Reid Detmers (2-0) matched his career high with 12 strikeouts over six sharp innings for the Angels, who have won five of six. Four Angels pitchers combined on a three-hitter, with Carlos Estévez working the ninth for his third save.
“We were attacking the strike zone, getting guys to swing early,” Estévez said after the quartet racked up 14 strikeouts. “What Detmers did out there was amazing, and we showed him we’ve got his back.”
Jarren Duran had an early RBI single, but Boston didn’t get a hit after the fourth. The Red Sox dropped to 6-3 on their season-opening West Coast trip when their bats couldn’t make up for two fielding miscues in the sixth.
The biggest was made by Devers, whose ugly misplay on Anthony Rendon’s topspin-heavy grounder allowed Luis Rengifo and Mickey Moniak to score.
Boston manager Alex Cora remained staunchly behind Devers, who has finished five of the past six seasons among the top five in the majors in errors.
“He’s my third baseman, and he’s going to play a lot of third base here,” Cora said. “He’s made some improvements. Everybody saw it in spring training. He just missed a play today, but overall he’s been pretty solid for us for the last two months.”
Pablo Reyes went 0 for 3 with three strikeouts in his first start of the season at shortstop for the Red Sox, who put Trevor Story on the 10-day injured list before the game with a dislocated left shoulder.
Detmers was impressive throughout his second straight effective start, allowing just one run on three hits and a walk. Cora called Detmers’ fastball “electric,” saying the left-hander has impressed him repeatedly over the past two years.
“They’re a good club, and you have to mix it up, change speeds and change their eye levels,” said Detmers, who has 19 strikeouts in two starts. “(Catcher Logan) O’Hoppe and I had a good game plan going into it and had some success.”
Garrett Whitlock pitched four scoreless innings before the Angels chased him with a rally in the fifth, although Greg Weissert (0-1) escaped the jam. Whitlock yielded four hits and four walks.
Detmers struck out six of Boston’s first seven batters, but Connor Wong hustled for a double leading off the third and scored on a single by Duran, the Orange County product who had dozens of friends and family members in the stands Friday to see his decisive eighth-inning homer.
Duran then made a diving catch in left field in the fifth to steal a hit from Mike Trout, likely saving a run. Triston Casas and Enmanuel Valdez also made diving defensive plays in the early innings for the Red Sox, whose defense improved significantly after several mistakes Friday.
But one inning later, the Angels scored both their runs with a two-out rally on Boston miscues. Zach Neto loaded the bases when Reyes couldn’t make a clean play on his grounder to shortstop, with Moniak hustling from first to second before the throw.
Trout made a running catch on Duran’s 397-foot line drive to the wall to end Boston’s eighth inning.
Torii Hunter threw out the ceremonial first pitch a few hours after the Angels announced they had hired the former Halos outfielder as a special assistant to the general manager.
Up next: Tanner Houck (1.0, 0.00 ERA) closes the trip for Boston in the series finale Sunday against Chase Silseth (0-0, 9.00).