ANAHEIM
Tony Phillips Jersey , Calif. (AP) — Against one of the best bullpens in baseball, the Los Angeles Angels treated all of the late innings like they were
the ninth and the tactic was rewarded when they rallied for a 4-3 victory over
the Oakland Athletics.Kole Calhoun and Justin Upton hit two-run homers and
Albert Pujols reached another milestone as the Angels were forced into comeback
mode early on Friday night.With a single in the sixth inning, Pujols recorded
his 1,000th career hit with the Angels. He became just the ninth player all-time
with at least 1,000 hits in each league after getting 2,073 with the St. Louis
Cardinals. Four former Angels are on the list: Dave Winfield, Frank Robinson,
Vladimir Guerrero and Orlando Cabrera.Upton’s two-run shot in the sixth inning
off Oakland rookie reliever Lou Trivino proved to be the difference. Trivino
(8-2), who had given up more than one earned run just once in his previous 46
outings, lost a game for the first time since June 5.It might have been the
sixth inning, but Upton came to the plate with a ninth-inning mentality as the
A’s not only had their regular stable of relievers available, they also had
newly-acquired right-hander Fernando Rodney for the first time.“They have a
strong bullpen with guys that can beat you in many ways,” said Upton, who
admitted his plan was to attack the first strike he saw. “You play to your
strengths against those guys. Just compete. Those guys are pitching well this
year.”Upton hit a two-run home run for the third consecutive game.The Angels
trailed 3-0 just four batters into the game. Starter Felix Pena regained his
composure and gave up just two more hits and no runs while pitching into the
sixth inning.“I felt like in the first inning I was a little overamped so I went
back to the video room to watch some video and I was able to make the
adjustments
http://www.athleticsfanproshop.com/authentic-walt-weiss-jersey ,” said Pena, who had a similar slow start in his last home outing on July 29 but
never made it out of the opening inning.Los Angeles improved to 8-1 over its
last nine home games.Matt Chapman and Khris Davis each hit home runs in the
first inning for the A’s, who are now 13-6 since the All-Star break. Chapman hit
his 16th homer while Davis’ two-run shot was his 33rd.Oakland starter Brett
Anderson gave up two runs on four hits with no walks, but was removed after five
innings having thrown just 63 pitches. When asked if A’s starters are growing
accustomed to being pulled earlier than usual in favor of a strong bullpen,
Anderson offered a simple “no.”“It’s going to take some getting used to,”
Anderson said. “In a tie game in the seventh the last time, you kind of see it.
This one was a little early. But we’ve lived and died by our bullpen and those
arms are tremendous down there so more times than not we’re going to come out
with the victory.”Calhoun connected for a two-run drive in the third, his 16th
of the season and 11th over his last 25 games. Calhoun’s 15 home runs since June
18 lead the American League.Calhoun had just one home run and was batting .145
over 50 games when he went to the 10-day disabled list with a strained right
oblique. In the 44 games since he has returned, he has hit 14 of his 15 home
runs, with 34 runs scored and 35 RBIs.Jim Johnson (4-2) retired the only batter
he faced for the win. The Angels used three more pitchers in the ninth, with
Blake Parker getting the final out for his 11th save.“(The bullpen) came in and
made pitches and it was a great job,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. “After
that first inning, this game could go south in a hurry when you give up a
three-spot. But Felix got his bearings and the bullpen was exceptional.”Rodney
made his A’s debut, striking out a batter during a perfect seventh inning.
Rodney was acquired Thursday in a trade from the Minnesota Twins. One plan for
Rodney is to use him to help ease the heavy workload on Trivino.“We won’t have
to potentially use Lou for more than one inning
Marcus Semien Jersey ,” A’s manager Bob Melvin said. “We’ve used him quite a bit where he has to come in and clean up an inning and go back out for the
next inning, which is really tough to do.”RODNEY ARRIVESMelvin says Rodney
doesn’t have a set role. Instead, Melvin expects to mix and match his
late-inning relievers in a stacked Oakland bullpen.“More than anything, it
probably allows us to not overuse a Lou Trivino, to not overuse a Yusmeiro
Petit,” Melvin said. “As much as we use our bullpen on certain days, we’re not
afraid to move guys to the back end of the bullpen if a (Blake) Treinen or
(Jeurys) Familia needs time off, so it just makes us better.”Rodney had 25 saves
for the Twins in 46 appearances with a 3.09 ERA, but the closer job will still
belong to Treinen.VLAD THE HALL OF FAMERThe Angels honored new Hall of Famer
Vladimir Guerrero with an on-field pregame ceremony that pushed back first pitch
about a half hour. Guerrero, who made quick introductory speech at Cooperstown
last month, was even quicker when he spoke to the crowd in both English and
Spanish on Friday.“His forte is to not go up there and spew accolades about
himself, and I think it makes him all the more special,” Scioscia said. “He was
so beloved by his teammates because when he was playing, he was the best player
on the planet but . never talking about himself. He was a special
talent.”TRAINER’S ROOMAngels: Mike Trout was put on the 10-day disabled list
with an inflamed right wrist. Scioscia expects his All-Star center fielder to
return on Thursday when his DL stint ends.UP NEXTA’s: RHP Edwin Jackson
(3-2
http://www.athleticsfanproshop.com/authentic-joe-morgan-jersey , 2.87 ERA) will take the mound Saturday in the middle game of the series,
carrying the sixth lowest ERA in the American League since his contract was
selected June 25.Angels: RHP Tyler Skaggs (8-7, 3.34) is expected to make his
return from the disabled list Saturday, having not pitched since July 31 because
of a left adductor strain. SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Houston Astros aren’t
putting up big numbers with their injury-depleted lineup. But the World Series
champions are making up for that with a couple of timely home runs.Tyler White
hit a two-run drive in the eighth inning and the Astros pulled off a late rally
for the second straight game, beating the San Francisco Giants 2-1 on
Tuesday.The win followed the Astros’ 3-1 victory Monday night in which Marwin
Gonzalez hit a three-run homer with two outs in the ninth.This time, the AL West
leaders again trailed 1-0 when Gonzalez doubled and White hit a high, arching
shot to left field off Ray Black (1-1).“It’s not easy to win games in the eighth
and ninth,” Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. “We kind of make a habit of it every
now and then, but different guy every day.”Houston has hit 13 home runs in its
last eight games. The Astros have won six of seven and the Giants have lost four
of five.“I was trying to put a good swing and then I saw it went up in the air
to left field,” White said. “It was a good moment.”And it followed an anxious
moment.On an 0-2 pitch, White was brushed back by a high 96 mph fastball from
Black, who topped 100 earlier in the at-bat.“That’s always scary,” White said.
“He let one get away a little bit, you just have to calm yourself down because
it’s little bit scary. You just have to look for a good pitch to hit on the next
pitch
Reggie Jackson Jersey , and that’s what I was doing.”Joe Smith (4-1) struck out the only two batters he faced in the seventh for the win. Hector
Rondon pitched a scoreless ninth for his 13th save in 16 tries.Astros starter
Dallas Keuchel gave up one run and three hits in six innings, striking out five
and walking two.Giants starter Madison Bumgarner pitched seven scoreless
innings, allowing five hits and three walks while striking out seven. He is 4-1
with a 2.08 ERA in six career starts against Houston.“It’s hard to take when you
get that kind of pitching,” Giants manager Bruce Bochy said.“Give them credit;
they beat two of our hottest relievers. Lightning hit us twice. Black has been
lights out. That was the first hit he allowed since his debut. He had a 1-2
count and made a mistake. He missed his spot. It looked like it was right down
the middle.”D’ARNAUD’S DAYGiants INF Chase d’Arnaud left the game with a bruised
left knee after fouling a ball of himself in the fourth. He hit an RBI single in
the second.“He’s day-to-day,” Bochy said. “I’m guessing he’ll be fine with the
day off (Wednesday).”TRAINER’S ROOMGiants: 1B Brandon Belt, on the DL with a
hyperextended right knee since July 26, is ramping up baseball activities and
could be activated for next week’s series opener against the Dodgers in Los
Angeles on Monday, Bochy said.UP NEXTAstros: After a day off, the Astros and RHP
Justin Verlander (11-6, 2.19 ERA) will open a series at home against Seattle. He
has won just two of his last eight starts, posting a 3.54 ERA over that
stretch.Giants: LHP Andrew Suarez (4-7, 4.60) with make his 20th career start
Thursday in a series opener against the Pittsburgh Pirates at home.
