Angels 2, Yankees 1
ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Andrew Heaney gave up just two hits in seven innings to lead the Los Angeles Angels to a 2-1 win over the New York Yankees Tuesday night at Angel Stadium.
It was just the second big league start of the season for the 24-year-old lefty, who was called up from Triple-A Salt Lake on June 24. The only run he allowed came on a home run from first baseman Mark Teixeira in the second inning. It was Heaney's first big league win.
The Angels offense didn't do much with Yankees starter Ivan Nova, but back-to-back home runs by first baseman Albert Pujols and shortstop Erick Aybar in the sixth were enough to help the Angels win their fourth in a row.
At 41-37, the Angels are four games over .500 for just the second time this season. With the loss, the Yankees are also 41-37.
Heaney (1-0) was in control the entire evening, striking out seven and never letting the Yankees put more than one runner on base in any inning. He also got key double-play grounders in the sixth and seventh innings.
Nova (1-1) avoided early trouble, getting outs in big situations. He gave up five hits in the first three innings, and the Angels were 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position through five innings.
But in the sixth, the Angels went deep twice. For Pujols, it was his 13th homer of the month, tying the club record for home runs in any month (Mo Vaughn, May 2000; Tim Salmon, June 1996). It also was Pujols' American League-leading 24th homer of the season, and 544th of his career, three shy of tying Mike Schmidt for 15th place on the all-time list.
The tie-breaking blow was struck by Aybar, his homer over the center-field fence his second of the year. Nova gave up the two runs on eight hits and two walks in 5 1/3 innings.
Joe Smith (eighth inning) and Huston Street (ninth inning, 23rd save) finished it off for the Angels.
Heaney pitched well early, giving up only two hits through the first five innings. Problem was, one of the hits was a solo homer by Teixeira leading off the second inning for a 1-0 New York lead.
In the first inning, singles by right fielder Kole Calhoun and center fielder Mike Trout gave the Angels runners at first and third with one out. However, Nova struck out Pujols and got Aybar on a groundout to end the inning.
In the second, Los Angeles third baseman David Freese and left fielder Matt Joyce opened the inning with consecutive singles, but they were still standing on first and second two outs later. Second baseman Johnny Giavotella walked to load the bases, but Nova retired Calhoun on a grounder to escape again.
NOTES: Yankees DH Alex Rodriguez entered the game having hit safely in 11 of 12 games, batting .381 (16-for-42) with three homers, 13 RBIs and a .481 on-base percentage during that stretch. He wound up going 0-for-4 Tuesday. ... Angels RHP Joe Smith, typically manager Mike Scioscia's eighth-inning reliever, began the night with a major-league-leading 21 holds. ... Yankees RHP Dellin Betances struck out 53 of his last 110 batters faced through Monday. He led all major league relievers with 62 strikeouts. ... The Yankees began the night with the majors' biggest home/road split in scoring runs. They average 5.77 runs per game at Yankee Stadium, 3.86 on the road. ... New York RHP Adam Warren was moved to the bullpen in a move that many expected after one turn through a six-man rotation. ... The Angels are 26-0 this season when holding their opponent to two runs or fewer.