ANAHEIM, Calif. – Jeff Mathis hit a bases-loaded sacrifice fly in the 12th inning that scored Vernon Wells and the Los Angeles Angels beat the Cleveland Indians 4-3 on Wednesday.
Wells singled sharply into the hole off the glove of shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera with one out in the 12th, only his fifth hit in 49 at-bats this season.
Chad Durbin (0-1) walked Alberto Callaspo, and both runners advanced on a wild pitch to Mark Trumbo. An intentional walk to Trumbo loaded the bases.
Mathis hit a fly to medium center field and Wells streaked home ahead of Michael Brantley's throw. Last season, Mathis beat the Indians by the same 4-3 score in the 16th inning with a sacrifice fly.
Hisanori Takahashi (1-0) posted his first AL victory with two perfect innings. The left-hander was 10-6 with the Mets last season as a rookie with 3.61 ERA in 53 appearances, including 12 starts.
Ervin Santana, still looking for his first win of the season, gave up three runs and six hits over seven-plus innings and struck out three. The right-hander, who has spent his entire seven-year career with the Angels and defeated every American League team except Cleveland, entered the eighth with a 3-2 lead and departed after giving up a leadoff single to Adam Everett.
Brantley greeted Scott Downs with a single that sent Everett to third. Everett was caught in a rundown and tagged out by third baseman Callaspo after he fielded Cabrera's grounder.
Brantley and Cabrera both advanced on Downs' wild pitch, and Brantley scored the tying run on a groundout by Shin-Soo Choo.
Cleveland had runners at the corners with one out in the fourth, but Santana escaped the jam on a double-play grounder by Orlando Cabrera, whose comebacker deflected off the pitcher's glove to second baseman Howie Kendrick.
The Angels got three in the bottom half against Carlos Carrasco for a 3-1 lead. Kendrick led off with a double in the gap and circled the bases on a throwing error by Orlando Cabrera, who inexplicably vacated the second base bag to join shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera in short left field for the cutoff throw.
Bobby Abreu then drew his sixth walk of the three-game series and Torii Hunter followed with a drive over the wall in left-center, the 15th homer by the Angels this season and only the second with anyone on base.
Cleveland got a run back in the fifth when Everett beat out a two-out single to deep shortstop and scored on Brantley's double high off the 18-foot wall in right field.
NOTES: Indians RHP Joe Smith, who began the season on the 15-day disabled list because of a strained abdominal muscle, is expected to be activated on Friday for the opener of a three-game series against Baltimore at Progressive Field. CF Grady Sizemore and INF-DH Jason Donald, who have been on rehab assignments with Double-A Akron, will join Triple-A Columbus on Thursday for a game at Toledo. ... Angels relievers have not been charged with a run in 22 innings over their last seven games, after giving up 14 runs and six homers in 18 1-3 innings during the team's first five games of the season. ... The Angels begin a six-game road trip Friday night at Chicago, where they have lost seven straight. Jered Weaver, who will start the series opener, lost both of his starts against the White Sox last season.
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