Kepler's 4 hits lift Twins over Angels
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MINNEAPOLIS -- Max Kepler tied a career high with four hits, including a home run, Adalberto Mejia earned his third straight win and the Minnesota Twins beat the Los Angeles Angels 9-5 Monday night.
Joe Mauer also homered and Miguel Sano had three hits for Minnesota, which won for just the third time in nine games.
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Mejia (4-3) allowed nine hits and three earned runs in seven innings. He's given up five earned runs in 22 1/3 innings over his past four starts after allowing eight in a June 12 start. His ERA has dropped from 5.53 to 4.32 in that span.
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Luis Valbuena and Martin Maldonado homered and Andrelton Simmons had three hits for Los Angeles, which has lost four of five.
Sano hit a two-run double in the sixth for a 7-2 Twins lead in front of 36,182 fans, Minnesota's largest crowd since Opening Day.
Angels starter Alex Meyer (3-5) allowed six hits and five earned runs in five innings. The former Twin also walked four and hit a batter.
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One strike from getting out of the second inning, Meyer's balk allowed a run to score. Mauer hit the next pitch out for a two-run home run.
Kepler had an RBI double in the third to make it 4-0 and added a solo homer in the fifth.
Simmons had a two-run single in the fourth for the Angels to end a streak of 13 2-3 scoreless innings for Mejia. Valbuena crushed a solo shot midway up the right field grandstand in the seventh. Maldonado hit his career-high ninth home run in the eighth, a two-run shot off Tyler Duffey.
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WELCOME SIGHT
Hall of Famer Rod Carew returned to Minnesota for the first time since having a heart and kidney transplant on Dec. 16, 2016. Carew played with the Twins from 1967-78 and Angels from 1979-85. Both teams have retired his No. 29. He threw out a ceremonial first pitch as Minnesota celebrated the 40th anniversary of Carew's 1977 MVP season and 50th Anniversary of his 1967 AL Rookie of the Year season.
TRAINERS ROOM
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Angels: OF Mike Trout will not play in next week's All-Star Game as he continues to rehab from a left thumb ligament injury suffered May 28. … Starting RHP Matt Shoemaker is expected to throw three or four innings in his first rehab start Tuesday with Class A Inland Empire. He's been on the disabled list since June 15 with a right forearm strain.
Twins: 2B Brian Dozier was a late scratch with lower back tightness. He's listed day to day. … IF Ehire Adrianza, on the disabled list since June 22 with abdominal issues, is likely to be activated Tuesday, according to manager Paul Molitor.
UP NEXT
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The Angels' JC Ramirez (7-6, 4.60) is scheduled to face Minnesota's Kyle Gibson (4-6, 6.11) in Tuesday's holiday matinee.