ANAHEIM — The Angels have plenty of players looking to rebound from disappointing seasons in 2023, and none of them so far has been more successful than Tyler Anderson.
The left-hander pitched seven scoreless innings in a 7-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday night.
Anderson hasn’t allowed a run in 14 innings this season. He became the first Angels pitcher since Hector Santiago in 2016 to pitch at least seven scoreless innings in two consecutive games. The Angels had never had a pitcher do it in his first two starts of the season.
It’s been an eye-opening start for a pitcher who posted a 5.43 ERA in 2023, the first season after the Angels signed him to a three-year, $39 million deal.
Anderson got all the offensive support he needed from Mike Trout, who to a lesser degree is also looking to prove something this season. Trout tripled and hit his fifth home run of the season, equaling the major league lead. He also singled. Trout is now hitting .297 with an OPS of 1.138.
Taylor Ward also drove in three runs with his three hits, including a single to drive in Trout after his RBI triple in the first. That gave Anderson a 2-0 lead before the second inning, and he then cruised through a Rays lineup that included nine right-handed hitters.
He needed just 91 pitches to record 21 outs, leaving to a standing ovation after allowing a leadoff hit in the eighth. He struck out three and walked one.
The only trouble he faced was in the fourth inning.
Anderson walked Randy Arozarena and then Isaac Paredes pulled a grounder down the third base line, for a double. Amed Rosario hit a sharp liner, but it was right to first baseman Brandon Drury. Curtis Mead then hit a fly ball that Trout caught on the warning track.
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Anderson got some help from another player looking to give the Angels some value after a disappointing tenure with the team.
Anthony Rendon had two singles and a double, his first multi-hit game of the season. Rendon is now 6 for 16 since his 0-for-21 start to the season.
Rendon led off the game with a hit and then scored on Trout’s triple into right field. Rendon’s single in the fifth sparked a two-run rally that pushed the Angels lead to 5-0. Rendon’s double in the eighth led to another run.
Luis Rengifo also drove in a run with a seventh-inning single.
Eight of the nine players in the starting lineup reached with a hit or walk.
More to come on this story.
