Los Angeles Angels offense stalls in 5-3 loss to Diamondbacks

Jason Bourgeois hit a go-ahead three-run homer in the sixth, the first of five late runs the Arizona Diamondbacks scored to earn a 5-3 win over the Los Angeles Angels at Tempe Diablo Stadium on Thursday.

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The Angels scattered ten hits, two of which were courtesy of Yunel Escobar, but they could only push across three runs after putting up 13 on Wednesday.

Andrew Heaney made his Cactus League debut and looked decent, though not dominant. He pitched two innings, gave up a pair of hits, walked one and struck out one before exiting the contest after 39 pitches.

“He looked like he had good stuff,” manager Mike Scioscia said in the television interview following the game. “He had a little trouble with his command and repeating his pitches, but he had good stuff… we’ll try and extend his work a little more next time.”

Daniel Nava continued his red-hot hitting, going 1-for-2 with a walk, including a double in the first inning.

That set up an RBI-single from Mike Trout which give the Halos an early 1-0 advantage. Trout, who is hitting .538 this spring, made good contact with the ball all day but the first inning single was his only hit in three at-bats on Thursday.

Nava was hitting in the No. 2 hole for the first time this spring, something Scioscia said he wants to try and keep moving forward.

“We definitely want to see how this is going to play out,” he said. “We’ll adjust if we have to.”

Huston Street made his first appearance of the spring in the third inning as relief for Heaney.

He didn’t allow any runs, but his control needs some polishing up this month. He gave up two hits, including a triple, walked one, threw a wild pitch, but picked off Nick Ahmed on third to avoid damage in the runs column.

The Angels got on the board again in the fifth inning courtesy of an RBI-single from Escobar that scored Carlos Perez. Escobar went 2-for-3 and continues to thrive in the leadoff role, boasting a .353 batting average.

Lucas Luetge pitched in the sixth inning, getting two quick outs before allowing a walk, a single, and then a 3-run roundtripper to Bourgeois which gave the Diamondbacks the 3-2 lead. It was the only hit in the game for Bourgeois.

Kyle Kubitza‘s sacrifice fly in the seventh tied the game at 3-3 but the Diamondbacks scored two more off Rob Rasmussen in the 8th inning to take a 5-3 lead, a score that would hold.

Worth Noting

• Cam Bedrosian had a solid outing in the fifth inning, allowing no hits and striking out one.
• Johnny Giavotella went 1-for-1, raising his sluggish average to .211.
• Jered Weaver had an MRI for “neck inflammation” but Scioscia said he should be fine and is currently considered day-to-day.
• The team struggled again with runners in scoring position, going 2-for-8 in those opportunities while leaving seven on base.

What’s Next?

The Angels will travel to Camelback Ranch in Glendale to visit the Los Angeles Dodgers, two days removed from when the teams combined for 36 hits in a 13-13 tie.

Nick Tropeano will take the hill for the Angels and the Dodgers will go with Zach Lee, a 24-year-old right-hander.

First pitch is at 12:05 PST.