The Los Angeles Angels, after a difficult end to their series against the Houston Astros, played an altogether solid game against the Boston Red Sox. However, a pair of two-run home runs was all Boston needed to get past L.A. The Halos fell 4-3 and dropped to 16-21 on the season.
Griffin Canning looked solid in the first inning, allowing just one hit to J.D. Martinez. However, it wasn’t as easy in the second. After allowing a lead-off single to Rafael Devers, he got two straight outs before facing Hunter Renfroe. On a 3-1 high fastball, Renfroe crushed a ball to dead-center field to make it a 2-0 game.
Red Sox starting pitcher Nick Pivetta was dealing through four innings. After allowing a single to Jose Iglesias in the second, he proceeded to retire seven consecutive batters. Midway though four, he had six strikeouts and only two hits as the Red Sox maintained their 2-0 lead.
Canning allowed two consecutive base hits to lead off the bottom of the fourth. However, he used his Gold Glove mechanics to get a 1-4-3 double play, then struck a batter out to avoid any damage.
The Angels finally got on the board in the top of the sixth via the long ball. Shohei Ohtani — after some struggles in the series against the Houston Astros — took a backdoor curveball over the Green Monster to make it a 2-1 game. The Halos could only cut the lead in half after a Mike Trout pop fly.
The very next inning, the Angels made things interesting. Anthony Rendon was just a few feet away from a solo home run over the Green Monster, but had to settle for a single instead. This didn’t tie the game, but it forced the Red Sox to go to the bullpen, replacing Pivetta with Matt Andriese.
Jared Walsh immediately hit a single off Andriese to put runners at first and second with no outs. Justin Upton nearly hit a three-run home run as well, but it wound up as a fly ball that advanced Walsh and Rendon to second and third.
Jose Iglesias made his mark on the game with his second hit of the night, this one being a two-RBI double down the right field line to give the Angels a 3-2 lead. That would stay the score heading into the seventh inning stretch.
In the bottom of the seventh, Tony Watson came in to replace Canning, who put together a solid outing besides the two-run home run. Watson recorded just one out before allowing a two-run homer of his own to Bobby Dalbec. The Red Sox trailed for all of 20 minutes and took a 4-3 lead.
In the top of the ninth — the Angels final chance to stay alive in the game — they had their 4-6 batters due up. Rendon led then inning off by striking out, then Walsh faced the same fate, putting the game in the hands of Upton. He too went down swinging, matching Rendon and Walsh, and giving the Angels their third consecutive loss, 4-3.
Looking ahead
The Angels will finish up the weekend at Fenway Park against the Boston Red Sox in a three-game set. They’ll then return home and face the Cleveland Indians as they continue their gauntlet of a schedule in the month of May.
