choice

Isaac Collins had two hits and two RBIs and the Kansas City Royals used a five-run outburst in the fourth inning to beat the Angels 6-3 on Friday night.

Noah Cameron (2-1) worked 6⅓ innings, striking out six and allowing eight hits and three runs for his first quality start of the season. Royals starters have combined for 14 quality starts, tied for second in MLB with Seattle.

Starling Marte knocked in the first run of the game on a fielder’s choice in the fourth. Collins drove in another, and beat the throw home to score on Elias Díaz’s two-run double. Michael Massey drove in Díaz to cap the inning.

The Angels tried to rally in the seventh. After Zach Neto‘s RBI single chased Cameron, Mike Trout drew a bases-loaded walk and Jo Adell drove in another run on a fielder’s choice.

The Angels (12-15) didn’t get another hit as Nick Mears, Daniel Lynch IV, Matt Strahm, and Lucas Erseg combined for 2⅔ hitless innings of relief to preserve the lead. Erseg struck out two in the ninth for his sixth save.

Yusei Kikuchi (0-3) allowed five hits, five runs and struck out five in five innings.

The Royals (9-17) earned their first win against a left-handed starter in seven tries this season. Their 0-6 record against southpaws heading into the game was tied for the worst mark in the majors.

Up next: Angels RHP Walbert Ureña (0-2, 2.35) starts against Royals LHP Cole Ragans (0-4, 6.00) in the second game of the series.

No. 1-ranked UCLA, known for its powerful batting order from one to nine, turned to its pitching staff on Friday in New Jersey to pull out a 4-1 victory over Rutgers in 14 innings. It was UCLA’s 25th consecutive win. The Bruins are 31-2 and 16-0 in the Big Ten.

Starting pitcher Logan Reddemann tied a UCLA record with 18 strikeouts in eight innings. Four UCLA pitchers combined to strike out 30 batters, one shy of an NCAA record. Zach Strickland came through with three innings of scoreless relief, striking out seven. Easton Hawk got the save by striking out the side in the bottom of the 14th.

UCLA had left 16 runners on base until finally breaking through in the top of the 14th. The Bruins loaded the bases with one out, then broke the 1-1 tie on a fielder’s choice. Aidan Espinoza followed with a two-run pinch-hit single.

Congratulations to all the young athletes and their teams on The Times All-Area high school basketball teams. I do wonder about the choices the seniors are making in their commitments to colleges and I look to The Times to explain why UCLA is seemingly not on the radar for these young players.

It used to be known that the Bruins’ academic requirements were a significant barrier to many high school players. Is that still true? Are the local graduates not the cream of the crop that Southern California was known for in past years? Are NIL deals affecting the choices of these future freshmen? Is UCLA not making a strong outreach effort for the top local talent? Is L.A. so awful for these kids that it isn’t even on their radar to stay close to home?

I am sure I am not alone in seeking clarity around the issue of the exodus of local talent to Missouri, Oregon State, Texas, North Carolina, Nevada, and even more confounding, USC.

David Gerne Echt
Torrance

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“Reckless war of choice.” US House of Representatives Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries criticised Donald Trump for what he called a failure to adequately prepare for the consequences of launching a war on Iran.