Michael Lorenzen had no idea how many family members and friends requested tickets for his homecoming game Monday night, when the Orange County native and former Cal State Fullerton standout made his debut for the team he grew up rooting for.
“I don’t want to see any of that stuff,” the right-hander said of the possible distractions leading up to his first start with the Angels.
“My wife or my friend will deal with it. I have my process, and nothing will get in the way of it.”
That laserlike focus was clearly evident to a crowd of 20,480 in Angel Stadium, where Lorenzen gave up one run and two hits in six innings, striking out seven and walking none to lead the Angels to a 6-2 victory over the Miami Marlins.
Lorenzen was dominant for most of his start, retiring the side in order four times and making one mistake, a 90-mph cut-fastball that Jesus Sanchez drove 439 feet for a solo home run to center field in the fourth.
Catcher Max Stassi didn’t have enough fingers on his right hand for Lorenzen’s six-pitch repertoire, a heavy sinking 94-mph two-seam fastball, 95-mph four-seam fastball, 83-mph slider, 86-mph changeup, 91-mph cutter and an 81-mph curve.
Lorenzen, 30, maintained his stuff for the duration of his 89-pitch, 58-strike effort, showing exactly why the Angels believe he can make a successful transition to the rotation after spending the last six seasons as a Cincinnati Reds reliever.
“Physically, he is one of the more talented athletes in baseball in regards to being able to do everything,” Angels manager Joe Maddon said. “He’s been gifted with a great arm, and now it’s just about figuring out different things. It’s more pitch ability, understanding of stuff and how to utilize it.”
The Angels played without center fielder Mike Trout, who was scratched because of the same stomach bug that sidelined him for two of the three exhibition games last week. Trout was on the field doing early work when Maddon got wind of his illness.
“He was trying to fight through a couple of things so I went out to talk to him, and we went over the whole thing, you know, what’s the best thing to do right now?” Maddon said. “It’s Game 5. Let’s just be smart about this.”
Brandon Marsh moved from left field to center, and Jo Adell, who went hitless in nine at-bats with seven strikeouts against the Astros, showing an extreme vulnerability to breaking balls off the plate, moved into the lineup as the left fielder. Both youngsters delivered huge hits.
Marsh followed Shohei Ohtani’s leadoff single and Stassi’s two-out walk in the first by driving a first-pitch fastball from Marlins right-hander Elieser Hernandez 423 feet over the wall in center for a three-run homer.
Adell pushed the lead to 4-0 in the second when he crushed a 90-mph fastball from Hernandez for a solo homer to right-center, the ball leaving his bat at 109.7 mph and traveling 430 feet. Marsh and Adell each added RBI doubles in the eighth to make it 6-1.
Left-hander Aaron Loup replaced Lorenzen and retired the side in order on seven pitches in the seventh. Right-hander Ryan Tepera struck out the side — all on 86-mph sliders — in the eighth, and closer Raisel Iglesias gave up a solo homer to Sanchez in the ninth.
Angels shortstop David Fletcher left the game in the seventh inning because of left hip tightness, the same injury that slowed him last week.
____
