BALTIMORE — Although the Angels’ 4-1 loss to the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday night cost them any momentum they hoped to gain from their Shohei Ohtani-led victory a night earlier, there was one decidedly positive development.
Mike Trout crushed two balls.
Both were caught at the warning track, but they represented Trout’s two best swings in more than a week. The Angels’ three-time American League MVP now has just one hit in his last 25 at-bats – an infield hit – but he’s showing signs of being more comfortable at the plate.
In the fifth inning, Trout drilled a ball at 111 mph toward left field with a runner on. Under the old configuration at Camden Yards, before the fences were moved back more than 25 feet this winter, it would have been a two-run home run that gave the Angels the lead. Instead, it was caught by leaping left fielder Austin Hays.
In the eighth, Trout hit one 105 mph toward right center. Outfielder Cedric Mullins leaped at the fence and robbed Trout of at least an extra-base hit.
Trout also hit a line drive just shy of the warning track on Wednesday in Miami.
All of this is probably of little consolation to Angels fans because, in the end, the game was yet another disappointing loss in a season that is slipping away.
There was plenty of blame to go around in this one, as the offense produced little, despite some hard contact. Besides Trout, Ohtani and Luis Rengifo also hit balls solidly that were snagged by Orioles outfielders.
The Angels needed to do better offensively because starter Chase Silseth struggled.
Silseth was charged with four runs in four innings. Still less than a year removed from the draft, Silseth raised hopes by allowing three runs in his first two starts. Those were against the Oakland A’s, who have the worst offense in the major leagues. Since then, he has allowed 13 earned runs on 21 hits in 14-1/3 innings.
Orioles super prospect Adley Rutschman tagged Silseth for a homer in the second inning. In the third, he gave up a bloop hit and then Ryan Mountcastle rocketed a ball off the center field fence, driving in a run.
Silseth gave up singles to the first two hitters he faced in the fifth, ending his night. Both runners came home against reliever Andrew Wantz, on a sharp single and a sacrifice fly.
Before the Orioles pushed the lead to four, the Angels failed to capitalize with runners in scoring position in each of the first three innings.
They loaded the bases with two outs in the first, but Rengifo hit a flyout to right. In the third, Brandon Marsh was a third with one out, and Kurt Suzuki struck out and Jonathan Villar failed in an attempt to bunt for a hit. Taylor Ward doubled with two outs in the third, but Jared Walsh struck out.
