(Third in a series on the Western Massachusetts Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2019, to be inducted Jan. 31 at La Quinta Hotel & Suites, 100 Congress St., Springfield). Bottom of the ninth, Game 5 of the 2018 World Series. The Boston Red Sox hold a 5-1 lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Time to close this one...
(Third in a series on the Western Massachusetts Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2019, to be inducted Jan. 31 at La Quinta Hotel & Suites, 100 Congress St., Springfield).
Bottom of the ninth, Game 5 of the 2018 World Series. The Boston Red Sox hold a 5-1 lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Time to close this one out and clinch the world championship.
So who do you bring to the mound for that magic moment? On almost any major league team, the job automatically would go to the closer, the guy who throws bullets and chalks up saves for a living.
Not so with those remarkable Red Sox. For that clinching final inning, manager Alex Cora summoned Chris Sale, one of his blue-chip starters. It was the right call, all right. Sale came on to strike out the side, nailing down the Boston club's ninth baseball world championship, and its fourth of the 21st century.
Cora made the decision to use Sale in that situation after considerable discussion with his trusted pitching coach, Dana LeVangie. They had Sale lined up to start Game 6 in Boston, but here was a chance to wrap it right now.
"We had other guys out there, but this was a must-win situation (to end the World Series)," LeVangie said. "With the lead we had, and with Chris ready, we felt he was the best guy for that particular spot."
So that was it, victory No. 119 for a team which had a remarkable season. And, yes, their first-year pitching coach had a lot to do with it, right from Day One of spring training camp.
"I was thrilled to be part of all that. It was very special year for our ball club," LeVangie said.
It is only fitting, then, that he should be part of the Western Mass. Baseball Hall of Fame's Class of 2019. He will be inducted along with Mark Belanger and Mike Laga, big league players; Candy Cummings, inventor of the curveball; Karl Oliveira, Tri-County League veteran; Jim Jachym, one of Westfield's finest; Pittsfield's 2018 state Little League champions; and Justine Siegal, a pioneer for women in baseball. She also will serve as keynote speaker at the induction banquet.
"I was a little bit shocked when I heard that I'm going into the Hall of Fame. I really didn't know anything about it until I got the phone call. But after the season we had, I guess there's no better time. I feel honored to be a member of the new class," he said.
LeVangie, a 49-year-old native of Whitman in Plymouth County, has ties to Western Massachusetts, dating to his years as an All-America catcher at American International College (class of 1991).
LeVangie has fond memories of his time at AIC. He transferred after two years at Cape Cod Community College.
"When I got to AIC, I felt that I had found the right place for me as a student and as a baseball player. I liked the atmosphere on campus, and I really liked the team. It was a group of guys who were dedicated to playing good baseball. Being part of that made me more committed to becoming a better player."
He certainly became that with the Yellow Jackets. As a senior, he hit .462 with 13 home runs. His 75 RBI in 44 games led the nation's Division II players. He made All-America after leading his team to a 32-12 record and a berth in the NCAA Division II World Series.
In June of '91, the Red Sox drafted and signed him, sending him to their Elmira affiliate in the Class A New York-Penn League. He spent five seasons in the minors, but when it became apparent that he wasn't going to make it as a player, he stayed in the organization, working hard in various roles - bullpen catcher, advance scout, catching co-ordinator, minor league scout, bullpen coach and interim bench coach.
When Cora took over as manager after the 2017 season, he asked for LeVangie as his pitching coach. It was a huge promotion into a very important job.
"Alex was a player with the Red Sox (2005 to 2008), and over that time, we built a good relationship. We had trust between us," LeVangie said.
A catcher as a pitching coach? Yes, that's a rarity in major league baseball, but it worked in LeVangie's case, mainly because he had spent considerable time as a bullpen coach.
"I learned a lot about pitching when I was working in the bullpen," he said. "The pitching-coach job is much like that, but with more responsibilty. Whether you're a pitcher or a catcher doing the job, you don't have all the answers. You're just trying, every day, to give the various pitchers what they need."
A week after his Hall of Fame induction, LeVangie will head for Fort Myers, Florida, and the Red Sox spring training site. He will arrive on Feb. 8, a week ahead of the time when pitchers and catchers report. When they arrive, their pitching coach will be ready for them, just as he was in 2018.
"This will be my 29th year in the Red Sox organization, and I'd like to be part of it for my whole career. When my time comes to retire from baseball, I hope it will be with the Red Sox," he said.
Garry Brown can be reached at geebrown1918@gmail.com