTS- T.Salmon, G.Anderson, A.Kennedy, R.Durham, M.Tejada, J.Dye,
             M.Ellis-2, T.Long, R.Hernandez-2
GIDP- D.Eckstein, T.Long
BALKS- C.Lidle
WEB GEMS- Top 8th: Mark Ellis robbed David Eckstein of a base hit.

RED SOX WIN A.L. EAST!

BOSTON -- Manny Ramirez clocked a deep 3-run blast over the Monster, powering the Red Sox to a 6-5 victory over the Orioles and clinching the A.L. East Title!

It has been an amazing season for the 100-46 Red Sox.  Boston has posted an incredible 56-16 record at home, they're 30-12 in one-run games, both Derek Lowe and Pedro Martinez have posted sub-2.50 ERA's, and they've scored 10 or more runs 26 times this season.  They were 21-7 in May and 22-7 in June.

The Red Sox will have home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.  As it stands now, they're slated to play Minnesota in the first round. 

---

Primary Player Statistics For 2002 Boston Red Sox Totals After 146 Games


NAME              BAVG  GM  AB   R   H 2B 3B HR RBI  BB  SO HB SH DP  SB CS  E
M.Ramirez         .356 107 405  95 144 32  0 37 107  69  86  8  0  8   0  0  0
C.Floyd           .338  39 157  24  53 18  0  7  29  14  28  1  0  7   2  0  0
F.Sanchez         .333   2   3   1   1  0  0  0   0   0   0  0  0  0   0  0  0
J.Offerman        .321  46 134  24  43  9  3  5  18  21   7  0  0  9   8  0  1
S.Hillenbrand     .308 146 629  88 194 32  7 17  70  28  92 15  0 16   4  4 22
N.Garciaparra     .302 146 625 104 189 45  6 26 107  37  59  5  2 25   2  1 33
R.Sanchez         .289 114 380  43 110 13  2  2  39  31  37  0 11 10   2  5  1
B.Nelson          .286  16  28   4   8  4  0  0   2   4   3  0  0  0   1  1  1
B.Daubach         .275 119 440  62 121 30  5 15  74  51 115  6  0 12   2  3  6
J.Damon           .274 144 625 101 171 39 14 10  65  49  89  3  6  8  19  7  0
J.Varitek         .271 141 505  72 137 24  4 21  76  59  96 15  0 14   5  4  8
T.Nixon           .257 139 533  98 137 31  4 25  83  65 119  7  2 10   4  3  4
C.Baerga          .250  44 112   8  28  6  0  2  19   8  19  0  1  4   3  1  1
L.Merloni         .190  58 158  23  30  5  0  4  17  16  24  5  0  4   1  2  1
T.Clark           .172  78 215  12  37  7  1  3  25  17  56  0  0  5   0  0  9
R.Henderson       .161  75 137  37  22  2  1  3  16  43  40  6  0  4   7  1  4
D.Mirabelli       .120  16  25   4   3  1  0  1   2   4   6  0  0  1   0  0  0
B.Agbayani        .000   1   2   0   0  0  0  0   0   0   1  0  0  0   0  0  0
J.Diaz            .000   6   4   0   0  0  0  0   0   3   0  0  0  1   0  0  0
K.Brown           .000   1   1   0   0  0  0  0   0   0   0  0  0  0   0  0  0
S.Andrews         ----   0   0   0   0  0  0  0   0   0   0  0  0  0   0  0  0
ALL PITCHERS      .067 146  15   1   1  0  0  0   0   1   5  0  2  0   0  0  7
----------------- ---- --- --- --- --- -- -- -- --- --- --- -- -- -- --- -- --
TEAM TOTALS       .278    5133    1429    47    749     882    24     60    98
                       146     801    298   178     520     71   138     32


NAME               ERA  W  L   PCT   G GS CG SH SV    IP   H   R  ER HR  BB  SO
J.Hancock         1.13  0  0  ----   3  0  0  0  0   8.0   4   1   1  0   3   9
U.Urbina          1.43  3  2  .600  55  0  0  0 40  69.1  42  12  11  3  13  75
D.Lowe            2.14 20  4  .833  29 29  4  2  0 210.2 156  61  50 16  52 128
P.Martinez        2.22 16  4  .800  28 28  2  1  0 194.1 134  54  48 13  45 240
T.Wakefield       2.57 15  2  .882  40 12  2  0  4 154.0 102  50  44 12  51 125
R.Arrojo          2.66  4  4  .500  26  8  0  0  3  67.2  73  22  20  4  25  47
A.Embree          2.73  6  0 1.000  15  0  0  0  0  29.2  18  10   9  3   8  32
C.Fossum          3.82  7  6  .538  42  9  1  0  2 117.2 127  53  50 14  31 107
S.Kim             3.90  4  0 1.000  12  2  0  0  0  27.2  30  13  12  3  10  19
F.Castillo        4.38  9  6  .600  34 22  0  0  0 148.0 158  76  72 18  38 106
W.Gomes           4.41  1  0 1.000  16  0  0  0  2  16.1  13   8   8  4  11  15
J.Burkett         5.23  7  8  .467  26 26  0  0  0 136.0 157  92  79 21  43 102
D.Oliver          5.61  3  4  .429  13  9  0  0  1  43.1  54  27  27  2  30  17
W.Banks           5.91  2  2  .500  23  0  0  0  1  35.0  44  24  23 11  14  23
C.Haney           6.00  1  1  .500  19  0  0  0  0  33.0  38  23  22  2   9  18
R.Garces          6.61  1  0 1.000  16  0  0  0  0  16.1  21  12  12  2   8  12
B.Howry           9.45  1  2  .333  16  0  0  0  0  13.1  19  16  14  1   6   2
D.Hermanson      15.95  0  1  .000  12  1  0  0  0   7.1  19  15  13  1   7   2
ALL NON-PITCHERS  ----  0  0  ----   0  0  0  0  0   0.0   0   0   0  0   0   0
Team                                         10                   -1
----------------- ---- -- -- ----- --- -- -- -- -- ----- --- --- --- -- --- ---
TEAM TOTALS       3.48    46       146     9    53      1209     514    404
                      100     .685    146    13   1327.2     569    130    1079

'02 A'S UP IN SMOKE

SEATTLE -- Today the A's begin their final series of the season against the vaunted Mariners -- a team whose 18-game winning streak during August will likely propel them to a division or Wild Card victory.  Throughout the summer it was the Athletics who held firmly onto 2nd place, poised for the Wild Card spot, but the Mariners won every game from August 14 - September 1, leaving the A's shocked and bewildered.  With just 16 games left in the season, the A's trail the Mariners by 6 games.  If the A's can sweep, there's still some hope, if not, this season is deader than a 9/11 victim.

The Athletics took 3 of 4 from Anaheim in their previous series, but Seattle matched them by also taking 3 of 4 from Texas.  The A's were looking to pick up crucial ground before the series -- they couldn't.  The season is over if they cannot sweep.

"This series against Seattle will prove our fate," said Eric Chavez.  "We lose and we sign our death warrant."

DESPITE STANDINGS GAP, A'S & M'S IDENTICAL STATISCALLY

Despite the fact that the Mariners lead the Athletics with just a month to go in the season by 7 games, statistics prove that the the teams ought to have very similar records.  The data is puzzling and dissapointing to A's fans and management.  The chart below shows that Oakland has actually scored more runs than Seattle this season and trail by only nine runs in the "runs allowed" category.

According to the stats, the Seattle ought record to be 82-55.  Oakland's should be 81-56.  Compared to season stats, the M's own 1 "lucky win" while the A's own 5 "unlucky losses."  The M's are winning games they shouldn't and the A's are losing close games that they should be winning.

In addition, Oakland has a better OPS (.779) vs. Seattle's (.775).  In WHIP, Oakland stands at 1.33 vs. Seattle's 1.211.  Clearly, Seattle has out-pitched Oakland but it still doesn't justify their success. 

Unless Oakland can defy statistics in the final month in the same way Seattle has, the playoff picture will look increasingly bleak.  Apparently, like life itself, baseball ain't fair.  This should be a two-team Wild Card race.

MARINERS WIN 18TH STRAIGHT

The unstoppable Mariners padded their 7 game wild card lead with yet another victory last night, embarrasing the Royals, 10-0.  It's been an incredible streak: the Mariners have held opponents to 1 run in 5 of those contests and have outscored the opposition 121-48.  The M's are simply on fire.   They will host Minnesota for a 3-game series starting tomorrow.

---

Here's how the Standings shakeout on Sept. 1st:

LEAGUE STANDINGS FOR 2002 Major Leagues

                                                      ACTUAL-TODATE  ACTUAL-TOTAL
AL East                     WON LOST  PCT   GB  MAGIC# WON LOS  PCT  WON LOS  PCT
2002 Boston BOA              92  42  .687 ----    10    76  58 .567   93  69 .574
2002 New York (AL) NYA       74  61  .548 18.5          84  51 .622  103  58 .640
2002 Baltimore BAA           62  73  .459 30.5          63  72 .467   67  95 .414
2002 Toronto TOA             60  76  .441 33.0          60  76 .441   78  84 .481
2002 Tampa Bay TBA           37  99  .272 56.0          47  89 .346   55 106 .342

                                                      ACTUAL-TODATE  ACTUAL-TOTAL
AL Central                  WON LOST  PCT   GB  MAGIC# WON LOS  PCT  WON LOS  PCT
2002 Minnesota MNA           77  61  .558 ----    23    80  58 .580   94  67 .584
2002 Chicago (AL) CHA        73  63  .537  3.0          66  70 .485   81  81 .500
2002 Cleveland CLA           66  69  .489  9.5          59  76 .437   74  88 .457
2002 Kansas City KCA         52  85  .380 24.5          55  82 .401   62 100 .383
2002 Detroit DEA             47  89  .346 29.0          50  86 .368   55 106 .342

                                                      ACTUAL-TODATE  ACTUAL-TOTAL
AL West                     WON LOST  PCT   GB  MAGIC# WON LOS  PCT  WON LOS  PCT
2002 Anaheim ANA             83  53  .610 ----    26    82  54 .603   99  63 .611
2002 Seattle SEA             83  54  .606   .5          80  57 .584   93  69 .574
2002 Oakland OAA             76  61  .555  7.5          86  51 .628  103  59 .636
2002 Texas TEA               61  74  .452 21.5          60  75 .444   72  90 .444

                                                      ACTUAL-TODATE  ACTUAL-TOTAL
NL East                     WON LOST  PCT   GB  MAGIC# WON LOS  PCT  WON LOS  PCT
2002 Atlanta ATN             92  43  .681 ----    15    86  49 .637  101  59 .631
2002 Philadelphia PHN        79  56  .585 13.0          69  66 .511   80  81 .497
2002 Florida FLN             68  67  .504 24.0          67  68 .496   79  83 .488
2002 New York (NL) NYN       62  72  .463 29.5          61  73 .455   75  86 .466
2002 Montreal MON            51  85  .375 41.5          66  70 .485   83  79 .512

                                                      ACTUAL-TODATE  ACTUAL-TOTAL
NL Central                  WON LOST  PCT   GB  MAGIC# WON LOS  PCT  WON LOS  PCT
2002 St. Louis SLN           74  62  .544 ----    23    76  60 .559   97  65 .599
2002 Houston HON             70  66  .515  4.0          72  64 .529   84  78 .519
2002 Cincinnati CIN          66  70  .485  8.0          66  70 .485   78  84 .481
2002 Chicago (NL) CHN        63  73  .463 11.0          57  79 .419   67  95 .414
2002 Milwaukee MLN           58  78  .426 16.0          49  87 .360   56 106 .346
2002 Pittsburgh PIN          57  80  .416 17.5          60  77 .438   72  89 .447

                                                      ACTUAL-TODATE  ACTUAL-TOTAL
NL West                     WON LOST  PCT   GB  MAGIC# WON LOS  PCT  WON LOS  PCT
2002 Arizona ARN             86  50  .632 ----    19    85  51 .625   98  64 .605
2002 San Francisco SFN       78  58  .574  8.0          77  59 .566   95  66 .590
2002 Los Angeles LAN         77  59  .566  9.0          79  57 .581   92  70 .568
2002 Colorado CON            62  75  .453 24.5          61  76 .445   73  89 .451
2002 San Diego SDN           52  84  .382 34.0          59  77 .434   66  96 .407


AL Wild Card Standings      WON LOST  PCT   GB  MAGIC#
2002 Seattle SEA             83  54  .606 ----    19 
2002 Oakland OAA             76  61  .555  7.0       
2002 New York (AL) NYA       74  61  .548  8.0       
2002 Chicago (AL) CHA        73  63  .537  9.5       
2002 Cleveland CLA           66  69  .489 16.0       
2002 Baltimore BAA           62  73  .459 20.0       

NL Wild Card Standings      WON LOST  PCT   GB  MAGIC#
2002 Philadelphia PHN        79  56  .585 ----    26 
2002 San Francisco SFN       78  58  .574  1.5       
2002 Los Angeles LAN         77  59  .566  2.5       
2002 Houston HON             70  66  .515  9.5       
2002 Florida FLN             68  67  .504 11.0       
2002 Cincinnati CIN          66  70  .485 13.5