ANAHEIM, Calif. -- At the House of Mouse, folks are going ape over a monkey.

Toy monkeys have replaced Mickey Mouse as the most popular plush celebrity in town, where the Anaheim Angels face the Minnesota Twins in the AL championship series this weekend.

The Rally Monkey has become the unofficial team mascot.

"You kind of liken him to a baseball role player. He only comes out when he's needed,'' Angels' entertainment manager Peter Bull said. "Ultimately, the Rally Monkey is the belief that we can come back.''

The Angels are owned by The Walt Disney Co., but none of the studio's creatures ever became allied with the team. That paved the way for this monkey business.

Rally Monkey was born on June 6, 2000, on the stadium's giant video monitor, when the Angels were playing San Francisco.

Trailing in the sixth inning, the Angels' staff played some video from the 1994 movie "Ace Ventura, Pet Detective'' that featured a monkey jumping up and down. Then they flashed the words "Rally Monkey'' on the screen. The crowd roared, the team went on to win -- and the monkey became the mascot.

Today, fans haul Rally Monkeys to the stadium and keep them under wraps unless they are needed. Then they pop up everywhere -- out of pockets, purses and from under hats.

Rally Monkey has become so popular, he's appeared on ESPN, had a banana drink named after him and even spawned a Web site where devotees can post messages.

The monkey's success has even spawned knockoffs, including the Indianapolis Colts' "Touchdown Monkey.''

Building on the appeal, the Angels filmed ads featuring Katie, a white-faced capuchin monkey featured on NBC's "Friends'' and in the movie "Outbreak.''

Katie was replaced this year by Abbie, a 6-year-old capuchin monkey who held the "Rally Time'' sign during the Angels' pivotal comeback in Game 3 of their first-round series against the Yankees.

The monkey went 27-11 this season in games when the Angels trailed. The monkey's lifetime record is 57-41.

"He doesn't go beyond his boundaries. He has a time and a place to come out, and he does when he's needed,'' Bull said.

The Angels' staff tried bringing a live monkey to Edison Field. But the Angels lost, prompting pitcher Jarrod Washburn to accuse management of "making a mockery of the game.''

Minnesota center fielder Torii Hunter even admitted Rally Monkey is a "star.''

"Every time we go to their place, in the eighth or ninth inning, they always have a movie with him in it,'' Hunter said. "I forget I'm playing, I crack up. I turn and watch the whole show.''