ANAHEIM, Calif. – Pinch-hitter Kendrys Morales delivered a rare three-run single in the eighth inning to help the Los Angeles Angels beat the Kansas City Royals 6-3 on Monday night.
Alberto Callaspo, who spent two-plus seasons with the Royals, started the tiebreaking rally with a two-out single against reliever Greg Holland (4-3). Maicer Izturis bounced a double over the head of first baseman Eric Hosmer and down the line.
Third base coach Dino Ebel, respecting the strong arm of right fielder Jeff Francoeur, held Callaspo at third. Peter Bourjos, batting .223, drew a walk and zipped around the bases when Morales drove a 1-1 pitch to right-center while batting for Bobby Wilson.
Kevin Jepsen (1-1) pitched 1 1-3 innings of two-hit relief after taking over for starter C.J. Wilson. Scott Downs worked a perfect ninth for his ninth save in 11 chances.
Angels rookie Mike Trout extended his franchise-record streak to 15 consecutive games with a run scored, three shy of the AL mark set by Red Rolfe of the Yankees in 1939 and equaled by Kenny Lofton of the Indians in 2000. The 20-year-old phenom is the first player to score a run in 15 straight games since Matt Holliday did it with Colorado in 2008.
Royals lefty Bruce Chen gave up three runs and five hits in 5 1-3 innings. Izturis chased the 14-year veteran in the sixth when he punched an opposite-field RBI single to right field to give the Angels a 3-2 lead after Howie Kendrick drew a leadoff walk, advanced on a groundout and stole third.
Royals No. 9 hitter Brayan Pena got Chen off the hook in the seventh with an RBI single after Hosmer singled and advanced on a wild pitch.
Wilson allowed three runs and nine hits over 6 2-3 innings and struck out six. The left-hander finished 0-2 in July with a 4.55 ERA in five starts — the first time he has gone winless in a calendar month since becoming a full-time starter in 2010 with Texas. He was one of four players who represented the Angels at the All-Star game a couple of weeks ago in Kansas City, but wasn't able to pitch because of a blister on his middle finger.
The Royals took a 2-0 lead in the third with Alex Gordon's RBI single and a long sacrifice fly from Lorenzo Cain, robbed of a home run by Bourjos on a towering drive to left-center. Wilson minimized the damage by retiring Mike Moustakas on a grounder with two on.
The Angels tied it in the bottom half. Albert Pujols delivered the first run with a groundout after a leadoff single by Trout and a double by Torii Hunter. One out later, Kendrick doubled home Hunter.
Chen is 0-2 with a 9.25 ERA in his last five starts, after going 7-2 over his previous 10 outings. He pitched six scoreless innings against the Angels on opening day and ended up with a no-decision.
NOTES: The Angels have won 12 of their last 13 games against left-handed starters. ... Wilson's next victory will make him the fourth pitcher in major league history to have double-digit wins in three consecutive seasons after three straight seasons of 10 or more saves. That list includes Derek Lowe, John Smoltz and Ryan Dempster. ... Chen is in his fourth season with Kansas City, longer than any of the other nine big league teams he's played for. ... Royals rookie LHP Will Smith, a seventh-round draft pick by the Angels in 2008, will face Los Angeles on Tuesday night in his fifth big league start. He was traded to Kansas City with reliever Sean O'Sullivan in a deal that sent Callaspo to the Angels in July 2010. ... The Angels acquired RHP Barry Enright from Arizona for a player to be named or cash. Enright will be assigned to Triple-A Salt Lake.
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