ANAHEIM — This wasn’t the way the Angels wanted to win on a night that should have been about celebrating Mike Trout for equaling the franchise homer record, but they aren’t in position to apologize for any victories in this forgettable season.
Ty Buttrey and Matt Andriese and combined to blow a three-run lead in the ninth inning, before the Angels came back to beat the Houston Astros 6-5 in 11 innings.
The Angels won for just the second time in seven extra-inning games. Andriese stranded the automatic runner in the 10th and 11th.
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Los Angeles Angels’ Mike Trout celebrates his two-run home run with coaches as he returns to the dugout during the first inning of the team’s baseball game against the Houston Astros, Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
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Houston Astros’ Kyle Tucker watches his RBI double that tied the score during the ninth inning of the team’s baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels, Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
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Los Angeles Angels left fielder Taylor Ward runs down a ball hit by Houston Astros’ Yuli Gurriel, making the catch for the out during the ninth inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
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Mike Trout #27 of the Los Angeles Angels singles during the sixth inning of a game against the Houston Astros at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on September 04, 2020 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
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Houston Astros’ George Springer watches as a ball hit by Los Angeles Angels’ Mike Trout clears the wall for a two-run home run during the first inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
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Los Angeles Angels’ Mike Trout runs the bases after hitting a two-run home run during the first inning of the team’s baseball game against the Houston Astros, Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
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Andrelton Simmons #2 congratulates Mike Trout #27 of the Los Angeles Angels after his two-run homerun during the first inning of a game against the Houston Astros at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on September 04, 2020 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
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Los Angeles Angels’ Shohei Ohtani, left, of Japan, safely slides back to second base as Houston Astros shortstop Carlos Correa applies a late tag during the first inning of a baseball game, Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
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Houston Astros’ Kyle Tucker, left, reaches second base with a double ahead of the tag by Los Angeles Angels shortstop Andrelton Simmons during the sixth inning of a baseball game, Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
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Anthony Rendon #6 scores on a sacrifice fly by Taylor Ward #3 of the Los Angeles Angels as Martin Maldonado #15 of the Houston Astros awaits the throw during the first inning of a game at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on September 04, 2020 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
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Los Angeles Angels’ Mike Trout, right, and Andrelton Simmons round the bases after a two-run home run by Trout during the first inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros, Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
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Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Dylan Bundy throws against the Houston Astros during the first inning of a baseball game, Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
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Houston Astros’ Carlos Correa hits an RBI-double during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels, Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
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Houston Astros’ Yuli Gurriel, left, is greeted by Aledmys Diaz after scoring on a double hit by Carlos Correa during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels, Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
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Mike Trout #27 of the Los Angeles Angels rounds second base after hitting a two-run home run during the first inning of a game against the Houston Astros at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on September 04, 2020 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
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Houston Astros catcher Martin Maldonado points toward first base during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels, Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
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Los Angeles Angels’ Shohei Ohtani, of Japan, watches after hitting a fly ball during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros, Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
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Houston Astros relief pitcher Luis Garcia throws to a Los Angeles Angels batter during the first inning of a baseball game, Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Trout struck out to strand the winning the run in the 10th, the first out he’d made all night. In the 11th he started at second and scored on Shohei Ohtani’s one-out single, his first career walk-off hit.
The Angels avoided what certainly would have been an agonizing loss on a night that Trout hit his 299th homer, equaling Tim Salmon atop the Angels all-time leaderboard.
Trout’s first-inning two-run homer against Lance McCullers Jr. sailed over the center field fence, pulling Trout even with Salmon in his 1,234th game. Salmon played 1,672 games with the Angels.
“Tim’s a great person,” Trout said on Thursday. “I got to know him over the years. It’s pretty cool. We’re always linked together because of our last names. Looking back on his career, what an unbelievable career. Just the way he represented the the Angels organization with such class. I hear nothing but great things about him. Every chance I get to talk to him when he’s around the ballpark, I take advantage of it.”
The moment was special for Joe Maddon, who often tells the story about how he helped sign Salmon when he was an Angels scout.
“This is just the beginning for Mike,” Maddon said. “I’m very happy for both these guys. It’s pretty cool, right?”
Trout’s homer, which gave him the major-league lead with 14 until the Padres’ Fernando Tatis Jr. tied him later in the night, was part of a three-run first inning. Jared Walsh homered to make it 4-0 in the third.
After that, though, the game was a story of players overcoming adversity, which Maddon enjoyed thoroughly.
First was Dylan Bundy, who was in trouble in the fourth inning. He had allowed two runs, cutting the lead in half, and the bullpen was in action. Cameras showed Bundy visibly upset at the action in the bullpen, and he didn’t hide his displeasure later.
“It motivates you when you see the bullpen up in the fourth inning as a starter and you’re not happy,” Bundy said. “It fires you up. And who knows, maybe I needed it.”
Maddon later said with a smile: “He got better.”
Sure enough, Bundy escaped the fourth with two strikeouts, and then he worked three more innings in dominating fashion, including three straight strikeouts to end the seventh.
The bullpen then inherited a three-run lead. They nearly blew it in the eighth, with Mike Mayers loading the bases before Luke Bard escaped, with the 5-2 lead intact.
In the ninth, Buttrey got the ball and he gave up ringing base hits to three of the four batters he faced. Buttrey allowed the Astros to get within 5-4 before he was pulled with two outs to go.
Andriese then entered. He retired Yuli Gurriel on a fly ball to shallow left — a nice catch by Taylor Ward — but then he gave up a game-tying double to Kyle Tucker.
Andriese struck out Carlos Correa to preserve the tie, though, and he would pick up six more outs after that, all with the go-ahead run in scoring position.
“Andriese, you cannot give him enough praise for what he did tonight,” Maddon said. “Just one mistake to Tucker. … He did not cave. I’ve been around a lot of guys that once that gate opens, they lose a little bit. He got two more innings for us right there, against a lineup that was really into that ballgame. It was awesome. Andriese did a helluva job and it needs to be recognized.”
Andriese kept the game tied long enough for Ohtani to get a crack. He had struggled all year, especially against lefties, but with one out in the 11th, he lined a single into right field against lefty Brooks Raley, ending the game.
“I love it,” Maddon said. “I love when we get a bunch of guys like that, that are not going to be denied and that’s really what it comes down to. There’s no big secret. They came back. They’re a championship-caliber team. They came back. And once you’ve attained that, earned that heart in your chest, you play that way in the latter parts of games. That’s what we need to do.”
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