Angels

Ron Washington took a page out of the characterized version of himself from the 2011 film “Moneyball” when asked about how difficult it would be to revive the Angels’ sputtering offense.

“It’s hard,” the Angels manager said Friday. “It’s very hard.”

His response probably sounds familiar to “Moneyball” fans. In the film, the version of Washington, played by actor Brett Jennings, visits Scott Hatteberg — portrayed by Chris Pratt — at his home. Billy Beane — played by Brad Pitt — and Washington try to sell Hatteberg, a free-agent catcher with the yips, on playing first base.

“You don’t know how to play first base,” Beane says.

“That’s right,” Hatteberg replies.

“It’s not that hard, Scott. Tell em, Wash,” Beane quips.

“It’s incredibly hard,” Washington responds.

Finding ways to improve the Angels’ productivity at the plate could prove even more daunting. They have the second-most strikeouts (622) and second-fewest walks (163) in MLB. Washington understands it’s a problem, but acknowledges the solution isn’t easily attainable.

“Adjustments is something in the game of baseball that’s never ending, so we just got to keep making adjustments,” Washington said. “That’s it. If I knew, if anybody knew the adjustment to make to get an offense going, you would never see offense putter. That’s baseball. You just got to keep adjusting, readjusting, adjusting, readjusting, adjusting, readjusting, adjusting, readjusting.”

The Angels held the third-worst batting average (.229) and fourth-worst on-base percentage (.301) in MLB a year ago. Three months into the 2025 season, they’ve regressed. The team’s batting average stands at .225 heading into Monday and the team’s on-base percentage is considerably lower over last year at .287.

During the Angels’ eight-game winning streak in May, it seemed as if hitting coach Johnny Washington — in his second year with the team — discovered something to help the offense click. They tallied a .291 batting average and averaged almost eight runs a game.

The Angels then lost five consecutive games and entered Monday having lost nine of their last 14.

“I think it’s come down to guys just continuing the process with trying to simplify guys’ approaches, keeping it with their strengths, giving these guys the best chance to succeed versus a given pitcher, and continue the game plan,” Johnny Washington said. “Been doing it all year. There are some youth, but there’s a ton of growth taking place. I know it hasn’t been pretty at certain times, but it’s a great group.”

Angels manager Ron Washington talks to Chris Taylor during a win over the Mariners on Friday.

(Eric Thayer / Associated Press)

In their last two series against Boston and Seattle, there were encouraging signs on offense. The Angels scored five or more runs in four of the six games, and cut down on their strikeout totals, with seven or fewer strikeouts coming in four games.

Chris Taylor, who struggled at the plate since signing with the team on May 26, began making hard contact — going two for three in two of three games against the Mariners, homering for the first time this season on Saturday.

Sunday, however, proved to be much different. In the Angels’ 3-2 loss to the Mariners, the lineup struck out a season-high 18 times.

“I think it’s kind of just like snapping out of it,” said first baseman Nolan Schanuel on Friday, a day after the Angels returned from a six-game trip in which they averaged more than five runs a game. “We had a good stretch, got cold for a little bit, and snapped out of it and started to hit again.”

Infielder Kevin Newman, who has a team-low .200 on-base percentage and a .186 batting average (minimum 50 at-bats) added: “We’re pretty streaky, probably more streaky than we’d like to be. We’d like to definitely find some consistency, especially here at home.”

It’s no coincidence that the Angels are finding a little more success at the plate with Mike Trout back in the lineup.

Activated off the injured list on May 30, Trout has played as if he wasn’t out for a month with a bone bruise in his knee. He hit .476 across six games against Cleveland and Boston and has gotten on base in nearly half of his at-bats this month (.429 on-base percentage). On June 2 against Boston, the 33-year-old carried the Angels to victory with a three-hit, three-RBI game — hitting his second home run since returning from injury.

“It’s good to be able to at least hit and contribute,” Trout said, adding that his time on the injured list over the last two seasons had been frustrating.

Trout’s impact isn’t lost on teammate Taylor Ward.

“Having Mike back is — I mean, unbelievable, right,” Ward said. “A guy that can carry the offense.”

Taylor Ward, right, is congratulated by Mike Trout, left, after hitting a two-run home run against the Mariners on Sunday.

(Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)

Schanuel said he has watched Trout’s daily regimen closely since joining Angels two seasons ago. Ron Washington, who became the Angels’ manager last year, said he has marveled at how the three-time MVP prepares and trains. But even he was surprised at how quickly Trout began to contribute coming off injury.

“He still does things that other people on the baseball field can’t do,” Ron Washington said. “No doubt about it. You can get a 70% Mike Trout and it’d be 100% of a lot of players in this league. So hey, I was surprised, but then again, I’m not — because we are talking about Mike Trout.”

Even with Trout back, the Angels still have room for improvement. Although he’s hitting .241 with 14 home runs and 31 RBIs entering Monday, Logan O’Hoppe has walked just eight times, leading to a .273 on-base percentage. Luis Rengifo holds the second-lowest on-base percentage in the league at .242.

Will Trout’s return continue to rejuvenate the Angels’ offense and help them close the 5½-game gap to the first-place Houston Astros in the AL West? Time will tell.

“One of the greatest players of our generation,” Johnny Washington said about Trout. “He’s been a huge help to our offensive group, to us as coaches and as well to the players”

George Kirby struck out a career-high 14 during seven innings of two-hit ball, and the Seattle Mariners snapped their five-game losing streak with a 3-2 victory over the Angels on Sunday.

Kirby (1-3) issued no walks while retiring both his first 11 and his final 10 batters. His strikeouts were the most by a Mariners pitcher since James Paxton had 16 in May 2018, and he matched Miami’s Max Meyer for the most strikeouts in a major league game this season.

Donovan Solano drove in the go-ahead run in the fifth, and Randy Arozarena had an early RBI double among his three hits as the Mariners avoided a series sweep with their fourth win in 14 games.

Taylor Ward hit a two-run homer in the fourth for the Halos, who struck out 18 times overall while losing for only the second time in six games.

Andrés Muñoz earned his 18th save, returning from a week off and rebounding from back-to-back blown save opportunities in which he allowed his first earned runs of the entire season.

Muñoz walked Jorge Soler leading off the ninth, but struck out Mike Trout to end it.

Tyler Anderson (2-3) yielded eight hits with six strikeouts while pitching into the fifth inning of his ninth consecutive winless appearance.

Arozarena hit a 345-foot single in the fifth when he failed to hustle out of the box, but he stole second and scored on Jorge Polanco’s two-out single. Solano added another RBI single to chase Anderson.

Key moment: Trout was the Angels’ first baserunner with a two-out single, and Ward immediately followed with his 18th homer. Kirby regrouped and struck out Chris Taylor with a perfect slider on the corner.

Key stat: Trout tied Rafael Palmeiro’s major league record of 435 total bases against Seattle before scoring his 145th run against the Mariners to tie Rickey Henderson for that career record.

Up next: Yusei Kikuchi (1-5, 3.23 ERA) takes the Big A mound Monday night against the Athletics. Emerson Hancock (2-2, 5.19) pitches for the Mariners at Arizona.

Even in a building as massive as the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in downtown, the organ stands out. How could it not?

Standing 85 feet tall behind the right side of the altar, weighing 42 tons, featuring over 6,000 pipes and bearing the epic name Opus 75, it looks half smokestacks, half battleship and all awesome. It’s regularly used during Mass and has hosted organists from around the world since its 2003 debut.

But what’s coolest about Opus 75 — and what not enough people know — is that the Cathedral holds free lunchtime recitals featuring its star instrument on the first Wednesday of each month.

As an organ fanatic, I have long wanted to attend one. I finally had the chance this week.

A cathedral of and for L.A.

Accompanied by my Times colleague (and fellow classical music head) Ruben Vives, I arrived at the cathedral during the daily 12:10 service, just before the Eucharist. Resident organist Sook Hyun Kim worked the King of Instruments like the seasoned pro she is, including a moving version of “Make Me a Channel of Your Peace” — an apropos hymn for the era of Pope Leo XIV.

About 40 people representing the breadth of L.A. — white, Latino, Asian, Black and all age groups — spread out across the pews after Mass ended to listen to guest organist Emma Yim. The 22-year-old graduated from UCLA (Go Bruins!) two years ago with degrees in biology and organ performance. She is pursuing a master’s from our alma mater in the latter discipline, does research for a UCLA Department of Medicine women’s health lab and also plays the cello.

Man, and I thought I covered a lot of ground!

Her choice for the cathedral recital: three of the five movements from French composer Charles-Marie Widor’s Symphony No. 5. It would be Yim’s first time playing Opus 75.

Playing the King of Instruments

The first movement was mostly variations on a cascading theme. Kim stood to Yim’s side to flip the pages of the score while the latter’s hands leaped around the rows of the organ’s keys. Yim played at first like she didn’t want to tempt the power of the behemoth before her — the notes were soft and cautious.

But during Widor’s playful second movement, the young adults in attendance who had been on their smartphones began to pay attention. Heads began to sway with every swirl of Baroque-like chords that Yim unleashed. “I could hear elements of ‘Lord of the Rings’ in there,” Ruben whispered to me as we looked on from our center pews.

Opus 75 was waking up

She skipped two movements to perform the Fifth’s fifth, better known as Widor’s Toccata. Its soaring passages have made it a popular song for weddings. More people began to poke their head in from the hallways that ring the cathedral’s worship space to see what was going on. Yim became more animated as she worked the keys and foot pedals faster and faster. High-pitched arpeggios accentuated resonant bass notes.

Kim stopped flipping the score, stepped back and looked on in awe like the rest of us as Yim roused Opus 75 to its full might.

A performance that pushes us to a better place

The majesty of L.A. suddenly crossed my mind. Even in tough times like these, it’s unsurpassed in beauty, in its people and especially in its capacity to surprise and delight in places expected and not. It’s people like Yim and performances like hers that stir us all forward to a better place.

The recital ended. “Beautiful, just beautiful,” Ruben said, and I agreed. The applause the crowd gave Yim was swallowed up by the cathedral’s size and our sparse numbers, but she was visibly moved. “Thank you all for coming,” the youngster quietly said, and we all went off to our day.

Kim told Ruben and me that the cathedral’s organ series will take a summer break before it relaunches in September. See you then!

Today’s top stories

A for-sale sign is posted at a home on Lake Avenue that was destroyed by the Eaton fire.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Developers are buying up Altadena

Elon Musk and Donald Trump have very publicly broken up

UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk vows to restore campus trust amid ‘nervousness and anxiety’

• Since he took the helm this year at UCLA, Chancellor Julio Frenk has found himself in a vortex of unprecedented obstacles not only to his campus, but also to the nation’s institutions of higher education.
• In an interview, he defended scientific university research, diversity efforts, admissions practices and international students amid attacks from Trump, and said he wanted to “eradicate antisemitism.”

Candidates for California governor faced off in first bipartisan clash

• In the first bipartisan gathering of 2026 gubernatorial candidates, four Democrats and two Republicans agreed that despite the state boasting one of the world’s largest economies, too many of its residents are suffering because of the affordability crisis in the state.
• Their strategies on how to improve the state’s economy, however, largely embraced the divergent views of their respective political parties as they discussed housing costs, high-speed rail, tariffs, climate change and homelessness.

California petitions the FDA to undo Kennedy’s new limits on abortion pill mifepristone

What else is going on

Commentary and opinions

This morning’s must-reads

Other must-reads

For your downtime

(Carla Blumenkrantz / For The Times)

Going out

Staying in

A question for you: What’s the best advice you’ve gotten from your father or father figure?

Polly says, “My dad used to love the saying, ‘if you’re not living life on the edge, you’re taking up too much space!’ He would say it as reminder for himself and to my sister and I to not overthink things and to just let loose, stop worrying, or try something new.”

Peter says, “I was around 8 or 9 years old and prattling on about something I knew nothing about, when my father sternly admonished me. He said ‘Peter, you only learn when you listen, never when you talk.’ His words resonated and got me to my core.”

Email us at [email protected], and your response might appear in the newsletter this week.

And finally … your photo of the day

Sliding Fleetwood pocket doors open the airy kitchen and living spaces to the backyard.

(Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times)

Today’s great photo is from Times photographer Juliana Yamada at the Manhattan Beach home of Paul and Cailin Goncalves, who turned their formerly compartmentalized home and ADU into a bright, flexible family home.

Have a great day, from the Essential California team

Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Andrew Campa, Sunday writer
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters

How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to [email protected]. Check our top stories, topics and the latest articles on latimes.com.

Jo Adell homered twice, Chris Taylor also went deep and the Angels rallied from four runs down and beat the Seattle Mariners 8-6 on Saturday night.

Cal Raleigh homered twice — giving him a major league-leading 26 — and drove in four runs for the Mariners, who have lost five straight and 12 of their last 17 games.

Angels closer Kenley Jansen, who gave up Raleigh’s solo homer in the ninth, finished up for his 14th save.

Angels teammates Zach Neto, left, and Jo Adell celebrate after an 8-6 win over the Mariners on Saturday.

(Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)

Taylor replaced injured right fielder Jorge Soler (groin tightness) to start the second and led off with a homer off Mariners right-hander Luis Castillo (4-4). Two outs later, Adell hit a 431-foot solo shot to left-center to trim Seattle’s lead to 4-2.

The Angels took advantage of two Mariners errors to score twice in the third to tie the score 4-4, and Adell’s 445-foot homer to center put them ahead 5-4 in the fourth.

Doubles by Nolan Schanuel and Taylor Ward pushed the lead to 6-4 in the fifth, and Zach Neto’s RBI single made it 7-5 in the sixth. Adell added an RBI single in the seventh for a three-run lead as the Angels scored in six consecutive innings for the first time since 2011.

Adell is 13 for 32 (.406) with five homers, two doubles and nine RBIs in his last 10 games, raising his season average from .184 to .224.

Seattle center fielder Julio Rodríguez, who singled in his first two at-bats, was knocked out of the game in the third after Randy Arozarena’s hard grounder hit him above the right ankle while Rodríguez was trying to steal third base.

Cole Young doubled and scored in the second and hit an RBI single in the sixth for the Mariners.

Connor Brogdon (1-0) replaced Angels starter Jack Kochanowicz with runners on first and third and one out in the fourth. He struck out J.P. Crawford, walked Jorge Polanco and got Leody Taveras to fly out with the bases loaded to preserve a 4-4 tie.

Stephenson out indefinitely

A pair of MRI tests revealed no structural damage to Robert Stephenson’s surgically repaired right elbow, but the Angels reliever was diagnosed with a stretched biceps nerve that will sideline him indefinitely.

“The good news is there’s no major injury or anything. It’s just a matter of how long it’s going to take,” Stephenson said Saturday night before a game against the Seattle Mariners. “It could be something that disappears overnight. It could be something that takes a couple weeks or longer. They’re kind of tricky.”

The 32-year-old Stephenson was expected to be one of the team’s top relievers after signing a three-year, $33-million deal in January 2024, but he missed all of last season after undergoing an ulnar collateral ligament repair with an internal brace in May 2024.

When Angels closer Kenley Jansen induced a groundout from J.P. Crawford to end Friday night’s contest, he made sure to keep the ball.

In the Angels’ clubhouse after a 5-4 win over the Seattle Mariners, Jansen handed the ball to Kyle Hendricks. It was Hendricks’ to keep after he earned his 100th career victory.

Hendricks didn’t pitch his best game. The right-hander gave up eight hits and four earned runs along with two strikeouts and two walks over six innings. Still, his milestone capped one of the Angels’ better wins — an all-around team effort spearheaded by veteran players.

“I hate it being about me, so I appreciated keeping [the postgame celebration] short,” said Hendricks, who won 97 of his 100 games with the Chicago Cubs. [Manager Ron Washington] just said a couple words, and the guys pointed out Kenley keeping the last ball for me, handing it over. Just really cool and hugs all around.”

Clyde Wright, ninth on the Angels’ all-time wins list and Hendricks’ pitching coach during his teenage years in South Orange County, was at Angel Stadium on Friday. Wright, who ended his career with 100 wins, congratulated Hendricks in the clubhouse.

“I told him, I only took 23 years after our first lesson — 12-year-old, first lesson — and now, finally tied him,” Hendricks said.

Hendricks said he has built a solid bond with battery mate Travis d’Arnaud in recent starts.

“Really catching a groove, really learned me, and it’s just making things so much easier for me,” Hendricks said of d’Arnaud. “So I can’t thank him enough.”

Being part of Hendricks’ 100th win was “very special” for d’Arnaud, who also caught Charlie Morton’s 100th win with Atlanta in 2021.

“I’m very thankful and grateful that I was a part of it, and not only to be a part of it behind the plate, but also to help contribute at the plate,” d’Arnaud said.

Offensively, it was one of the newest Angels who helped lead them to victory.

Chris Taylor hadn’t done much at the plate since the Angels signed him nearly two weeks ago. Friday night at Angel Stadium, the former Dodgers utilityman put together his best game for the Angels so far — going two for three with a tying RBI double in his first multi-hit performance of the season (his first in the regular season since Sept. 28).

“That’s obviously the best game I’ve had in a minute,” Taylor said. “Just to hit the ball hard and drive in a run — do some things to help a team win, felt good.”

Angels second baseman Chris Taylor throws to first base after forcing out a Mariners runner at second in the first inning Friday.

(Eric Thayer / Associated Press)

Taylor also scored the decisive run in the fifth inning on a single from Nolan Schanuel. Even Taylor’s one out was loud. In the bottom of the sixth, Seattle center fielder Julio Rodríguez robbed Taylor of a two-run home run to dead center field.

In his first plate appearance in the third, Taylor scored on a single from Zach Neto to tie the score 1-1. After the Mariners retook the lead in the fourth, d’Arnaud tied the game again with a two-run home run in the bottom of the inning.

The Angels put together one of their better performances at the plate. They combined for seven hits and struck out just seven times. With their third win in four games, the Angels (29-33) are three games back of second-place Seattle (32-30) and 5½ games behind AL West-leading Houston (35-28).

Ryan Zeferjahn and Reid Detmers pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth, respectively, and Jansen tossed a scoreless ninth for his 13th save. Detmers hasn’t given up a run — across eight appearances — since May 17.

For Washington, Hendricks getting his 100th win was the cherry on top of a win over a division rival.

“I talk about two things, presence and performance,” Washington said. “[Hendricks’] presence is always around. And when he’s performing, you see him giving everything he has. Well deserved.”

The fans packed Angel Stadium last week, erupting when the star emerged from the dugout during pregame warmups, chanting “M-V-P” in his honor during the game.

Aaron Judge and the New York Yankees had arrived in Anaheim, and the old ballpark was abuzz.

“Anywhere we play,” Judge said, “it’s a playoff atmosphere.”

Angels fans haven’t seen a playoff game in 11 years, so there were plenty of good seats available for Yankees fans. In the top of the first inning, Judge grounded out.

In the bottom of the first, the Angels’ star strutted into the spotlight. Zach Neto led off the inning by launching a 440-foot home run — the longest of his career — and flipping his bat so dramatically that Major League Baseball celebrated on social media.

The Angels lost the game, but their shortstop rose to the occasion in a way his team so often has not. We would say Neto is a star in the making, with pop in his bat and swagger in his game, but he already is a star.

An All-Star.

“One hundred percent. For sure. No doubt,” said Angels closer Kenley Jansen, himself a four-time All-Star.

Baseball turns its All-Star ballot live Wednesday, and there is no shortage of Dodgers players worthy of votes. If Judge does not get the most votes overall, Shohei Ohtani should.

Freddie Freeman entered play Tuesday batting .368, and he leads National League first basemen in WAR. Will Smith is batting .331 and leads NL catchers in WAR. Shortstop Mookie Betts and outfielder Teoscar Hernández figure to attract some votes, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto should be one of the pitchers selected.

The Dodgers had six All-Stars last year. The Angels had one: pitcher Tyler Anderson.

This year, Neto ought to be that guy. His 10 home runs lead American League shortstops. Among all major leaguers, only Ohtani has more leadoff homers than Neto.

“It’s a no-brainer he is our All-Star this year,” Jansen said.

Angels shortstop Zach Neto high-fives a fan before a game against the Marlins at Angel Stadium in May 24.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Neto is one of seven major leaguers with 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases in their last 162 games. The others: Ohtani, Ronald Acuña Jr., Corbin Carroll, Francisco Lindor, José Ramírez and Kyle Tucker.

Lindor is the only other shortstop in the group. That makes Neto a star in a rather bright constellation.

“He’s a superstar in the making,” Jansen said.

Neto almost certainly would need to be voted in by his peers, or selected by the league office. Even his manager admits Neto has virtually no chance to be voted in by the fans.

Angels manager Ron Washington said Neto is “definitely” an All-Star but suggested Bobby Witt Jr. of the Kansas City Royals, the runner-up to Judge as AL most valuable player last season, would be voted the starting shortstop.

“I think he is going to be the guy,” Washington said.

And Neto?

“They need some backup,” Washington said. “It doesn’t matter if you make the All-Star team as a backup. You made the All-Star team.

“I think he’s got the opportunity to do just that.”

Angels shortstop Zach Neto gives the safe sign as he slides on his belly across home plate ahead of the tag during a game against the Giants in April.

(Wally Skalij / Associated Press)

Gunnar Henderson of the Baltimore Orioles started at shortstop for the AL last season. Jeremy Peña of the Houston Astros has a better WAR than anyone in the AL except Judge, according to Baseball Reference. Jacob Wilson of the Athletics has a better OPS than Witt, and he is batting .355 — better than anyone in the majors besides Judge and Freeman.

“With all the shortstops out there, he is just going to have to bide his time,” Washington said of Neto. “Hopefully, he gets chosen.”

The fans select the starters, and the players in the AL and NL select the backups in their respective leagues. If the fans vote Witt, do enough AL players appreciate Neto’s game?

“Yeah,” Washington said, laughing, “because he bust their [butt].”

Said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts: “Love him. Certainly, his skill set plays. And, for him to be — what, a couple years removed from college? — I just love that he just has that feel for leadership. He’s already a leader. I can see it from the other side.

“He’s sort of like that old-school gritty ballplayer. He can beat you a lot of ways. He’s quickly going higher on the list of players I love to watch.”

The league office completes the All-Star rosters, in large part to ensure each team has at least one representative. It is not a given that Neto would be the Angels’ representative.

If two or three other shortstops are chosen, the league office could opt for catcher Logan O’Hoppe or, if position players are fully stocked, pitcher Yusei Kikuchi. If Mike Trout stays healthy and gets hot, the league office could give fans across America the Angels player they would most want to see.

Yet there is no question that Neto is the Angels’ best player this year, and a star for years to come.

“This guy,” Roberts said, “is going to be an All-Star for a long time.”

That time should start now.

BOSTON — Ceddanne Rafaela curled a home run around the Pesky Pole in the bottom of the ninth inning on Wednesday and the Boston Red Sox rallied after trailing four different times to beat the Angels 11-9.

The Angels blew 4-0, 7-5, 8-7 and 9-8 leads, with Rafael Devers bouncing a chopper between the gloves of second baseman Chris Taylor and shortstop Zach Neto behind second base to tie it 9-9 in the eighth.

Each of the first three times the Red Sox scored, the Angels answered with runs of its own. But after walking Mike Trout to lead off the ninth, Cooper Criswell (1-0) got the next three batters out to give Boston a chance to walk it off.

In the bottom half, Abraham Toro singled with one out and Rafaela hit a 308-foot liner over the short wall that goes from the foul pole toward the bullpens in right.

Taylor Ward had four RBIs for the Angels, who were going for the three-game sweep.

Key moment

Before recording his first out, Red Sox starter Lucas Giolito allowed four runs on two doubles, two singles and a homer. Then Angels starter José Soriano gave up four singles and two walks to make it 4-3 before striking out Rafaela on his 25th pitch of the inning.

David Hamilton’s two-run double with one out gave Boston a 5-4 lead.

Key stat

Combined, the starting pitchers, allowed 14 runs in 5 1/3 innings.

Up next

The Angels are off Thursday, with RHP Kyle Hendricks (2-6, 5.34 ERA) slated to start the opener of a three-game series against Seattle on Friday night. The Red Sox are off Thursday before starting a three-game series in New York against the Yankees.

BOSTON — Automatic runner Zach Neto scored on Taylor Ward’s bases-loaded double-play groundout to lift the Angels to a 4-3 victory over the Boston Red Sox in 10 innings on Tuesday night.

Nolan Schanuel had two RBIs and Neto added two hits and an RBI to give the Angels consecutive wins for the first time since capping an eight-game win streak on May 23.

Kenley Jansen (1-2) pitched a scoreless ninth inning to pick up the win a night after getting a save and Reid Detmers got his first save.

Schanuel led off the 10th with a sacrifice bunt that was bobbled by reliever Zack Kelly (1-2), allowing Neto to advance to third. Mike Trout then walked to load the bases.

Kelly went 3-0 to Ward before he grounded into the double play. But it allowed Neto to score to put the Angels in front.

Ceddanne Rafaela had two RBIs for Boston. Jarren Duran also had an RBI.

Angels starter Yusei Kikuchi pitched five innings plus three batters, giving up three runs and eight hits with five walks. He also struck out five, including his 900th major league strikeout.

Zach Neto leans away from an inside pitch in the ninth inning.

(Robert F. Bukaty / Associated Press)

Boston’s Brayan Bello ended a five-game streak of not making it through at least five innings. He lasted six innings, giving up three runs and seven hits.

Key moment

With Boston trailing 3-1 in the sixth, Trevor Story led off with a walk. Rafaela then jumped on Kikuchi’s 89 mph slider, driving it 426 feet over the Green Monster for his fifth homer of the season. It was Kikuchi’s final hitter of the game.

Key stat

Boston drops to 6-17 in one-run games this season.

Up next

Angels right-hander José Soriano (4-5, 3.41 ERA) faces Red Sox right-hander Lucas Giolito (1-1, 4.78) in the series finale.

BOSTON — Mike Trout had three hits, including a three-run, 454-foot homer off the left-center field light stanchion in the Angels’ six-run first inning on Monday night and Los Angeles held on to beat the Boston Red Sox 7-6.

Zach Neto homered to lead off the game, and the Angels opened a 5-0 lead before before Red Sox starter Richard Fitts (0-3) recorded his first out. Jo Adell also homered in the first and added another solo shot in the sixth after Boston cut the lead to 6-5.

Jarren Duran had three hits for Boston, including a double to start the four-run fifth inning. Ceddanne Rafaela homered to make it 7-6 in the eighth.

Ryan Zeferjahn (3-1) was credited with the win, pitching a scoreless seventh inning and striking out two. Kenley Jansen pitched the ninth for his 11th save, getting Romy Gonzalez on a line drive to the warning track in right to end it.

Boston scored four in the fifth to make it 6-5 and loaded the bases in the sixth before reliever Reid Detmers got cleanup hitter Carlos Narváez on a slow chopper to third to end the inning.

Trout spent a month on the injured list with a bone bruise on his left knee. He returned on Friday and has gone 8 for 14 since then.

Key moment: Neto’s homer was followed by a walk, single, error and Trout’s homer. One out later, Adell added a solo homer.

Key stat: With hits in his first three at-bats, Trout reached 1,675 in his career, passing Tim Salmon for second all-time in franchise history. Garret Anderson is first with 2,368.

Up next: Boston RHP Brayan Bello (2-1) faces Angels LHP Yusei Kikuchi in the second game of the three-game series.

CLEVELAND — José Soriano threw six scoreless innings, Mike Trout had a hit in his return to the Angels’ lineup in a 4-1 win over the Cleveland Guardians on Friday.

Jo Adell had three hits and an RBI and Jorge Soler hit a solo homer down the left-field line in the ninth inning as the Angels snapped a five-game losing streak.

Cleveland’s José Ramírez had his 21-game hitting streak snapped. He drew a walk in the eighth inning to extend his on-base streak to 26 games.

The Guardians, who have dropped four of their last five, avoided a shutout on Nolan Jones’ RBI single to right with two outs in the ninth.

It was the third time this season Soriano (4-5) has gone at least six innings and not given up a run. The right-hander yielded just four hits with two strikeouts and four walks.

Trout, activated off the injured list after he missed 26 games due to a bone bruise on his left knee, lined out to Ramírez at third in his first at-bat before he lined a base hit to left-center in the fourth inning.

Adell singled to right with one out in the second to drive in Soler, who drew a walk off Luis Ortiz (2-6) to lead off the inning.

The Angels added a pair of runs in the seventh when Scott Kingery scored on a passed ball and Soler had a run-scoring single to center.

Key moment: The Guardians had the bases loaded with two outs in the fourth inning, but Soriano got Gabriel Arias to chase a 98-mph sinker for the strikeout.

Key stat: Trout went one for five and batted fifth as the designated hitter. It was the first time since Sept. 26, 2011, the three-time American League MVP started a game hitting lower than third.

Up next: RHP Kyle Hendricks (2-6, 5.23 ERA) goes for the Angels while RHP Slade Cecconi (1-1, 3.27 ERA) takes the mound for the Guardians.

CLEVELAND — Mike Trout originally expected to return to the Angels’ lineup on Monday in Boston.

It turns out the timeline was moved up one series and three days.

Trout was activated off the injured list before Friday night’s game against the Cleveland Guardians. The Angels slugger missed 26 games with soreness in his left knee eventually diagnosed as a bone bruise. The three-time American League MVP had two operations last year on the knee after tearing his meniscus.

“I’m just itching to get out there,” Trout said before the game. “I think came out of the other day (of running bases) good. I wasn’t too sore or anything, I told them I was good enough to go out there and have some good at-bats.”

Trout’s return comes with something he hasn’t done in his 15-year big league career. This will be the first time in 1,532 starts that he will be hitting fifth in the lineup.

The only other time Trout batted fifth in 1,547 previous games was on May 14, 2022, against the Athletics, when he entered in the fourth inning and finished the game in center field.

“We know where Mike Trout is in the order. It doesn’t matter where he is hitting, he could be hitting ninth,” Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. “It’s got to be a different feeling for sure for them. I mean, he’s been in the two or three hole for what, 12 years now? But he’s still a really good player.”

Manager Ron Washington is happy to have Trout back, especially since he noted Trout wasn’t aggressive in rushing back. Washington also knows that Trout isn’t ready to return to his normal spot batting second or third.

“He hasn’t seen anything. So when you look at what we have, that’s where he sits,” Washington said. “It doesn’t make sense for him to protect (Logan) O’Hoppe. So I’ll put Mike behind him to protect O’Hoppe. He’s not ready to be at the top of the lineup, especially with those guys up there. As we go along the next couple of days, he’s not going to remain fifth.”

The 33-year old Trout was hitting .179 with nine home runs, 18 RBIs and a .727 OPS in 29 games before the injury. He will be the designated hitter for the weekend series against the Guardians before possibly returning to right field when the Halos head to Boston on Monday for a three-game series.

Even though Trout has shied away from wanting to be the designated hitter, he has done well in that spot. In seven games this season, he is eight for 28 (.286) with six home runs and nine RBIs.

Trout said whether or not he plays more games than originally planned at DH the remainder of the season is something that remains to be seen.

“Bone bruises are tricky. I know I am going to be sore but I can deal with it,” he said. “I definitely have to be cautious, especially the first couple games.”

Trout’s return comes with the Angels on a five-game skid after an eight-game winning streak that included a three-game sweep of the defending World Series champion Dodgers. Los Angeles were 25-30 going into Friday’s game.

“There’s so many games that any sense of newness or something to make you excited is something that you’d latch on to. So today is definitely a moment like that,” O’Hoppe said about Trout’s return. “He’s the heart of this organization. So we’re happy to have our heart beating again for sure.”

Trout has missed 404 of the Angels’ 664 games — almost 61% — since May 17, 2021, when he tore his calf muscle against Cleveland and was sidelined for the rest of that season. This is the fifth straight year he has had a stint of at least 25 games on the IL.

He missed five weeks of the 2022 season with a back injury, and all but one game after July 3 in 2023 after he broke a bone in his hand on a foul ball. Trout played in 29 games last season before the meniscus injury.

The hope was that the Angels could use Tuesday’s ninth-inning rally to muster up something worth talking about at the plate.

On Tuesday, Yoán Moncada homered. Taylor Ward singled. Luis Rengifo brought home a run with a line drive up the middle. Despite falling a run short, stringing a few hits together showed that the Angels could build off each other to produce runs.

However, instead of breaking through as an offense, the Angels were shut out by the Yankees 1-0 on Wednesday night, securing a sweep and turning the Angels’ eight-game win streak of weeks past into more of a blip on the radar than a sign of life.

Catcher Logan O’Hoppe struck out looking to end the game on a breaking ball well off the strike zone. After the game, O’Hoppe was adamant that it was a ball, as was manager Ron Washington, but said it’s just part of the game and “out of our control.”

Regardless, the Angels were scoreless entering their final three outs again — Angel Stadium playing home to an offense in need of a pulse check.

“I don’t know,” O’Hoppe said when asked about the skidding offense. “I don’t know, but we’re not gonna panic. We gotta have, what, 100 games left, so we’re not gonna panic.”

Entering the game, the Angels (25-30) walked the least and struck out the second-most in MLB. Wednesday was mostly more of the same. The Angels drew two walks, one of them with two out in the ninth, but were able to snap their three-game streak of double-digit strikeouts — punching out just eight times.

Washington managed the game as if his team needed the victory. He tried anything to salvage a homestand in which the Halos ultimately dropped five of six and scored just three runs. When Aaron Judge walked to the plate in the first and second innings, Washington greeted the Yankees slugger — owner of the top batting average (.391) in MLB — with a free base.

The strategy that made Judge the first Yankees player to intentionally walk twice in the first two innings of a game since Gene Woodling on Aug. 30, 1953, worked once, but led to the only run of the game in its other appearance.

“He’s dangerous — a lot of respect, lot of respect,” Washington said, referencing a moment in which Judge flashed four fingers to him in the seventh on the on-deck circle. “I don’t know what could have happened in that game if I wouldn’t have walked him those first two times. You don’t mess with that. I don’t care how he’s swinging the bat, you don’t mess with that if you don’t have to.”

After Judge was walked with a man on in the first, Cody Bellinger walked — one of Angels starting pitcher Yusei Kikuchi’s five walks — to load the bases. The next batter, Anthony Volpe, hit a sacrifice fly to center field and brought home a run.

Kikuchi (93 pitches, 51 for strikes) struggled with command once again, with his league-high walk rate rearing its ugly head. The Japanese southpaw loaded the bases in each of the first two innings, but settled down to make it through five innings, giving up five hits and striking out four. Despite Kikuchi battling through the fifth — and the Angels bullpen tossing four scoreless innings — with how the Angels have been at the plate over their last five games, one run was all the Yankees needed Wednesday.

“It was tough navigating through the first couple innings there, but I think the fourth and fifth inning went really well,” Kikuchi said through an interpreter. “I think I ended off on a good note.”

In perhaps the biggest cheer of the night at the Big A, right-hander Ryan Zeferjahn struck Judge out looking with a 99.1-mph fastball in the seventh inning.

Those cheers, however, turned to boos as O’Hoppe trotted back to the dugout as the final out. Now, the offense will look to recover away from Anaheim and see if it can rediscover what made it click against the Dodgers and Athletics.

Cleveland and Boston await the Angels next as they’ll first face the Guardians at Progressive Field on Friday to begin their six-game trip.

Angels reshuffle roster

The Angels made a flurry of roster moves before Wednesday’s game, designating veteran infielder Tim Anderson and catcher Chuckie Robinson for assignment, while optioning left-hander Jake Eder to triple-A Salt Lake City.

In corresponding moves, right-handed relief pitcher Robert Stephenson — who’d been out after undergoing Tommy John surgery in April 2024 — was activated off the 60-day injured list, and infielder Scott Kingery was recalled from triple-A Salt Lake City.

Washington said his hope for Stephenson, who signed a three-year, $33-million deal with the Angels before the 2024 season, is to be eased back into a high-leverage role. Stephenson said he is looking forward to the role he can play on the major league roster.

“To me, it’s like, probably just like, up there with making my debut,” said Stephenson, who made his season and Angels debut Wednesday, tossing a scoreless sixth inning. “I feel like it’s gonna be pretty special for me.”

Kingery, on the other hand, hasn’t appeared in the major leagues since 2022. Bursting on the scene as a top prospect with the Philadelphia Phillies, he featured heavily in the 2018 and 2019 campaigns after signing a six-year, $24-million contract extension before making his MLB debut.

The 31-year-old, who Washington said will play center field, second base and third base, put up 2.7 wins-above-replacement in 2019 before struggling to find any resemblance to his previous success — playing in just 16 combined games in 2021 and 2022 — and was eventually traded to the Angels in November 2024 after spending most of the last four seasons in the minor leagues.

“It’s hard, it’s a hard game,” Kingery said. “Stuff happens throughout your career, and you got to find ways to battle that and just keep on going. Just keep the foot on the pedal and find ways to make things work.”

Trout nears return

Mike Trout (left knee) continues to check the boxes as he nears a return from the injured list. The longest-tenured Angel and three-time MVP faced live pitching from a minor league pitcher on Wednesday, and performed baserunning drills with more intensity than earlier this week, Washington said.

Washington added that Trout began to cut and stop while running, but he still wasn’t going at 100%.

“Came out of it very well,” Washington said. “He looks good.”

Trout was hitting .179 with nine home runs and 18 RBIs before suffering a bone bruise in his left knee on April 30.

Carlos Rodón pitched seven scoreless innings of five-hit ball, and Devin Williams barely survived a perilous ninth inning to earn his first save since April 17 in the New York Yankees’ 3-2 victory over the Angels on Tuesday night.

Yoán Moncada homered in the ninth as the Angels ended a stretch of 16 scoreless innings in the series with two runs and three hits off Williams, the Yankees’ embattled new reliever. Williams lost the closer role last month after a shaky beginning to his New York tenure, and he hadn’t had a save opportunity since April 25.

After Moncada led off the ninth with a homer on his 30th birthday, Taylor Ward and Luis Rengifo singled to put runners on the corners with one out. Ward scored when Jo Adell grounded into a forceout, but Williams got pinch-hitter Logan O’Hoppe on a foul popup to secure his fifth save and the Yankees’ seventh straight series win.

Tyler Anderson (2-2) held the Yankees to five hits and one unearned run over six innings, but the Angels have scored just five runs during their four-game skid after an eight-game winning streak.

Ben Rice and Oswald Peraza homered and Anthony Volpe had an RBI single for the defending AL champion Yankees, who have won four in a row, eight of nine and 15 of 19 to surge seven games ahead of second-place Tampa Bay in the AL East.

Rodón (7-3) tied his season high with 10 strikeouts and didn’t walk a batter while winning his third consecutive start. He struck out Chris Taylor with a runner in scoring position to end the seventh, slotting a fastball in the bottom of the zone with his 105th and final pitch. Opponents are batting just .164 against the left-hander, the lowest mark in the majors among qualified pitchers.

Jack Kochanowicz mowed through his first three innings against the Yankees on Monday night.

The 6-foot-7 sinkerballer was doing all of what manager Ron Washington asked of him before the game: pitch to contact and let his defense do the work.

“Just be Jack,” Washington said. ‘Throw his sinker, change, eye-level, put the ball in play early — which is when he’s at his best. That’s what he does. So that’s all. I’m not looking for him to be nothing more than that, and if he’s that, it’ll be good enough.”

Nine up, and nine down on 28 pitches — Kochanowicz looked “good enough.” He was hurling just as efficiently as he did against the Dodgers on May 16 when he limited the Angels’ crosstown foes to just one run across 6 ⅔ innings. As he jaunted to the mound for the fourth, the crowd woke up, rising in volume; but not for Kochanowicz.

“Let’s go, Yankees,” the fans in the right-field seats of Angel Stadium bellowed, much like the “Bleacher Creatures” would back in the Bronx. First baseman Ben Rice singled, and then center fielder Trent Grisham did too. Following a rousing ovation, designated hitter Aaron Judge — who upped his batting average to a league-high .398 — loaded the bases on an infield single.

As Yankees fans roared louder, Kochanowicz hiccuped. The sophomore starting pitcher walked Cody Bellinger on four pitches to bring in a run, and two batters later, Anthony Volpe hit a bases-clearing double off the center-field wall to power the Yankees (33-20) to a three-run lead. It was more than enough to take down the Angels (25-28), who struggled to string together hits for the third consecutive game in a 5-1 loss to open the series.

“Always just comes down to pitch calling,” Kochanowicz said. “It’s very easy to ask yourself a million questions about every pitch you throw, but I think I just — I came at them hard that inning. I didn’t start anyone off with the breaking ball. So that was probably it.”

Shortstop Zach Neto led off the bottom of the first with a 440-foot solo home run to center field — the longest of his career — but it was all the Angels had to offer at the plate. Before the game, Washington called his offense young and inconsistent.

The Angels offered more of those characteristics against the Yankees and left-hander Ryan Yarbrough.

Outside of a fluke infield single from Jo Adell, Neto’s home run was all the Angels mustered against the funky, sidearm delivery of the New York southpaw through six innings.

“The way we were swinging the bat, I did think that we would have at least three or four guys in that line of constantly clicking,” Washington said after the Angels were limited to five hits. “Miami come up in here and put us away, and then now we fight to try to find it back again.”

Yarbrough easily dispatched Chris Taylor — who started in center field and went 0 for 3 with two strikeouts in his Angels debut — for a flyout and second baseman Kevin Newman for a strikeout to end the fifth.

“Yarbrough did a good job,” Taylor said. “Shut us down for the most part.”

The sixth inning was no better as the top of the Angels’ lineup went down 1-2-3 and Yarbrough exited with his longest and arguably best start of the season, striking out seven. The Angels struck out 11 times in the game.

“Sustaining that offense that we had,” Washington said when asked before the game about matching the offensive rhythm of the Angels’ eight-game winning streak, “it’s impossible.”

Outside of his four-run, fourth inning, Kochanowicz was in the “midseason form” he described himself in on Sunday. The right-hander pumped his fastball as high as 97.3 mph and averaged 95 on his sinker, both a tick below his season averages. Four of his 6 ⅔ innings concluded in 1-2-3 fashion.

“I thought he was good, really,” Washington said. “Those first three innings, he was dominating. … If we could just take [the fourth inning] back it’d be a different ballgame.”

Kochanowicz struck out five and walked two, giving up just five hits. But the Angels’ offense didn’t back up their pitchers, sending them to a three-game losing streak.

Note: Angels catcher Logan O’Hoppe was removed from the game in the eighth inning after being hit in the head on a backswing from Yankees second baseman Jorbit Vivas. O’Hoppe was removed as a precaution, Washington said, and was unavailable for comment after the game. “[O’Hoppe is] telling me he can play [tomorrow], but we’re going to wait and see,” Washington said.

Former Dodgers utilityman Chris Taylor signed a one-year, major league minimum contract with the Angels on Monday.

Taylor will start in center field against the New York Yankees on Monday and bat eighth.

Angels prospect Kyren Paris, who was struggling at the plate in recent weeks — hitting just .190 — was optioned to triple-A Salt Lake City to make room for Taylor on the roster.

“He’s been through the wars,” Angels manager Ron Washington said of Taylor, adding that the Angels plan to use him in the outfield and the infield. “He’s a good piece for those young guys to talk to about how to handle a grind. He’s been in a grind over there with L.A., every day, winning, and we want that.”

Released by the Dodgers in the final year of his four-year, $60-million contract last week, Taylor was hitting .200 with seven hits in 35 at-bats before entering free agency.

A career .250 hitter and a one-time All-Star, the 34-year-old Taylor has experience playing in the infield and all three outfield positions, adding versatility and depth to an Angels team waiting for outfielder Mike Trout’s return from the injured list (knee). Angels closer Kenley Jansen, who played alongside Taylor on the Dodgers from 2016 to 2021, learned of Taylor’s signing while on his way to Angel Stadium.

“It’s nice to have him back,” said Jansen, who said he spoke to Angels general manager Perry Minasian about Taylor on Sunday. “I think once he gets more playing time here, I think, you know, it’s going to be great for the organization and help us win ball games.”

When asked about Taylor’s release Wednesday, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said his former longest-tenured position player was looking for an opportunity to play more often rather than accepting a demotion to triple-A.

“He wanted an opportunity, if it wasn’t going to be here to play more, to play somewhere else,” Roberts said. “So that’s kind of the thought behind how it played out, and I respect him for betting on himself and hopefully get an opportunity to play more somewhere else.”

Angels manager Ron Washington knew his team needed cultural adjustments.

It wasn’t just handling the 40-man roster general manager Perry Minasian assembled. The 73-year-old skipper, in his second season leading the Halos, identified a characteristic missing from last year’s Angels. Washington said his goal was for the Angels to become a family.

Looking back on two weeks ago, when the Angels stumbled to a 17-25 record after a hot start to begin the season, Washington said he felt the buy-in to the family ideology already seeped into the walls of the clubhouse — featuring a roster makeup mixing veterans with postseason success along his young starters across his infield. The results, however, were yet to come.

“My clubhouse was already jelled,” Washington said. “We just had to start playing good baseball.”

The Angels didn’t just play good baseball. They were the best in baseball across the last two weeks. With seven of eight victories coming on the road — a three-game sweep of the Dodgers and a four-game sweep of the Athletics — the Angels riddled off an eight-game winning streak. The run was the franchise’s best since 2014 when the Angels won 10 straight and clinched a postseason berth (their most recent playoff appearance).

“We’re not going to win them all,” said shortstop Zach Neto, referring to Saturday’s loss to the Marlins that broke the Angels’ streak. “It was a matter of time. But we’ve been playing really good baseball. It’s another day today. We get to come out, play, play the game we all love.”

After dropping Saturday’s game to the Marlins (21-30) in 6-2 fashion, the Angels (25-27) couldn’t respond Sunday, falling 3-0 to Miami to lose the weekend series. Marlins right-hander Edward Cabrera sailed through 5 2/3 shutout innings, striking out 10 as the Angels’ offense struggled to produce for back-to-back days and tallied just three hits.

“I don’t think we’re ever going to reach that roll,” Washington said postgame about the Angels’ offense, compared to their winning streak bat-to-ball skills. “We’re going to get to the point where we swing the bat well, and I’m at the point right now where I knew we wasn’t going to be doing what we did, but I thought we would be consistent throughout the lineup and making something happen, but the pitching [Miami] threw at us the past couple days thought otherwise.”

Saturday and Sunday’s offensive production featured the opposite of the Angels’ winning streak.

Players such as veteran outfielder Taylor Ward were hitting the cover off the ball. The 31-year-old former first-round pick tallied a hit in each game of the eight-win run, hitting a home run in five of the contests amid a 10-game hitting streak and franchise-tying nine-game extra-base hit streak. On Sunday, both streaks came to a close. Ward struck a ball down the line just foul in the sixth inning, striking out to end the inning instead of bringing two runners in scoring position home.

The Angels, as a whole, socked 19 home runs across the eight-game stretch — the power appeared to help them surge to third place in a division more than up for grabs.

“Everyone’s whacking homers all the time,” said Jack Kochanowicz, the Angels’ second-year starting pitcher who shut down the Dodgers for 6 ⅔ innings of one-run ball on May 16. “It’s just good vibes in here right now.”

As Angels first base coach Eric Young Sr. put it, last year’s team featured young upstart talent — Neto, catcher Logan O’Hoppe and first baseman Nolan Schanuel — trying to make a name for themselves on a roster circling the drain of the American League West.

In 2025, all three have taken the next step.

“They’re playing better baseball than they did last year,” Washington said. “They are more consistent right now than they were last year. Are they a finished product? Not by a long shot, but we like the progress. And that’s what the game of baseball is — progression.”

O’Hoppe (.272 batting average, 14 home runs and 30 RBI) is slugging almost .100 points higher than a year ago to a .543 clip. Neto (.284 batting average, eight home runs and 19 RBI) is hitting close to .300 for the first time in his career, coming back from a right-shoulder surgery that kept him out of action to begin the season. Schanuel (.281 batting average, .382 on-base percentage and has walked just as much as he’s struck out with 26 apiece) has developed into the Angels’ surefire everyday first baseman in his second full season at Angel Stadium.

The trio has year in, year out All-Star potential should the Angels play their cards right. O’Hoppe is under team control until 2029, while Neto and Schanuel are under team control until 2030.

“We realize, the veterans realize, that those guys are going to be the leaders of the Angels in the future, if not now,” Young said. “They probably have more leadership than they know, because we can’t let them know too much right now because they are still young, but they are learning and processing.”

And despite the eight-game turnaround turning into a two-game skid to end the weekend against the Marlins, Young knows the Angels could turn it back around on a dime.

“I don’t remember in my major league career going on an eight-game winning streak,” he said. “And you know, you always say, ‘Hey, we’re gonna start a new one today.’ Well, you never know, it’s got to start somewhere.

“So why not go out there and win today?”

The Angels will have their next chance to jump back in the win column Monday when the New York Yankees come to Angel Stadium for a three-game series.

Connor Norby had three hits, including a three-run homer in the seventh inning, and the Miami Marlins ended the Angels’ eight-game win streak in a 6-2 win Saturday night.

Norby’s third home run came on a 1-2 pitch from reliever Caden Dana (0-1) as Miami stopped a three-game slide.

Taylor Ward doubled and scored in the ninth — giving him an extra-base hit for the 10th straight game, an Angels record.

The Marlins took a 1-0 lead in the second against starter José Soriano when Liam Hicks walked leading off and scored on a two-out single by Ronny Simon.

Angels pitcher Jose Soriano delivers against the Marlins in the first inning Saturday at Angel Stadium.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Zach Neto doubled leading off the fourth and Yoán Moncada’s one-out single put runners at the corners, ending Marlins starter Cal Quantrill’s night after just 46 pitches. Ronny Henriquez (2-1) entered and gave up a tying sacrifice fly to Ward before striking out Jorge Soler to keep it 1-1.

Eric Wagaman had a two-out RBI single in a two-run fifth to put Miami up 3-1.

Janson Junk yielded one run and six hits in five innings of relief against his former team for his first career save.

Soriano (3-5) gave up three runs and seven hits in 4 2/3 innings.

The Marlins loaded the bases with nobody out in a 1-1 score in the fifth. Soriano got a double-play grounder from Kyle Stowers that made it 2-1, and Wagaman blooped a single to center for a two-run lead and Miami never looked back.

The Angels also had a team-record seven-game stretch of hitting multiple home runs end.

Up next: Marlins RHP Edward Cabrera (0-1, 5.50 ERA) starts Sunday’s finale against Angels RHP Kyle Hendricks (2-5, 5.32).

Taylor Ward hit his 15th home run and the host Angels beat the Miami Marlins 7-4 on Friday night for their eighth straight win.

Ward’s solo homer in the second inning gave him seven, including two grand slams, in his past 11 games. Jorge Soler also hit his seventh homer giving the Angels (25-25) at least two homers in a club-record seven straight games. They have homered in 13 consecutive games, the longest active MLB streak.

Ward added a sacrifice fly and Logan O’Hoppe an RBI double for a 3-0 lead in the fourth.

Catcher’s interference, a hit-by-pitch and a sacrifice fly with the bases loaded made it 6-0 in the sixth.

Yusei Kikuchi (1-4) went 5 2/3 scoreless innings, giving up seven hits and four walks while striking out five. He picked up his first win in 11 starts this season. Kenley Jansen walked two in the ninth but got his 11th save in 11 opportunities.

Ward’s homer gave him an extra-base hit in nine straight games, tying Darin Erstad (1998) for the club record.

Sandy Alcantara (2-7) went 5 1/3 innings, giving up six runs, five earned, with two walks and six strikeouts for Miami (19-30).

Eric Wagaman had three hits including his fourth homer of the season in the seventh and a two-run single in the eighth.

Kyle Stowers had an RBI double among his three hits. He has a 20-game on-base streak and has hit safely in 10 straight.

Key moment: Hunter Strickland relieved Kikuchi with two outs and the bases loaded in the sixth. Liam Hicks hit a soft grounder that shortstop Zach Neto charged and threw to first to barely get Hicks.

Up next: Miami’s Cal Quantrill (3-4, 6.47 ERA) pitches against the Angels’ José Soriano (3-4, 3.57) on Saturday.

WEST SACRAMENTO — Taylor Ward hit a go-ahead grand slam, Logan O’Hoppe also homered in a five-run seventh inning and the Angels rallied past the skidding Athletics 10-5 on Thursday for their seventh consecutive victory.

Ward and O’Hoppe both connected off reliever Grant Holman (4-1), sending the A’s to their ninth loss in a row.

It was the second go-ahead slam in 10 days for Ward, who finished with three hits and five RBIs. He has an extra-base hit in eight straight games — one shy of the club record set by Darin Erstad in 1998.

Ward has 17 RBIs in his last 10 games. He and O’Hoppe each have 14 homers this season. Zach Neto also had three of the Angels’ 13 hits.

The Angels (24-25) completed a 7-0 trip, winning four games against the Athletics to sweep them on the road for the first time in 28 years. The Angels have hit multiple home runs in six consecutive games for the third time in franchise history (also 1961 and 2019). It’s only their third seven-game win streak in the last 10 seasons.