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 Fortunately for them, the one inning in which they scored was
big.
The Angels put up seven runs in the sixth inning, and it was all
they needed in a 7-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday
night at Angel Stadium.
Right fielder Kole Calhoun got the big inning started with a home
run, and he also drove in the seventh run with an RBI single. In
all, the Angels had seven hits in the inning, none by Mike Trout. In
fact, the star center fielder made two of the three outs in the
inning, both by strikeout.
"He'll have a lot better days," Calhoun said. "Trust me."
Fortunately for the Angels, they didn't need Trout in the inning, or
in the game for that matter. The seven runs matched the total number
they scored in the 39 previous innings, dating back to last Friday.
"It's a big game for us, a big game for the offense," Calhoun said.
"We haven't been scoring a lot of runs lately, so it's nice to bust
out like that and give C.J. (Wilson) a little cushion." Wilson, who got his first win since June 24, certainly could
appreciate the help. He had an 11.03 ERA over his previous six
starts, but he limited Philadelphia to two runs on seven hits and
two walks in 6 2/3 innings.
Wilson (9-8) said he is always getting tips, including from fans.
"It's brilliant coaching advice from the guy in the 18th row who's
had four beers, 'C'mon, throw strikes!'" Wilson said. "It's like,
'Oh, man, dang it, I forgot.' And then when you give up a hit,
especially with two strikes, it's like, 'You idiot!'"
Wilson, though, did get a piece of advice from Angels general
manager Jerry Dipoto, a former major league pitcher.
"Jerry Dipoto came down and gave me a sheet of paper the other day,"
Wilson said. "If I throw more than 61 percent strikes, or something
like that, my winning percentage is extremely high. So I think I
threw like 64, 65 percent strikes tonight, which is pretty good.
"My thing was, I kind of took it like, 'OK, dude, whatever.' But it
sort of validates the simplicity effect for them, because the
coaching staff and front office try to keep it simple for you. Hey,
all you have to do is throw strikes. And I was like, cool, I'll just
throw the ball right over the plate."
Ex-Angel Jerome Williams made his first start for the Phillies, and
he held the Angels scoreless through five innings. However, after he
gave up the homer to Calhoun and a one-out single to first baseman
Albert Pujols in the sixth, Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg came out
with the hook, even though Williams' pitch count was just 72.
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"Jerome did a nice job, but we wanted to keep him around 75, 80 pitches,"
Sandberg said. "He hadn't pitched in 12 days, and had just given up a
home run and a hard-hit ball. And his velocity had dropped from 91 (mph)
to 88. But we couldn't finish out the sixth inning."
Changing pitchers turned out to be a bad move, as relievers Antonio
Bastardo (5-6) and Jake Diekman gave up five more hits in the inning,
and the game was essentially over. It all started when Bastardo walked
the first hitter he faced, left fielder Josh Hamilton.
"I don't know if (Bastardo) tries to be too fine when he first gets out
there, but in this case, that's the guy he has to go after," Sandberg
said. "He's got to rise to the occasion in that situation."
Bastardo wound up allowing five runs (four earned) in one-third of an
inning.
First baseman Darin Ruf had two hits for the Phillies.
With the win, the Angels remained 3 1/2 games behind the first-place
Oakland A's in the American League West.
NOTES: The Angels and Phillies recognized former shortstop and manager
Jim Fregosi in a pregame ceremony. Fregosi, 71, died Feb. 14 from
complications of a stroke. Fregosi was a six-time All-Star with the
Angels and managed the team to its first division title in 1979. He also
managed the Phillies from 1991-96, including taking them to the 1993
World Series. ... The Angels called up OF Brennan Boesch was from
Triple-A Salt Lake. He went 3-for-13 in seven games for the Angels
earlier this year. He was hitting .326 with 22 homers and 75 RBIs for
the Bees. RHP Caleb Clay was optioned to Salt Lake. He didn't get into a
major league game in a two-day stint. ... Phillies CF Ben Revere entered
the game leading the majors with 60 hits since June 26, while his .370
(60-for-162) average during that time ranked second in the majors. He
went 1-for-4 Tuesday.
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