ANAHEIM, Calif. – Jered Weaver did not have his good fastball, so he had to improvise. Whenever he did, the Cleveland Indians took advantage.
Weaver threw 108 pitches over six innings Saturday night, allowing four runs, seven hits and two walks without striking out a batter. Shin-Soo Choo, who came in 10 for 22 against last season's major league strikeout leader, tormented the Los Angeles Angels ace again with a go-ahead double that gave Cleveland a 4-3 victory and Alex White his first big league win.
"I didn't really have an out pitch today and I had to battle," Weaver said. "I got away from the fastball. I got caught up in the off speed and felt like they were sitting on it later. It happens. Nothing you can do. You just have to tip your cap. You are going to have days like that, and you just have to be able to move on."
It was only the second time in 152 big league starts that Weaver (6-2) did not strike out a batter. The other time was June 10, 2007, at St. Louis, when Weaver was forced out of his 30th career start after three innings because of tightness in his lower back and got a no-decision in the Angels' 9-6 loss.
"Weave was struggling with commanding counts and trying to get back in them. And when you're doing that, it's tough to set up some of your off-speed pitches for the strikeout," manager Mike Scioscia said.
"Even though he was struggling, the only real glitch was the two-out walks and is very uncharacteristic. But give those guys some credit. Those guys had some good at-bats and got some key hits with guys in scoring position."
Weaver, the AL pitcher of the month for April, was 3-0 with a 0.41 ERA in his previous three starts against Cleveland.
"Every one of those guys, regardless of how dominant they are, they usually end up giving up a couple of runs a game. So there's always hope," Indians manager Manny Acta said. "And your guy is the one who really has to step up and hold his ground and take advantage of the opposition's mistakes."
White (1-0) pitched six gritty innings in his second big league start, allowing three runs and seven hits, including a two-run homer by Vernon Wells. He struck out six and walked two.
The 22-year-old right-hander was the 15th overall pick in the 2009 draft and was the Indians' minor league pitcher of the year last season. Last Saturday in his big league debut, White gave up two runs over six innings in a no-decision as the Indians beat Detroit 3-2 in 13.
"It's a great feeling and something I've worked for for a long time," White said. "It's one of those things you'll remember forever. I'll never forget where I was and who I was pitching against."
Tony Sipp and Vinnie Pestano each pitched a scoreless inning and Chris Perez worked a perfect ninth for his 10th save in 11 chances.
Maicer Izturis ran the Angels out of a potential rally in the eighth. He tried to go from first to third on a one-out grounder by Howie Kendrick that third baseman Jack Hannahan had to charge in on, but Hannahan got back to the bag in time to take first baseman Carlos Santana's throw and tag him for an inning-ending double play.
"How about Santana Brady making that throw over there?" Acta said, comparing his first baseman to New England Patriots star Tom Brady. "There's only one Dominican in the NFL, but Santana looked like a pretty good quarterback there. It was a good play, but a risky play. You have to hit the guy on the move, and Hannahan needed to really concentrate on catching the ball and making the tag. But it worked out for us."
Izturis also grounded into an inning-ending double play in the third after a triple by Eric Aybar and a walk to Bobby Abreu.
Wells, who hit three home runs at Angel Stadium with the Toronto Blue Jays and none in his first 53 home at-bats since joining Los Angeles in a trade last January, drove an 0-2 pitch into the Angels' bullpen in left field in the second inning after a single by Kendrick.
The Indians got a run back in the fourth on Orlando Cabrera's sacrifice fly, then took a 4-2 lead with three in the fifth after Weaver walked Grady Sizemore and Asdrubal Cabrera with two outs.
Choo, who had the Indians' only hit in Dan Haren's complete-game victory for the Angels on April 12 at the Big A, followed with a drive into the right-field corner that scored both runners. Santana capped the rally with an RBI single.
Choo's clutch hit snapped an 0-for-18 drought since his arrest on DUI charges.
Wells drove in another run with a sacrifice fly in the sixth and rookie Mark Trumbo followed with his second Baltimore-chop single in two innings, putting runners at first and second. But White struck out Jeff Mathis on a high fastball with his 100th and final pitch.
NOTES: Izturis' day at the ballpark started out much better than it ended. He had victorious Animal Kingdom in the team's Kentucky Derby pool. ... Indians DH Travis Hafner was 1 for 22 against Weaver before singling in the fourth and fifth. ... Angels RHP Rich Thompson picked off Lou Marson at second base for the third out in the ninth. The Angels' bullpen has not allowed an earned run in its last 29 innings against Cleveland.
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