The Los Angeles Angels walk away from a series with a victory for the second time in the month of August. They defeated the New York Mets in a three-game set after losing six of their previous seven series’. It’s all a part of a dismal August that has seen them crash out of the postseason picture.
The Angels have three games remaining in August to put a positive bow on the team’s worst month of the season. Up to this point, they are 7-17 with series wins against only the San Francisco Giants and the Mets. The Halos suffered a seven-game losing streak and had a separate 3-9 stretch.
Against the Mets, the Angels got a blend of strong pitching performances — despite a scary injury to starter Chase Silseth — and enough production offensively to outduel a Mets team that has struggled with consistency at the plate all season long.
Carlos Estévez secured two saves in the series despite only having three total saves since July 23 prior to the weekend.
Shohei Ohtani — despite discovering a tear in his UCL that will sideline him as a pitcher for the rest of the year — remained a factor in the batter’s box. Ohtani went 3-for-9 with two doubles, a triple and seven walks (including two intentional) on the series.
Game 1: Angels def. Mets 3-1
Patrick Sandoval had one of his cleanest outings in recent memory after struggling with traffic on the bases for much of the season. The six baserunners he allowed — two hits and four walks — are tied for his third-fewest of the season.
Sandoval went six innings and allowed one earned run, while the bullpen trio of Matt Moore, Reynaldo López and Estévez blanked the Mets over three innings.
Nolan Schanuel tallied his second career RBI with a ninth-inning insurance run single. Brandon Drury and Mike Moustakas brought home the other two, the latter being Ohtani right off of a double.
Game 2: Angels def. Mets 5-3
A big second inning from the Angels gave them everything they needed to push past the Mets. Mickey Moniak kicked things off with a solo homer, then Luis Rengifo, Ohtani and Drury pushed across three straight RBI hits to chase starter Carlos Carrasco from the game.
On the other side, Silseth was cruising through three hitless frames before suffering a scary injury in the fourth. A series of misplays from the Angels infield led to Silseth being hit in the head by an errant throw from first baseman Trey Cabbage. He was taken to a hospital for further evaluation and was released prior to Sunday’s game.
Silseth appears to be in the clear, but there remains uncertainty when he’ll pitch again. For now, it appears, the Angels are sticking to a six-man rotation that may not include Silseth temporarily.
Game 3: Mets def. Angels 3-2
Griffin Canning’s return to the starting rotation saw him put together one of the better performances of his career. Canning allowed one earned run on five hits with nine strikeouts over seven innings. It is the fifth time in his career that he has completed seven innings.
But López walked away as the losing pitcher for not recording an out in the ninth inning and giving up four consecutive baserunners, including a hit by pitch, a walk and two singles. Rafael Ortega knocked in the walk-off run for New York.
An RBI groundout from Chad Wallach and a solo homer from Luis Rengifo served as the only runs for the Angels.
What’s Next
The Angels travel down the New Jersey turnpike for a series with the Philadelphia Phillies from Monday to Wednesday. The Phillies sit as the top wild card team in the National League with a 72-58 record.
