The Los Angeles Angels‘ good luck is getting out of hand. They are still in the thick of the postseason race despite being all but dead to rights a week ago. They now find themselves 4 1/2 games back of the Houston Astros for the third and final wild-card spot in the AL. With the clock ticking down to the trade deadline, will the Angels’ luck continue long enough to get them into the postseason?
July 14th against Houston was the first game back for the Angels, who limped into the All-Star break with nothing going well for them. They went 1-7 across their last three series against the Arizona Diamondbacks, San Diego Padres, and Los Angeles Dodgers, respectively. It was all but decided that the Angels would sell at the deadline, with reports of their being in listening mode regarding Shohei Ohtani. The stage was set for a classic Angels letdown and another year wasted.
The Angels’ Luck
The Houston Series
The first game back from the break had an odd energy to it. Ohtani was set to start for the Angels in the opener of a massive series against the Astros. Unfortunately, his line wasn’t that impressive. He went five innings and surrendered five runs, with four of them being earned runs. He walked three and struck out seven in a 7-5 Angels loss. The Angels had their chances to come back late in that game, especially in the eighth inning. They had runners on first and second with one out and failed to score a run.
A Wild Win
Game two of the series was where the Angels’ luck began to turn. With the score 4-3 in favor of the Astros, the Angels had a shot to win this game. Then, the seventh inning happened. Houston put up five runs, with the dagger being a three-run homer from Jose Abreu. The Angels’ luck showed up for the first time here, as they scored six runs in response.
The ninth inning was even wilder. Houston scored a run to go up 12-9. Ohtani answered back with a solo home run, and some small ball allowed the Angels to score two more to tie the game. The ninth put 30 pitches on Houston’s closer, Ryan Pressly, essentially removing him from the equation for Sunday’s game. In the 10th, the Angels walked it off on a throwing error. It was the third walk-off win for the Angels, and the comeback ensued without a hit (two wild pitches and an error).
A wild game ends with the Angels walking it off on an Astros throwing error pic.twitter.com/8OIHPMH3C2
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) July 16, 2023
Back to Earth
The final game knocked the Angels back to earth. Baserunning issues and bad bullpen management plagued them, plus a player hid an injury. A bad ninth inning sealed their fate. After manager Phil Nevin used Carlos Estevez in the eighth against the heart of the order, Jaime Barria came in to pitch the ninth. He gave up back-to-back home runs to Alex Bregman and Kyle Tucker. Tucker was 5-for-10 with four home runs in his career against Barria before that at-bat. In the bottom of the 9th, Tucker came up with a heroic catch to save the game and take the series 2-1.
The Desperate Yankees
The New York Yankees were next up in Anaheim. New York was coming off a rough series in Colorado, where they dropped two out of three and fell into last place in the American League East. That’s not a great look for a team that was reportedly the most motivated to get Ohtani if he were available. Now they are in a similar spot as the Angels, alive in the wild card race but way behind in the division. It’s a big series for both teams.
Monday’s game was a roller coaster. The first five innings were a pitchers’ duel, with Griffin Canning striking out 12 Yankees in 5 ⅔ innings. The Angels’ luck would strike again as they kept up with the Yankees. The game was tied going into the 10th when Michael Stefanic got the Angels their first walk-off hit of the year. Stefanic’s slash line in Triple-A was .349/.445/.441. He can hit; hopefully, it translates to the big leagues. Monday was a good sign. The luck of the Angels might push them into buying and making a playoff push.
The Angels continued their turnaround with a 5-1 win Tuesday night. The series finale will be huge for the Angels. With a win, they would go 4-2 against the Astros and Yankees. It’s something they’d have to do to have any chance not to sell at the deadline. After that, the Angels play their next six games against teams under .500 and could get some momentum going.
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It’s Not Over…Yet
As much as it may seem so, the season isn’t over for the Angels yet. Could luck alone carry them? No, of course not. Can timely hitting and better pitching? Yes. Multiple players are set to return from injuries soon, and the team is getting hits from the guys called upon to fill the roster.
Still, this can’t yet be considered a season turnaround. The Angels’ luck can only carry them so far. But they are coming through in big spots of late, showing heart and a zero-quit attitude. Decisions will be made soon. If they are playing well, why not put everything on the table and go for it? Crazier things have happened in baseball. Winning 40-something games the rest of the way is possible. It will take skill, smarts, and a bit of luck.
Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
Players Mentioned: Shohei Ohtani, Jose Abreu, Ryan Pressly, Carlos Estevez, Jaime Barria, Alex Bregman, Kyle Tucker, Griffin Canning, Michael Stefanic
