Griffin Canning had his best start of the season, Taylor Ward homered and the Los Angeles Angels beat the Oakland A’s 5-1 Monday night in Anaheim, Calif.
Canning was winless in his previous six starts, his last victory coming May 15 against St. Louis. But he turned things around with his longest outing of the season — seven innings — while allowing only a solo homer to Tyler Nevin.
Canning (3-8) gave up five hits, walked one and struck out five while making 97 pitches. Only two A’s baserunners got as far as second base against him — Nevin on his home run and Miguel Andujar on a sixth-inning double. Canning promptly picked off Andujar, thwarting a potential Oakland rally.
The Angels had eight hits, including two each from Luis Rengifo, Willie Calhoun and Zach Neto.
The Angels took the lead in the first inning against A’s starter Luis Medina when Rengifo was hit by a pitch and scored on Ward’s two-run homer, his team-leading 13th blast of the season.
The A’s got one run back in the second inning Nevin’s fifth homer, slicing the Angels’ lead to 2-1.
The Angels loaded the bases with no outs in the third inning, then scored their first run of the inning on a sacrifice fly by Logan O’Hoppe. Medina struck out Neto for the second out, but the Angels scored a second run in the inning when A’s first baseman Tyler Soderstrom couldn’t handle a line drive by Mickey Moniak, the ball deflecting off Soderstrom’s glove for an error and the Angels going up 4-1.
Medina (1-3) was finished after three innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on four hits and two walks. He struck out four and made 79 pitches.
The Angels increased their lead to 5-1 in the sixth after back-to-back doubles by Neto and Moniak.
–Field Level Media
