Angels' heavenly victory leads to Giant 'What ifs'

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Barry Bonds probably wanted to cry, too.

Instead, while little Darren Baker wailed, Bonds stared blankly from the dugout as the Anaheim Angels celebrated their first World Series championship.

"It's disappointing," Bonds said after Game 7 Sunday night, "but somebody has to lose."

While fans will recall Garret Anderson's game-breaking hit and rookie John Lackey's poise in the Angels' clinching 4-1 victory, this Series is more likely to be portrayed a different way: As the one that slipped away from the San Francisco Giants.

On Saturday night, they led by five runs in the seventh inning. Manager Dusty Baker already had given pitcher Russ Ortiz a game ball to cherish. The MVP votes were counted, and Bonds stood to be the unanimous winner.

A few innings later, it was all gone. And by Sunday night, the Angels were holding the things that really mattered.

Tim Salmon took the Tiffany and Co. trophy around Edison Field for a triumphant lap.

"It was pretty heavy," he admitted.

Center fielder Darin Erstad, who caught Kenny Lofton's fly for the final out, tried to give the ball to closer Troy Percival.

"I'm not a big memorabilia guy," Erstad said. "Percy told me, 'Keep it."'

Troy Glaus won the Series MVP award.

"It's a great honor, obviously," he said. "But we play for the big trophy with the pennants on it, not for these."

Glaus and a few other teammates also got together on the field for a quick commercial, shouting, "We're going to Disneyland!"

No matter that the amusement park is only a few miles from their ballpark. They'll be there today for a victory parade.

The Giants? They were left clinging to baseball's saddest lament: "What if?"

What if Baker had stuck with Ortiz a little longer? What if he'd pitched Kirk Rueter rather than ineffective Livan Hernandez in Game 7? What if he'd started Shawon Dunston instead of overmatched Pedro Feliz at DH in the last game, or chosen anyone besides Tom Goodwin to pinch-hit for Reggie Sanders in a key spot?

"The game I'll probably remember most is Game 6, when we had a 5-0 lead. That's it," Baker said.

His 3-year-old son, bat boy Darren, couldn't contain himself, with tears streaming down his face as his dad carried him from the dugout.

That's sure to be one of the enduring images from baseball's first all wild-card Series. There were others, too:

-- J.T. Snow scooping up Darren Baker to avoid a collision at home plate.

-- Lofton's bunt dancing down the third-base line, keying a rally that temporarily turned momentum the Giants' way.

-- David Eckstein's running to first base after a walk, exemplifying the Angels' aggressive attitude. Fittingly, his spikes were headed to the Hall of Fame.

-- Sanders' being bopped in the back by an Anaheim fan's ThunderStix.

-- 20-year-old Francisco Rodriguez blowing away the Giants with three perfect innings in Game 2, then giving up another huge home run to Bonds in Game 6.

-- The Rally Monkey.

Bonds put aside his past playoff failures with a monster October, capped by one of the most dominant Series performances of all time. He went 8-for-17 (.471) with four homers and a .700 on-base percentage.

Overall, he set postseason records with eight home runs and 27 walks in 17 games.

Yet the ring, the one that Rodriguez will get after only a month in the majors, remains beyond Bonds' reach. At 38, Bonds has everything else -- the home-run record, a batting title and four NL MVPs, with a fifth award certain to come in two weeks.

Bonds' bat also is going to the Hall, as is the cap worn by Rodriguez when he became the youngest pitcher to win a Series game.

After Lofton flied out with two runners on to end it, Bonds could only sit and wonder whether he'd ever get another chance.

"I went 1-for-3 with a walk, that's a good day. Am I supposed to go 3-for-3 with three home runs?" Bonds said. "What do you want from me?"

Bonds watched the Angels party for a moment, then walked down the dugout and picked up his glove. He walked back, tapped his son on the back and exited down the runway.

"It's not going to haunt us," Bonds said later. "We'll go to spring training and start again."