Trout Hits 10th HR, Ohtani Shaky, Angels Beat Astros 8-7
HOUSTON (AP) — Mike Trout hit his major league-leading 10th homer and the Los Angeles Angels overcame another shaky start by Shohei Ohtani to beat the Houston Astros 8-7 Tuesday night, tying a team record with their 11th straight road win.
Andrelton Simmons homered twice with a career-high five RBIs, connecting for a tiebreaking, three-run drive in the seventh inning. The Angels also won 11 in a row outside Anaheim in 1988.
Ohtani yielded four runs on six hits and five walks in 5 1/3 innings. The two-way star from Japan was tagged by Boston in his previous start and left after two innings because of a blister problem.
Ohtani struck out seven and has fanned 26 this year, a record for an Angels pitcher after the first four career games of his career.
The Angels jumped on Charlie Morton early to build a 4-1 lead. Derek Fisher hit a two-run homer for Houston in the fifth off Ohtani and Brian McCann added a two-run homer off Jose Alvarez in the sixth to put the Astros ahead.
There were runners at first and second with two outs in the seventh when Albert Pujols snapped an 0-for-7 slide with an RBI single to tie it at 5. Simmons then sent a pitch from Joe Smith (1-1) to the train tracks atop left field for fourth career multihomer game.
Alex Bregman hit an RBI single off Jim Johnson (2-0) in the seventh and Marwin Gonzalez added a run-scoring single off Justin Anderson to cut the lead to 8-7 with one out in the inning. But Anderson retired the next two batters to wriggle out of a bases-loaded jam and preserve the lead.
Cam Bedrosian walked one in a scoreless ninth for his first save.
Morton, who entered the game leading the American League with a 0.72 ERA, allowed five hits and a season-high four runs, while walking a season-most five in four-plus innings.
Bregman doubled with two outs in the second and Houston cut the lead to 2-1 when he scored on a single by Gonzalez.
Morton, who had only walked six batters in his first four starts combined, loaded the bases on three straight walks to start the third inning. Justin Upton followed with an RBI single on a high chopper to push the lead to 3-1.
Simmons singled with one out on a grounder to third base to send another run home and leave Los Angeles up 4-1.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Angels: Simmons returned after sitting out on Monday after being hit with a pitch on the forearm in Sunday's game.
UP NEXT
Angels: Nick Tropeano (1-1, 3.75 ERA) will start in the series finale on Wednesday, looking to bounce back after allowing seven hits and five runs in 5 1/3 innings of a loss to Boston in his last outing.
Astros: Justin Verlander (3-0, 1.10) looks to extend his regular-season winning streak to 11 games when he starts on Wednesday. Verlander allowed two hits in six scoreless innings of a win over the White Sox in his last outing.
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