Rep. Mike Levin (CA-49) and host Thomas Emerick go to OC in '02 for one of the most astonishing rallies in MLB postseason history. And they're buying into The Ralley Monkey. Levin represents California's 49th Congressional district spanning from southern Orange County to northern San Diego County. The vehicle for the episode is Game 6 of the 2002 World Series between the Anaheim Angels and San Francisco Giants, which also allows for traveling backwards and forwards through time. Still trying to understand how those Giants teams with Barry Bonds didn't get a World Series, but it makes sense how those Angels teams could be so dangerous once those bats heat up.
A few of the topics covered while revisiting the Angels 6, Giants 5 finish in Game 6 of the 2002 World Series:
- Shaping of Angels fandom in Los Angeles from the ''80s through the early 2000s
- The competitive dynamic between Angels, Dodgers, and Padres (and vs. NorCal)
- With Anaheim being the only Southern California representative in the '02 playoffs, whether region was behind the Angels on this run
- Favorite '80s/'90s baseball video games? Griffey N64 had two quality '98 rosters for the eventual NL champ Padres and 85-win Angels Jim Edmonds and Chuck Finley would not see Y2K in an Angels uni, but did it seem by '98 that the core of something special could be there
- Inception of the Rally Monkey in 2000 and how on board Levin was with this being a catalyst
- The 2002 season and expectations for breaking a 16-year playoff drought heading in
- Closing at home vs. the Yankees in Game 4 ALDS and the Twins in Game 5 ALCS
- Reaching the final stage for the first time imprints the uniform in people's minds. Were the '02 uniforms your favorite or is there another Angels era that stand outs on style?
- Taking an L in Game 1 at home vs. the Giants and rallying back again. What was the environment like in Orange County and Greater Los Angeles as the series returned from San Francisco — following a 16-4 loss — for Game 6?
- The most visceral memories from a slow start and then the 7th and 8th innings that supplied the runs for a 6-5 win to send it to Game 7
- The vibe shift Sunday going into Game 7 The years since and how the Angels may get back to contending in the 2020s
HOSTShow creator and producer Thomas Emerick
GuestRep. Mike Levin of California's 49th Congressional district (CA-49)
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Oct 2 202558 mins
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