Ohtani RBI And Pickoff In Angels' 7-2 Win For Sweep At Texas
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Shohei Ohtani had an RBI single that put the Los Angeles Angels ahead to stay and was later picked off first base by one of his former Japanese teammates in a 7-2 victory Wednesday night over the Texas Rangers.
Ohtani was in the lineup for the first time since homering in each of his three starts as designated hitter last week. The 23-year-old rookie two-way sensation put the Angels up 1-0 in the second with his opposite-field single and finished 1 for 3 with a walk.
The Rangers were swept in the three-game series, became the first team in the majors with 10 losses and now will be without their shortstop and No. 3 hitter.
Elvis Andrus has a broken right elbow after being hit by a pitch in the ninth inning. Andrus was clearly in pain when he dropped to the ground, and manager Jeff Banister said a preliminary X-ray revealed a fracture.
Kole Calhoun had three hits, including a two-run single, and scored twice as the Angels improved to 10-3 for the first time since 1982. They are alone atop the AL West after defending World Series champion Houston lost 9-8 earlier Wednesday in Minnesota.
Jaime Barria (1-0) allowed one hit, a home run, over five innings to win his major league debut. The 21-year-old right-hander struck out three, walked three and hit a batter.
Matt Moore (0-3) gave up three runs while allowing seven hits and three walks in five innings as the Rangers lost their fourth straight game.
After Ohtani drew a leadoff walk in the eighth, Chris Martin came on as the fourth Texas pitcher. The two played together with the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters the last two seasons.
Ohtani was called out on an attempted pickoff by Martin, but umpire Bill Miller's call was overturned on a replay challenge. Martin then got Ohtani out on another move to first.
It was Ohtani's first DH start since pitching seven scoreless innings with 12 strikeouts against Oakland on Sunday to improve to 2-0 on the mound. He grounded out as a pinch-hitter Tuesday.
In six games with an at-bat, Ohtani is hitting .364 with three homers and eight RBIs. He also took a called third strike Wednesday and was retired leading off the sixth when reliever Matt Bush snagged a comeback liner.
Ryan Rua led off the Texas third with his first homer.
Rene Rivera immediately followed Ohtani in the second with another RBI single. Jefry Marte and Zack Cozart both had run-scoring triples.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Angels: RHP Matt Shoemaker will continue to undergo treatment without throwing after tests this week showed no new findings of nerve irritation. Shoemaker felt discomfort in his forearm in first start of the season March 31. Shoemaker missed half of last season because of a forearm issue.
UP NEXT
Angels: After completing their first series sweep of the season, the Angels open a four-game series at Kansas City on Thursday night.
Rangers: Texas is the last team in the majors to get a day off after playing 14 consecutive days to start the season. The Rangers will be off Thursday before opening a three-game series Friday night against the Astros.
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