ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) -Garret Anderson is just one of the crowd in the Los Angeles Angels clubhouse, and that’s the way he likes it.
The three-time All-Star went 2-for-4 with a run scored in the Angels’ 4-1 loss to the Boston Red Sox in the AL division series opener on Wednesday night, but you wouldn’t know it by talking to him. He prefers to leave the spotlight to his teammates.
“That’s just not me. I’m not a boaster,” said Anderson, whose tiebreaking three-run double in Game 7 of the 2002 World Series helped the Angels beat San Francisco. “I mean, the numbers speak for themselves. The factual statistical things are obvious. I’ll talk about anybody else’s accomplishments, but I won’t talk about mine. I’m just not comfortable with it.”
It took a long time for the 36-year-old Anderson to feel secure in the major leagues despite the impressive numbers he put up early on – Anderson is the Angels’ career leader in hits, games played, runs scored RBIs, total bases and doubles.
did. It’s just that when you’re young, you’re so busy trying to prove yourself that you kind of wear blinders until you establish yourself because you get a small window of opportunity up here to do that. Then about my fourth or fifth year I started realizing how fortunate I am and I started to really love what I do. I’ve been appreciating the game.”
Anderson signed a four-year, $48 million, four-year contract extension in April 2004 that included a club option for 2009. He made two trips to the disabled list last season with hip problems, but rebounded with a solid ’08 batting .293 with 15 homers and 84 RBIs.
“I haven’t felt great on the field since I was 25,” he said with a grin. “But, yeah, I’ve been feeling pretty good this year. It just took me a little longer to get going.”
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NERVOUS ZIM: Rays senior adviser Don Zimmer won four World Series rings as the New York Yankees bench coach and two more during his playing career with the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers.
Yet “Popeye” was nervous before the start of the Rays’ AL division series against the Chicago White Sox on Thursday.
Zimmer was talking with two sons of Tampa Bay principal owner Stuart Sternberg near the batting cage and the topic came up.
ked me how do I feel. I said ‘I’m 77 and I’m nervous.’ It’s just fun, that’s all. We should all have fun and let the best team win.”
Zimmer has been part of a surprising playoff team before, when he managed the 1989 Chicago Cubs, who like the 2008 Rays, were given little or no chance of success.
“It’s just been fun for me to watch these guys play this year,” Zimmer said. “The things that happened to this club. (Evan) Longoria and (Carl) Crawford go down. We go on a 10-game road trip, and we say, we could very easy lose 10 games in a row and they wound up winning seven out of 10. You can’t call this a fluke because we won 97 games.”
Zimmer believes the Rays and White Sox have the same mindset.
“We think we’re going to win. Our players think we’re going to win. (White Sox manager) Ozzie (Guillen) thinks he’s going to win, and their players think they’re going to win,” Zimmer said. “The old saying is it’s another ballgame. This not another ballgame. This is something special, without a doubt.”
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LUCKY PRICE: Left-hander David Price made the Rays postseason roster in his first professional season.
“That’s something I wanted for myself,” said Price, who was taken first overall in the 2007 amateur draft.
Price went 12-1 with 2.30 ERA in 19 minor league starts at three different levels. He posted a 1.93 ERA in five games, including one start with Tampa Bay.
ted, closer Troy Percival, slowed by a back tightness, and starter Edwin Jackson, were left off the first-round playoff roster.
Percival is scheduled to pitch Saturday in an instructional league game.
“I still have the concern about his health,” Rays manager Joe Maddon said.
Jackson, and right-hander Jason Hammel will also pitch for the Rays’ instructional league team.
Rocco Baldelli, whose career was limbo during spring training due to chronic muscle fatigue, is on the roster and will either DH or play right field Friday in Game 2.
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JOLLY CHOLLY: Phillies manager Charlie Manuel has endured quite a bit of criticism from fans and some media since replacing Larry Bowa after the 2004 season. But players love playing for the folksy skipper.
“The most important thing that he brings to the table is the fact that no matter how big the game or the situation, you’re going to get the same guy,” left fielder Pat Burrell said before Game 2 against Milwaukee on Thursday. “There’s frustration and there’s excitement at times for different things, but over the long haul, you’re going to get a pretty steady guy. He seems to keep a pretty even keel.”
next-to-last day of the season, the crowd that stayed around for a lengthy postgame celebration didn’t want to leave until Manuel addressed them like many players did on the field. They screamed, “We want Charlie!” until he came out from his office.
Manuel, not known for his eloquence, grabbed the microphone, thanked fans for their support and promised the Phillies would do better than last year’s first-round sweep against Colorado. “Believe me, we’re gonna go further than last year,” he said. “We want to win a World Series!”
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BUSH OVER SUPPAN: Dave Bush will start for Milwaukee in Game 3 of its series against the Phillies on Saturday at Miller Park. He was 9-10 with a 4.18 ERA in 31 games, including 29 starts. The right-hander hasn’t won since beating the Pirates 3-1 on Aug. 29.
“Besides CC (Sabathia), over the last two or three months, Bush has been our second-best pitcher,” manager Dale Sveum said. “He’s really thrown the heck out of the ball for quite a while now and kept us in every game. He’s pitching with a lot of confidence.”
Bush pitched three shutout innings in relief in his previous appearance last Friday against the Cubs. He’ll be making his first postseason start against the team he rooted for as a kid. Bush went to Conestoga High School in suburban Philadelphia.
ing. My friends and family get a chance to see me in person, which they don’t get very often. But as far as actually playing against a team I rooted for, once I get on the field it makes no difference at all to me.”
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