Angels slugger in elite company with double-digit HRs in team’s first 25 games for 3rd time
The move to get Mike Trout atop the lineup has worked out for the slugger in the early going, as he homered in a second consecutive game on Wednesday afternoon.
With a solo blast in the sixth, Trout became the first player in the Majors to reach 10 homers this season, but unlike on Tuesday, his homer wasn’t enough.
Lefty José Suarez continued his struggles and gave up four runs in relief in a 6-5 rubber-game loss to the Orioles at Angel Stadium. It was the fifth defeat over the past six games for the Angels, who are trying to find some consistency but have struggled to put it all together.
“I think the mindset is that if we keep on coming in and working, and working, it’ll turn,” Trout said. “The guys are battling, but things just aren’t going our way right now. But we’re going to keep fighting.”
Trout was one of three Angels to homer, as Taylor Ward also connected on a two-run blast in the sixth and Zach Neto hit his first of the season in the eighth.
But it was spoiled by Suarez’s rough outing in the sixth after he replaced Tyler Anderson, who gave up two runs on four hits and four walks to go with seven strikeouts over five innings. Suarez entered with a 7.07 ERA and only saw it go up from there, as he was hit hard from the start.
Manager Ron Washington said he went to Suarez because his team was losing and the Orioles had a lefty-heavy lineup.
“We were down [two] runs, so I’m not bringing in my best pitchers who threw the night before,” Washington said. “So I had to look over what I had available. And Suarez was the main one that was available. But he just couldn’t get the job done.”
Suarez gave up a leadoff double to James McCann, walked Colton Cowser, surrendered an RBI double to Jorge Mateo, allowed a two-run single to Gunnar Henderson and a single to Adley Rutschman without recording an out.
The fourth run came home on a double play, which were the only two outs Suarez recorded. His ERA is now at 9.20 ERA in 14 2/3 innings and it’s fair to wonder how solidified his roster status is right now.
“Things aren’t going my way,” Suarez said through interpreter Manny Del Campo. “I think the pitches are there. But things just aren’t going my way. So I’m going to keep working.”
The offense couldn’t get anything going against Orioles right-hander Dean Kremer early, as the Angels didn’t get their first hit until a two-out single from Jo Adell in the fifth.
After Suarez made it a six-run game with his shaky appearance, Trout led off the sixth with a blast off Kremer. It was absolutely crushed down the left-field line, as it left the bat at 114.5 mph and went a projected 417 feet, according to Statcast.
“I’m just trying to be more consistent,” Trout said. “Some at-bats, I feel really good. And some at-bats, I’m just trying to figure things out. I’m just trying to put a full game together.”
It marked the third time in his career that Trout was the first in the Majors to reach 10 homers, as he also did it in 2018 and ‘20.
