The California Angels’1986 season was the franchise’s 26th season….which ended with the Angels losing the American League Championship Series in dramatic fashion. The regular season ended with the Angels finishing 1st in the American League West with a record of 92-70….thus earning the franchise’s third division title in a row….for this was a really good baseball team with good pitching and a strong lineup. After jumping to a 3-1 series lead over the Boston Red Sox in the best-of-seven ALCS….the Angels blew a 3-run lead in the 9th inning of Game 5…which included giving up a two-out, two-strike home run to Boston’s Dave Henderson (in other words….which simply means the Angels were 1 strike away from the World Series against the New York Mets. The Angels went on to lose Game 5 in extra innings, and eventually lost the next two games and the series….but just look at this starting lineup for Game 7….and you will understand why the California Angels were 1 strike away from the World Series.
