Walbert Ureña continued his impressive rookie campaign by pitching six strong innings, while Jorge Soler and Jo Adell fueled a five-run first inning as the Los Angeles Angels defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 5-1 on Tuesday night.
The Angels scored all five of their runs in the opening inning and never looked back, extending their winning streak to three games. Ureña took advantage of the early offensive support, limiting St. Louis to one run while the bullpen finished off another solid team pitching performance.
The Cardinals dropped their 10th game in their last 14 as they struggled to recover from a disastrous opening inning.
Angels Break It Open Early
Los Angeles wasted no time taking control.
Zach Neto opened the bottom of the first with a single before being thrown out trying to stretch the play into a triple after Mike Trout followed with a base hit to left field.
The aggressive baserunning did little to slow the Angels’ offense.
Nolan Schanuel drew a walk before Jorge Soler lined a two-run double into left field to give Los Angeles a quick 2-0 advantage. Vaughn Grissom followed with an RBI single, and Jo Adell capped the outburst by launching a two-run home run, his 15th of the season, to extend the lead to 5-0.
The Angels collected five hits in the inning and immediately put the Cardinals in a deep hole.
Ureña Overpowers Cardinals
Given an early cushion, Ureña took control on the mound.
The rookie right-hander allowed one run on six hits over six innings while striking out five and walking one. He improved to 6-7 and lowered his season ERA to 2.78.
Making his first start after the All-Star break, Ureña showcased electric velocity throughout the night. He threw 16 pitches at 100 mph or faster, matching the total number of triple-digit pitches he had thrown over his first 81 1/3 major league innings.
His fastest offering reached 101.5 mph on a sinker to Jordan Walker in the first inning, setting a new season high.
Since joining the rotation full-time on May 1, Ureña has posted a 2.49 ERA across 14 starts, continuing to establish himself as one of the Angels’ most reliable pitchers.
Cardinals Unable To Recover
St. Louis starter Matthew Liberatore endured a difficult opening inning but settled down afterward.
After allowing five runs in the first, Liberatore regrouped and held the Angels to four hits over his remaining 4 1/3 innings. However, the early damage proved too much for the Cardinals to overcome.
The Cardinals finally got on the scoreboard in the fifth inning when JJ Wetherholt drove in a run with a fielder’s choice ground ball.
That would be the only offense against the Angels’ pitching staff.
Bullpen Completes Strong Effort
Los Angeles received another effective performance from its bullpen after Ureña exited.
Mitch Farris worked 1 1/3 scoreless innings while striking out two batters. Chase Silseth recorded the final two outs of the eighth before Ryan Zeferjahn handled the ninth.
Zeferjahn struck out three of the five hitters he faced to complete the victory and preserve the four-run lead.
The combination of Ureña and the bullpen limited St. Louis to one run and ensured the Angels’ early offensive explosion stood up for the entire game.
Angels Continue Winning Stretch
Los Angeles combined timely hitting with dominant pitching to secure its third consecutive victory, matching its best stretch since winning four straight games from June 9 through June 13.
Soler and Adell each drove in two runs during the decisive first inning, while Grissom also contributed an RBI as the Angels built a lead the Cardinals could never threaten.
The victory provided another encouraging sign for Los Angeles as the club continued to build momentum coming out of the All-Star break.
Up Next
The series concludes Wednesday night with the Cardinals sending right-hander Hunter Dobbins, who is 1-1 with a 4.03 ERA, to the mound against Angels left-hander Reid Detmers, who enters with a 3-6 record and a 4.16 ERA.
