Shohei Ohtani, Mike Trout and Jared Walsh combined to hit four home runs and power the Los Angeles Angels to an 11-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays Monday night in Anaheim, Calif.
Ohtani homered twice, including a grand slam in the seventh inning that was his first in professional baseball, either Japan or the majors.
Walsh hit a three-run homer in the fourth inning that gave the Angels the lead for good, while Trout (two-run homer) and Ohtani (solo homer) hit homers on back-to-back pitches in the sixth inning that provided Angels starter Noah Syndergaard and the bullpen all the runs they would need.
Syndergaard (3-1) gave up one run on seven hits and one walk in 5 1/3 innings to get the victory, but he had to work his way through several jams to get there, making 97 pitches. In all, the Rays were 1 for 16 with runners in scoring position.
The Angels got most of their production from the top of their lineup, as leadoff hitter Brandon Marsh, No. 2 hitter Trout and No. 3 hitter Ohtani combined for seven of the Angels’ 11 hits.
Wander Franco led the Rays offense with three hits.
Randy Arozarena’s solo home run off Syndergaard gave the Rays a lead in the fourth inning, but it lasted only until the bottom of the fourth. Rays starter Jeffrey Springs (1-1) was perfect through three innings, then retired the first batter in the fourth before Trout ended the string with a single.
Ohtani followed with a single and one batter later, Walsh hit a three-run homer. In the sixth, Trout hit a two-run homer and on the very next pitch from Rays lefty Jalen Beeks, Ohtani hit his first homer of the night.
The Rays pushed across a couple runs in the top of the seventh, but the Angels responded with five in the bottom of the inning, the last four coming in on Ohtani’s slam.
–Field Level Media