Angels Put Their Swoon On Hold With A 5-2 Win Over Rangers As Trout, Urena Star

It’s been a long time since the Los Angeles Angels and their fans have been able to enjoy back-to-back wins, but they finally broke through in the second game of their three-game set against the Texas Rangers with a 5-2 win. 

The catalyst in this one wasn’t surprising. Mike Trout started the scoring with a two-run homer in the first inning off Texas starter Nathan Eovalki, and his 13th home run of the year represented the fourth straight game in which the Angels have started things off with a home run. 

What mattered more was that the Halos started Walbert Urena in this one, and Urena pitched five innings of one-run ball as he managed to scatter five hits and three walks. This one was a bit of an adventure for Urena, as he gave up a run in the second on a leadoff single to Alejandro Osuna, a walk to Jake Burger and a sacrifice fly from Ezequiel Duran to make it 2-1. 

Urena also loaded the bases in both the third and fifth inning, but he managed to escape those jams, and the Angels added a run to their lead in the fifth on a pair double by Zach Neto and Nolan Schanuel that scored Zach Neto to up the count to 3-1. 

The Rangers cut that lead back to one in the seventh on a home run by Kyle Higashioka off reliever Ryan Zeferjahn, but Tyler Saucedo and Chase Silseth were able to pick up Zeferjahn and get out of the inning to hold the score at 3-2. 

The Angels rallied for a pair of insurance runs in the eighth on hits by Jorge Soler and Jo Adell, with a walk to Jose Siri loading the bases. Oswald Peraza came through with a two-run RBI single to score Soler and Adell and make it a 5-2 game. 

This game also featured the first save from Kirby Yates as he got the Rangers in order in the ninth without making this one another nail-biter at the end. Yates has allowed just one run in his last five appearances, so he could be rounding into form. 

The Angels now have a chance to get their first series sweep of the year, and if they do it will be just the second time they’ve won three straight games this season. They’ll send Reid Detmers to the mound against MacKenzie Gore to try to accomplish the unexpected feat.