LA Angels 5, Colorado 2
When: 10:05 PM ET, Tuesday, May 12, 2015
Where: Angel Stadium of Anaheim, Anaheim, California
Temperature:
64°
Umpires:
Home -
Gerry Davis, 1B -
Phil Cuzzi, 2B -
Tony Randazzo, 3B -
Brian Gorman
Attendance:
28150
By The Sports Xchange
ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Johnny Giavotella may have collected the game-winning hit, but Albert Pujols had the game-winning stolen base.
Giavotella drove in Pujols from second base with an eighth-inning single, snapping a 2-2 tie and leading the Los Angeles Angels to a 5-2 win over the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday night at Angel Stadium.
Angels left fielder Matt Joyce, in a season-long slump, followed Giavotella's hit with a two-run double to provide closer Huston Street (11th save) a cushion for the ninth inning.
For Giavotella, the game-winning RBI was his sixth of the season, second most in the majors behind the seven of the Seattle Mariners' Nelson Cruz.
All three runs in the eighth inning came against Rockies reliever Rafael Betancourt (0-1).
The game-winning rally, though, was set up by the legs of Pujols, who singled to lead off the inning. With third baseman David Freese at the plate, Pujols got a running jump on Betancourt and stole second base standing up.
"I have the green light all the time, so I go whenever I feel like it," Pujols said of his stolen base, his first of the season and first since last Aug. 15. "If I know I'm going to make it, I go."
Pujols was hitless in his previous 13 at-bats before the eighth-inning single.
"Whenever you're struggling, you try to do whatever you can to take the extra base," he said. "Whatever I can do to help this club. I know people focus on bigger things like home runs, but the little things sometimes win the game."
After Freese struck out, Giavotella lined a single to right field, scoring Pujols easily.
"I loved it," Angels center fielder Mike Trout said of Pujols' stolen base. "Nobody in the ballpark expected it, for sure. Once I saw him take off, my first reaction was like, 'Oh, he's out,' but (Betancourt) didn't throw over. (Pujols) had two or three steps before (Betancourt) threw the ball home. It was the play of the game, fun to watch. I was excited."
The Rockies lost their 10th game in a row, their longest skid since they dropped 10 straight during the 2005 season. The franchise record is 13, set in the club's inaugural season of 1993.
Rockies manager Walt Weiss was asked if he sensed frustration building in the clubhouse and if he planned to address it with his players.
"How do you know I haven't said anything?" Weiss responded. "That's stuff we deal with in-house. I don't talk publicly about what I say to my team. Yeah, I hope there's frustration. There should be."
Angels starter C.J. Wilson pitched well, going eight strong innings while making a season-high 111 pitches. He gave up two runs and five hits, struck out six and walked one. Wilson (2-2) has given up two runs or fewer in six of his seven starts.
"C.J., he pitched a great game," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "To finish all the way through eight was important. What's critical to our long-term success is length out of our starting pitchers. We're starting to see that and will keep building on that."
The Angels had 10 hits, including three by right fielder Kole Calhoun, and two each from shortstop Erick Aybar and Giavotella.
Wilson and Rockies starter Kyle Kendrick matched each other through seven innings, but while Wilson continued on, Kendrick was finished after seven. It was Kendrick's best start since Opening Day, when he threw seven scoreless innings against the Milwaukee Brewers and earned his only victory.
On Tuesday, he gave up two runs on seven hits, didn't walk a batter and struck out five, getting a no-decision.
"Kyle did a helluva job," Weiss said. "That's Kyle Kendrick right there. That's what we've seen in the past. He really commanded the ball well, changed speeds and pitched to both sides of the plate. He did an outstanding job."
NOTES: The Angels called up INF/OF Marc Krauss from Triple-A and put him in the starting lineup. Krauss was hitting .281 with five doubles, three triples, two homers and 17 RBIs for Salt Lake. He also had a 10-game hitting streak going. To make room on the roster for Krauss, RHP Ryan Mattheus was designated for assignment. Mattheus was called up last week and got into one game, throwing one scoreless inning. ... Rockies C Nick Hundley singled in the third inning to extend his hitting streak to 13 games. He is batting .409 (18-for-44) during the streak.
Top Game Performances
Starting Pitchers
Colorado |
|
LA Angels |
Kyle Kendrick
|
Player |
C.J. Wilson
|
No Decision |
W/L |
Win |
7.0 |
IP |
8.0 |
5 |
Strikeouts |
6 |
7 |
Hits |
5 |
2.57 |
ERA |
2.25 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Hits |
HR |
TB |
Avg |
LOB |
K |
RBI |
BB |
SB |
Errors |
Colorado
|
5 |
0 |
7 |
.172 |
9 |
8 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
LA Angels
|
10 |
0 |
14 |
.294 |
13 |
7 |
5 |
1 |
1 |
0 |