Great escape keeps hot streak going
Late rally, Harris pitching out of jam in 9th secures 8th victory in 9 games
ANAHEIM, Calif — Carlos Correa watched halfway up the first-base line as his fly ball curled toward the right-field corner. Kole Calhoun, the Los Angeles Angels’ right fielder, saw it into his glove on the warning track and crashed into the wall.
The ball was hit more than deep enough for Jason Castro to tag up and score from third base for the goahead, ninth-inning run. Correa smacked his hands together before reentering an elated dugout. In the Astros’ 4-2 win on Monday night at Angel Stadium, another late-game swing from their star shortstop stood as the game-winner.
Correa’s sacrifice fly marked the 21-year-old’s fifth go-ahead RBI in the ninth inning or later this season, still four games from its midway point. The reigning American League Player of the Week made an impact without mustering a hit in his team’s eighth victory in nine games.
Will Harris worked out of a bases-loaded jam with no outs in the ninth to record his seventh save in as many opportunities. Andrelton Simmons grounded into a 1-2-3 game-ending double play.
The Astros won despite another incredible offensive game from Angels superstar Mike Trout, who homered for the third consecutive day and doubled twice.
For five innings, Trout’s solo home run signified the game’s lone run. In his latest incredible feat, he golfed a Collin McHugh curveball near the dirt 415 feet over the left-center field wall.
Trout’s homer, his 17th of the season, was less than a foot off the ground when he connected. It was the lowest major league pitch hit for a home run in three seasons, according Daren WIllman, the Director of Baseball Research and Development for MLB.com.
A bloop hit to right field by Trout in the sixth led to the Angels’ second run. Trout would have had a
triple if he hadn’t stumbled rounding second base, a la Jose Altuve on Saturday night in Kansas City. (Trout and Altuve shared a laugh after the play.) C.J. Cron’s single down the left-field line scored Trout easily.
Luis Valbuena then saved a run with a diving stop and throw home in time to retire Albert Pujols after a sharp groundball by Johnny Giavotella. McHugh struck out Jefry Marte to strand Cron on second base.
The Astros again struggled to hit splitter-happy Matt Shoemaker, who shut them out over his six innings. Their saving grace came in the form of his pitch count. After Shoemaker finished the sixth with 99 pitches, Angels manager Mike Scioscia opted to send out righthander Michael Morin for the seventh.
Those in the visiting dugout didn’t mind.
After stranding Valbuena following a leadoff double in the sixth, the Astros capitalized on early baserunners in the seventh. Carlos Gomez reached on an infield single and advanced to third on Evan Gattis’ bloop single.
A George Springer groundout scored Gomez for the Astros’ first run, and a Jose Altuve line drive off the glove of Marte, the Angels’ third baseman, scored pinch-runner Jake Marisnick for the tying run.
Astros manager A.J. Hinch pulled McHugh after only 83 pitches even though the righthander surrendered only two runs. Ken Giles logged a perfect seventh, and Luke Gregerson worked around a one-out Trout double in a scoreless eighth.
Castro opened the decisive ninth by lacing Fernando Salas’ first-pitch changeup to right-center field for a double. George Springer worked a walk and Luis Valbuena loaded the bases with a dribbler into right field. Altuve’s fly ball to Calhoun was not deep enough to score Castro. Correa’s was plenty deep.
The Angels gifted the Astros an insurance run when J.C. Ramirez threw a wild pitch with the bases loaded, allowing Springer enough time to score.