Each Moment Is a Tribute for Angels

NEW YORK – This is how it ends, in the Angels' perfect little world. They steal their share of bases, acts of defiance that come so naturally, and the starting rotation hands the ball over to the bullpen, which doesn't fall apart. Mike Scioscia, the crafty former catcher who is fluent with quips and stingy when it comes to making managerial mistakes, probably allows a tear or three to leak as his players drench him with celebratory bubbly.

This is for Nick, the Angels will say, in between bursts of hugs and laughter, and they'll tell his story to anyone who asks. The Angels believe his spirit is with them, lingering, guiding them through this remarkable season. "Oh yes, he's cheering for us," Bobby Abreu, the Angel outfielder, was saying Thursday afternoon, as he took shelter in a soggy Yankee Stadium. "We keep him with us here and here."

Abreu patted his chest, then his head. Not all of the Angels like to say they're doing this solely for Nick Adenhart, the young pitcher who was killed with two others in a car crash by an allegedly drunk driver in the season's opening week, because that can sound trite, as if his nearly 23 years on the planet can be narrowed down to a bat and a ball. It also diminishes the effort and talent his teammates bring to the field on every pitch, in every game. They don't necessarily want to beat the Yankees in the American League Championship Series any more or less than they would if Adenhart were still alive.

But the experience borders on surreal, every time they gather for one final meeting before bolting through the clubhouse doors. Adenhart has a locker, at home and on the road, where some of his belongings are placed almost exactly the way he left them the night of April 8: his spikes, a pair of sneakers, some shower thongs, a couple of hats with the "A" logo on the brim. Reliever Kevin Jepsen attaches Adenhart's No. 34 jersey to a spot in the dugout before every game.

Reminders of Adenhart -- his goofy grin, his jokes, his optimism, his youthful promise -- are everywhere, inspiring the Angels to reflect on matters that might otherwise get lost in the shuffle of 162 games and then the blur of the playoffs.

"Just be thankful for everything we have. We tell each other that all the time as a team now, because you don't know when it will end," said Torii Hunter, the Angels' clubhouse leader. "That can come across as so obvious -- I mean, who wouldn't be thankful playing this game for a living? But when Nick died, we were just so distraught. So we struck out? So we booted a grounder? So what, our friend had just died! That's the way we were thinking and it was probably a normal response.

Reminders of Adenhart -- his goofy grin, his jokes, his optimism, his youthful promise -- are everywhere, inspiring the Angels to reflect on matters that might otherwise get lost in the shuffle of 162 games and then the blur of the playoffs.
"But then it kind of hit us, Nick wouldn't like that at all. He was looking down on us going, 'What's up with that kind of attitude?' So that's how we focus now. It's not just 'win one for Nick' like that's our rallying cry. It's 'play like Nick would want you to play.' Honor him. Honor his memory."

This series, which begins Friday night weather permitting, has subplots that extend far beyond the Angels channeling their grief and rising about the tragedy. Very little separates the teams with baseball's best records, though the Yankees do have a sharp edge in the bullpen and an incomparable closer in Mariano Rivera. Both clubs feature robust rotations and deep lineups, the Yankee power hitters countering the Angels' speed and hyperactive baserunning.

And heart? That's such a nebulous quality, impossible to gauge until the gut-check moment presents itself. The Angels set a franchise record with 47 come-from-behind wins this season, dedicating each and every one to Adenhart's memory. The Yankees had 50 pie-in-the-face post-game snapshots, their resiliency as impressive as their overall greatness. The Angels rallied with two out in the ninth to sweep the Boston Red Sox in the first round, the Yankees banished the Twins with similar swiftness. Assuming it ever stops raining in New York, this ALCS has enough window dressing to please baseball purists and soap opera groupies alike.

Forget that the Angels have cleaved through the pinstripes like a knife through liver in recent playoffs, knocking the Yankees out of the playoffs in 2002 and 2005. If the past could never be erased, Alex Rodriguez might as well become a used car salesman. Under Scioscia, the Angels are 53-38 against the Yankees (including a 5-5 split this season), and while New York general manager Brian Cashman admits the Angels were in his team's heads in the past, the Angels manager wasn't much interested in dissecting records on the eve of these playoffs.

"I don't think there's been any dominance, " Scioscia said. "It's been good ballclubs that we've had playing against their ballclub. And we've held our own. But you can take all that and throw it out, where right now it's a different environment."

It's CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett taking the mound five times in a seven-game series. Barring a weekend typhoon -- and who knows what else, considering the varying weather reports predict snow, floods and a besieged Bud Selig -- Sabathia should be good for three starts against the Angels. Cruising through a strong season, Sabathia is only a middling 5-7 with a 4.72 ERA in 14 career outings against the Angels, but again, pasts are meant to be erased.

"Throw it all out the window," Hunter said. "Doesn't matter if we've beaten them a hundred times in the playoffs or if CC owns us or we've owned him. Everything's new beginning Friday night."

John Lackey, the Angels' Game 1 starter, owns a 1.88 ERA in three career postseason starts against the Yankees, more filler before the first pitch. Lefty Joe Saunders gets the ball in Game 2, Jered Weaver goes in Game 3 and Scott Kazmir starts Game 4 (pure torment for Mets' fans). If the innings fall the way the Yankees plan, they'll force the Angels to turn early to their bullpen, the team's weakest link.

If life spins the way the Angels hope, the bullpen will hold, their speedsters will fly around the bases and the celebrations will end in happy tears all the way through November, following a date with the National League champions. No matter what transpires, the team already has voted Adenhart's family a full postseason share. Before Weaver takes the mound for Game 3, he'll share a quiet moment with his friend near the outfield wall in Anaheim. That's where Adenhart's No. 34 rests. Weaver was meant to be Adenhart's roommate this season; they would talk pitching and share stories and revisit the night's games and plan for plenty of tomorrows.

"It didn't happen like it should have," Hunter said. "It's been very difficult for Jered, just like it's been for all of us. The way Jered's pitching, it's with a purpose. It's for Nick. That's the way we're all trying to play. We have a different motivation this season because of what happened to Nick Adenhart. Call it a greater purpose or reason if you want. All I know for sure is you won't see us take anything for granted."

This is how they see it ending: with a ring, a World Series ring, being presented to Nick Adenhart's family. The kid who started all of four major league games is as much an Angel as any of the players who wear the "A."