wade meckler

Wade Meckler, Jo Adell lead Angels’ rout of Astros

Wade Meckler and Jo Adell keyed a five-run second inning with two-run doubles, and Walbert Ureña navigated heavy traffic through five shutout innings to lead the Angels to a 10-1 victory over the Houston Astros on Tuesday night.

Houston put two runners on in the first, second and fifth and loaded the bases in the third, but Ureña (4-4) pitched out of each jam to lower his ERA to 2.44 on the season and 1.84 in eight starts since early May.

The 22-year-old right-hander gave up three hits, struck out seven and walked five in his 107-pitch effort, which included a 97-mph fastball to whiff Joey Loperfido with the bases loaded to end the third.

The Angels scored two unearned runs off starter Kai-Wei Teng (3-5) in the first, one when Nolan Schanuel was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and the other on Oswald Peraza’s RBI grounder.

Backup catcher Sebastián Rivero sparked the Angels’ second-inning rally with a one-out single. Zach Neto was hit by a pitch and Mike Trout ended an 0-for-22 slump with a single to load the bases.

Meckler doubled to left-center for two runs and a 4-0 lead. Adell doubled to left to make it 6-0, and Peraza’s RBI groundout extended it to 7-0.

The Angels added three insurance runs in the eighth on Trey Mancini’s sacrifice fly and RBI groundouts by Peraza and Denzer Guzman. Relievers Brent Suter, Drew Pomeranz and Kirby Yates covered the final four innings.

Schanuel, who has been slowed by a left ankle injury, exited after three innings because of left calf tightness.

Rivero, who also singled in the third and has seven hits in his last seven at-bats, was removed in the fifth because of a left wrist injury.

Jack Kochanowicz to have Tommy John surgery

Angels pitcher Jack Kochanowicz needs Tommy John surgery, the team said Tuesday, and the 25-year-old right-hander is expected to be sidelined through the 2027 season.

The Angels also said that third baseman Yoán Moncada will have surgery on his balky right-knee. But, the specifics of the procedure and a timetable for the switch-hitter’s return were not known.

Kochanowicz went 2-5 with a 6.19 ERA in 13 starts this season, striking out 47 and walking 36 in 64 innings.

The hard-throwing sinker-ball specialist went 2-1 with a 3.05 ERA in his first seven starts, but was ineffective during his next six starts, going 0-4 with an 11.91 ERA, striking out 17 and walking 15 in 22 2/3 innings.

Kochanowicz’s fastball averaged 97 mph and touched 99 mph against the Dodgers, but he said after the game that his arm bothered him when he threw his changeup.

“Honestly, I didn’t think this was in the cards,” Kochanowicz said before Tuesday’s game against Houston. “I really thought it was just a little angry.

“I mean, my velo was fine, the fastballs, everything was fine. It really was just the changeup.

“I thought it was just kind of general soreness. … I thought I was going to hear back today that it was all right, but man, it is what it is.”

Manager Kurt Suzuki said the Angels are “still evaluating” their options for Kochanowicz’s replacement in the rotation. Among the candidates are left-hander Sam Aldegheri and triple-A right-handers Caden Dana and George Klassen.

Moncada, 31, who signed a one-year, $4-million deal with the Angels in February, was placed on the injured list because of right-knee inflammation on May 22 and transferred to the 60-day injured list on Monday.

He hit .189 with a .605 OPS, three homers and 10 RBIs in 41 games.

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Wade Meckler continues hot start as Angels rout the Rockies

Wade Meckler and Nick Madrigal each had four of the Angels’ 16 hits, Walbert Ureña pitched six solid innings and the Angels beat the Colorado Rockies 11-4 on Wednesday night.

Meckler is batting .389 (14 for 36) with two homers and 10 RBIs since he was recalled from double-A on May 22.

Vaughn Grissom added a homer and three RBIs, and Oswald Peraza had two hits and two RBIs to help the Angels — who tied their season high with the 16 hits — avoid a three-game sweep.

Ureña (3-4) gave up three hits and three runs. He struck out seven and walked three, cooling a Colorado lineup that scored 39 runs in its previous five games. The 22-year-old right-hander, who moved from the bullpen to the rotation in mid-April, has a 2.08 ERA in his last seven starts.

The Angels bunched six hits in a six-run second, the rally featuring Jose Siri’s RBI double and RBI singles by Logan O’Hoppe, Grissom and Peraza. Two runs scored on wild pitches by Michael Lorenzen (2-8), who gave up eight runs and 10 hits in 3 1/3 innings.

The Rockies cut it to 6-1 on back-to-back doubles by Hunter Goodman and Troy Johnston in the fourth, but the Angels countered with Grissom’s two-run homer in the bottom of the inning for an 8-1 lead.

Colorado pulled to 8-3 in the fifth on Tyler Freeman’s two-run homer, but the Angels answered again in the bottom half on Jo Adell’s RBI single for a 9-3 lead. Doubles by Meckler and Peraza and Madrigal’s RBI single pushed the lead to 11-3 in the sixth.

Relievers Drew Pomeranz, Ryan Zeferjahn and Kirby Yates covered the final three innings for the Angels.

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Wade Meckler starts Angels’ rout of Rays with a grand slam

Wade Meckler hit his first grand slam in the majors for the first of Los Angeles’ four homers in the Angels’ 14-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday.

Meckler connected off Drew Rasmussen (4-2) in the first inning. He also singled and stole a base.

Mike Trout hit his 14th homer of the season in the fifth and Jo Adell and Oswald Peraza had back-to-back shots in a seven-run ninth. Trout, the major league walks leader, also walked twice and scored three of the Angels’ season-high 14 runs.

Tampa Bay lost for just the second time in its last 18 home games.

Yandy Díaz’s 24th career leadoff homer, his second in two games, put the Rays on the board in the first. But Angels starter Reid Detmers (2-5) pitched out of a bases-loaded jam.

Junior Caminero doubled in the third inning, when his popup dodged the Tropicana Field catwalks before landing in the infield. But Detmers left him at second and Tampa Bay finished one for 12 with runners in scoring position, stranding 11 overall.

Four Angels relievers combined to one-hit the Rays over the final four innings.

In the top of the seventh inning, Angels shortstop Zach Neto scored on Ian Seymour’s wild pitch. Hip-checked by Seymour on the play at the plate, Neto remained on the dirt for several minutes before athletic trainers helped him to his feet. He walked off on his own power but did not return.

Neto’s replacement, Nick Madrigal, left in the top of the ninth inning after Andrew Wantz’s pitch ricocheted from Madrigal’s hand to his face. Adam Frazier pinch ran for Madrigal.

Up next: Angels RHP Jack Kochanowicz (2-3, 4.99 ERA) was set to start against LHP Shane McClanahan (5-2, 2.52) on Sunday in the series finale.

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