The Athletics have experienced a lot of frustration against the Los Angeles Angels this season.
It took eight meetings for the A’s to get their first victory over the Angels. Now the A’s will look to make it two straight triumphs when the teams face off again on Saturday night in West Sacramento, Calif.
Los Angeles hit 13 homers while winning the first seven matchups this season, but the Athletics had a 3-1 edge in that category in Friday’s 10-3 victory.
Colby Thomas hit a three-run, tiebreaking homer in the third inning to give the A’s the lead for good, and Nick Kurtz added a three-run blast in the eighth to seal it. Shea Langeliers led off the bottom of the first with a homer of his own.
Langeliers said Friday was the first time he ever batted leadoff in a baseball game.
“I can’t remember a time in college, high school or way back to Little League that I ever led off before,” he said.
Still, Langeliers has hit well wherever his name has been penciled into the lineup. Since the start of July, he is batting .331 (46-for-139) with 14 homers, 11 doubles and 25 RBIs.
Langeliers said the hot streak is happening because he’s being more consistent.
“I honestly think I’m building confidence just being who I am,” he said. “… Just reminding myself to be in the moment and get my best swing off.”
Kurtz’s homer ended a personal 15-game drought. It was his first since he hit four home runs while going 6-for-6 against the Houston Astros on July 25.
The Angels, meanwhile, were full of confidence after sweeping three games from the Los Angeles Dodgers earlier this week. But highlights were in short supply on Friday.
“There’s no excuse for (our play),” standout shortstop Zach Neto said afterward. “We came out flat, but at the end of the day, we’ve got (Saturday), and we’ve got a chance to win the series still.”
Neto hit a two-run homer to clinch his second straight 20-homer, 20-steal season. He has 21 steals and is only the fourth player in Angels history with multiple 20-20 seasons, joining former league MVPs Don Baylor, Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani.
Trout was 0-for-2 with two walks on Friday and has just one homer over his last 14 games.
Angels left-hander Tyler Anderson (2-7, 4.63 ERA) will be on the mound Saturday after being scratched for his scheduled Tuesday start due to back issues. Anderson’s stretch of winless starts sits at 19 since he last won on April 18 against the San Francisco Giants. He is 0-7 during the span.
Anderson served up three homers for the second straight start when he received a no-decision against the Tampa Bay Rays on Aug. 6. He allowed four runs and five hits over four innings in the Angels’ 5-4 loss. Anderson, 35, has allowed 11 homers over his past six outings.
He received a no-decision against the Athletics on May 22 in West Sacramento, allowing five runs, seven hits and a season-worst six walks in 4 2/3 innings.
Anderson is 4-1 with a 3.22 ERA in eight career starts against the A’s. Brent Rooker (5-for-14) has homered twice off Anderson, and Langeliers (2-for-10) also has gone deep against him.
Right-hander Luis Morales (0-0, 1.93) will make his second major league start for the Athletics. He lasted just 2 2/3 innings in his first one last Sunday in his team’s 3-2 victory against the Baltimore Orioles. Morales didn’t allow a hit but walked five while notching four strikeouts before leaving after 57 pitches.
Morales, 22, was 7-3 with a 3.73 ERA across the Double-A and Triple-A levels this season before his promotion. He made his big league debut against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Aug. 1, allowing one run and three hits in two innings of relief.