Justin Upton's back and it's just fine as his grand slam helps Angels beat Twins

Briefly stalled by a mattress, Justin Upton rose and shined Friday night in the brightest of ways for the Angels.

The left fielder returned after missing two games because of a back problem to hit a grand slam in a 10-3 victory over Minnesota.

Upton attributed his ailment to poor sleeping caused by a faulty hotel mattress.

“We travel a lot,” he said before the game. “Sometimes, you sleep bad just like somebody does when they wake up to go to work in the morning. Sometimes, you sleep bad and your body doesn’t respond well to the bed and you end up with some back tightness.”

Upton said he first felt the issue Monday night in Kansas City. Calling it “a small hiccup,” Upton said he didn’t believe his back would be a concern and deemed himself fit to return after a batting-cage session.

He then proved he was fine plus some by doubling in the fourth inning during a two-run rally before emphatically nailing down the point in the seventh.

“When he hit the ball and I saw the bat drop and all that, my jaw was on the floor,” teammate Jared Walsh said. “It was just a really cool moment, a big, clutch hit.”

The inning began with the Angels leading 4-3 before David Fletcher’s RBI single off Twins reliever Randy Dobnak gave the home team a two-run edge. Following a strikeout of Shohei Ohtani, Minnesota manager Rocco Baldelli decided to intentionally walk Mike Trout — with the count at 2-and-2 — to load the bases.

On a 1-and-1 curveball from Caleb Thielbar, Upton drove the ball 410 feet to break open the score. It was his eighth grand slam and first as an Angel.

“That was one of the coolest things I’ve ever been a part of and I was just sitting on deck,” Walsh said. “They walked Trouty, understandably so, he’s hitting .500 or whatever to get to J-Up and he made them pay.”

Walsh had two hits, including his fourth home run, and three RBIs and Trout singled in the tying and go-ahead runs in the sixth as the Angels produced 12 hits.

Willians Astudillo, a 5-foot-9 utility man, finished the game on the mound for Minnesota, working a 1-2-3 eighth inning in his second career pitching appearance.

Upton returning quickly was a marked departure of recent events for the Angels, who put four players — Anthony Rendon, Dexter Fowler, Max Stassi and Juan Lagares — on the injured list in the span of four days starting last weekend.

After a productive spring, Upton entered Friday with just seven hits in 36 at-bats (a .194 average) to start the season. He had 12 strikeouts in 42 plate appearances and one home run.

Upton explained that his timing had been off, something he continued to work on before the game.

“He didn’t miss that one,” manager Joe Maddon said. “That ball was properly clicked.”

Making his third start, Andrew Heaney worked through five clean innings on 62 pitches aided by three double plays, each started at third base by Luis Rengifo, who was recalled Friday.

The night, however, unraveled quickly on Heaney. Jorge Polanco singled to left to open the sixth and advanced to second when Upton mishandled the ball. Heaney then walked Max Kepler before striking out Jake Cave, his final batter.

Reliever Aaron Slegers took over and allowed a two-run double to Mitch Garver to tie the score. Josh Donaldson then singled to give the Twins a 3-2 lead.

Etc.

Ohtani will throw another bullpen session Saturday as he continues his return from a blister problem. Maddon said the results will determine if he can pitch as early as next week. While he has reminded in the lineup as a designated hitter, Ohtani has been limited to one start on the mound, pitching 4-2/3 innings on April 4 in a 7-4 victory over the Chicago White Sox. … The Angels selected the contract of outfielder Scott Schebler before the game and designated outfielder Jon Jay for assignment. … Longtime Angels employee Tim Mead announced that he is stepping down as president of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in mid-May. Mead, 62, took the job April 30, 2019, following a 40-year career working for the Angels. In a statement, Mead cited family reasons.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.