Former Angels bring playoff experience
03/01/2006DUNEDIN, Fla. -- Toronto's new look has created a familiar scene for a handful of Blue Jays.
When Ben Weber took the mound during Toronto's intrasquad game on Tuesday, he looked towards home plate and saw Bengie Molina. When Weber turned to his right, there stood Troy Glaus. The 37-year-old pitcher couldn't help but reminisce about his days with the Angels.
"Bengie was my catcher and Troy was at third," Weber said. "I was like, 'Oh, wow, this is bringing back some good memories.' When Glaus threw me back the ball, when they threw it around the horn, I said, 'Yeah, that's familiar there.' "
The trio from the Halos' past are now part of the Blue Jays' present.
Weber, Molina, Glaus and pitcher Scott Schoeneweis, who is entering his second season with Toronto, were all a part of the 2002 Angels team that won the World Series in seven games against San Francisco. Having that corps of players that battled together for baseball glory could be of great benefit to a Blue Jays squad that has few others who have experienced a Fall Classic.
All four players played an integral part during that '02 campaign. Glaus had 30 homers and 111 RBIs before batting .385 and slugging three homers against the Giants to pick up World Series MVP honors. Molina threw out 40 percent of baserunners and took home his first of two straight Gold Gloves. Schoeneweis appeared in 54 games and then gave up just one run in six playoff appearances. Weber went 7-2 with a 2.54 ERA that year.
"You're bringing in a World Series MVP. You're bringing in a Gold Glover. You're bringing in some pretty good players. So the clubhouse just grows a little in stature," Blue Jays general manager J.P. Ricciardi said. "We've brought good people in here and they've brought credibility to this clubhouse even more so."
The only other Blue Jays who have won a World Series are catcher Gregg Zaun and pitcher A.J. Burnett. Zaun only had two at-bats in the Marlins seven-game series victory over the Indians in 1997. In 2003, Burnett was recovering from Tommy John surgery and didn't pitch when his Marlins beat the Yankees for the title.
If Toronto winds up in contention this year, Molina said that the background that he and his former Angels teammates possess can only help the club.
"I hope I bring a little help that this team needed last year," Molina said. "They were a very good team, and bringing us here, I think we bring a little more experience in the playoffs. ... We can help them, of course. We have experience, but what's going to [matter] is what's on the field."
What needs to be on the field this season, according to Glaus, is a different mentality than in the past. Toronto hasn't played in a postseason game since winning the World Series in 1993, but the team enters this season with high aspirations and more expectations.
"We've been through it. We've done it," Glaus said. "It's just about bringing an attitude around here -- that there's a way to play the game and a way to play the game the right way. And everybody has to buy into that.
"We're going to try and bring this team back to the level it's been before and the level it deserves to be again."
Toronto hovered in the American League Wild Card discussion last year -- even after pitchers Roy Halladay and Ted Lilly missed time in the second half with injuries. When Halladay had his left leg broken by a line drive in early July, the Blue Jays were tied with the Yankees in wins. Down the stretch, though, the depleted rotation -- coupled with a young roster -- caused the Jays to slip in the win column.
"Last year we didn't have a lot of guys [with playoff experience]. It's one of those intangibles," Schoeneweis said. "Hopefully we're in a situation where we get to the playoffs. That's just a whole different ballgame -- especially with a lot of guys that have never been through it."
Molina has only been around his new team for about two weeks, but he said that he can already see some similarities to the Angels team he won the Series with.
"I can say from what I've seen in practice that, yes, we look similar," Molina said. "These guys can run. They can pitch. We have a good bullpen -- like we did [when we won the World Series]. We have a good closer. What I see here is everybody's together."
The familiarities don't just end there. Schoeneweis experienced a flashback similar to Weber's when he arrived in Florida for Spring Training.
"The first day here, I stepped up on the mound and the catcher that was across from me was Bengie," Schoeneweis said. "It was surreal, almost."
It could become more surreal if the Blue Jays follow in the Angels' footsteps.
Source: http://toronto.bluejays.mlb.com/
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