Yusei Kikuchi delivered his strongest outing of the season, carrying a one-hit shutout into the eighth inning. Jo Adell provided key offensive support as the Los Angeles Angels defeated the Oakland Athletics 7-4 on Monday night at Angel Stadium. The win marked a solid bounce-back effort for the Angels, who were listed as slight favorites with betting odds hovering around -130 on the moneyline.
Kikuchi, who improved to 2-5 on the season, allowed just one hit over 7 1/3 innings, striking out five and walking one. His lone hit allowed came on a one-out single by Max Muncy in the fifth. Kikuchi exited the game after recording the first out in the eighth inning, having thrown 104 pitches in a commanding performance for the left-hander.
Offensively, the Angels built an early lead against the Athletics’ bullpen. After opener Grant Holman tossed a scoreless first inning, reliever Jeffrey Springs (5-5) surrendered three consecutive RBI singles in the third to Zach Neto, Nolan Schanuel, and Mike Trout, giving the Angels a 3-0 advantage. Springs took the loss, allowing four runs on six hits in his multi-inning appearance.
Adell extended the lead to 4-0 in the fourth inning with a solo home run, his 12th of the season. He capped the Angels’ scoring with a two-run single in the eighth after Trout drove in another run with a sacrifice fly. Adell finished the game with three RBIs, continuing his recent surge at the plate.
Despite the loss, the game featured another defensive highlight from Athletics rookie center fielder Denzel Clarke. Clarke made a leaping catch in the first inning to rob Schanuel of a potential solo home run, climbing the outfield wall and hanging from the top to make the grab. The play was reminiscent of Clarke’s daring catch last week against the Orioles, where he collided with the fence to remove extra bases.
Oakland’s offense remained quiet for most of the night, but a spark was found in the eighth inning after Kikuchi’s departure. Connor Brogdon gave up a single to Luis Urías, followed by a two-run homer from pinch-hitter JJ Bleday, his seventh of the year, to cut the Angels’ lead to 4-2. Ryan Zeferjahn came in to record the final two outs of the frame.
Muncy added a two-run homer in the ninth inning off Shaun Anderson, his fourth season, to narrow the margin to 7-4, but the Athletics could not mount a further comeback.
The loss ended a streak of five consecutive multi-hit games for Oakland infielder Jacob Wilson, who went hitless in four at-bats.
The Angels previously swept a four-game series against the Athletics in May, outscoring them 31-18 during that stretch at Sutter Health Park, Oakland’s temporary home this season.
Right-hander José Soriano (4-5, 4.11 ERA) is slated to start Tuesday’s game for the Angels. The Athletics had not confirmed a starting pitcher at the time of the game’s conclusion.
