After dropping their first to games to the Twins, the Angels came back with two straight wins to split the series before hosting the division-rival A’s.
On Saturday, the Angels put up 12 hits while never trailling in a 7-5 win. The Angels rallied for a 4-0 lead in the third to snap their consecutive scoreless innings streak at 22. Vlad drove a bases-loaded double for two of the runs. They added two more in the fourth with RBI-singles by Erick Aybar and Mark Texeira. Texeira also added an insurance run in the sixth with a solo homerun.
Jon Garland cruised through the first three before struggling in the fourth and being lifted in the fifth. He was given a 4-0 lead in the third, and cut that lead by a run when giving up a solo shot in the fourth. Garland ended up leaving after loading the bases with one out in the fifth, and was tagged for a total of five runs on six hits. Darren Oliver then came in and escaped the jam while pitching two more scoreless innings, which was enough to give him the win. Scot Shields held the eighth and K-Rod got his 49th save, including 2 K’s.
The Angels followed up their win with another on Sunday to end the series, coming back with some late runs to steal the lead and the game from the Twins.
The Angels found themselves down 3-0 heading into the bottom of the sixth, but Teixeira triggered the come-from-behind win by starting the Angels with a solo shot that inning to come within two runs. The Angels scored another in the seventh before their three-run eighth was started by a leadoff double by Teixeira. Vlad then tripled him in to tie the game at 3. Gary Matthews Jr, who didn’t start but came in as a replacement for Garrett Anderson in the second, then drilled a triple to score Vlad for the go-ahead run. Matthews Jr then scored on Juan Rivera’s sacfly for an insurance run.
Ervin Santana held the Twins to three runs on nine hits through seven while hitting double-digits for strikeouts. He left while being down and wasn’t in line for the decision. The win went to Jose Arrendondo, who pitched a near-perfect eighth, with no runs, no hits, and two K’s…and was saved by having a homerun call reversed. K-Rod then got his 50th save, and is now only the ninth closer to reach that many saves in a single season. With 33 games left, K-Rod needs jut eight to break Bobby Thigpen’s record of 57.
The Angels now host the A’s for a three-game series at home. The A’s aren’t much of a threat as they usually are this season, standing 20 1/2 games behind the leading Angels. Jered Weaver will take the mound to go for his 11th win. He is 5-4 in 11 starts at home this year and is 2-1 lifetime against the A’s, but hasn’t faced them this season. He will face lefty Dallas Braden, who is 3-3 with a 4.53 ERA. The youngster started the season in Class A ball and is making his first start against the Angels, though they have seen him out of the ‘pen earlier this season.
