Angels at Rays
Steven Souza Jr. hopes a big night can snap him out of a prolonged slump as his Tampa Bay Rays go for a split of their four-game series against the visiting Los Angeles Angels in the finale on Thursday afternoon. Souza, who batted .330 in April, belted a pair of homers and knocked in three runs in Wednesday’s 5-2 victory after starting the month 6-for-56 with 26 strikeouts.
“We all go through bad stretches,” Souza told FSN Sun, “and so (I was) just trying to get out of it, be aggressive and believe in the hitter I am.” Matt Andriese will attempt to get the Rays back to .500 as he takes the mound against fellow right-hander Daniel Wright, who replaces injured Alex Meyer (back) in the rotation. Future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols provided the only scoring for Los Angeles on Wednesday with a two-run homer in the first inning, pulling him within three blasts of becoming the ninth player in major league history with 600 in his career. Reigning American League MVP Mike Trout also notched his third multi-hit game in his last six outings for the Angels, who lost for just the third time in 10 contests.
TV: 1:10 p.m. ET, FSN West (Los Angeles)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Angels RH Daniel Wright (0-0, 5.54 ERA) vs. Rays RH Matt Andriese (4-1, 3.75)
Meyer was placed in the 10-day disabled list due to mid-back stiffness and Wright will try to match or better his lone start of 2017 when he recorded five scoreless innings against Toronto on April 23. The 26-year-old Arkansas State product has given up eight runs and 11 hits in eight innings out of the bullpen this season. Wright went 1-3 with a 5.40 ERA in five starts for the Angels in 2016 and opponents batted .314 against him.
Andriese has won three straight decisions after managing to get the victory last time out against the New York Yankees despite allowing five runs over five innings before being ejected for hitting Matt Holliday. The 27-year-old Californian had given up five runs (four earned) over 17 1/3 frames in the previous three outings. Cameron Maybin is 2-for-2 with an RBI against Andriese, who yielded one run over 10 innings in two outings versus the Angels in 2016.
WALK-OFFS
1. Los Angeles SS Andrelton Simmons extended his hitting streak to six games (11-for-24) on Wednesday with his fifth double in that stretch.
2. Tampa Bay placed RHP Diego Moreno (shoulder) on the 10-day disabled list and recalled RHP Ryan Garton from Triple-A Durham.
3. Trout is 20-for-57 with five homers and 15 runs scored in 16 career games at Tampa Bay’s Tropicana Field.