Salmon, Angels finally make postseason

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Posted 6:35AM on Tuesday, October 1, 2002

NEW YORK - Tim Salmon and the Anaheim Angels haven't waited forever to play in the postseason. It only feels that way. A starting outfielder for the Angels since 1993 when he won AL Rookie of the Year honors, Salmon has played in 1,388 games with 5,009 official at-bats. He'll finally appear in his first postseason game Tuesday night when the Angels, in the playoffs for the first time since 1986, face the New York Yankees in Game 1 of an AL division series at Yankee Stadium. ``It's been a long time coming,'' said the 33-year-old Salmon, who bounced back from his worst season last year, when he hit .227 with 17 homers and 49 RBIs, to bat .286 with 22 homers and 88 RBIs this year. ``It's been really sweet, especially since we've been close a few times, had some tough collapses,'' he said. ``It's been real nice to finally get there, it's been a great year.'' The comebacks of Salmon and fellow outfielder Darin Erstad, who went from .258 with nine homers and 63 RBIs to .283 with 10 homers and 73 RBIs, has had a lot to do with the Angels' success. Erstad and Salmon bat 2-3 in a lineup that led the majors in hitting with a .282 average. ``They've been huge,'' Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. ``If you look at why we're in this position, I would have to say it's been our pitching staff. To support the pitching, we needed some key guys in our lineup to rebound. None were more key than what Darin Erstad and Tim Salmon did for our club.'' The Angels lost 19 of their last 21 games to finish 75-87 last year and wound up 41 games behind the AL West champion Seattle Mariners. Then, they started 6-14 this year and Salmon hit .182 in April. It looked like another long season for both team and player, but it quickly turned around. ``I think the patience to see this lineup get together and play was what was needed,'' Scioscia said. ``They certainly did after that 6-14 start, they've been incredible. ``I think it's a credit to these players keeping it together and believing in themselves. They had a terrific season.'' The Angels improved by 24 games, winning a franchise-record 99 times this year. The Yankees, baseball's dominant team during the last seven seasons, won 103 games and are considered solid favorites, but Salmon said the Angels won't be intimidated. ``Any team that wins 99 games and gets to the postseason, you've got to take them seriously,'' he said. Actually, the Angels have given New York a bad time since 1995, going 42-39 against the Yankees but only 3-4 this year. ``We're going to play baseball, our type of game,'' Scioscia said. ``We know the challenge of facing an incredibly talented club like the Yankees. We feel we match up with them. ``Playing our game is going to put us in the best light to win. That's what we're going to focus on.'' A few years ago, Salmon considered leaving the Angels because he was uncertain as to their commitment to winning. But he changed his mind shortly before the start of last season, signing a four-year, $40 million contract extension. ``When I re-signed, I saw the groundwork for a pretty good club,'' he said. ``Going back to last winter, I said to myself, `If I can get back on track and Erstad can get back on track, we've got the makeup to be there.' ``I really believed that going into this season. I think everybody believed it in spring training. You look at our lineup, one through nine, everybody contributes. ``I felt like we could be where we are today.''