By ,
Published January 13, 2015
Josh Hamilton and Andrew Romine each drove in a run as the LA Angels of Anaheim took the rubber match of a three-game series with a 2-1 win over the Houston Astros.
Jerome Williams (8-10) earned his third consecutive win after yielding just one run on five hits over seven strong frames of work. Ernesto Frieri entered in the eighth inning and struck out four en route to recording a two- inning save.
"I probably threw three balls up in the zone, two by design, one by accident," Williams said. "That one by accident was a homer."
Astros starter Paul Clemens (4-5) took the loss despite pitching a career- high seven innings and allowing just two runs on six hits. Marc Krauss homered in the lone run as Houston dropped its second straight game after winning four in a row.
The Halos are winners in five of six.
"I'm happy with some of it and there was some pitch selection that has got to get better," Clemens said. "I don't know how much you guys were watching, but there were some at-bats there where pitch selection was wrong. This game comes down to two things: executing your pitches and choosing the right pitch in the right situation. I just want to continue to get better at those things."
Hamilton's triple gave the Angels a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning. With two outs, Mike Trout drew a walk and stole second before Hamilton drove an 0-2 Clemens' offering to deep center field.
Krauss' fourth homer of the season tied the score in the bottom of the second.
LA broke through with another run in the top of the fifth when Erick Aybar and Hank Conger slapped consecutive singles with no outs, putting runners on the corners for Romine. Romine lifted a sacrifice fly into left, plating Aybar, but Krauss gunned down Conger at first base for the double play.
Dane De La Rosa took the hill to begin the home half of the eighth and allowed a single to Brandon Barnes before walking Jonathan Villar to put two on with no outs. Frieri, who recorded a five-out save earlier in the series, took over and retired three straight to preserve the lead.
Frieri remained on the mound for the final inning and pitched around a leadoff single by Matt Dominguez to secure the series for LA.
Game Notes
Barnes had two hits for Houston while Conger went 2-for-3 for LA ... Trout stole his 33rd bag of the season ... The Astros went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position and left seven on base ... Houston outhit LA, 7-6.
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/angels-take-series-in-houston