Field Level Media
Apr 7, 2018
Justin Upton's two-out, three-run home run in the bottom of the seventh inning snapped a 9-9 tie and propelled the Los Angeles Angels to a 13-9 victory over the Oakland A's Friday night at Angel Stadium.
Upton's homer capped a five-run seventh inning for the Angels and highlighted their comeback from an early 6-0 deficit.
Upton's decisive blow, however, was made possible one batter earlier when the Angels had runners on second and third with two out, and Oakland holding a 9-7 lead. Zack Cozart hit a sharp ground ball to third baseman Matt Chapman, who backhanded the ball but threw to first base off line and in the dirt. First baseman Matt Olson could not scoop it, allowing two runs to score and tie the game.
After an intentional walk to Mike Trout, Upton hit a full-count pitch from A's reliever Blake Treinin over the fence in right center for a 12-9 Los Angeles lead.
Angels reliever Jim Johnson (1-0) got the win over Treinin (0-1) in a game in which neither pitching staff was very effective.
The Angels had 14 hits, including three each from Upton and Andrelton Simmons, and two each from Albert Pujols and Luis Valbuena. Shohei Ohtani hit his team-leading third homer of the season, his third straight game going deep.
The A's had 13 hits, five of which were home runs by Jed Lowrie, Matt Joyce, Marcus Semien, Chapman and Olson. Lowrie had three hits, while Olson, Chapman and Boog Powell each had two.
Angels pitcher Parker Bridwell, making his first start of the season after replacing the injured Matt Shoemaker in the rotation, was tagged early and often.
Lowrie hit a solo homer in the first before Oakland unloaded for five runs and a 6-0 lead in the second, getting homers from Joyce and Semien and chasing Bridwell after 1 2/3 innings of work.
The Angels, though, chipped away against Oakland starter Daniel Gossett.
Ohtani's homer got the Angels on the scoreboard in the second before they tacked on four runs in the fourth. Simmons had an RBI double, Valbuena had a two-run single and Martin Maldonado added an RBI single to make it 6-5.
Chapman's two-run homer in the fifth put Oakland in front 8-5, but the Angels responded with two in the bottom of the inning with an RBI single by Simmons and a bases-loaded walk by Ohtani.
The A's fifth homer of the night by Olson in the top of the seventh made it 9-7, before the Angels responded with their decisive rally in the bottom of the inning.
--Field Level Media