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AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh Los Angeles Angels’ Shohei Ohtani, of Japan, hits a solo home run during the first inning of a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox in Chicago, Friday, April 29, 2022.
By MATT CARLSON Associated Press
11:57 JST, April 30, 2022
CHICAGO (AP) — Taylor Ward and Shohei Ohtani hit first-inning solo home runs off Lucas Giolito and the Los Angeles Angels rode a combined three-hitter to their sixth straight win, 5-1 over the Chicago White Sox on Friday night.
Ward finished with three hits and two RBIs, and Ohtani scored three runs as the Angels used seven pitchers to climb seven games over .500 for the first time since June 11, 2018.
Anthony Rendon had two doubles and an RBI and David Fletcher added two doubles in his return from a hip injury.
Tim Anderson had two hits for the White Sox, who have dropped 10 of 11. Anderson doubled in the bottom of the first and scored, but Chicago didn’t get another hit until Jose Abreu singled with two outs in the seventh.
Los Angeles pitchers retired 18 straight White Sox batters on a night when scheduled Angels starter Noah Syndergaard was scratched because of an undisclosed illness. Manager Joe Maddon said Syndergaard “wasn’t feeling well” before the game, but wouldn’t elaborate on the symptoms.
Jimmy Herget stepped in to start and tossed three innings, allowing a run and one hit. Austin Warren (2-0) followed with two perfect innings and Archie Bradley tossed a 1-2-3 sixth.
Aaron Loup and Ryan Tepera followed with a scoreless inning each. Mike Mayers got the first out of ninth, but allowed Anderson’s second hit and struck Andrew Vaughn with a pitch. Raisel Iglesias got the final two outs and his sixth save as the White Sox loaded the bases.
Ohtani’s fourth homer ended a 10-game longball drought for the two-way Japanese-born star, who hit 46 last season.
Ward’s homer was his fifth, and fourth in five games.
Giolito (0-1) allowed three and five hits while striking out seven in six innings, his longest outing this season. The White Sox ace settled down in his third start, and second after missing two weeks with an abdominal strain he suffered on opening day in Detroit.
Ward smacked the first leadoff homer of his career to left on an Giolito’s 0-1 curveball to start the first. Ohtani’s shot to left-center with two outs made it 2-0
The White Sox cut it to 2-1 in the bottom half. Anderson scored after Yasmani Grandal’s grounder scooted underneath Angels second baseman Matt Duffy.
Mike Trout made a leaping catch on Abreu’s drive to the right-center wall to close out the fourth.
Rendon doubled in Ohtani in the sixth to make it 3-1. Walsh doubled Ohtani home in the eight, then Ward added an RBI double in the ninth.
