Angels Trying To Avoid Becoming First 30-Loss Team In Game 2 Of Freeway Series

The Los Angeles Angels continue to lose a lot of games and are 4-9 in May after losing the opener of the Freeway Series against the crosstown rival Los Angeles Dodgers 6-0 Friday night.

The Angels have lost four straight games and sit dead-last in the Major League Baseball standings at 16-29. The Halos mustered just two hits against the Dodgers and were defeated by a trio of home runs, including back-to-back shots for center fielder Andy Pages and third baseman Max Muncy.

Pages drilled a 407-foot three-run homer to center field in the fourth inning, followed by a Muncy solo shot to right field to put the Dodgers in front 4-0. Left fielder Teoscar Hernandez hit a two-run blast to right center in the sixth for the final dagger.

Angels right-hander Jack Kochanowicz got through six innings, but he took the loss after allowing all six runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out four. The 25-year-old is now 2-3 with a 4.56 ERA and 1.36 WHIP through nine starts (51.1 innings).

The Dodgers opted for a bullpen game after lefty Blake Snell was scratched, using eight pitchers to record 27 outs. Righty Will Klein opened and pitched two innings with two strikeouts before ceding to Edgardo Henriquez, who earned his second win of the season after pitching a perfect inning with two punchouts.

The Angels offense is reeling and hasn’t been able to consistently get runs on the board since mid-April. If the pitching staff isn’t lights-out, the odds of the Angels pulling out a win from behind are slim right now.

The good news is that Game 2 of the Freeway Series will feature a pitching matchup between Dodgers lefty Justin Wrobleski and Angels ace right-hander Jose Soriano.

Wrobleski has been terrific for the Dodgers this season, posting a 5-1 record with a 2.42 ERA and 0.99 WHIP through seven appearances (six starts, 44.2 innings). He nearly went the distance against the Atlanta Braves his last time out but surrendered seven runs on seven hits and one walk with seven strikeouts in 8.2 innings.

Soriano has pitched like a Cy Young candidate against every team he’s faced except the Chicago White Sox, which have hit him hard twice and gave him his two losses. He is 6-2 with a 1.66 ERA and 1.05 WHIP with 61 strikeouts through nine starts (54.1 innings).

Soriano bounced back after two losses to the White Sox with 7.2 sharp innings of one-run ball on five hits and one walk while striking out seven against the Toronto Blue Jays his last time out.

The Halos are looking to avoid becoming the first team with 30 losses this season.

First pitch is at 6:38 p.m. PDT on MLB.TV and regional sports networks.