Trout homers again on birthday, but Angels fall to Rangers

Mike Trout homered again on his birthday, but Robinson Chirinos drove in two runs without a hit and the Texas Rangers snapped a three-game losing streak with a 4-3 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Friday night.

Trout turned 29, and homered for the fifth time in the seven big league games he has played on his birthday.

The three-time AL MVP put the Angels up 2-0 in the first with his 444-foot drive over their bullpen in left-center. It was Trout’s fourth homer in four games since rejoining the team after the birth of his first child, and his fifth overall this season.

Chirinos had a sacrifice fly in the second inning, then walked with the bases loaded as part of a three-run fourth when the Rangers went ahead to stay when all of those runs were unearned.

Jordan Lyles (1-1), one of three offseason additions to the Rangers rotation, struck out five in 5 1-3 innings. Rafael Montero, activated from the injured list earlier in the day, worked a perfect ninth for his first career save capped by Trout's game-ending strikeout.

Angels starter Griffin Canning (0-2) threw more balls (45) than strikes (43) while walking six batters in 3 2-3 innings.

Canning walked three in the fourth, including Chirinos with the bases loaded, then his throw into center field on an attempted pickoff that allowed another run was one of two Los Angeles errors after two outs in the inning. The bases were still loaded when reliever Mike Mayers hit Nick Solak with a pitch before Rougned Odor’s inning-ending strikeout.

Los Angeles went up 3-1 in the top of the fourth when Albert Pujols hit his 662nd career double and scored on a single by Max Stassi, who had taken over as the Angels catcher an inning earlier after Jason Castro was ejected for the first time in his 833 career games over 10 seasons.

Castro was upset after striking out on a check swing in the second inning and got tossed by Edwin Moscoso, the rookie fill-in umpire who made the call from third base.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Angels: OF Jo Adell (tight right quad), the top prospect who made his big league debut Tuesday, missed his second game in a row. Manager Joe Maddon said the rookie was doing much better and could be back in the lineup Saturday.

Rangers: RF Joey Gallo was out of the lineup with a sore right wrist after going 1 for 11 in three games at Oakland, including seven strikeouts his previous eight at-bats. ... 2B Odor (right oblique) was the DH in his first game since Saturday. ... LHP Joe Palumbo (ulcerative colitis) was placed on the 10-day injured list.

UP NEXT

Kolby Allard (0-0) makes his second start since taking over in the rotation for two-time AL Cy Young winner Corey Kluber. The Angels will bring up lefty Patrick Sandoval from their alternate training site before Saturday’s game.

Image credits: AP