*Photo from the Los Angeles Times*
When the Los Angeles Angels play like this, they're good. Taylor Ward homered, Max Stassi drove in a trio of runs, and the Angels cruised past the Atlanta Braves with a 9-1 victory on Sunday afternoon in Atlanta.
The problem for the Angels is that they haven't been playing like this. It's just their second win in 10 games, and they are 15 games under .500 right now. They staked themselves to a 5-0 lead before their starting pitcher took the mound, and they were driven by a 3 RBI game from Stassi in what could be considered a wakeup game for the offense.
Angels interim manager Phil Nevin said that "Jumping out early, we've seen that against us several times lately. It was just nice to see us jump out of the gate like that. They were good quality at-bats. We jumped on some pitches we saw early in the zone and didn't miss them against a good pitcher."
Starting the game right was Ward, who hit a solo home run on the first at bat of the game to make it 1-0 Angels. Stassi and Jo Adell followed that up with RBI singles, Andrew Velazquez hit an RBI infield single, and Brandon Marsh drove in a run on a fielders choice, which opened the Angels lead to a 5-0 margin.
In the 4th inning, the Angels lead became 7-0, when Luis Rengifo drove in a run with an RBI single, and another run came around to score on a Braves error. Rengifo then scored on a sac fly from Stassi to make it 8-0. In the 7th, an RBI single from Ronald Acuna Jr made it 8-1 to get the Braves on the board, and Stassi hit an RBI triple to make it a 9-1 game in the 8th inning.
Nevin talked about the early lead, saying that "It helps Reid to go out there and pitch with some comfort. It gave him a cushion to relax and attack their hitters. They have a great lineup, but he's throwing the ball well and I loved the way the ball was coming out today."
Starting in the game for the Angels was Reid Detmers, who allowed 3 runs and two walks, striking out 6 hitters in 5 shutout innings to get the win. Andrew Wantz pitched 1 2/3 innings of one run ball, leaving it to Jose Quijada to finish the 7th inning. Jose Marte handled the 8th inning, and Raisel Iglesias worked the 9th to seal the win.
Ian Anderson got the start for the Braves, getting hit to the tune of 7 runs on 8 hits in just 3 innings of work. Jackson Stephens was the next man up, pitching 3 1/3 innings of one run ball while striking out 5 hitters. Collin McHugh, Kenley Jansen, and Will Smith also pitched in relief.
Anderson talked about his rough patch, saying that "It’s been tough all season honestly. Just not performing the way I want to. It’s probably the worst stretch of baseball that I’ve had in my life. It’s been frustrating, but the team is playing good baseball. It’s still fun to be around and be a part of it."
Up next, the Angels head to Kansas City to take on the Royals on Monday, with Noah Syndergaard getting the start. The Braves travel to face the Philadelphia Phillies on Monday, with Max Fried taking the mound.
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