May 18, 2017 Page 1 of 15

Clips

(May 18, 2017)

May 18, 2017 Page 2 of 15

Today’s Clips Contents

FROM LOS ANGELES TIMES (Page 3)

Mike Trout hits 13th home run, leading Angels to fourth win in a row

Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs has been cleared to run

FROM THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER (Page 6)

● Resurgent Angels extend win streak to 4 with sweep of White Sox

● Angels Notes: Tyler Skaggs optimistic he will return ahead of schedule

FROM ANGELS.COM (Page 8)

Trout’s HR keys Angels’ sweep of White Sox

Trout adds another HR to #ASGWorthy tear

Halos head to NY for showdown with deGrom

Maldonado provides stability behind the plate

FROM THE ASSOCIATED PRESS (Page 13)

Trout homers again as Angels beat White Sox, sweep series

May 18, 2017 Page 3 of 15

FROM THE LOS ANGELES TIMES

Mike Trout hits 13th home run, leading Angels to fourth win in a row

By Pedro Moura

Some years, it has taken him until the summer. The earliest he had ever done it was June 1.

It’s an arbitrary number, no doubt, but on a brisk spring night Wednesday at Angel Stadium, Mike

Trout clobbered his 13th home run of 2017 in the Angels’ 12-8 slugfest win over the docile Chicago

White Sox.

Because of a nagging hamstring strain, Trout has played only 37 games this season. If he maintains his

current home-run pace for the rest of this season, he would smash 55 homers and obliterate his

previous career high of 41.

Trout was unavailable to speak to reporters after the game. He hoped to catch a red-eye flight back east

to spend the day at home in New Jersey. He has carried this team so far this season, but he did not need

to Wednesday. The Angels collected 13 hits, worked six walks, and converted more than half of their

scoring-position opportunities.

“We got into good counts, passed the baton, got some clutch hitting with runners in scoring position,”

Manager Mike Scioscia said. “And, obviously, Mike breaks up with a home run.”

Winners of four straight games, the Angels (22-21) will depart Thursday morning for the East Coast,

where 10 games against sub-.500 teams await them, beginning Friday with the New York Mets. They

won't play a team that currently possesses a better record than them until June 1.

Pitching, and the mechanics within a delivery, can be complicated. Matt Shoemaker, the 30-year-old

Angels right-hander whose ascendance to the majors was once a major surprise, tries to simplify it. He

seeks to do two things with each pitch: Throw it low and throw it with every bit of aggression he can

summon. He believes the problems come when he fails to execute one of those facets.

But sometimes they don’t. Sometimes he throws his best pitch in the spot he sought and the batter still

wallops it. Jose Abreu did that Wednesday night. Peeved he’d given up a two-out double after falling

behind to the previous batter, Shoemaker worked the count to 1-and-2 against Abreu and then

delivered a splitter a couple inches below the strike zone. Without expending much effort, Chicago’s

best hitter reached down to golf it to the fake rocks beyond the center-field wall, 424 feet from home

plate.

Shoemaker did not watch the ball depart the field. He dropped his head and lifted his glove, asking

catcher Martin Maldonado to supply a new ball. Shoemaker kept his glove there for 10 seconds, while

umpire Brian Gorman fetched a baseball from his pocket and handed it to the catcher.

Two more White Sox batters reached base before Shoemaker escaped. In the second inning, poor

pitching was his undoing more than superlative hitting. He issued a walk and yielded two sharp singles

May 18, 2017 Page 4 of 15

to let two runs in. Thereafter, though, Shoemaker gave up only three hits, scattered across his five

remaining innings.

“You might lose this game 4-1, 4-2, 4-3,” Scioscia said he told his pitcher early. “But you’re not going to

lose this 9-8. You have to start getting into your game.”

Indeed, he turned a terrible start into a serviceable seven-inning effort.

Left-hander Jose Alvarez struggled in relief, forcing Scioscia to warm up closer Bud Norris behind him. It

was rookie Keynan Middleton who wound up finishing the game.

The Angels unleashed their torrent of offense in the second inning, mostly predicated on White Sox

starter Miguel Gonzalez’s wildness. He walked the first, fourth, sixth and seventh hitters he faced that

inning, and yielded a triple to Ben Revere in between. With his 35th pitch of the inning, Gonzalez left a

fastball up, and Albert Pujols lashed it to right field. That two-run single tied the score.

Pujols is 37, and scouts who see him regularly say he has lost little bat speed from his prime. Uniformly,

though, they agree that he has lost significant foot speed. While he remains adept at stealing bases

when opposing pitchers forget about him, he tends to be erased from the basepaths on hits because of

his inability to assess that speed in real time.

He began Wednesday’s fifth inning by launching a baseball off of the center-field wall. Instead of settling

for a single, he went for two, was thrown out by eight or 10 feet, and felt one of his hamstrings tighten.

He later exited the game and was pronounced day-to-day. The night before, Pujols produced a similar

result when trying to score from second on a single.

The Angels’ offensive run continued in the sixth and seventh innings with baserunner after baserunner.

The last run scored on a Cameron Maybin double-play groundout. The inning before, Maybin got a 30-

foot single on a ball that was determined to stay fair.

“That was the one I was waiting for,” said Maybin, who has raised his batting average 51 points in two

games. “Good things happen when you put the ball in play.”

When he reached first base, Maybin could not stop laughing. In the dugout, his teammates raised their

arms in disbelief. It was that kind of night.

Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs has been cleared to run

By Pedro Moura

Not three weeks removed from an oblique strain that was expected to sideline him between 10 and 12

weeks, Angels left-hander Tyler Skaggs has been cleared to run.

He ran Wednesday, is hopeful to resume throwing within a few days, and believes he can complete his

return to a major league mound in far less time than initially projected.

May 18, 2017 Page 5 of 15

Skaggs said he was in “very happy spirits” after two tough weeks coming to terms with his injury. But he

said he had not pegged a particular day to aim to be back.

“I’ve been on the disabled list enough to know to take it day by day,” Skaggs said.

Through five starts, the 25-year-old Skaggs had been the Angels’ best starting pitcher, logging a 3.99

earned-run average and above-average strikeout and walk rates.

This is the fifth year he has pitched in the majors, but never for a full season. After Tommy John surgery

and accompanying compensatory injuries, he has grown frustrated with his reputation as an injury-

prone pitcher and hoped to debunk it this season.

The Angels have not updated his timetable beyond the typical 10-12 week recovery for an oblique strain

of his type.

“I don’t think there’s a schedule to say he’s ahead or behind,” manager Mike Scioscia said. “Where the

rubber is going to meet the road with Tyler is when he picks up a ball and when he gets on the rubber.

That’s when you start to say he’s really making progress.”

Maybin’s timing

Sometime around midnight as Monday turned into Tuesday, Cameron Maybin sat on his couch and

watched some highlights from his career year in 2016.

Within the video, he noticed a different timing mechanism within the movement of his feet, and he

made a note to revert back to his old approach.

“Very minute,” he described.

On Tuesday, he arrived at the ballpark and learned he’d be leading off for the first time this season.

Eight hours later, he had registered the first five-hit game of his major league career.

“I love hitting at the top of the lineup,” he said. “I definitely felt different, I definitely felt better. It's a

good feeling to come out, set the tone, and give us a chance to be in position to score runs early.”

Maybin led off again Wednesday in the Angels’ series finale against the Chicago White Sox.

Short hops

Right fielder Kole Calhoun received a rare “recharge day” against a right-handed pitcher. His offensive

statistics are all below his career norms. …After Wednesday, six of the Angels’ next 10 games will take

place in National League stadiums, where Albert Pujols cannot serve as the designated hitter. He’s

played first base only twice this season, and it’s unlikely he’ll play the position all six times. Asked about

that, Scioscia said he has written down a number of possibilities for Pujols’ playing schedule. “We’ll

check with our medical department, check with Albert and see when he’s out there at first base and

how often,” Scioscia said.

May 18, 2017 Page 6 of 15

FROM ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Resurgent Angels extend win streak to 4 with sweep of White Sox

By Jeff Fletcher

ANAHEIM — Mike Trout’s home run drought — all of one game — ended.

Cameron Maybin continued to be practically unable to make an out. Albert Pujols continued to rack up

RBIs. Even Danny Espinosa, a few days removed from a career-worst hitless streak, had two hits and made

three defensive gems in one inning.

All things considered, it was an encouraging night for the resurgent Angels as they overcame an early four-

run deficit to beat the Chicago White Sox, 12-8, on Wednesday night, sweeping the three-game series and

winning their fourth in a row overall.

The only blemish on the night was that Pujols felt a little tightness in his hamstring, so he came out in the

seventh inning. Manager Mike Scioscia said it was just a “precaution” and Pujols is day-to-day. The Angels

have Thursday off, and they open a series on Friday against the New York Mets, so Pujols will not be able

to DH if he plays.

In the meantime, the Angels can enjoy their cross-country flight with a winning record, 22-21. Last season,

the latest the Angels were over .500 was April 13, when they were 5-4.

“For us to have our heads above water, you have to give a big shout-out to the pitchers,” Scioscia said. “As

we go into the next bulk of games hopefully we’ll start to score some runs and take some pressure off

them.”

They are enjoying their best offensive burst of the season, having scored at least seven runs in back-to-

back games for the first time, including Tuesday’s 7-6 victory in 11 innings.

“If you look at the overall formula for our team, there is no doubt there is more offense in the equation

than we’ve seen in the first 40 games,” Scioscia said. “It will be there. We’re very confident.”

Of course it starts with Trout, who provided the biggest blow in Wednesday’s game. His three-run homer

in the sixth turned a one-run lead into a four-run lead. He hit the 415-foot blast against Anthony Swarzak,

who had allowed just four hits all season coming into the game.

It was Trout’s 13th homer of the season, and his fifth in the past six games, a day after his streak of four

consecutive games with a homer came to an end.

He had gotten to the plate in the sixth thanks to a two-out hit by Maybin, whose dribbler in front of the

plate died in a spot where no one could pick it up quickly enough to throw him out at first.

May 18, 2017 Page 7 of 15

After Maybin got to first, he looked to his dugout and shrugged his shoulders with a smile. It was his third

hit of the night, and second that didn’t leave the infield. A night earlier, he had the first five-hit game of his

career. Thanks to a tweak in his swing, he is hitting the ball harder, and even getting hits when he doesn’t.

“I been having a lot of good at-bats and not much to show,” Maybin said. “Sometimes things don’t go your

way. That was one I was waiting for. That little chinker and the little blooper last night. Good things

happen when you put the ball in play.”

Pujols also has gone through stretches this season in which he didn’t feel his average accurately reflected

the quality of his contact. He had two hits, both to the right side, and he drove in two runs with a bases-

loaded single in the second. Pujols, whose third RBI on Tuesday night was the winner, leads the team with

32 RBI.

The late outburst — eight runs in the sixth and seventh innings — made for an easy victory on a night that

Matt Shoemaker started poorly.

Shoemaker gave up a first-inning two-run homer to Jose Abreu on a two-strike splitter that wasn’t even a

strike. Abreu nonetheless crushed the ball some 424 feet, onto the fake rocks beyond the center field

fence. Shoemaker gave up two more in the second, but then he dominated to get into the seventh without

another run scoring. He struck out nine and walked one.

Angels Notes: Tyler Skaggs optimistic he will return ahead of schedule

By Jeff Fletcher

ANAHEIM — If you’re looking for good news on an Angels’ pitching injury, Tyler Skaggs has it.

A day after he was cleared to run, Skaggs said he’s optimistic that he will beat the projected timetable that

would have had him back from a strained oblique sometime in July.

“I’m in very happy spirits at the moment,” Skaggs said Wednesday.

He said he is expecting to be evaluated again in the next few days, at which point he is hoping to be

cleared to throw.

Skaggs said he has felt this injury was not serious ever since he first reported a “pinch” during his April 28

start. He was surprised when the MRI showed a grade 2 strain of his oblique, with an expected rehab

period of 10 to 12 weeks.

Just shy of three weeks from the injury, Skaggs spoke in positive terms about coming back sooner than

expected, but he wasn’t ready to give a date that he’s hoping to come back.

“We’ll take it day by day,” he said. “I’ve been on the disabled list enough to know to take it day by day.”

Manager Mike Scioscia also remains cautious about projecting when Skaggs might return.

May 18, 2017 Page 8 of 15

“I don’t think there’s a schedule to say he’s ahead or behind,” Scioscia said. “Where the rubber is going to

meet with road with Tyler is when he picks up a ball and when he gets on the rubber. That’s when you

start to say he’s really making progress. There’s a ways to go.”

DAY OFF FOR CALHOUN

Kole Calhoun, who has been slumping lately, was not in the lineup on Wednesday, having what Scioscia

called a “recharge day.”

Despite hitting a game-tying three-run homer on Monday night, Calhoun had three hits in his last 30 at-

bats, with 13 strikeouts, before Wednesday.

Calhoun also made an uncharacteristic defensive mistake late in Tuesday’s 7-6, 11-inning victory. During

the ninth inning, when the White Sox scored three runs to tie the score, Calhoun misjudged a ball and

went to play it off the wall. The ball landed at the bottom of the fence for a double.

“Off the bat you knew it was hit well, it was hit high,” Scioscia said. “There was a big curve to it. As it was

coming down, Kole thought it was going to hit the wall. And he put himself in position to play it off the wall

and it hit off the base of the wall and warning track. He got turned around on it. If you watch the replay

you can explain why. The ball was hit really high and really far. It didn’t carry as much as he thought. He

didn’t quite get where he needed to be.”

ALSO

Huston Street (lat) has been pitching in games in extended spring training. Scioscia said he’s getting closer

to being ready to begin a minor league rehab assignment, although he wasn’t sure how close. Street is

eligible to be activated from the 60-day disabled list on June 1, and it seems he should be ready around

then. “When he’s eligible we hope he’ll be where he needs to be,” Scioscia said. …

Mike Morin (neck) will face hitters in extended spring training on Thursday.

FROM ANGELS.COM

Trout's HR keys Angels' sweep of White Sox

By Kaelen Jones and Steve Dilbeck / MLB.com

ANAHEIM -- Mike Trout did it again.

The reigning American League MVP homered for the fifth time in his last six games as the Angels

completed a sweep of the White Sox with a 12-8 win on Wednesday night at Angel Stadium.

Full Game Coverage

May 18, 2017 Page 9 of 15

"That was unbelievable," Angels starting pitcher Matt Shoemaker said. "That's why he's so fun to

watch."

• Trout adds another HR to #ASGWorthy tear

Shoemaker (3-2) allowed four runs in the first two frames, including a two-run homer by Jose Abreu in

the first, but nothing after that as he went 6 1/3 innings and struck out a season-high nine.

"Really, no big adjustments," Shoemaker said. "Just staying aggressive, attacking the zone. You've just

got to go out there and keep pitching, keep trying to get outs and put up zeros, and then your team

picks you up, which is great."

Said Angels manager Mike Scioscia: "He had to earn every out. He made some pitches when he had to,

got some big strikeouts when he had to. That lineup over there, they've got some guys that are swinging

the bat as well as anyone in the league. He got into the seventh inning, which is a good sign."

The night didn't go as smoothly on the mound for the White Sox. Starter Miguel Gonzalez saw his four-

run lead evaporate in the second, with Albert Pujols tying the game, 4-4, with a two-run single. Martin

Maldonado's RBI single in the sixth closed the book on Gonzalez and gave the Angels a 5-4 lead they

wouldn't relinquish.

"Guys are not swinging at my pitches," Gonzalez said. "They're being a little more patient, and I'm falling

behind. If we can fix that, then we'll be OK. Things will change."

Chicago starters are now 0-8 with a 6.36 ERA over the last 11 games, with opponents hitting .294 over

that span. But it didn't get any easier for the bullpen.

Anthony Swarzak relieved Gonzalez and took a streak of 19 2/3 scoreless innings to the mound, but

consecutive singles by Maldonado and Cameron Maybin preceded Trout's three-run blast, ending the

longest scoreless streak in the Majors and wrapping up another four-spot for the Halos.

"I don't care what kind of year you're having, what streak is going on or whatever," Swarzak said. "If

you're giving up three consecutive hits to three consecutive batters, that's an issue."

• Swarzak's scoreless streak ends at 19 1/3

Maldonado picked up his third RBI of the game with a single in the seventh in yet another four-run

outburst for the Angels, who held off a late charge by the White Sox to climb above .500 for the first

time since May 3.

"The character of this club is unbelievable," Shoemaker said. "Great clubhouse, great team. If we can

just put it together and play well and everybody does their part, it can be really good."

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

The Machine continues to rage: A night after hitting the game-winning RBI, Pujols once again came

May 18, 2017 Page 10 of 15

through for the Angels, drilling a two-run single to tie the game, 4-4, in the bottom of the second. He has

32 RBIs on the season.

I'll take a Martin. Actually, make it three: Maldonado came through at the plate for the Angels, notching

a season-high three RBIs. His second RBI -- a dribbler down the third-base line -- plated Ben Revere with

the go-ahead run.

SWARZAK'S RUN ENDS

Swarzak's run of excellence, bordering on mind-boggling, came to a temporary end in the sixth inning

when the right-hander allowed three runs on three hits. Entering the night, Swarzak had allowed two

hits and one walk in his last 50 batters faced and had a scoreless streak of 19 2/3 innings come to an

end. He was the only pitcher remaining the Majors to work 19-plus innings without allowing a run in

2017.

QUOTABLE

"He got a little tight on the ball he hit to the wall in right-center [in the fifth inning]. Running, he felt OK.

In the [sixth], he was a little tight so we took him out as a precaution. Right now, it's day to day." --

Scioscia, on pinch-running for Pujols after he walked in the sixth inning

"We've lost 14 of the last 15 here? I wasn't aware of that. OK. I don't know. I'll have to think about that a

little." -- White Sox manager Rick Renteria, on Chicago's struggles in Anaheim

UPON FURTHER REVIEW

Abreu drilled a ground ball into a 6-4-3 double play during the fifth inning. He was initially ruled safe at

first, but was called out after review. The Angels have won seven of 10 challenges this season.

WHAT'S NEXT

White Sox: Dylan Covey (0-3, 7.98 ERA) makes his seventh start of the season, fifth on the road and his

first career start against the Mariners when Chicago opens a series in Seattle on Thursday at 9:10 p.m.

CT. The rookie felt as if he had a breakthrough in his last trip to the mound against the Padres, striking

out a career-high nine over 4 1/3 innings..

Angels: The Angels will open a 10-game road trip, beginning with the opener of a three-game series

against the New York Mets at 4:10 p.m. PT on Friday. Ricky Nolasco (2-2, 4.34 ERA) will make his ninth

start of the season. He's 6-8 with a 5.03 ERA (139 2/3 innings and 78 earned runs) in 26 appearances (24

starts) against the Mets.

Trout adds another HR to #ASGWorthy tear

By Kaelen Jones / MLB.com

ANAHEIM -- Mike Trout continues to impress amid a hot start to the season.

The reigning American League MVP improved his case for a sixth All-Star Game by smashing a three-run

home run off White Sox reliever Anthony Swarzak during a 12-8 Angels win on Wednesday night.

May 18, 2017 Page 11 of 15

Full Game Coverage

Swarzak had been nearly unhittable this season -- he had gone 19 2/3 innings without giving up a run

and had given up just two hits and a walk against the last 50 batters he had faced.

• Cast your Esurance All-Star ballot for Trout and other #ASGWorthy players

Trout ended the Majors' longest scoreless streak with his 13th home run of the season and his fifth in his

last six games. His teammate, pitcher Matt Shoemaker, gushed over the hit following the game.

"That was unbelievable," he said. "That's why he's so fun to watch."

Despite missing a career-high five games with a hamstring injury earlier this month, Trout ranks among

the best in several offensive categories.

In 37 games, the 25-year-old is tied for third in the Majors with 13 home runs and is tied for ninth in RBIs

(30). He's slashing a remarkable .341/.451/.742.

Outfielder Cameron Maybin said he couldn't recall a time when Trout hadn't performed well.

"It's just what he does," said Maybin. "He's the best player in the game for a reason. I haven't seen him

really have a bad stretch yet, so I'm just thinking that's what he does."

At 22-21 and beginning a 10-game road on Friday, the Angels will certainly hope that Trout can continue

to play at this level.

Halos head to NY for showdown with deGrom

By Anthony DiComo / MLB.com

Terry Collins may be on the verge of history, but as the Mets return home Friday for the first of three

games at Citi Field against the Angels, their manager is far more concerned with the present.

Collins, who will match Davey Johnson as the longest-tenured manager in Mets history on Friday,

currently faces one of his most significant challenges in seven years at the helm. He must guide the Mets

back into contention without the services of his best pitcher, Noah Syndergaard, and hitter, Yoenis

Cespedes, following a losing road trip through Milwaukee and Phoenix.

Full Game Coverage

The Mets will at least have one of their most successful starting pitchers, Jacob deGrom, on the mound

for Friday's opener. But even deGrom has struggled recently, with a 5.46 ERA his last five starts.

Los Angeles will counter with right-hander Ricky Nolasco, who owns a 4.67 ERA in three May no-

decisions -- all of them Angels losses. New Jersey native Mike Trout makes his first visit to Citi Field with

the Angels.

May 18, 2017 Page 12 of 15

Things to know about this game:

• Robert Gsellman was originally scheduled to start Friday's game, but the Mets skipped the struggling

rookie in favor of deGrom. The Mets have not yet decided when they will slot Gsellman back into the

rotation; an off day Monday gives them the option to skip him twice. For the time being, Gsellman is

available out of the bullpen.

• Angels infielders Yunel Escobar and Andrelton Simmons, both of whom used to play in the NL East, are

a combined 10-for-23 (.435) with two doubles, three walks and just two strikeouts lifetime off deGrom.

• Jose Reyes, who is filling in at shortstop for injured starter Asdrubal Cabrera, has a long history of

success against Nolasco. In 53 career at-bats, Reyes is bating .340 with four home runs, a triple and a

double. The two were teammates on the 2012 Marlins, Nolasco's seventh and final year in Miami.

• Angels manager Mike Scioscia said Monday he has "a number of things written down" regarding how

Albert Pujols will be deployed, since he cannot be used as a DH this series. He said that the 37-year-old

will start at first base for the series opener on Friday, but didn't reveal any other decisions.

Maldonado provides stability behind the plate

By Kaelen Jones / MLB.com

ANAHEIM -- The pitcher's mound has had a sort of revolving door for the Angels, but the man behind

the plate has almost always remained the same.

Martin Maldonado started his 34th game at catcher on Wednesday. Juan Grateroland Carlos Perez -- the

only other two who've started at the spot for the Angels this year -- have made a combined nine starts.

Full Game Coverage

After spending the first six years of his career in Milwaukee as a part-time player, Maldonado has

adjusted smoothly to serving in a starting role with the Angels. He's ensuring he remains a fixture in the

lineup by touting a consistent bat (slashing .270/.342/.380) to go along with his defense. He's thrown

out seven of 22 attempted basestealers (36 percent).

"I pride myself in catching this many games," Maldonado said.

That same pride is evident in his preparation, too, according to Angels manager Mike Scioscia, a former

All-Star catcher.

"We put together our game plan, which he's very in tune with and does a great job with," Scioscia said.

"He studies our pitchers a lot, and he's really sharp back there."

As a result of injuries ravaging the Angels' pitching staff for a second straight season, the team has seen

21 pitchers toe the rubber through 42 games. The total is only bested by the Seattle Mariners, who have

featured 22 pitchers.

May 18, 2017 Page 13 of 15

Despite the plethora of arms, Maldonado said he's cultivated relationships with his pitchers so he can

better understand them.

"We talk a lot," Maldonado said, adding that big league hurlers know what their strengths are, and his

goal is to get them to channel that.

"All this stuff is really important to keeping your pitcher out there throwing to his capabilities," Scioscia

said. "Maldy's tremendous at it."

Worth noting

• Right-hander Mike Morin left for Arizona on Wednesday to throw to live hitters at the Angels' training

facility on Thursday. Morin has been on the disabled list since April 21 with a neck injury.

• Scioscia said he hopes closer Huston Street is "where he needs to be in early June." The righty is

eligible to come off the 60-day DL on June 1.

• Scioscia said "there's a ways to go" before left-hander Tyler Skaggs is ready to return from the right

oblique strain he sustained on April 29.

• Right-hander Andrew Bailey's visit to Dr. David Altcheck revealed "no new damage", according to

Scioscia, who added he'll go through a maintenance program to "see how he responds."

FROM THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Trout homers again as Angels beat White Sox, sweep series

Associated Press

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- The Los Angeles Angels might want to keep Cameron Maybin right at the top of their

lineup.

Maybin had three more hits, Mike Trout homered for the fifth time in six games, and the Angels

completed a three-game sweep of the Chicago White Sox with a 12-8 victory Wednesday night.

Maybin, batting leadoff for the second time in an Angels uniform, went 3 for 4 with two runs scored and

drew a walk a day after a career-best five hits on Tuesday. He's 8 for 10 in his last two games, breaking

out of a slump while finding a comfort zone hitting in front of Trout.

"My answer is going to be that it doesn't matter," Maybin said of where he hits in the Angels' order. "I

enjoy leading the way, leading the guys, getting things started. It allows me to use my approach and be a

little more patient. Again, it's my job, especially when they put me up there, to get things started and

I've been able to do that."

May 18, 2017 Page 14 of 15

Maybin had one of the best offensive years of his career with the Detroit Tigers last season, but had

struggled at the plate with his new team. He broke out in a big way against the White Sox.

"That's just an excuse for people to talk about something," Maybin said. "When you play well, nobody

has anything to say. That's your guys' job, to make excuses for us. We've got to come out and perform

no matter where you are."

Trout's 13th homer of the season, a three-run shot, keyed a four-run sixth inning for the Angels.

Matt Shoemaker (3-2) gave up two runs in each of the first two innings, but settled down to earn the

win. He finished with four runs allowed -- three earned -- and nine hits with nine strikeouts and one walk

in 6 1/3 innings.

Miguel Gonzalez (3-4) allowed five runs and six hits in 5 2/3 innings. He walked five and struck out two

as the White Sox opened their 10-game West Coast road trip on a sour note.

The final game of the series featured 20 combined runs, 28 hits and three errors.

Jose Abreu hit a two-out, two-run homer in the first inning give the White Sox an early 2-0 lead. Chicago

made it 4-0 in the second on Yolmer Sanchez's RBI single and Melky Cabrera's run-scoring fielder's

choice.

The Angels answered with a four-run second to tie it as Gonzalez walked four in the inning. Ben

Revere tripled to drive in a run and scored on Martin Maldonado's groundout. Trout drew a walk to load

the bases, and Albert Pujols singled to right to drive in two and tie the game at 4.

Los Angeles then scored four times in the sixth, capped by Trout's homer, and four more in the seventh

to take a 12-4 lead.

The White Sox fell to 17-21 after allowing 24 runs over the last three games. They've lost 14 of their last

15 games at Angel Stadium.

"I do think we're better than that," White Sox manager Rick Renteria said. "We're continuing to

compete. At this point, I still think it's a long season. We still have 120-something games left. You have

peaks and valleys in every season. I think it's how you respond and continue to chip away and move

forward in the course of a season."

PRECAUTIONARY TALE

Pujols was taken out of the game in the seventh inning as a precautionary measure, according to Angels

manager Mike Scioscia, after he experienced some tightness in his hamstring. It was a combination of

trying to turn a single into a double -- he was thrown out -- in the sixth inning and the cooler weather.

It's unclear how many games Pujols will play as the Angels take a 10-game road trip that includes two

National League parks to play the New York Mets and Miami Marlins. Pujols has mostly been in the

May 18, 2017 Page 15 of 15

Angels lineup as the designated hitter, but would have to play first base in those parks. Scioscia didn't

speculate on how many games he might play.

SHOT FIRED

White Sox pitcher Tommy Kahnle was the subject of a surprising rant by Minnesota

Twins broadcaster LaTroy Hawkins during Tuesday's broadcast of the Rockies-Twins game.

Hawkins and Kahnle played together with the Colorado Rockies in 2014. Hawkins said they had a

physical fight in 2014 and called Kahnle "one of the worst teammates I've ever had in my life."

Said Kahnle: "It's weird, but stuff happened in the past. Everybody is entitled to their own opinion.

That's really all I've got. I don't take it to heart."

He found out via messages from friends because Kahnle said he doesn't have social media.

"I've got nothing on it. I've put it way in the past. I'm way over it," Kahnle said.

TRAINER'S ROOM

White Sox: INF Yoan Moncada, one of baseball's top prospects, is expected to go on the 7-day disabled

list Thursday with a sore left thumb. An X-ray and MRI were negative.

Angels: RHP Huston Street (right lat strain) is facing live hitters in Arizona. He could be ready to return in

early June. ... RHP Andrew Bailey (right shoulder inflammation) was seen by a doctor, who confirmed

there's no new damage. Bailey will be on a maintenance program for two weeks and then he'll be

reassessed. ... RHP Mike Morin (neck tightness) is expected to face live hitters in Arizona tomorrow.

UP NEXT

White Sox: RHP Dylan Covey (0-3, 3.83 ERA) has yet to win his first game of the season. This will be his

seventh start and fifth on the road, opening the series in Seattle on Thursday. Covey made his major

league debut last month. In his last start, he struck out a career-best nine batters and walked two in a

no-decision against the Padres.

Angels: RHP Ricky Nolasco (2-2, 4.34 ERA) has given up two home runs in five of his last six starts and has

allowed 13 home runs in eight starts this season. He'll face the Mets, who had lost seven straight games,

on Friday.