Los Angeles @ Los Angeles preview
Dodger Stadium
Last Meeting ( Apr 3, 2010 ) LA Angels 6, LA Dodgers 4
The Los Angeles Angels suffered what seemed to be a season-changing setback last month when slugging first baseman Kendry Morales broke his leg in freak accident.
The Angels, however, have collectively picked up the slack in Morales’ absence.
The Angels seek to win nine games on a road trip for the first time in 26 years when they visit the in-state rival Los Angeles Dodgers today.
The Angels lost Morales – their best hitter – on May 29 when he broke his leg after being mobbed at home plate following his walk-off grand slam against Seattle.
He had surgery on Thursday and the team finally admitted he is out for the season.
It is a huge loss for the Angels. Morales was leading the team in average (.290), home runs (11) and RBIs (39) prior to the freak injury.
But like most good teams, the Angels have responded to adversity. Los Angeles is 9-3 since Morales’ injury and has outscored opponents 71-46 in that span.
It truly has been a team effort.
Erick Aybar, who fell a home run shy of the cycle earlier this week, is hitting .431 (19-for-44) with six RBIs in his last 11 games. In addition, Torii Hunter has 11 RBIs in the past 10 games and Hideki Matsui is batting .400 (16-for-40) this month.
The Angels are looking to improve to 9-3 on their season-long 14-game road trip. They haven't won nine road games in a single trip since 1984.
The Angels were denied their first attempt at a ninth win Thursday, when they managed just six hits off Trevor Cahill in a 6-1 loss to Oakland.
They will try to rebound behind Joel Pineiro (4-6, 5.23), who is 2-0 with a 3.38 ERA in three starts against the Dodgers.
He allowed four runs and nine hits in six innings of a 6-1 win over Seattle on Sunday.
Pineiro faces a Dodgers team that is hotter than the Angels.
The National League West-leading Dodgers have four straight and 23 of their last 30 games. Manny Ramirez hit a two-run homer as Los Angeles completed a three-game sweep of St. Louis with a 4-3 win Wednesday.
Chad Billingsley (6-3, 3.80) takes the ball for Los Angeles. The right-hander is 4-1 with a 2.77 ERA in his last six starts.
On Saturday, he allowed three runs and seven hits in six innings of a 9-3 loss to Atlanta. Billingsley is 1-2 with a 2.89 ERA in six appearances – four starts – vs. the Angels.
This is the first meeting between the teams this season. The Dodgers went 3-3 vs. the Angels last season, but have lost 13 of the last 20 meetings.