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666 is the Number of the Beast, but on Monday night, 6-for-6 made Chone Figgins a beast... which makes this a Beauty and the Beast story.
Just hours before Figgins' All-Time Record-tying feat, the beautiful Women from UCLA's 2007 National Champion Water Polo team were honored at the White House. George W. gave an 8-minute speech (That's like "My Pet Goat" plus 1 more minute) to 28 2006-7 NCAA Championship-winning teams, whose missions really WERE accomplished.
The Water Polo team, which was REPEATING as Champions, is the 100th Title Team for UCLA, the only school to have reached that milestone. We don't know if Bush referenced that fact or not, but if he did, it would double our respect for the man...'s speechwriters.
You will never see another school be FIRST to 100, and it's possible that you'll never see a performance quite like that of Figgins.
Not only did Figgins go 6-for-6, which ties the All-Time American League Record for Hits in a 9-inning game, but he got 3 RBI's, all with 2 outs, including the game-tying RBI and the Game -WINNING, Walk-Off RBI.
The Angels, who have the most Wins in the Majors and are enjoying their best Record ever at this point of the Season, were coming off a shellacking of the crosstown rival Dodgers. The Angels took the Season's Freeway Series from the Dodgers by winning 5 out of 6 games, and beating them by an average of more than 4 runs a game. That's what we call total Dodger Dog Domination. If the Dodgers somehow manage to ride their weak Division into a return match against the Angels in the World Series, the Angels will be prohibitive favorites. This past weekend proved that the Angels are by far the best team in L.A. this year.
And that Angel team had probably their most exciting victory of the year yesterday, thanks mostly to Figgins. The Houston Astros came to Anaheim for the first time in History, and they had two ex-trojans in thier starting line-up, Morgan Ensberg and Eric Munson. The trojans were greeted with a typical Angel barrage, as the Angels went up early 4-1, with the League's winningest Pitcher John Lackey on the hill. But Lackey faltered, and the trojans were celebrating (prematurely, as usual) while Houston built a seemingly insurmountable 9-4 lead by the 7th inning.
But LAA exploded in the 7th, rallying to tie it on Figgins' 5th hit, a 2-out high-hopper that he legged out by a whisker.
Then on his next at-bat, with Reggie Willits on 1st and two outs in the bottom of the 9th, Figgins sliced a shot down the right field line for a Walk-off Triple and a 10-9 triumph.
And as if that weren't enough, Figgins also scored a run, stole a base, and snared a bases loaded liner by trojan Ensberg in the top of the 9th off of Frankie Rodriguez that probably would have won it. Instead, Ensberg and Craig Biggio, who followed with a Strike Out, ended up as Our Pet Goats, at least for the 7 minutes after the game.
Figgins started the Season in the worst slump of his career, but has hit .456 in his last 17 games, and the 6 hits raised his average in one day from .258 to .284. Orlando Cabrera and Casey Kotchman are also on fire, the Pitching Staff and late inning Relievers are the League's finest, and Vladimir Guerrero is Vladimir Guerrero -- one of the best to ever swing a bat -- so it's no mystery why the Angels have ascended to the top this year. And with his Hall of Fame-worthy 6-for-6, there's no mystery why the Angel's #9 Chone Figgins is on Cloud 9.
Below is one shot of Chone at the Bat, and then a handful of pics of the Bruin Water Polo Champs in celebration mode.
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