Angels cook up a Big Apple-flavored Buttercup in 7-5 rollercoaster loss to Mets

Angels 5 Mets 7

Well, the Angels have gone back to that bad, annoying habit of losing a series. Why can’t all teams be the Chicago White Sox? The Mets and Citi Field, in this first NY trip of 2017, have been unkind to the visiting Halos this weekend; that’s not to say, though, that our guys haven’t been taking lumps without dishing some of their own. Last night, the game was within reach, but they shot themselves in the foot with sloppiness galore.

Tonight, the Angels would get down, then get close, then get down big again, and then, wouldn’t you know it, they made it close again in the ninth inning. The Team of Destiny has been peaking its head out now and then, letting us know that there’s still some mojo lurking around in this team’s soul.

Alex Meyer was the man on the mound tonight, and he had another short evening filled with the yin of his walks and the yang of his nasty strikeouts. He would only go 4.0 innings pitched, giving up four walks along the way and seven Ks. He would also give up four runs, three of them earned. Hey, at least he got a hit! Yep, now if only he could learn how to play second base.

By the time the fifth inning was over, the Angels were out of their starter, and into the bullpen, down 4-0. The bats were being quiet against Mets starter Zack Wheeler, but in the sixth, a Jefry Marte HBP and a Ben Revere groundout would bring them within two. That’s the type of game this was; the Angels were living off of a HBP and a groundout. I don’t know if that means the Angels are scrappy or New York was just that inept.

Once they got in striking range, the Mets separated themselves yet again, rocking reliever Yusmeiro Petit in the eighth and putting three more on the board. Heading into the ninth, the Halos were down 7-2 and most of Angels fan base had turned the game off, pushing it out of their mind so they can go on with their Saturday night.

The Angels would make everybody turn the TVs/Radios back on again, as they are prone to do this year. The Mets comically loaded the bases, making me feel really, really, really good about the Angels’ own bullpen, I might add, and then the Halos got a run via Cameron Maybin walk. Talk about an offensive juggernaut: HBP, groundout, walk. Yikes.

The Angels didn’t have any outs when Maybin got that BB, and they would continue to threaten, getting some more runs thanks to a Kole Calhoun knock and a Mike Trout sac fly. The 7-2 deficit was now 7-5 and the Angels still had the bases loaded, and to the plate came a hero, a legend, a man named Danny Espinosa!

OK, Espinosa struck out and the Angels lost the game, and the totally built us up there at the end, only to let us down. Buttercup. Goodnight! See ya tomorrow!