The Angels took another from the A’s for their seventh straight win to put them 5 1/2 above the A’s in the division.
The Angels took the lead again in the first with a leadoff solo homerun by Maicer Izturis on the first pitch by A’s starter Greg Smith. That was Izturis’ second straight leadoff homerun, and he ended up 2 for 5 with 3 runs and 2 RBI on the night. Izturis scored again in the third when he singled, took third on a couple groundouts, and touched home off Smith’s wild pitch. Robb Quinlan had a sacfly in the sixth to score Torii Hunter to make it 3-0. They added two more in the seventh when Brandon Wood doubled and scored on Izturis’ fielders choice. Izturis moved to third and scored again off Vlad’s sacfly.
Jon Garland earned his sixth win, giving up just two runs on five hits through 7-plus innings. He had 8 K’s, the most while with the Angels. Garland left in the eighth after giving up a two-run shot followed by a double. Jose Arrendondo then closed out the eighth, leaving a runner stranded at second. K-Rod earned his 26th save, though he did give up a solo shot to Jack Cust, who had fanned three times to Garland in earlier innings.
The Angels go for the sweep of the A’s today at 1:05. Izturis will shoot for his third consecutive leadoff homerun against A’s starter Rich Harden. Harden is 3-0 this season and 5-3 lifetime against the Angels. Ervin Santana takes the mound to go for his ninth win, he is 3-0 lifetime at McAfee Colliseum. A win would put the Angels at their longest win streak since July 2006, and a Cubs loss would set the Angels for sole possession of the best record in baseball.
