The 2002 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB)'s 2002 season. The 98th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion Anaheim Angels and the National League (NL) champion San Francisco Giants; the Angels defeated the Giants in seven games to win their first, and, to date, only World Series championship. This was the first professional sports championship ever won by an Anaheim-based team. The series was played from October 19–27, 2002, at Pacific Bell Park in San Francisco and Edison International Field of Anaheim in Anaheim. It was also the first World Series since 1997 to not feature the New York Yankees.
This was the first World Series since the 1995 inception of the wild card in MLB in which both wild card teams would vie for the title, a phenomenon that has only been repeated twice since, in and . This was also the fourth all-California World Series, after , , and , and the latest Fall Classic that featured teams from the same metropolitan area or state (since 2000 between cross-town rivals Mets and Yankees).
This World Series was notable for its Game 6, where the Giants led 5-0 and were six outs away from winning the championship, but home runs by Scott Spiezio and Darin Erstad, as well as a two-RBI double by Troy Glaus helped the Angels overcome a five-run deficit in the bottom of the eighth to win. The Giants’ Game 6 collapse has been often cited as another manifestation of the Curse of Coogan's Bluff. The two teams set a record for combined most home runs in a World Series (21), which stood until 2017.
As of , this is the only time the Angels made or won the World Series, and is the last time the Giants lost in the World Series.
Background
This was the fourth all-California World Series (, , ), and the last World Series as of involving two teams from the same state (since 2000 between cross-town rivals New York Mets and New York Yankees). This was also the third World Series between teams from the Greater Los Angeles area and the San Francisco Bay Area (1974, 1988). This was the first World Series to feature opposing managers who had been teammates on a World Championship team as players.
San Francisco Giants
Since their 1958 move from New York City to San Francisco, the Giants franchise and its fans had a long history of futility, frustration, and disappointment. The Giants had won their last World Series crown before the move, in . Since the move, the Giants made it to the World Series twice but lost both times. These included a dramatic, down-to-the-wire loss to the New York Yankees in the seven-game classic 1962 World Series, and a four-game sweep by their crosstown rival Oakland Athletics in the 1989 World Series, which was marred by the Loma Prieta earthquake, and what would also be the only all-Bay Area Fall Classic. In addition, the Giants narrowly missed winning the National League pennant in 1959, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1971, and 1987. They also finished in second place five years in a row from 1965 to 1969.
2002 was Dusty Baker's tenth season as manager of the Giants. It was also their third season playing at Pacific Bell Park (now Oracle Park). The Giants finished the previous season with a record of 90–72, finishing in second place in the National League West, two games behind the Arizona Diamondbacks. They also finished in second place in the NL wild card standings, three games behind the St. Louis Cardinals. Notable player departures included 2001 midseason acquisition Andrés Galarraga, who departed as a free agent, and Shawn Estes, who was traded to the New York Mets in exchange for Tsuyoshi Shinjo and Desi Relaford. Notable player acquisitions included Reggie Sanders, a free agent, and David Bell, who the Giants received from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for Desi Relaford and cash. During the season the Giants also acquired Kenny Lofton from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for two minor leaguers. Sanders, Bell, Shinjo, and Lofton helped bolster a Giants offense led by longtime Giants Barry Bonds, J. T. Snow, Rich Aurilia, and Jeff Kent, as well as relative newcomer Benito Santiago. The starting pitching rotation was led by Kirk Rueter and Jason Schmidt, with a bullpen led by Tim Worrell and closer Robb Nen.
During the 2002 regular season, the Giants led the NL West standings for most of April and a few days in May; however, by the end of May they had fallen to third place behind the Los Angeles Dodgers and Arizona Diamondbacks. They spent most of the next three months in third place, but on September 9 they took second place for good, while the Dodgers either tied them or fell to third place for the rest of the season. The Giants finished the regular season with a record of 95–66, games behind the NL West champion Diamondbacks. They won the NL wild card, games ahead of the runner-up Dodgers.
In the 2002 postseason, the wild-card Giants' first opponent was the top-seeded Atlanta Braves, who they defeated in five games to return to the NLCS for the first time since 1989. In the NLCS, the Giants defeated the #3 seed St. Louis Cardinals in five games to advance to the World Series for the 17th time in franchise history. Dusty Baker became the first black manager to participate in a World Series since Cito Gaston for Toronto in and .
This was Giants' outfielder Reggie Sanders' second consecutive World Series appearance with different teams—in he got there with the Arizona Diamondbacks. This was the first time this happened since Don Baylor did it in three consecutive years with the Boston Red Sox in , the Minnesota Twins in , and with the Oakland Athletics in .
Anaheim Angels
Like the Giants, the Angels and their fans carried a long history of futility and disappointment. Enfranchised in 1961, the Angels had never before played in the World Series. They also made the postseason only three times previously, which all ended with devastating losses in the ALCS. In their first postseason appearance in 1979, the Angels were soundly defeated by the Baltimore Orioles in four games in the ALCS. In 1982, the Angels would blow a two-games-to-none series lead to the Milwaukee Brewers and lose in five games after being nine outs away from the pennant in Game 5. Then, in their last appearance in 1986, they blew a 3–1 series lead to the Boston Red Sox and lost in seven games after being a strike away from the pennant in Game 5.
2002 was the Angels' third season under manager Mike Scioscia. The Angels finished the previous injury marred season with a record of 75–87, finishing in third place in the AL West. The most notable personnel change during the offseason was the trade of first baseman Mo Vaughn to the New York Mets in exchange for pitcher Kevin Appier. Offensively, the team was led by longtime Angels Garret Anderson, Darin Erstad, Troy Glaus and Tim Salmon, as well as relative newcomers Adam Kennedy and David Eckstein. The starting pitching rotation was led by Ramón Ortiz and Jarrod Washburn, as well as mid-season call-up John Lackey, while the bullpen was led by setup man Brendan Donnelly and closer Troy Percival. The bullpen was bolstered in late September by the addition of 20-year-old reliever prospect Francisco Rodriguez.
The Angels spent much of the season trailing the first-place Seattle Mariners and on occasion the Oakland Athletics in the AL West standings. However, the Athletics and Angels both mounted late-season comebacks that, coupled with a poor August record for the Mariners, knocked the Mariners down to third place. The Athletics won 20 straight games at one point, and the Angels finished the season in second place with a 99–63 record, four games behind the Athletics, but won the AL wild card, six games ahead of the Boston Red Sox and Seattle Mariners. Their 99 wins was third best in the A.L. and fourth best in baseball. It was also a new franchise record.
In the 2002 postseason, the wild-card Angels first faced off against the overall #1 seed and four-time defending American League champion New York Yankees in the ALDS. The Angels shocked the four-time defending AL champions in four games to return to the ALCS for the first time since 1986, winning their first playoff series in franchise history. Their opponent in the ALCS was the third-seeded Minnesota Twins, who they defeated in five games to advance to the World Series for the first time in franchise history, ending a streak of three consecutive ALCS defeats.
Summary
Matchups
Game 1
San Francisco won 4–3 at Edison International Field of Anaheim (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim) to take a 1–0 series lead. As he strode into the batter's box to open the second inning, Barry Bonds was finally making his first (and only) World Series appearance; in his first at bat on a 2–1 pitch from Angels starter Jarrod Washburn, Bonds hit a line drive for a home run to right field, which gave the Giants a quick 1–0 lead. Reggie Sanders then followed that up with an opposite-field homer later in the inning. With the Giants leading 2–1 in the fifth, Giants batter J. T. Snow (who formerly played for the Angels) hit a two-run shot over the center field wall after Sanders singled to give San Francisco a three-run advantage. Eventual Series MVP Troy Glaus hit two home runs for the Angels, one in the second and another in the sixth off Giants starter Jason Schmidt. Adam Kennedy drove in a run with a base hit in the sixth as well to trim the deficit to 4–3. However, Schmidt was effective otherwise, along with reliever Félix Rodríguez and closer Robb Nen, as they held off the Halos the rest of the way.
Game 2
Game 2 was a slugfest that saw the lead fluctuate wildly between the two teams. The Angels plated five runs in the first inning by batting around against Giants starting pitcher Russ Ortiz. David Eckstein singled to lead off and scored on Darin Erstad's double. After Tim Salmon singled, Garret Anderson's RBI single made it 2–0 Angels. After Troy Glaus flew out, consecutive RBI singles by Brad Fullmer and Scott Spiezio made it 4–0 Angels. Fullmer stole home plate for the Angels' fifth run of the inning.
In the second inning, however, Kevin Appier surrendered most of the lead by allowing a three-run homer to Sanders followed by a shot to David Bell. The Angels answered with a two-run home run from veteran Tim Salmon to make it 7–4 in the Angels' favor. Ortiz would not finish the inning and was relieved by Chad Zerbe, who provided four innings of relief.
Appier did not last much longer than Ortiz, as he was pulled in the third and replaced by John Lackey, the Angels scheduled starter for Game 4, after surrendering a lead-off home run to Jeff Kent. Lackey temporarily quieted the Giants' offense but ran into trouble in the fifth inning, allowing a double and intentional walk. Ben Weber relieved him but allowed a single to Benito Santiago to load the bases, then a two-run single to J. T. Snow that tied the game. After Reggie Sanders struck out, consecutive RBI singles by David Bell and Shawon Dunston gave the Giants a 9–7 lead.
The Angels turned to 20-year-old rookie reliever Francisco Rodriguez, who answered by shutting down the Giants offense for the next three innings. He retired nine batters in a row on 25 pitches (22 were strikes). Meanwhile, the Angels chipped away at their deficit. In the bottom of the fifth, Glaus and Fullmer hit back-to-back leadoff singles before the former scored on Spezio's sacrifice fly. Next inning, Erstad doubled with two outs. Zerbe was relieved by Jay Witasick, who walked Tim Salmon. Aaron Fultz relieved Witasick and allowed an RBI single to Anderson to tie the game, but Salmon was thrown out at third to end the inning.