Bay Area vs. Los Angeles Rivalry: Ranking the Top 10 Moments of All-Time
By Eric He
(Photo: Michael Macor / San Francisco Chronicle)
2. Angels Break Giants’ Hearts, Win Game 6 of 2002 World Series in Thrilling Fashion
The Giants and Dodgers may have the best rivalry, but this moment between the Giants and Angels will be remembered forever.
It was the 2002 World Series, with the Giants seeking their first championship since 1954, and they were just eight outs away from getting it. They were up 3-2 in the series, having won Games 4 and 5 in San Francisco and looking to close things out for good in Anaheim.
Things looked pretty good through six innings, as the Giants held a 5-0 lead. But that was before the Rally Monkey struck.
In the seventh, Giants manager Dusty Baker pulled starter Russ Ortiz after he allowed back-to-back singles. During the pitching change, the Rally Monkey was shown on the jumbotron, and the Angels’ fans went berserk, a foreshadowing of things to come.
Ortiz’s replacement was the hard-throwing Felix Rodriguez, who allowed a three-run homer to Scott Spiezio after a lengthy at-bat:
That brought the Angels within two runs, and they would complete the comeback in the eighth. After scoring a run in the inning, closer Rob Nen came in the game to face Troy Glaus with runners on second and third and nobody out.
Glaus delivered, launching a double over the head of Barry Bonds in left center field, giving the Angels a 6-5 lead.
They would hang on to that lead to win Game 6 and stay alive.
And at this point, you probably know what happened in Game 7.