Angels 6, Rangers 5
ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Mark Trumbo ended his longest homerless streak of the season, blasting a three-run home run during a five-run fourth inning that lifted the Angels to a 6-5 win over the Texas Rangers Friday night at Angel Stadium.
Trumbo had not hit a home run since Aug. 19, spanning 14 games, but his slump was more than simply a lack of home runs. He entered the game with seven hits in his previous 46 at-bats, his season average dipping to .233. But he got a hold of a pitch from Rangers starter Matt Garza (3-3) and hit it over the fence in left-center field to turn a 3-2 deficit into a 5-3 lead.
It was Trumbo's 30th homer of the season, making him the sixth Angel in club history to have back-to-back 30-homer seasons.
Angels starter C.J. Wilson (15-6) continued his solid season, even though he wasn't at his best. He gave up four runs and seven hits in 6 2/3 innings, earning his 15th win of the season, one below his career high.
Mike Trout chipped in with three hits and Erick Aybar had two as the Angels won for the 11th time in their past 14 games. Ernesto Frieri pitched the ninth for the Angels, gave up a run, but earned his 31st save.
Alex Rios had two hits, including a home run, for the Rangers. Garza gave up six runs (five earned) and nine hits in seven innings to get the loss.
The Rangers jumped out to an early lead against Wilson. Alex Rios hit a solo homer in the second inning, and A.J. Pierzynski and Rios had RBI singles in the third for a 3-0 lead.
Meanwhile, Garza seemed to have things under control through three innings, allowing only a single to Josh Hamilton.
But then the Angels, paced by Trumbo's blast broke through in a big way in the fourth inning.
NOTES: Hamilton entered the game hitting .238, the highest his average has been all season. He hit .337 (30-for-89) with a .422 on-base percentage over his previous 25 games. ... Angels 2B Howie Kendrick is running at about 90 percent and hopes to return to the field before the end of the season. Kendrick suffered a hyperextended left knee on Aug. 5 when he collided with right fielder Collin Cowgill while chasing a pop fly. ... Rangers 3B Adrian Beltre entered the game hitting .520 (13-for-25) with three homers and nine RBIs in his previous six games against the Angels. His 31 homers, 111 RBIs, 181 hits, 36 doubles and 89 runs against the Angels are his most against any team. ... Rangers SS Elvis Andrus returned to the starting lineup after missing the previous four games with a strained lower back. He entered the game hitting .414 (12-for-29) in his previous seven games.
