Angels fall short on offense and defense in loss to Blue Jays – Daily News

Angels fall short on offense and defense in loss to Blue Jays – Daily News

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Angels starting pitcher Davis Daniel throws to the plate during the first inning of their game against the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday night at Angel Stadium. (AP Photo/Jayne-Kamin-Oncea)

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ANAHEIM — The difference between victory and a defeat came down to a few inches on Monday night.

The Toronto Blue Jays lined three balls just out of the reach of all three Angels outfielders in the third inning, producing the four runs they would need in the 4-2 victory in the opener of the three-game series at Angel Stadium.

The closest call came on a two-run homer by Leo Jimenez that capped the four-run third. Angels center fielder Mickey Moniak leaped for the ball, but just missed it, throwing his glove in the air out of frustration afterward.

“He gave a great effort,” Angels manager Ron Washington said. “I wish he would have brought it back, it would have been a different game.”

Blue Jays starter Bowden Francis did his part, limiting the Angels to one run and one hit in seven innings. Francis (5-3) struck out a career-high eight and did not walk a batter in his sixth major-league start.

“We didn’t put anything together where we could threaten,” Washington said. “By the time that kid got in the seventh inning, he wasn’t even sweating.”

The offensive stars of the game were two of the five rookies in Toronto’s lineup, second baseman Will Wagner and Jimenez at short.

Wagner, the son of seven-time All-Star closer Billy Wagner, doubled on the first pitch of his major-league career before finishing 3 for 4 with an RBI and run scored for the Blue Jays (55-64), who ended a two-game skid.

Wagner is the fourth player in franchise history with at least three hits in his debut.

Jimenez’s home run was the first of his major-league career.

Angels starter Davis Daniel (1-4) was also making his sixth major-league start and he didn’t fare nearly as well, allowing four runs and eight hits in five innings. The right-hander struck out five and walked two.

Mickey Moniak and Jo Adell homered to account for both runs for the Angels (52-67), who were coming off an East Coast road trip in which they went 3-3 with two extra-inning losses.

“We had a chance to pick and peck back in the game, but tonight we just couldn’t get no offense going,” Washington said. “We’ll just have to pop back tomorrow.”

The Blue Jays were 0 for 5 with runners in scoring position through the first two innings before Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a one-out line drive that barely cleared the head of left fielder Taylor Ward for a double.

Spencer Horwitz then hit a line drive that fell just out of the reach of Adell in right as he raced toward the line. The ball bounced over the fence for a ground-rule double, scoring Guerrero for a 1-0 lead.

After getting a strikeout, Wagner rolled a two-strike changeup up the middle for his first major-league RBI and a 2-0 lead.

Wagner was acquired from the Houston Astros on July 29 along with right-hander Jake Bloss and outfielder Joey Loperfido in exchange for veteran left-hander Yusei Kikuchi.

Following Wagner’s RBI single, Jimenez laced an 0-and-2 pitch that narrowly cleared the fence in center, stretching the lead to 4-0.

The Angels made first-pitch outs in the first three innings and Francis set down the first 10 batters overall before Moniak lifted the second pitch he saw into the seats in right field to cut it to 4-1.

Francis then retired the final 14 batters he faced.

“We went out and tried to attack (Francis) too soon and didn’t get a chance to see what he was doing,” Washington said. “By the third inning, he only had 20 pitches, so we were getting on him too soon.”

Moniak, who came in 7 for 13 in his past three games and 11 for 25 for the month, scored at least one run in his fourth straight game for the first time in his MLB career.

Adell made a difficult catch in the ninth to rob Daulton Varsho of a solo home run and then hit an opposite-field homer in the bottom half of the inning to cut it to 4-2.

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