Bats Go Silent As Angels Homestand Ends In 4-0 Defeat To Rangers

Looking to get back in the win column after yesterday’s 7-3 loss, the Angels had little opportunity to jump against Rangers pitching with only a five-hit effort. Jaime Barria’s strong effort got left to the wayside as the Angels and Rangers split the wraparound four-game series over Labor Day weekend.

The Rangers jumped on Barria early in the first with two-on and one-out as the red-hot DJ Peters, who had a career performance yesterday afternoon by going 4-for-5 with two home runs and four runs batted in, plated Yony Hernandez with a bloop single over the head of David Fletcher for the 1-0 lead. Without hesitation, the Rangers got back to scoring in the second, this time with a two-out RBI Single by Hernandez bringing in Yohel Pozo from third, doubling the lead to 2-0.

The lone Angels hit for the majority of the game came in the home half of the second with a leadoff single by Jared Walsh, extending his hitting streak to seven games. The Angels would threaten but not score in the same inning as Luis Rengifo flew out to left field, stranding two runners on base (Walsh at third and Stassi at first).

After the second, a pitching duel broke out as both starters went on a long string of retiring batters consecutively. For the Halos, Barria sent down 14 Rangers in a row between the 3rd and the 7th until a one-out single by Pozo started a mini rally that eventually led to another Texas run courtesy of a Jose Trevino double down the left field line deflected off the glove of Jack Mayfield. With a 3-0 deficit, Barria’s night was complete and even though he left in line for the loss, his night on the mound was much better than what appears on the box score. The seven innings tied his longest outing of the season (7 IP on July 25 @ Minnesota) and secured his fourth quality start. The 14 consecutive outs was a career-best as well, with his previous high being 10 on two occasions, coincidentally against the Rangers (June 1, 2018 and August 20, 2019).

Jaime Barria Final Line: 7 IP | 8 H | 3 ER | 0 BB (1 HBP) | 3 K (88 Pitches - 60 Strikes)

On the opposing side of the spectrum, AJ Alexy pitched with absolute filth. The rookie making his second career start kept the Halos bats silent yielding just one hit and two walks over six innings, while chipping in with seven strikeouts. Alexy capped off his night by carving through the Angels order and retiring the final 13 batters he faced. His final out was a strikeout looking of Shohei Ohtani, but with a closer look, anyone would see the pitch should have been called ball four… you make the call:

Jo Adell and Brandon Marsh gave some life to the Angels faithful in the seventh inning with back-to-back singles, but they would be erased from the basepath as Stassi flew out to right field to end the frame.

The Rangers added an extra insurance run in the ninth off reliever Andrew Wantz to keep the Angels at arms length with a 4-0 advantage. With three outs remaining, Walsh picked up a one-out hit, but the game would end three pitches later as Adell grounded into a 4-6-3 double play, sealing the game and sending the Angels to their second consecutive loss.

The Angels (68-70) next opportunity to bounce back will be tomorrow as they get set for a two-game mini series against the San Diego Padres (73-64). As interleague action will take place at Petco Park, LHP Packy Naughton (0-1, 4.00 ERA) will get a chance at his second career start as he will face fellow southpaw LHP Blake Snell (7-5, 4.31 ERA).

Angels News & Notes

• 12th shutout for the Angels offense this season (1st time against Texas Rangers)
• The Angels are now 4-3 with three splits in four-game series this season
• Angels 4-6 batters (Walsh, Adell and Marsh) combine to go 4-for-10 with Walsh recording his 31st multi-hit game