Cron's 2nd homer gives Angels wild win over Tigers
ANAHEIM, Calif. -- The Los Angeles Angels pounded out a season-high 17 hits but had to survive a late rally by the Detroit Tigers before pulling out an 11-9 win Tuesday night at Angel Stadium.
C.J. Cron's second homer of the night, a two-run shot in the bottom of the ninth off Tigers reliever Mark Lowe, won it.
The Angels hit the ball hard from the outset, homering in each of the first three innings and grabbing a 9-2 lead after four innings.
The Tigers, though, didn't go quietly. They made the most of their eight hits, as five of them went over the fence. The biggest was a grand slam by Ian Kinsler in the seventh inning that cut a 9-4 deficit to 9-8. Victor Martinez's homer in the eighth inning tied the game at 9-9.
However, the Angels managed to salvage the game. Albert Pujols led off the ninth with a walk off Lowe (1-3). Cron followed with the walk-off shot to left field.
Jefry Marte, called up from Triple-A Salt Lake earlier in the day, had four hits for the Angels, including a home run and a double. Mike Trout hit a three-run homer, singled, walked twice and scored twice, and Kole Calhoun and Cliff Pennington each had three hits.
All the offense allowed Angels starter Hector Santiago the luxury of going right after hitters, which he did. He gave up six runs and three home runs (to Miguel Cabrera, Justin Upton and J.D. Martinez) but walked only two in 6 2/3 innings. He struck out nine, one short of a season high.
Santiago and the Angels took a seemingly comfortable seven-run lead into the sixth before giving up a two-run homer to J.D. Martinez to make it 9-4. Then in the seventh, Santiago struck out two in the inning but also walked two, the second of which resulted in his exit from the game.
Angels manager Mike Scioscia brought in reliever Cam Bedrosian, who walked Jose Iglesias to load the bases, then surrendered a grand slam to Kinsler on a full-count pitch, and suddenly it was 9-8.
Bedrosian was swiftly removed from the game, but Fernando Salas gave up a game-tying home run to Victor Martinez in the next inning.
Tigers starter Anibal Sanchez lasted only three innings, allowing six runs on eight hits and two walks.
Both teams hit home runs in the early innings. Cabrera launched a Santiago pitch an estimated 449 feet in the first inning to give the Tigers a brief 1-0 lead.
In the bottom of the first, Cron hit a two-out, two-run homer to put the Angels up 2-1.
In the top of the second, Upton tied the game with a solo homer.
The Angels regained the lead in the bottom of the second inning when Trout hit a 3-1 pitch from Sanchez over the fence for a three-run homer, his 12th of the season. The blast gave Los Angeles a 5-2 advantage.
The Angels got their third homer of the game in the third inning when Marte hit a solo homer for a 6-2 advantage.
Sanchez was out of the game after three innings, but the Angels continued to hit the ball hard. Carlos Perez led off the fourth with a double off Tigers reliever Warwick Saupold, and one out later, Calhoun doubled home Perez.
The Angels added two more runs in the inning on a sacrifice fly by Cron and an RBI single by Marte to make it 9-2.
NOTES: The Angels called up INF Jefry Marte from Triple-A Salt Lake and optioned INF Kaleb Cowart to Salt Lake. Marte, who started Tuesday's game at third base, was hitting .381 (16-for-42) since being sent down to Salt Lake on May 19. Cowart played in just three games for the Angels, going 1-for-6. ... Tigers 2B Ian Kinsler went into the game having hit safely in 18 of 21 games, during which time he batted .337 (29-for-86). ... Angels 3B Yunel Escobar was not in the starting lineup, still recovering from a sore left wrist. He is day-to-day. ... Tigers C James McCann was charged with his first error Monday after 139 errorless games to start his career, a major league record for a catcher. ... Angels LHP C.J. Wilson had an MRI exam on his left arm, which showed no additional damage. There is no timetable for him to resume throwing.