April 18, 2017 Page 1 of 17

Clips

(April 18, 2017)

April 18, 2017 Page 2 of 17

Today’s Clips Contents

FROM LOS ANGELES TIMES (Page 3)

Angels' scoreless streak reaches 20 innings in 3-0 loss to Astros

Angels' Bud Norris recalls time spent with Astros

Angels mailbag: What about that awful last week?

FROM THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER (Page 8)

Astros shut out Angels as scoreless streak reaches 20 innings

Angels Notes: Huston Street won’t be back until at least June 1

FROM ANGELS.COM (Page 10)

Chavez settles in, but bats are cold vs. Astros

Street to 60-day DL; Angels acquire Bridwell

Agent zero: Angels’ bats stuck on repeat

Nolasco looks to get on track against Astros

FROM THE ASSOCIATED PRESS (Page 15)

Morton, 3 Astros relievers combine to 5-hit Angels, 3-0

FROM ESPN.COM (Page 17)

Angels' Huston Street out until at least June 1

April 18, 2017 Page 3 of 17

FROM THE LOS ANGELES TIMES

Angels' scoreless streak reaches 20 innings in 3-0 loss to Astros

By Pedro Moura

The Angels haven’t scored a run since last week. In the 20 innings they’ve batted since Saturday’s

seventh inning in Kansas City, they have generated only seven singles. In their last 46 innings, they have

mustered two extra-base hits. And, accordingly, in their last six games, the Angels don’t have a victory.

A 3-0 loss to Houston at Minute Maid Park on Monday was the latest loss in the string, and the shortest,

at 2 hours 37 minutes, lacking in late suspense.

“It’s not ideal,” first baseman C.J. Cron said. “We haven’t been hitting like we should, like we know we

can.”

After a weekend series sweep by the Royals, this defeat began more favorably. Mike Trout got a two-out

single to left field in the first inning, then took second base on a missed pickoff throw. Kole Calhoun was

hit by a Charlie Morton pitch to summon Cron to the plate. He lined out to center field.

Then, with two outs in the second, Danny Espinosa bunted, sprinted down the first base line, and slid

into the base to avoid Morton’s tag. Martin Maldonado soon singled and Espinosa took third. Yunel

Escobar walked to load the bases for the Angels’ No. 2 hitter, Ben Revere. He flied out while Trout

waited on deck as the inning ended.

Revere is the least powerful hitter in the major leagues, and he owns a career .319 on-base percentage.

But, in recent days, manager Mike Scioscia has hit him second, believing him to be a fit in front of Trout.

Of course, Trout led off the third with a single and stole second when Calhoun struck out looking on a 3-

and-2 fastball. Cron reached on catcher’s interference, Andrelton Simmons replaced him on a fielder’s

choice groundout, and Jefry Marte lined out to quell the threat. In the fifth, Trout worked a one-out

walk and third baseman Marwin Gonzalez flubbed Calhoun’s potential double-play ball. That put two

men on for Cron, who, again, lined out to center. The baseball traveled 108 mph off his bat.

The Angels lineup managed only five singles and two walks against Morton and three relievers. The

middle of their order was without Albert Pujols, who had agreed with Scioscia to rest Monday.

“I think we had a bunch of good at-bats, at times, and then a couple that obviously we didn’t get it done

in,” Scioscia said. “I thought we hit the ball hard a couple times with guys in scoring position. We worked

some counts, had [Morton’s] pitch count up. We just left a lot of guys on base early in the game."

After a scoreless first inning, starter Jesse Chavez yielded back-to-back singles in the second. Escobar

threw away the first single, which pushed Evan Gattis to second base. Gattis scored on Alex Bregman’s

single but catcher Maldonado easily threw out Bregman trying to steal second. That proved valuable

when Chavez issued consecutive walks to Gonzalez and Yulieski Gurriel.

April 18, 2017 Page 4 of 17

Chavez gave up a run in the third on two singles and a sacrifice fly. He withstood further attacks for four

more innings to turn in his second solid start in three tries. In the eighth inning, right-hander Yusmeiro

Petit gave up a run on consecutive doubles. Espinosa threw out Jose Altuve trying to stretch a double

into a triple to aid the Angels’ attempts to escape the inning.

“I gave us a chance,” Chavez said. “With our offense, they’re capable of anything."

Not lately. A week ago, this team won consecutive games because of inconceivable comebacks in the

ninth inning, pushing itself up to 6-2 on the season. Now 6-8, there was no rally awaiting their ninth

inning this time.

“We had a couple crazy wins to start off. I don’t know what that means,” Cron said. “Obviously, we’re

not going to be able to do that every game. We came back to earth. But we know we have a great lineup

and we know we’re gonna get out of this.”

Angels' Bud Norris recalls time spent with Astros

By Pedro Moura

When Bud Norris joined the Houston Astros in July 2009, he made his major league debut on what was

then the sport’s oldest roster.

“Older than the Phillies,” he said Monday at Minute Maid Park, to which locker mate and former

Philadelphia outfielder Ben Revere turned up his head.

By 2013, the Astros were baseball’s youngest team, widely perceived to be intentionally losing, and

Norris was their opening-day starter. They traded him for prospects that July, but he said the four

previous years were a weird way to be introduced to Major League Baseball.

“It happened so fast,” Norris said. “It was tough, because those were my prime years. I was a 24-year-

old that cracked the big leagues and I had some good numbers and I just felt at times like I didn’t know

what was around me.”

Now 32, Norris is an Angels reliever, on his fifth team in two years.

The day he debuted, a veteran right-hander named Doug Brocail relieved him. Less than two years later,

amid a 56-win season, the Astros fired their pitching coach and hired Brocail to fill the role in the

interim, for his first job on a major league staff. Norris recalled his former teammate telling him to just

keep doing what he was doing, for he needed to spend his time working with the club’s younger players.

“And, really, I was at a point in my career where I could’ve used a big league pitching coach,” Norris said.

Between the 2012 and 2013 seasons, the Astros won only 106 games, as many as the Chicago Cubs won

in the 2016 season and a National League division series combined. Houston was historically bad, and

attendance at Minute Maid Park was historically low, down more than 10,000 spectators per game from

2009.

April 18, 2017 Page 5 of 17

“I really enjoyed my time in Houston,” Norris said. “I felt sorry for the fan base and what they had to go

through. The die-hard Astros fans, they know who they are, and I know who they are.

“I’m happy to see that they’ve gotten back to a very competitive team and everything else, but, granted,

I had to go through some rougher years to get to where they are now.”

After the 2011 season, the Astros hired Jeff Luhnow from St. Louis as their general manager. He cut

salary and invested in the farm system and did so via unorthodox methods, unearthing many of the

players who make the team an American League favorite in 2017.

Fifteen current Astros are making more than the $3 million Norris earned in 2013, which qualified him as

that team’s highest-paid player. Their 2017 opening-day payroll of $124.3 million was more than $98

million greater than the same figure in 2013.

“There were multiple people in the league making more than our entire payroll, and we were out there

trying to play Major League Baseball games,” Norris said. “There were some really dark days here, man.

It was not easy coming to work every day. It was not easy shagging fly balls, as dark as it was.”

The Angels transferred right-hander Huston Street to the 60-day disabled list to make room on their 40-

man roster for minor league right-hander Parker Bridwell. Street suffered a lat strain March 3 and the

initial prognosis was three to four weeks until he would be fit to throw again. He is eligible to be

activated June 1. He began to throw April 4 and is throwing from 100 feet. Asked about the discrepancy

between the initial and new expectations, general manager Billy Eppler said Street encountered mild

shoulder impingement near the start of his throwing program “so we slowed him down.” … Bridwell is

25 years old with a 4.79 career ERA over 657 minor league innings, thrown mostly as a starter. The

Angels agreed to send cash or a player to be named to acquire him from Baltimore.

Angels mailbag: What about that awful last week?

By Pedro Moura

Hello, Angels fans. Welcome to the weekly mailbag. That was not a good week for the Angels, who lost

five straight games, including a series sweep in Kansas City. Additionally, the status of their top starter,

right-hander Garrett Richards, remains uncertain. Let’s get to some questions.

@pedromoura why can't we hit

The Angels just didn’t hit last week. In the long term, they will hit. They have too many talented, proven

hitters to not hit at least around a league-average level. We’re almost at that point in the season where

a player’s strikeout rate has stabilized, and the Angels are better than the average in that category.

That’s a good sign.

I have been surprised by the limited chances the Angels have taken on the bases, particularly with

steals. Perhaps that will change.

April 18, 2017 Page 6 of 17

@pedromoura Just how bad are the Halo's starting bullpen as compared to the rest of the league so far

this year?

I later clarified with Aaron. He meant the rotation. So, let’s try to make direct comparisons.

Without Richards, it’s hard to find many teams the Angels’ rotation bests. Definitely San Diego and

Cincinnati, who seem to be trying to lose and are starting the likes of Jered Weaver and Bronson Arroyo.

Maybe Oakland or Milwaukee or Minnesota, or the Chicago White Sox. That is about it.

With a healthy Richards, it appears more middle-of-the-pack. The addition of one pitcher with ace

potential vaults them above all of those teams and into the territory of, say, Miami, Philadelphia,

Baltimore, maybe Atlanta, maybe even Kansas City.

@pedromoura Why not bring up a starter from AAA to replace Richards?

Because there’s no real reason to expect any of their triple-A starters to be better than JC Ramirez, their

in-house replacement. Their No. 1 starter in Salt Lake, 27-year-old right-hander Alex Meyer, was not at

all good in spring training, convincing several scouts I spoke to that he’s best suited for the bullpen. In

triple-A, he seems to be doing better, with 18 strikeouts and five walks in 15 innings — and 19 hits and

eight runs.

Ramirez’s stuff is as good as Meyer’s, maybe better. He’s never pitched consistently for a full season, but

neither has Meyer. The two are actually not that different. They’re a year apart in age, huge humans and

naturally throw hard. Meyer has just been given longer opportunities to start than Ramirez was while

coming up through the minors.

@pedromoura Angels pitching looks mediocre at best. How long will they go before we start bring up

Meyers, Smith?

I received several questions along these lines, several specifically about Meyer. There’s not much more

to say about him unless he puts together a longer stretch of strikeout-laden starts at Salt Lake. Left-

hander Nate Smith has not pitched yet because of a forearm strain. It’s unclear how long he’s expected

out.

@pedromoura realistically, when will this team have a real shot of going to the world series? Is it next

year with more salary space?

It depends on how large an opportunity qualifies as a real shot. I’m of the belief that the MLB playoffs

are mostly random, and no team has more than a 60% or so chance to win a given round. So, given

those parameters, any wild-card team would have at least, like, a 3% chance to win the World Series.

(Conversely, even a no-doubt division winner’s World Series chances would max out at about 20%.)

People who work within the sport do not expect the current Angels to win a wild-card spot, and I do not

either, but I can think of stranger things that have happened. And, yes, the industry expects them to be

better a year from now, when some money’s off the books, and pitchers Andrew Heaney and Nick

April 18, 2017 Page 7 of 17

Tropeano should be back from Tommy John surgery. They should have a chance at the playoffs next

year.

I do not think he’s done, but, obviously, his start to the 2017 season is not what he or the team had

hoped for or planned. It’s hard to say much more at this point, without knowing the cause of the lack of

strength he’s experiencing in his biceps.

@pedromoura Is Coachella just the adult version of Warped Tour?

That is a common comparison. Having been to both, I don’t really think it is apt. Coachella has become

much more of a cultural touchstone than Warped Tour ever was — or is. I guess it’s still around. Also,

there is no theme to the acts picked to perform at Coachella. They essentially just gather as many

musicians who will attract large crowds as they can while still turning a sizable profit. That makes it

sound bad, but I’ve enjoyed my experiences there.

I thought this recent New Yorker feature about the history of Coachella and other music festivals was

wonderfully informative.

@pedromoura What's the latest in the Angel Stadium situation?

They are staying there for the next decade and beyond. The owner of the team, Arte Moreno, said so in

spring training.

Yes, definitely. If they are in contention, they will entertain the possibility of acquiring all sorts of

players. And if they are out of contention, they will entertain the possibility of trading their players on

expiring or shorter-term contracts. That’s pretty much standard practice for any modern front office.

We’ll have plenty of time to get into further specifics over the next three-plus months.

@pedromoura Seems like the bottom 4 teams in the AL West have all stumbled out of the gate. Given

this small sample size who emerges to contend vs HOU?

’d caution against drawing any conclusions about the results of 12 or 13 games that you haven’t

watched a lick of. Those can flip so quickly. So, I’m not sure there’s anything to be said about Texas,

Seattle or Oakland that couldn’t be said a couple weeks ago. Also Houston, although the Angels will get

a four-game look at them this week.

I don’t think any team is going to really contend against Houston. The Astros have so much talent on

their roster and in their organization. But at season’s start, I thought Texas was the division’s second-

best team, and so I still think that.

April 18, 2017 Page 8 of 17

FROM THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER .

Astros shut out Angels as scoreless streak reaches 20 innings

By Jeff Fletcher

HOUSTON — A collective offensive slump is a test of the mind, as much as anything.

After the Angels lost, 3-0, to the Houston Astros on Monday night, getting shut out for the second

consecutive game and losing for the sixth time in a row, the question in the clubhouse was just how

maddening this all must be.

“It’s not ideal,” C.J. Cron said. “We haven’t been hitting like we know we should or like we know we can.

Unfortunately, this kind of stuff happens.”

Since the Angels scored in the seventh inning on Saturday, they have put up a string of 20 consecutive

zeroes. It’s the first time since July 2012 that they have been shut out twice in a row.

All this from a team that just one week earlier was leading the league in runs and batting average.

“We’ve kind of come back to earth,” Cron said. “We have a great lineup. We know we’re going to be able

to hit out of this. … We know we can play. We have a lot of veteran guys. No one is really stressing over

this.”

Manager Mike Scioscia, who certainly has seen dozens of week-long offensive outages in his 18 seasons as

manager, said the key is to monitor the room to make sure players have the appropriate level of urgency.

“You are always keeping your finger on the pulse of what the frustration level is,” he said. “It’s been a

week we’re having trouble getting the hit we need. But the process is right.”

Scioscia took some consolation in the fact that the Angels’ latest performance included some hard-hit balls

that just found gloves.

In the third, with two outs and runners on the corners, Jefry Marte hit a line drive right to third baseman

Marwin Gonzalez. With two on in the fifth, Cron hit a rocket to center field that was caught.

There was a little bad luck too.

In the fourth, Martin Maldonado was at first and the Angels put him in motion on a 3-and-2 pitch, trying to

stay out of the double play. Second baseman Jose Altuve broke toward the bag to cover and Yunel

Escobar’s grounder met him there, and it ended up being an easy double play.

All in all, the Angels had nine baserunners against Houston starter Charlie Morton in his five innings. Once

the Astros bullpen came into the game, the Angels did nothing with Chris Devenski, Luke Gregerson or Ken

Giles.

April 18, 2017 Page 9 of 17

The offensive outage, which has seen the Angels score just nine runs in the six losses, made for a tough

loss for starter Jesse Chavez.

Chavez pitched seven innings, making two straight games in which an Angels starter went seven after none

had gotten past six in the first 12 games. One of the runs he allowed came as a result of a throwing error

by Escobar, although it was ruled a hit and an error so the run was earned.

Chavez finished with a flourish, holding the Astros to three singles over his last four innings. The Astros did

not have a runner in scoring position after the third against Chavez.

“Jesse pitched a terrific ballgame for us,” Scioscia said.

It was the third straight solid outing from a rotation that had been scuffling, although the run-support has

not been there to get wins for the starters.

“These last three starts are what we’re going to need,” Scioscia said. “With these good starts, we’re going

to be fine. We’ve gotten three starts that we’re going to put a lot of wins up if guys pitch like that.”

Angels Notes: Huston Street won’t be back until at least June 1

By Jeff Fletcher

HOUSTON — Turns out Huston Street won’t be back anytime soon.

On Monday the Angels transferred Street to the 60-day disabled list, meaning he’s not eligible to pitch in

the majors until June 1.

The move was made to create a spot on the 40-man roster for minor league reliever Parker Bridwell, who

the Angels acquired Monday from the Baltimore Orioles for cash considerations.

The Street development is more surprising, though.

General Manager Billy Eppler said via text that Street “encountered a mild shoulder impingement at the

outset of his throwing program so we slowed him down.”

Street is on the disabled list because of a strained lat suffered March 3. He began throwing on April 4. On

April 7, Street described what he called normal “stiffness and soreness” but he still said he was hopeful

that he would be able to throw from the mound within about a week. Last week, Street said he still

believed he was about five more throwing sessions from being able to be on a mound.

Certainly, he would have needed at least three or four weeks from his first time on a mound before he

could pitch in a game, so the roster move may not slow that timetable by that much.

In any case, the Angels will remain without two of the three relievers who began the spring at the top of

the depth chart. Andrew Bailey is also out with a shoulder problem. He has not thrown since being placed

on the disabled list last week, Manager Mike Scioscia said Monday.

April 18, 2017 Page 10 of 17

The Street move on Monday was to create a spot for Bridwell, who was considered by MLB.com to be the

15th-best prospect in the Orioles system. The Angels optioned him to Double-A.

Bridwell, 25, has a career 4.79 ERA in parts of eight minor league seasons. He has started 117 times in 143

games, although he’s been a reliever mostly since the start of last season. Bridwell had allowed eight runs

on 10 hits in four innings of relief so far this season at Triple-A. He pitched two games in the majors, both

last season. He allowed five runs in 3 1/3 innings.

REVERE’S TURN?

Ben Revere started over Cameron Maybin for the second game in a row on Monday, although Scioscia

wouldn’t go so far as to say he’s supplanted Maybin as the starter.

“Cam is going to get obviously the lion’s share of playing time in left field,” Scioscia said, reiterating a

stance he’s held since the start of spring training. “But right now we’re mixing and matching a little bit until

some of our guys get comfortable.”

Scioscia added that “it’s a good time for Cam right now to exhale.”

Coming into the game, Revere was hitting .217 with a .250 on-base percentage and Maybin was hitting

.212 with a .297 on-base percentage.

ALSO

Albert Pujols got his first day off of the season. Scioscia said they had planned to give Pujols a day off “at

some point, and today is a good day in the schedule to do it.” Over the last three games, the Angels gave

Mike Trout a DH day, and rested Andrelton Simmons and Pujols. The Angels are four games into a stretch

of 36 games in 37 days. …

Luis Valbuena has continued running, but still hasn’t run the bases. Valbuena, who is out with a strained

hamstring, was expected back sometime in late April or early May. The last steps are running the bases

and playing some games in a rehab assignment.

FROM ANGELS.COM

Chavez settles in, but bats are cold vs. Astros

By Maria Guardado and Richard Dean / MLB.com

HOUSTON -- Jose Altuve drove in two runs and Charlie Morton pitched five scoreless innings to lead the

Astros to their fifth consecutive win -- 3-0 over the Angels on Monday night in the series opener at

Minute Maid Park.

April 18, 2017 Page 11 of 17

Altuve contributed a sacrifice fly in the third to put the Astros ahead, 2-0, and added another insurance

run with an RBI double in the eighth, though he was thrown out at third by Danny Espinosa while trying

to stretch the double into a triple. Altuve is now batting .414 (12-for-29) over his last eight games.

"We did a good job of capitalizing," said Alex Bregman, who had two hits in place of the injured Carlos

Correa at shortstop. "Altuve had a big hit. Back-to-back doubles in the eighth was huge. That's big

insurance. This team is fun to be a part of."

The Angels, meanwhile, dropped their sixth consecutive game after being shut out for the second day in

a row. They have not scored in 20 innings, with their last run coming in the seventh inning of a 3-2 loss

to the Royals on Saturday.

"It's not ideal," first baseman C.J. Cron said. "We haven't been hitting it like we know we should or like

we know we can. Unfortunately, this type of stuff happens. The pitchers have been working their tails

off and not getting run support kind of [stinks], but it's a long season and we're right there, so we're all

right."

Morton, who was originally slated to start on Sunday against the A's but had his start pushed back one

day following a rainout, allowed five hits while walking two and striking out three. Morton needed 92

pitches to get through the outing and weaved in and out of trouble, but the Angels were unable to break

through despite multiple scoring opportunities.

"He didn't have it tonight and somehow found a way to put up zeros," Astros manager A.J. Hinch said.

"He was rescuing innings every single inning."

Jesse Chavez continued to reverse the early-season rotation woes by delivering the third consecutive

strong start for the Angels, surrendering two runs on seven hits over seven innings. But the 33-year-old

right-hander took his second loss.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

Morton leaves them loaded: The Angels have been struggling to score runs recently, a trend that

continued on Monday night when they left nine men on base and went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring

position. In the second inning, the Angels loaded the bases with two out after Espinosa laid down a bunt

single, Martin Maldonado singled and Yunel Escobar walked. But they came away empty-handed after

Morton coaxed a flyout to left field from Ben Revere.

"It would have been nice if I was in the zone more and executing my pitches better," Morton said. "My

misses were in weird spots, in a good way. My misses were down so I think that's a good sign."

Escobar's costly error: After the Angels didn't capitalize on their bases-loaded opportunity in the second,

the Astros got on the board in the bottom half of the inning with the help of a throwing error by

Escobar. Escobar fielded a ground ball by Evan Gattis, but then he made a wide throw to Cron at first,

allowing Gattis to advance to second with one out. Bregman followed with an RBI single, giving Houston

a 1-0 lead.

April 18, 2017 Page 12 of 17

SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS

The Astros' five-game winning streak is their longest since winning seven in a row, June 18-25, 2016. At

9-4, they tied the best 13-game start to a season in club history -- matching teams from 1972, '79, '86,

'88, 2004 and 2006.

UPON FURTHER REVIEW

In the seventh, Norichika Aoki hit a chopper to Cron at first and initially seemed to beat out a 3-6-3

double play after first-base umpire D.J. Reyburn ruled safe at first. But Angels manager Mike Scioscia

issued a challenge after replay review showed that shortstop Andrelton Simmons' throw had beaten

Aoki to the bag. The call was ultimately overturned.

WHAT'S NEXT

Angels: Right-hander Ricky Nolasco will make his fourth start of the season on Tuesday as the Angels

continue their four-game series with the Astros at 5:10 p.m. PT. Nolasco has a 5.40 ERA this season and

took the loss in his last outing on Thursday after allowing five runs over five innings against the Rangers.

Astros: Joe Musgrove will make his third start of the season and first against a team other than the

Mariners on Tuesday when he faces the Angels at 7:10 p.m. CT. Musgrove (1-0, 4.35 ERA) has not

pitched deep into a game this season, throwing only 10 1/3 innings over his two starts.

Street to 60-day DL; Angels acquire Bridwell

By Maria Guardado / MLB.com

HOUSTON -- The Angels transferred right-hander Huston Street to the 60-day disabled list on Monday,

clearing a spot on their 40-man roster for right-handed reliever Parker Bridwell, who was acquired from

the Orioles in exchange for cash considerations or a player to be named. Bridwell was optioned to

Double-A Mobile.

Street sustained a strained right lat in his first outing of Spring Training on March 3, but he received

clearance to resume throwing on April 4. Though Street had not put a timetable on his return, he

appeared on track to return to the Angels at the end of this month. His transfer to the 60-day disabled

list, however, now means he will be sidelined until at least June 1.

General manager Billy Eppler said in a text message that Street had encountered a "mild shoulder

impingement" at the outset of his throwing program, which prompted the Angels to slow him down.

Street is currently throwing from 100 feet in his long toss program, Eppler added.

Street said on April 7 that he had been experiencing some shoulder stiffness, though he didn't consider

the malady serious.

"I have a little stiffness up in the shoulder area, but you don't pick up a ball for four weeks and you kind

of got to expect it," Street said at that time. "No alarm bells going off or anything like that."

April 18, 2017 Page 13 of 17

Street, 33, is attempting to rebound from the worst campaign of his career, when he posted a 6.45 ERA

across 22 1/3 innings before undergoing season-ending knee surgery in August. He is a potential free

agent at the end of this season.

The Angels' bullpen is currently without two of its most experienced back-end options, as Street

and Andrew Bailey are both injured. Bailey landed on the 10-day disabled list last week with right

shoulder inflammation and has yet to pick up a baseball.

Bridwell, 25, had recorded an 18.00 ERA over two appearances at Triple-A Norfolk this year. He was

ranked as the Orioles' No. 15 prospect by MLBPipeline.com and posted a 3.87 ERA over 27 Minor League

outings, including seven starts, in 2016. Bridwell made his Major League debut with the Orioles last

August and logged a 13.50 ERA in two appearances, allowing five runs over 3 1/3 innings.

Worth noting

• Albert Pujols received a scheduled day off on Monday, with Jefry Marte serving as the designated

hitter against the Astros.

• Ben Revere started in left field for the third consecutive game, but manager Mike Scioscia said he still

expects Cameron Maybin to earn most of the playing time there. Maybin is batting .212 with a .631 OPS,

while Revere is hitting .217 with a .554 OPS.

"I think we're going to see how it matches up on a daily basis, Scioscia said. "We feel Cam is going to get

the lion's share of playing time in left field, but right now we're mixing and matching a little bit until

some of our guys get more comfortable."

Agent zero: Angels’ bats stuck on repeat

Struggling offense hasn't scored in the last 20 innings

By Maria Guardado / MLB.com

HOUSTON -- The Angels saw two unsavory streaks continue following their 3-0 loss to the Astros in

Monday night's series opener at Minute Maid Park.

After being shut out for a second consecutive game, the Angels' scoreless streak grew to 20 innings.

Their lineup, which is projected to be a strength this season, has not produced a run since the seventh

inning of a 3-2 defeat in Kansas City on Saturday. The cold bats have been the primary culprit behind the

losing skid, which extended to six games on Monday and dropped the Angels to 6-8.

"It's not ideal," first baseman C.J. Cron said. "We haven't been hitting it like we know we should or like

we know we can. Unfortunately, this type of stuff happens."

The Angels generated multiple scoring opportunities against Astros starter Charlie Morton, but they

finished 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position and left nine men on base.

April 18, 2017 Page 14 of 17

"I think we had a bunch of good at-bats at times and then a couple that obviously we didn't get it done,"

Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "But I thought we hit the ball hard a couple of times with guys in

scoring position. I thought we got into a situation where we worked some counts, got [Morton's] pitch

count up. We just left a lot of guys on base early in the game."

The Angels wasted another strong outing from their rotation, which appears to be rebounding from its

rough start to the season. Right-hander Jesse Chavez allowed two runs on seven hits over seven innings,

walking two and striking out five, but he came away with the tough-luck loss.

"Jesse pitched with his back against the wall," Scioscia said. "He really pitched a terrific ballgame for us,

but we couldn't get that hit early with some guys in scoring position."

The Angels are hitting just .160 (30-for-188) over their six-game losing streak, but one consolation is that

the starting pitchers have posted a 1.89 ERA over their last three games, allowing four runs over 19 1/3

innings. It's a significant improvement from their first 11 games, when they struggled to get deep into

games and combined for a gaudy 6.27 ERA.

"I think the last three starts are what we're going to need," Scioscia said. "Like we said, that can turn

quickly as we get around this rotation one or two times with these good starts. We're going to be fine. It

started with [Matt Shoemaker], and [Tyler Skaggs] and now Jesse. We're going to put up a lot of wins if

we pitch like that."

Nolasco looks to get on track against Astros

By Richard Dean / Special to MLB.com

Angels right-hander Ricky Nolasco will oppose Astros righty Joe Musgrove on Tuesday in the second of

19 games between the American League West rivals this season.

After seeing a surplus of left-handers this season, the Astros are slated to see all right-handed starters in

this four-game series at Minute Maid Park. Houston is 6-0 this season against right-handers and 3-4

against southpaws.

Playing seven of their first 10 games against the Mariners, the Astros saw their share of left-handers.

With a presence of right-handed bats and switch-hitters, Astros manager A.J. Hinch said his team should

be able to hit left-handed pitching, as well as right-handers.

Last year, the Astros owned a 13-6 advantage in the season series with the Angels.

Nolasco, making his fourth start of the season, has logged a 5.40 ERA, giving up 10 runs over 16 2/3

innings.

Musgrove, who picked up his first win of the season last time out against the Mariners, is having trouble

going deep into games with 10 1/3 innings over his first two starts.

April 18, 2017 Page 15 of 17

Things to know about this game

• Both clubs have enjoyed large comebacks this season. Twice the Astros and Angels have rallied from

five-run deficits to win.

• The Angels have spent seven days atop the AL West standings this season. Last year, the Angels were

in first place in the division only three days.

• With almost two weeks remaining in April, the Astros have already posted more wins this month than

last year's total (7-17).

• Entering Monday, Charlie Morton's curveball was averaging a spin rate of 2,905 rpm this season, the

fourth-highest among pitchers with at least 25 tracked curves or knuckle-curves. Hitters had missed on

46.2 percent of their swings against the pitch, the highest rate in MLB (minimum 15 swings).

FROM THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Morton, 3 Astros relievers combine to 5-hit Angels, 3-0

HOUSTON -- Over the last four games, the Astros have combined to score 34 runs to support the

pitching staff.

The pitching staff supported Houston's offense Monday night.

Charlie Morton and three relievers combined for a five-hitter, Jose Altuve drove in two runs and

the Houston Astros beat the Los Angeles Angels 3-0 for their fifth straight win.

"To walk out of here with a nice clean win from a pitching standpoint ... we've just got to find different

ways to win and today was a unique one," Houston manager A.J. Hinch said.

Morton (1-1) worked in and out of trouble over five innings, allowing five hits and two walks with three

strikeouts. He had runners on in every inning, including stranding the bases loaded in the second when

he got Ben Revere to fly out. Morton, who had his first scoreless outing since Apr. 12, 2016, when he

threw 6 2/3 scoreless, has allowed three runs or fewer in each of his three starts this season.

"It would have been nice if I was in the zone more, executing my pitches a little bit better," Morton said.

"I never like to be as sporadic, especially with my sinker because it was all over the place."

Chris Devenski followed Morton with two perfect innings, Luke Gregerson threw a perfect eighth

and Ken Giles pitched the ninth for his third save. Astros pitchers retired the last 14 batters.

"The zeroes that our team put up, Devenski comes in and does what Devenski does, Luke comes in and

has a clean inning and that's probably the best Giles has pitched and looked in a while for him," Hinch

said.

April 18, 2017 Page 16 of 17

Jesse Chavez (1-2) allowed two runs and seven hits over a season-high seven innings. He struck out five

and rebounded after allowing five runs in 4 1/3 innings in his last outing.

"I gave us a chance," Chavez said. "That's all. Being able to give us a chance and with our offense they're

capable of anything. Last two games haven't worked our way, but we put ourselves in position to have a

chance."

Altuve had a sacrifice fly to make it 2-0 in the third and hit an RBI double in the eighth. Alex

Bregman had an RBI single in the second.

"We did a good job of capitalizing tonight," Bregman said. "If you're going to be a good team, you have

to win the close ones, and Charlie did a great job tonight."

Mike Trout and Martin Maldonado each had two hits for the Angels, who stranded nine runners and

were 0 for 7 with runners in scoring position. The Angels, who have lost six straight, were shut out in

consecutive games for the first time since July 28-29, 2012, against Tampa Bay.

"It's been a week where we're having trouble getting that that we need," Angels manager Mike Scioscia

said. "I think the process is right it's just one of those times right now where we're not getting enough

guys on base early in innings and getting that big hit."

TRAINING ROOM

Astros: SS Carlos Correa (right hand bruise) was not in the starting lineup after being hit by a pitch

Saturday in Oakland. Hinch called Correa day to day. "Initially we planned on playing him," Hinch said.

"We got back last night after the long flight and he felt OK. He woke up this morning, didn't feel great,

still some lingering soreness. It's a fairly easy decision if he has as much soreness as he has to give him

another day off."

UP NEXT

Angels: RHP Ricky Nolasco (0-2) makes his fourth start of the season Tuesday in the second game of the

four-game series. Nolasco lost his last start Thursday, allowing five runs on eight hits, but he is 4-0 with a

2.53 ERA in five games at Minute Maid Park.

Astros: RHP Joe Musgrove (1-0) takes the mound for his third start Tuesday. Musgrove will be looking

for his second straight win after allowing three runs in 5 1/3 innings his last start Apr. 11 at Seattle.

DEVENSKI DEALING

Devenski has 21 strikeouts in 11 innings this season. The right-hander struck out the side in the sixth and

has struck out seven of the last nine batters he has faced. He became the first reliever in club history to

start a season by striking out three or more batters in his first four appearances.

April 18, 2017 Page 17 of 17

FROM ESPN.COM

Angels' Huston Street out until at least June 1

By ESPN.com news services

Los Angeles Angels reliever Huston Street was moved to the 60-day disabled list Monday, with the team

hoping he can return when eligible June 1.

Street, who was competing to be the Angels' closer this season, suffered a "Grade-1 plus" strain of his

lat muscle during spring training and has been out since. Angels GM Billy Eppler told the Orange County

Register that Street's rehab was slowed by a "mild shoulder impingement."

A two-time All-Star selection, Street, 33, went 3-2 with a career-worst 6.45 ERA and nine saves during an

injury-plagued 2016 season with the Angels.

Andrew Bailey, who also was battling for the closer job this spring, also has a shoulder injury and has not

thrown since going on the DL last week.

Cam Bedrosian is the team's current closer, having saved two games this season.

By moving Street to the 60-day DL, the Angels brought up reliever Parker Bridwell, who was acquired

from the Orioles on Monday.