WORLD SERIES NOTEBOOK
SAN FRANCISCO – The Giants were trying to talk themselves into hitting unhittable Angels rookie Francisco Rodriguez heading into Game 3 last night.
Rich Aurilia stood in the dugout Monday and said, “At least now some of our hitters have seen him. At least we have an idea what to expect.”
What they can expect is gas and a lethal slider. Rodriguez pitched three perfect innings in the 11-10, Game 2 victory for the Angels on Sunday, striking out four of the nine batters he faced. Only one batter, David Bell, managed to get the ball out of the infield against Rodriguez, who buzz-sawed through the Giants’ lineup.
It sounds like the Giants are whistling as they walk past the graveyard because no one has been able to solve Rodriguez this postseason. He proved to be the difference in both the Yankees series and in the wipeout of the Twins.
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Darin Erstad ran hard on every out and dove for every ball for the Jamestown Eagles when he was the star of the American Legion team in North Dakota.
He knew it was the right way to play the game. But when he reached the big leagues in 1997, the Angels center fielder learned from crusty veterans Dave Hollins and Gary DiSarcina the role intensity played in making a big league player successful.
“I always played the way I do now, but they took me under their wings,” Erstad said. “They molded me into a professional. They taught me everything about the big leagues and how to handle situations. Basically, they didn’t let me out of their sight.”
For Hollins, every game was the World Series and it was an attitude that rubbed some Angels the wrong way. DiSarcina wasn’t as intense but a lot moreso than others.
Erstad often is given credit for the Angels’ all-out style of play, and according to David Eckstein, nobody ever slacks it going to first because “we have Erstad here.”
“You have to be your own person and be yourself,” Erstad said when asked if he has passed along the tips given to him by DiSarcina and Hollins. “Obviously Dave was as hard-core as they come, but that style isn’t for everybody.”
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Tim Salmon has been smiling ever since the Angels advanced to the World Series – in the clubhouse, at the batting cage, shagging flies and while getting treatment on his battered legs.
“This is everything you want to play for,” the 10-year veteran said. “What you are seeing is the kid in me.”
Salmon was elated Sunday night after hitting two homers in the Game 2 win that knotted the Series. His eighth-inning blast was the game-winner. While it made him smile, Salmon wasn’t ready to celebrate.
“You have to keep it in perspective,” Salmon said. “We have to be ready for Game 3. Hopefully, that [second homer] wasn’t the hit of the season.”
Salmon has a theory why the Angels have hit a postseason record 21 homers going into last night.
“Everybody says the balls are tighter,” said Salmon, who has four postseason dingers. “But these games are full of energy and everybody feeds off that. Everything is crisper. I don’t know why it’s happening, it’s just happening.”
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Only in San Francisco, kids.
Tickets are so hot here brokers are making a killing, and there have been all kinds of weird, Left Coast offers, everything from having your oil changed, by the same woman who says she will sing at your wedding or baby sit your kids, to another anonymous offer on Craigslist.com, a SF community site, where a woman said she was willing to trade two upper deck tickets for “healthy sperm.” She also promised the child would grow up to be a Giants fan. Perfect.
Even though there is an economic downturn in Mayor Willie Brown’s city and the homeless seem to be everywhere, prices for a lower box seat ticket are reportedly going for as much as $5,000. Nosebleed tickets are in the $400 to $500 range.
The Giants will break out their version of the TunderStix in one of the next three games, probably Game 4, according to owner Peter Magowan.