The visiting Los Angeles Angels will go for the sweep of their three-game series against the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday.
The surging Angels have won 10 of 14 games after Saturday’s 7-2 win.
“We’ve always known we were right there and close. It’s a matter of the pitching clicking and the hitting coming around,” pitcher Matt Harvey said. “You’re going to have your ups and downs but we are playing well right now.”
The Angels’ lineup is heating up with 28 runs in the past three games.
Designated hitter Shohei Ohtani, who came in 2-for-16 since coming off the injured list, had two hits and drove in a run Saturday. Albert Pujols drove in three runs with a pair of homers, giving him three in his past two games and eight for the season. He is 4-for-9 in the past two games, raising his average to .224.
“I’ve been feeling good all year long. The scoreboard doesn’t look like it because of my batting average, but I’ve been hitting the ball hard,” he said. “I’ve been putting a good swing on the ball over a month-and-a-half right now.
“Some days they’re going to fall, some days they don’t. It’ll take a while but the thing with me is I’ve been here before. I know I’m a banger and I’m going to continue to try get better and continue to try and put good swings on it.”
The Angels go for the sweep behind rookie right-hander Griffin Canning (1-0, 4.66 ERA), who makes his third start of the season.
Canning, 23, earned his first major league win in Detroit on Tuesday, when he allowed two runs on four hits over 5 1/3 innings while striking out seven with one walk. He has 13 strikeouts over 9 2/3 innings in his two starts.
The Orioles will look to stop a four-game losing streak as John Means (4-3, 2.48) starts the finale.
Means, 26, is coming off his best start of the season, a win against the Boston Red Sox in which he gave up one run on three hits in seven innings. He struck out four without a walk as Boston’s top five hitters finished 0-for-15 against the left-hander.
“He’s still developing, which is cool and impressive and what we’re looking for from our young players — not only (to) have results but to improve over the course of the year,” Orioles manager Brandon Hyde told MLB.com.
Means showed his resiliency, bouncing back from his worst effort of the season, one in which he gave up four runs in five innings of a loss to the Chicago White Sox.
He will be making his sixth career start and first against the Angels.
On Saturday, the Orioles got a two-run homer from Dwight Smith Jr. in the first inning against Harvey, but then proceeded to strand 10 runners, going 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position.
Starter Dylan Bundy left after five innings, and the Orioles bullpen surrendered four runs, enabling the Angels to pull away.
“I’m just looking for guys to step up out of the pen and be able to pitch in the sixth through eighth innings with the score close,” Hyde told reporters after the game. “It’s pretty open for who wants to step up and be a guy.”