Angels 8, Rangers 5
Mike Trout and Albert Pujols each belted a two-run homer as host Los Angeles built an eight-run lead en route to evening the series at one win apiece.
Jered Weaver (18-8) rode the offensive eruption to his third straight - and American League-leading 18th - victory, allowing three runs and five hits in seven-plus innings as the Angels maintained their 2 1/2-game lead over Baltimore for the best record in baseball. David Freese slammed a three-run homer and Howie Kendrick matched Pujols with three hits for Los Angeles.
Adrian Beltre collected three doubles and two RBIs while Adam Rosales and Rougned Odor added run-scoring base hits for Texas, which had its season-high winning streak snapped at seven. Colby Lewis (10-14) was battered for eight runs - seven earned - and nine hits over five innings.
After Trout scored the first run on Kendrick's first-inning RBI double, he clubbed his 35th homer with a man aboard in the third to start the onslaught against Lewis. Trout barely missed another homer in the fifth and settled for a triple before Pujols followed with a towering blast to center field for a 5-0 advantage.
Kendrick and Erick Aybar kept the inning going with back-to-back singles before Freese launched a shot to center to make it 8-0. The Rangers ended Weaver's shutout bid with a run in the seventh before pushing across four in the eighth, a rally capped by Beltre's two-run double that cut the deficit to 8-5 and forced closer Huston Street to come on in the ninth for his 39th save.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Pujols joined Jimmie Foxx, Lou Gehrig, Alex Rodriguez and Al Simmons as the only players with 12 100-RBI seasons by the age of 35. ... Lewis surrendered three homers and has been taken deep 12 times in his last seven starts. ... Weaver, who improved to 69-28 at home, became the 14 AL pitcher to reach 1,400 strikeouts within his first nine seasons.