SEATTLE — The Angels’ losing streak continued with a particularly awful afternoon.
The Angels’ 9-3 loss to the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday afternoon was decided when they allowed six runs in the seventh inning.
Even before all that, the Angels saw Mike Trout leave the game.
The Angels’ oft-injured superstar was pulled for a pinch-hitter in the top of the fourth inning. Manager Ron Washington said after the game that Trout felt soreness in his left knee when his foot hit first base while running out a ground out in the third inning and they removed him as a precaution.
Trout said after the game that his knee is already feeling better and that he had some tests. He said he’s going to try to play Thursday night.
Angels fans spent a few hours holding their breath for news on Trout, and meanwhile they watched the team lose a fifth straight game.
Just after the Angels failed to score with two on and one out in the top of the seventh, the Mariners started a rally with two straight infield hits against left-hander Reid Detmers.
A passed ball and then three straight clean hits gave the Mariners a 7-3 lead. They added two more on a single off the glove of first baseman Nolan Schanuel.
The Angels (12-17) have gone 4-13 in their last 17 games, scoring more than four runs in only one of those games.
Their chances at getting the offense going would only decrease if they are going to be without Trout.
Trout has started all 29 Angels games this season, matching the total he played last season.
Trout has missed most of three of the previous four seasons with injuries, playing just 41% of the Angels’ games in those years. The Angels moved him from center field to right field this season in an effort to help keep his legs fresher throughout the season.
Trout singled in his first at-bat. In the third inning, he hit a slow grounder to second base and sprinted down the line, lunging at the bag to try to beat the play. His sprint speed of 29.7 feet per second was his fastest time of the season.
Trout played right field in the bottom of the third, without a play. He was then removed from the game when his spot came up in the fourth.
The Trout question and the seventh-inning meltdown ruined a day that included some encouraging signs.
Mostly, the Angels’ lineup finally produced some hits. The Angels had 10 hits, tying their most since April 10. They also struck out just four times, which was their fewest of the season.
They had more strikeouts than hits in their previous 16 straight games.
Angels left-hander Tyler Anderson gave up two earned runs (and one unearned run) in six innings.
Anderson retired 12 of the last 13 hitters he faced to notch his third straight quality start. Anderson, who has a 2.67 ERA, has not allowed more than three runs in any outing this season.
His biggest out was in the second inning, when he got Julio Rodriguez on a broken-bat pop-up to end the inning with the bases loaded.
More to come on this story.
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