Angels Edge Past Rangers To End Win Streak
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) - After throwing two straight shutouts, Derek Holland felt the full brunt of what the Los Angeles Angels' offense could be if only they could show some consistency.
The Texas Rangers saw their 12-game winning streak go down the drain, two shy of the club record, after the Angels rallied from five runs down to pull out a 9-8 victory Wednesday night.
Now the defending AL champions have to start another winning streak against a pretty tough customer -- major league ERA leader Jered Weaver.
"I don't care how it comes to an end. A loss is a loss," designated hitter Michael Young said. "I'm not going to sit here and complain about the way it ended. We'll come out tomorrow ready to play. We're going to take the same approach no matter what happened the night before. In that sense, that's one of the biggest strengths of our team. We move on pretty easily."
Howie Kendrick had three hits and four RBIs, including a tiebreaking two-run single, as the Angels trimmed the Rangers' AL West lead to four games.
Torii Hunter homered for the Angels, whose six-run rally in the sixth inning wouldn't have been possible had it not been for two infield singles to shortstop by Mike Trout and Alberto Callaspo on close plays.
"They got two infield hits hustling down the line that inning. That's what hurt us," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "If we get those two outs, we're off the field with a lead. But Trout beat one out and then Callaspo beat one out. That was the real damage."
Holland took an 8-3 lead into the sixth before giving up hits to four of the five batters he faced -- including RBI singles by Mark Trumbo and Trout and a run-scoring double by Erick Aybar.
"He's a good pitcher and a young guy who throws hard," Kendrick said. "Early in the game he really wasn't missing a lot. He was making his pitches and getting guys out. But in the sixth inning he made a few mistakes and we were able to get to the bullpen a little early. That's where we won the game. But we have to focus on having good at-bats, no matter who's throwing."
Bobby Abreu narrowed the gap to 8-7 with an RBI single against Tommy Hunter, and Kendrick put the Angels ahead to stay with his bases-loaded single with one out after a walk to Vernon Wells and Callaspo's hustling hit. The six-run inning equaled the Angels' biggest this season.
"You go out there in the sixth inning with an 8-3 lead and you don't expect to give it up," Washington said. "That team over there has a lot of pride and they're not going to quit. We didn't give it to them. They won it. They came out there in the sixth inning and showed what they were made of. They strung something together and we just couldn't stop it."
Angels starter Dan Haren lasted only 4 1-3 innings and gave up a season-worst seven runs along with nine hits. Hisanori Takahashi (3-2) pitched 1 2-3 innings for the victory, Scott Downs worked two perfect innings and All-Star rookie Jordan Walden got three outs for his 22nd save in 28 chances, striking out Nelson Cruz with the potential tying run at third.
"These are the type of games that can turn things around," Wells said. "Obviously, tomorrow is a big game for us. We've got our work cut out for us with C.J. (Wilson) on the mound, but I like the guy we've got going, too. So it'll be a fun series finale. Hopefully we can end this thing the right way."
The Rangers broke a 3-all tie with a five-run fifth. Josh Hamilton hit a go-ahead RBI single and Young drove in two with a double that chased Haren. David Murphy greeted Takahashi with a bloop single, and two more runs scored when Yorvit Torrealba hit a line drive to left field that Wells lost in the lights and had to chase back to the fence.
"The last 20 feet I couldn't see it, but it happens sometimes," Wells said. "When you're going to your left, that ball gets in the lights. And that one stayed in the lights. I had no idea where it was, so you just hope it lands in your glove. Unfortunately, it didn't."
Hamilton singled with two outs in the Rangers' first and scored on Adrian Beltre's double off the wall in right-center. The Angels responded in the bottom half with a bases-loaded two-run single by Kendrick. Those two runs matched the total number of runs the Rangers' pitching staff had allowed over their previous six games combined, a stretch that included four shutouts.
"It's good that we put runs up early, but the game's not won or lost in the first two innings, and you just have to play the whole game. And that was definitely evident tonight," Kendrick said.
Hunter increased the Angels' lead to 3-1 in the third with his 12th homer, ending an 0-for-18 drought that began with his first at-bat following the All-Star break. But the Rangers pulled even in the fourth when Murphy hit a two-run homer after a single by Young.
"A lot of good things happened in that game. Number one, we got Haren out of there. And that's not an easy feat," Washington said. "The thing we could do is shut down that sixth inning. And that's where it happened, right there. We could have gotten out of that inning with the lead even if they scored three. But they put six up."
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