Cron leads Angels over Twins
ANAHEIM, Calif. -- C.J. Cron had three hits, three RBIs and two runs scored to lead a big night at the plate for the Los Angeles Angels in their 10-2 win over the Minnesota Twins Wednesday at Angel Stadium.
The win was the second in a row for the Angels, marking the first time they've won consecutive games since they beat Detroit May 30 and 31.
For the Twins, it was business as usual. They have lost 11 of their last 16 and at 20-45, have the worst record in the American League.
Cron had plenty of help as the Angels had 12 hits in all, including two each from Albert Pujols and Andrelton Simmons. The Angels essentially put the game away with a five-run fifth inning, knocking out Twins starter Tyler Duffey (2-6) in the process.
The Angels also got a welcomed strong outing from starting pitcher Hector Santiago, who was winless in his previous five starts. And it was worse than that -- he failed to last even three innings in three of those five starts.
Wednesday, though, Santiago was sharp -- he got through six innings on 99 pitches, allowed one run on just two hits and two walks to improve to 4-4, getting his first win since May 15.
The lone bright spot for the Twins was Joe Mauer's eighth-inning single. It extended his streak to 27 consecutive games in which he reached base either by hit, walk or hit-by-pitch.
Duffey didn't allow a hit through three innings, but shortstop Eduardo Nunez let Mike Trout's grounder go through his legs leading off the fourth and it proved costly to Duffey and the Twins.
One out later, C.J. Cron singled, Jefry Marte had an RBI single, Johnny Giavotella singled and Jett Bandy had an RBI groundout to put the Angels up 2-0.
Santiago, meanwhile, was sharp early, a stark contrast to his recent starts. He failed to last as long as three innings in three of his previous five starts, but he was perfect through three innings Wednesday and also managed to keep his pitch count down.
The Twins got their first hit of the game in the fourth when Nunez led off with a single, but Santiago responded by retiring the next three hitters. Santiago, though, created trouble for himself in the fifth with a leadoff walk to Brian Dozier.
One out later, Max Kepler walked and Kurt Suzuki followed with an RBI single to cut the Angels' lead to 2-1.
The Angels got to Duffey again in the bottom of the fifth, getting three hits and a walk to knock him out of the game. Yunel Escobar's leadoff double got the inning started, and by the time the inning was over, the Angels scored five runs.
The crushing blow of the inning came when the Angels had the bases loaded and two outs, leading 4-1 at the time. Jett Bandy hit a fly ball near the right-field line, a catchable ball. But Kepler overran the ball and it fell in for a single that scored two runs. Andrelton Simmons followed with an RBI single and the Angels had a 7-1 lead.
NOTES: Angels SS Andrelton Simmons was activated from the disabled list and in the starting lineup after being out since May 9 with a torn ligament in his left thumb. To make room on the roster for Simmons, SS Brendan Ryan was designated for assignment. ... Twins' starting pitchers entered the game with a 5.58 ERA, the worst in the majors. ... The first-inning single by Angels 1B Albert Pujols Tuesday was his 2,722nd career hit, moving him past Lou Gehrig and into 61st place on the all-time list. ... Twins CF Byron Buxton threw out Angels CF Mike Trout trying to score from second on a single to center in Tuesday's game, the throw timed at 99.4 miles per hour.