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Clips

(July 28, 2017)

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Today’s Clips Contents

FROM LOS ANGELES TIMES (Page 3)

Angels will rely entirely on bullpen Saturday at Toronto

Pujols, Angels come up with nothing in series against Indians

FROM ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER (Page 6)

JC Ramirez can’t overcome Angels’ sluggish offense in loss to Indians

Angels Notes: Yusmeiro Petit gets the call to start

FROM ANGELS.COM (Page 8)

Angels hanging on to slipping WC hopes

Angels drop Tribe finale in pitchers' duel

Petit to make spot start for Halos on Saturday

Rolling rookie Bridwell to make Toronto debut

FROM THE ASSOCIATED PRESS (Page 12)

Bauer, Lindor send Indians past Angels for 7th straight win

Streaking Blue Jays look to keep Angels down

FROM ESPN.COM (Page 16)

Olney: Players who must be traded now before their value is lost

FROM THE ATLANTIC (Page 18)

Don’t Take Mike Trout for Granted

July 28, 2017 Page 3 of 20

FROM LOS ANGELES TIMES

Angels will rely entirely on bullpen Saturday at Toronto

By Pedro Moura

Faced with an inopportune situation at an important time, the Angels have decided on an all-hands

approach to handle their vacant starting-rotation spot for Saturday’s game at Toronto.

They might deploy their entire bullpen to pitch, beginning with long reliever Yusmeiro Petit.

Manager Mike Scioscia said Thursday that he hopes Petit can last longer than the 40-45 pitches that

have been his norm this season. Still, he probably will require at least five innings of relief help.

“It’ll end up, obviously, being a number of pitchers who pitch in that game,” Scioscia said. “I think Y’s got

enough length to get at least into the game, hopefully to a certain point.”

Petit, 32, agreed to a minor league contract with the Angels one week before pitchers and catchers

reported to spring training. He has pitched more innings than all but one major league reliever,

compiling a 2.70 earned-run average.

The Angels will recall another reliever to provide backup for Petit. They are currently carrying four

middle infielders, two of whom have played sparingly this week.

They will next need a fifth starter one week from Saturday. The club could opt to call up a minor league

starter or activate left-hander Tyler Skaggs from the disabled list. Or Petit could start again, with more

built-up stamina.

“That’s a possibility,” Scioscia said. “But he’s got a lot of innings under him. So when you start to build a

guy up, there are some things that are going to be important. A lot has to do with how he comes out of

it.”

Heaney impressing

In his third Arizona League start, left-hander Andrew Heaney struck out seven in 4 2/3 walk-free innings

Wednesday.

For his next start, Heaney probably will face an advanced level of competition. His major league return

could come within weeks.

Heaney, 26, underwent elbow ligament replacement surgery July 1, 2016, and has suffered no setbacks

along his prescribed path.

At spring training’s start, Scioscia said he saw no way that Heaney would pitch for the Angels this

season. Slowly, the club has opened to the idea that he could help them down the stretch.

July 28, 2017 Page 4 of 20

“As his rehab has built momentum, there is definitely a lot of encouraging signs coming out of it,”

Scioscia said. “Same way, this is a process for Andrew, for the next, hopefully, 10 years of his career. I

think we’re all very excited as he gets into the length. You’re seeing the executing of pitches, you’re

seeing him rebound.

“But, as of right now, there is no target date. He’s still got some work ahead of him.”

Short hops

Third baseman Yunel Escobar and catcher Martin Maldonado did not start Thursday’s game, but both

appeared in the seventh inning. … Right-handers Matt Shoemaker(posterior interosseous nerve

syndrome) and Garrett Richards(biceps nerve irritation) continue to play catch at Angel Stadium.

Shoemaker is throwing from a farther distance. … Reliever Huston Street (strained groin) is still not

throwing.

Pujols, Angels come up with nothing in series against Indians

By Pedro Moura

Fifteen times, Albert Pujols batted this week against the Cleveland Indians. Fifteen times, he walked

back to the Angels’ dugout without a hit.

For the first time in his career, he went 0 for 15 in a series, absent anything productive.

“He hit a line-drive foul and hit one ball hard to right-center,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said of his

No. 3 hitter’s performance in a 2-1 loss Thursday. “But, yeah, he’s a little out of sync at the plate.”

Asked if he felt out of sync, Pujols pushed back.

“Why, because I went 0-for?” he asked. “That’s not the first time in my career.”

Told Scioscia had said it, Pujols said to ask the manager again.

“I’m not out of sync,” he said. “It’s OK. It’s just a tough series. That’s it. We could’ve won either of those

games. Obviously, that’s the way it goes.”

For the Angels, the way it has gone this week is that tight games turned on one pitch. One strike from

escaping the seventh inning with a tie intact, their starting pitcher Thursday permitted a go-ahead hit for

the second straight day.

Right-hander JC Ramirez was the culprit this time, his outing marred by walks that supplied the

difference in the Angels’ third consecutive loss to the Indians at Progressive Field.

The Angels (49-54) had not been swept in a series since April. They had not sunk five games below .500

all year. Now 5 1/2 games back of Kansas City in the wild-card race, their playoff hopes appear bleak.

July 28, 2017 Page 5 of 20

Cleveland starter Trevor Bauer, the Newhall Hart High and UCLA product, did not permit a hit until Ben

Revere’s leadoff single in the fourth inning.

Carlos Santana had the Indians’ first hit, a home run, on Ramirez’s first pitch of the second inning.

The Angels tied the score in the fifth. Kole Calhoun led off with a single, advanced to second on a

groundout, and scored when C.J. Cron pounded a single up the middle. Backup catcher Juan Graterol

stroked a double to left, but Cron could not score, and he was stranded at third when Kaleb Cowart

struck out.

With one out in the Indians’ half of the fifth, Bradley Zimmer followed a walk with a double. Three

Angels executed an ideal relay, from Mike Trout in center to Andrelton Simmons at shortstop to

Graterol to get an out at home plate. Graterol shifted into the third base line just as he received the

throw, blocking Giovanny Urshela’s path.

To begin the sixth, Simmons singled and Luis Valbuena doubled. The Angels had three opportunities to

score both players with one hit, and failed. Cron grounded out to third. After rushing to grab his batting

gear, pinch-hitter Yunel Escobar struck out swinging, and Cowart tapped out to shortstop.

That was the Angels’ last and best chance to score.

Ramirez issued a season-high six walks in 6 2/3 innings. He said his wildness caused the first three but

the next were circumstantial.

“I think their main goal was to get on base,” Ramirez said. “I wanted to pitch around to get ground balls.

I didn’t want them to get base hits.”

Because he felt confident in his curveball against left-handed hitters, he pitched around the two right-

handers he faced in the seventh. He walked them both, which hurt. With two outs in the inning, the

switch-hitting Francisco Lindor shot a 1-and-2 curveball into right field to break the tie.

“It was down,” Ramirez said. “He hit it good.”

Scioscia said his club’s thin bullpen influenced his decision to not replace Ramirez. Blake Parker entered

after Lindor’s single, struck out Michael Brantley on three pitches, and handled the eighth.

Bauer remained in the game for the Angels’ eighth, setting them down in order. Closer Cody Allen

retired the three Angels who batted in the ninth. With two out, Valbuena’s check swing was ruled a

swing, enraging the infielder and ending the game.

Pujols, 37, is hitting .233 with a .654 on-base-plus-slugging percentage. Both would be career-worsts. His

resurgence is key to any club comeback, and publicly he remains as confident as ever.

“We’re right on it,” Pujols said. “The road trip is not over. We need to go to Toronto, try to win

tomorrow, and hopefully try and win the series. That’s the way I look at this team: Everybody goes out

July 28, 2017 Page 6 of 20

there and tries to give all that they have. We’re not going to throw in the towel. We have a lot of games

left.”

All year, the Angels have cited their remaining schedule as evidence there was plenty of time to mount a

comeback. But the remainder of the season is shortening.

“We’re still right there,” Revere said. “But I know we can’t fall back too much.”

FROM ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

JC Ramirez can’t overcome Angels’ sluggish offense in loss to Indians

By Jeff Fletcher

CLEVELAND — The Angels were one fly ball away from taking the lead in the sixth, and then one pitch

away from maintaining a tie in the seventh.

They got neither, instead losing 2-1 to the Cleveland Indians on Thursday afternoon, hitting a new low.

The Angels were swept for just the second time all season, the first since April. They also fell a season-

worst five games under .500.

The Angels have little margin for error this season, as they’ve tried to piece together a contender amid the

rubble of a roster decimated by injuries. For much of the season, they’ve hung within striking distance of a

wild card, but now they are starting to slip, testing their confidence. They are now 5½ games back of the

second wild card.

“It’s just a bad slump right now,” JC Ramirez said. “We need to get the hitting and pitching again, get

stronger.”

Ramirez did well for much of the game on Thursday, but a few mistakes were a few too many to

overcome. He gave up a homer to Carlos Santana in the second, but then he pitched around four walks

through six innings, to keep the score 1-1.

In the seventh, Brandon Guyer fought him for walk No. 5, taking pitches that Ramirez felt were good. After

a sacrifice moved Guyer into scoring position, Ramirez essentially pitched around Austin Jackson, walking

him. Ramirez said he felt he’d have a better shot at the subsequent lefties because his curveball was his

best pitch of the day.

Ramirez struck out Bradley Zimmer and got to 1-and-2 on Francisco Lindor, and then he threw a curve low

in the zone, where he wanted it. It wasn’t quite low enough, and Lindor yanked it into right for the go-

ahead run.

Manager Mike Scioscia said he had no regrets about leaving Ramirez out there for 108 pitches because

“his stuff was still good. He’s certainly carrying his stuff forward well enough to try to finish that inning.”

July 28, 2017 Page 7 of 20

Scioscia added that the Angels bullpen was “pretty thin,” the result of Tuesday’s 11-inning game and

Yusmeiro Petit coming out of the bullpen to be ready to start on Saturday.

That run on Lindor’s hit was enough to beat the Angels, whose only run came on C.J. Cron’s RBI single in

the fifth.

Otherwise, they squandered the opportunities they had against Cleveland’s Trevor Bauer. Kaleb Cowart

left two runners in the fifth. In the seventh, they had runners at second and third with no outs. Cron

grounded out, with the runners holding, and then Yunel Escobar struck out and Cowart grounded out.

“We had a lot of opportunities against him,” Scioscia said. “We couldn’t get that key hit or put the ball in

play a couple times.”

Mike Trout was hitless in four trips – getting called out on borderline strikes twice – and Albert Pujols was

hitless, concluding an 0-for-14 series.

“He’s a little out of sync at the plate,” Scioscia said of Pujols.

Pujols, however, didn’t agree: “I’m not out of sync. It’s OK. Just a tough series. That’s it. We could have

won any of those games. That’s how it goes.”

Angels Notes: Yusmeiro Petit gets the call to start

By Jeff Fletcher

The Angels signed Yusmeiro Petit because they felt he could be an asset either in the rotation or bullpen,

and this weekend he’ll finally get a crack at the former.

Petit will start Saturday in Toronto, filling a void left by Alex Meyer’s placement on the disabled list.

Because Petit has only pitched in relief this season, he’ll be able to throw only 40 to 50 pitches, Manager

Mike Scioscia said. He will be the first of a series of relievers, with the Angels likely adding another arm to

the roster before that game.

“There’s a limit to how much he’s going to do, but hopefully he’ll get us off on the right foot and give us a

chance to win the game,” Scioscia said.

Petit has been one of the Angels’ most valuable pitchers this season, posting a 2.70 ERA in 56-2/3 innings.

He has thrown the second most relief innings in the majors, trailing only Houston’s Chris Devenski (58-1/3).

Scioscia said Petit could remain in the rotation, slowly building his innings up to the level of a conventional

starter. Generally, pitchers can increase their workload by about 15 pitches per start.

HEANEY UPDATE

Andrew Heaney is moving closer to being a legitimate alternative for the Angels rotation.

July 28, 2017 Page 8 of 20

Heaney, who is nearly 13 months removed from Tommy John surgery, pitched 4-2/3 scoreless innings,

with no walks and seven strikeouts, on Wednesday night in the rookie-level Arizona League. He has

allowed two earned runs in 10-2/3 innings in three games, with 15 strikeouts and one walk. His next outing

will be at a higher level, either Triple-A Salt Lake City or Class-A Inland Empire.

“Velocity was good, command was good,” Scioscia said. “He’s on his path. Nothing has set him back so far.

He’s doing well.”

Scioscia said there’s still no date when they are planning on having him back. In a normal spring training, a

pitcher would make six starts, so presumably Heaney has at least three left.

“As his rehab has built momentum, there are definitely a lot of encouraging signs coming out of it,”

Scioscia said. “This is a process for Andrew for hopefully the next 10 years of his career. I think we’re all

excited as he gets into the length and execution of pitches. We’re seeing him rebound. Those are all

positive signs that are important.”

ALSO

Yunel Escobar was not in the Angels lineup Thursday, for a routine day off, Scioscia said. …

Kaleb Cowart started at second for the third time in three games since he was promoted from Triple-A.

Cowart had three hits in seven at-bats in the first two games, without any issues defensively. …

Tyler Skaggs (oblique) gave up three runs in 1⅔ innings for Triple-A Salt Lake before the game was

suspended because of rain on Thursday night in Memphis. Skaggs had been hoping to be ready to rejoin

the Angels rotation after this game, but the short outing likely means he will need at least more game in

the minors. …

The Angels are scheduled to see left-handed pitchers in the first two games in Toronto, which likely means

two starts for C.J. Cron instead of Luis Valbuena. Valbuena had just been heating up, with homers in three

straight games, through Wednesday.

FROM ANGELS.COM

Angels hanging on to slipping WC hopes

Pujols: 'We're not throwing in the towel. We have a lot of games left'

By Maria Guardado / MLB.com

CLEVELAND -- All season long, the Angels have withstood repeated injury blows and managed to hover

around the .500 mark long enough to cling to dreams of an American League Wild Card berth. But their

grip on the fringes of contention is starting to slip, perhaps irrevocably.

July 28, 2017 Page 9 of 20

On Thursday afternoon, the Angels lost to the Indians, 2-1, sealing a three-game sweep at Progressive

Field. The Halos, who had not been swept since April, fell a season-high five games under .500 at 49-54

and now sit 5 1/2 games behind the idle Royals for the second AL Wild Card spot.

"Every single game, we hung in there with them," outfielder Ben Revere said. "We just couldn't get the

lucky break."

Right-hander JC Ramirez allowed only two runs over 6 2/3 innings and was one strike away from

escaping the seventh with the game tied at 1, but he couldn't work out of a jam and surrendered a go-

ahead single to Francisco Lindor. After issuing a pair of walks to put two men on base, Ramirez fired a 1-

2 curveball to Lindor, who ripped a line drive to right field to give the Indians a 2-1 lead.

"My curveball was my best pitch today," Ramirez said. "It was down. He hit it good."

The Angels' offense, meanwhile, mustered only one run against Indians right-hander Trevor Bauer, who

yielded only an RBI single to C.J. Cron in the fifth. They had a golden opportunity to break the 1-1 tie in

the seventh after putting runners on second and third with no outs, but they came up empty-handed.

Cron grounded out to third, pinch-hitter Yunel Escobar struck out swinging and Kaleb Cowart tapped a

harmless grounder to short, allowing Bauer to emerge unscathed.

The missed opportunities have pushed the Angels to a potential breaking point in their season. Their

playoff odds have been more than halved since Monday, falling from 17.5 percent to 7.4 percent,

according to FanGraphs, and four teams are ahead of them in the Wild Card standings. With only a

three-game series against the Blue Jays left before Monday's non-waiver Trade Deadline, the Angels

could look to sell their trade chips, such as Bud Norris, David Hernandez, Escobar and Yusmeiro Petit, all

of whom are veterans with expiring contracts.

Still, the Angels remain confident that they'll be able to turn things around in the coming days.

"We just had a tough series," slugger Albert Pujols said. "The road trip is not over. We need to go to

Toronto and try to win tomorrow and hopefully win the series. I think that's the way that I look at this

team. Everybody just goes out there and gives everything that they have. We're not throwing in the

towel. We have a lot of games left."

Angels drop Tribe finale in pitchers' duel

By William Kosileski and Maria Guardado / MLB.com

CLEVELAND -- Francisco Lindor's go-ahead RBI single in the seventh inning of Thursday's series finale

with the Angels helped the Indians finish off the three-game sweep and win their seventh in a row with

a 2-1 victory at Progressive Field.

Lindor's tie-breaking single to right came off a 1-2 curveball from Angels starter JC Ramirez and

scored Brandon Guyer from second. Carlos Santana's 13th homer scored Cleveland's other run in the

July 28, 2017 Page 10 of 20

second inning, backing starter Trevor Bauer's excellent outing. The Indians (55-45) now hold a two-game

lead over the Royals in the American League Central.

"The way Bauer was pitching today, I wanted to help him," Lindor said. "He definitely kept us in the

game. He definitely deserved to win. Seemed like every time somebody got on second base I haven't

been able to get them home the last couple at-bats. When I got the base hit, I was pretty pumped."

That was enough for Bauer, who picked up his ninth win of the season after going eight strong innings,

allowing one run on seven hits and one walk while striking out six. He faced the minimum through the

first four innings, and then worked out of jams in each of his final three frames.

"Boy, did he clutch up," Indians manager Terry Francona said of Bauer. "He had to get himself out of a

couple innings. He competed like crazy. On a day when, I don't know, he maybe struck out a handful of

guys. Man, did he pitch really well. I think the best thing of all was just the way he competed. He really

got after it."

The only run the Angels scratched across came on C.J. Cron's single to center in the fifth inning. Swept

for the first time since April, the Angels (49-54) dropped a season-high five games under .500 and fell 5

1/2 games back of the idle Royals for the second AL Wild Card spot.

"We just had a tough series," said Albert Pujols, who is in the midst of an 0-for-16 slump. "The road trip

is not over. We need to go to Toronto, try to win tomorrow and hopefully win the series. I think that's

the way that I look at this team. Everybody just goes out there and gives everything that they have. We

don't have to throw in the towel. We have a lot of games left."

Ramirez was handed his ninth loss of the season after a solid outing of his own. Despite issuing a career-

high six walks, Ramirez went 6 2/3 innings and allowed two runs on five hits with four strikeouts.

"He pitched a good game," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "I think the only bumps in the road were

the walks. But outside of that, he came back, made some pitches, got out of some jams and almost

finished the seventh inning, which would have been big for us."

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

Bauer's great escape: After allowing back-to-back hits to Andrelton Simmons and Luis Valbuena to start

the seventh, Bauer faced a tough situation: runners on second and third with no outs. Bauer recorded

the first out by getting Cron to hit a weak grounder to third, forcing both runners to stay put. The next

batter -- pinch-hitter Yunel Escobar -- struck out on five pitches, and Bauer buckled down and got Kaleb

Cowart to ground out to short to work out of the jam and maintain the 1-1 tie.

"[Francona] having the confidence in me to get out of it was huge," Bauer said. "Coming out of the game

never crossed my mind. It was kind of one of those things where it's like, 'All right, I've got one of two

options. It's either give up runs here and we probably lose or I find some way to get out of it.' Thankfully

it worked out. I was able to wiggle my way out." More >

July 28, 2017 Page 11 of 20

Simba's relay: Tribe third baseman Giovanny Urshela was waved around third to try to score from first

on Bradley Zimmer's double with one down in the fifth, but an 8-6-2 relay beat Urshela to the plate,

where he crashed into catcher Juan Grateroland was called out. The Indians opted to challenge the play

to see if there was a violation to the home-plate collision rule. A one-minute, six-second review

confirmed there was no violation to the rule. Per Statcast™, Simmons' relay throw to the Graterol

clocked in at 91.4 mph, which is his third-hardest throw since Statcast™ was first introduced in 2015.

QUOTABLE

"I don't know. That's not my decision. I pitch when they tell me and where they tell me and to who they

tell me. That's my job." -- Bauer, on maintaining a spot in the Indians' rotation, which currently sits at six

men

"We just couldn't get the lucky break. We hit the ball hard right at them our just couldn't come up with

the big hit. That's just how the whole year has kind of been. We still have a lot of fight." -- Angels

outfielder Ben Revere

SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS

With the victory, the Indians swept a seven-game homestand that began on Friday against the Blue Jays.

It is the first time that the Tribe has swept a seven-game homestand since they accomplished the feat

from July 26-Aug. 1, 2013.

"We needed it," Francona said. "Needing it and doing it are two different things sometimes."

WHAT'S NEXT

Angels: The Angels will head to Toronto and open a three-game series against the Blue Jays on Friday at

4:07 p.m. PT at Rogers Centre. Rookie right-hander Parker Bridwell (4-1, 3.09 ERA) will take the mound

in the opener and make his first career start against the Blue Jays.

Indians: The Tribe will begin a six-game road trip through Chicago and Boston, beginning with Friday's

8:10 p.m. ET tilt with the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field. Right-hander Danny Salazar (3-5, 4.79

ERA) will take the mound. In his first start off the DL in his last time out, he went seven scoreless and

only allowed one hit with eight strikeouts against Toronto.

Petit to make spot start for Halos on Saturday

Multi-inning reliever to pitch in place of injured Meyer vs. Toronto

By Maria Guardado / MLB.com

CLEVELAND -- With limited starting options to fill the vacancy in their rotation left by the injured Alex

Meyer, the Angels will have right-handed reliever Yusmeiro Petitopen Saturday's game against the Blue

Jays at Rogers Centre.

Manager Mike Scioscia said Petit will likely throw between 40 to 50 pitches in his first start of the

season, setting up a bullpen game for the Angels. The 32-year-old veteran has thrived as a multi-inning

July 28, 2017 Page 12 of 20

reliever for the Halos this season, logging a 2.70 ERA over 56 2/3 innings in relief, which ranks second in

the Majors behind the Astros' Chris Devenski (58 1/3 innings).

"This is something that's evolved through necessity as far as starting, but we were very confident about

the multi-inning role in the bullpen," Scioscia said. "Outside of Devenski with Houston, I think he's

thrown the most innings out of any bullpen, and they've been great innings. He's having a terrific

season."

Petit made one start for the Nationals last June, allowing three runs over six innings against the Dodgers.

He worked three scoreless innings in a 41-pitch outing against the Indians on Tuesday.

The Angels are hoping that Meyer, who landed on the disabled list on Monday with right shoulder

inflammation, will be able to come back relatively quickly, but Scioscia said it's possible that Petit could

be stretched out further and make another start after Saturday.

The Halos will call up an extra reliever ahead of Saturday's game to give their bullpen some additional

coverage against Toronto.

Worth noting

• Left-hander Andrew Heaney tossed 4 2/3 scoreless innings in his third rehab start in the Rookie-level

Arizona League on Wednesday night, allowing just three hits while walking none and striking out seven.

Heaney, who is rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, will likely make his next start at a higher Minor

League level, according to Scioscia.

"I think as his rehab is building momentum, there's definitely a lot of encouraging signs coming out of

it," Scioscia said. "He's on his path and nothing has set him back so far. He's doing well."

• Third baseman Yunel Escobar and catcher Martin Maldonado were not in the starting lineup Thursday.

Infielder Luis Valbuena and backstop Juan Graterolstarted in their places in the Angels' series finale

against the Indians.

Rolling rookie Bridwell to make Toronto debut

By Maria Guardado / MLB.com

Rookie right-hander Parker Bridwell and veteran left-hander J.A. Happ and will face off on Friday night

when the Angels and Blue Jays meet for the first of three games at Rogers Centre this weekend.

It will mark the second encounter of the season between the two clubs, as they split a four-game series

at Angel Stadium in April. The all-time series between the Blue Jays and the Angels is currently tied, 205-

205.

Happ, 34, is 3-7 with a 4.13 ERA in 13 starts this season and took the loss on Sunday after surrendering

seven runs over six innings against the Indians. In six career starts against the Angels, Happ is 1-5 with a

6.52 ERA.

July 28, 2017 Page 13 of 20

Bridwell has emerged as one of the most pleasant surprises of the Angels' season after going 4-1 with a

3.09 ERA in eight appearances (seven starts) this year. The 25-year-old upstart took a no-hitter into the

sixth inning on Sunday and earned the win after holding the Red Sox to two runs over a career-high

seven innings. Bridwell is slated to make his first start against the Blue Jays.

Three things to know about this game

• While he posted a 3.24 ERA through his first six outings of the season, Bridwell also had an average

exit velocity of 90.6 mph and a hard-hit rate (95-plus mph) of 39.8 percent, according to Statcast. In his

past two starts, however, he has held opponents to an 82.3-mph average exit velocity and 26.3-percent

hard-hit rate.

• With the left-handed Happ on the mound for Toronto on Friday, the Angels will likely stack their lineup

with right-handed hitters and start C.J. Cron at first base and Shane Robinson in left field.

• Angels center fielder Mike Trout has five home runs in 19 career games at Rogers Centre.

FROM THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Bauer, Lindor send Indians past Angels for 7th straight win

Associated Press

CLEVELAND -- The Cleveland Indians are finally starting to look like the defending AL champions.

Cleveland ran its winning streak to a seven games -- its longest of the season -- and moved to a season-

high 10 games over .500 with Thursday's 2-1 victory over the Los Angeles Angels.

Trevor Bauer pitched a season-high eight innings, Francisco Lindor singled to break a tie in the seventh

and the Indians completed a 7-0 homestand after losing six of seven.

Manager Terry Francona knows the streak has come at a critical point for his team, which stumbled out

of the All-Star break with a 1-5 road trip.

"We needed it, but needing it and doing it are two different things," he said.

"We're trying to play the game the right way, that's what we did," Lindor said. "It helps a lot. You win a

couple of games in a row and it definitely builds up your confidence."

Bauer (9-8) is 4-0 in five career starts against the Angels. He struck out six and allowed seven hits. Cody

Allen pitched the ninth for his 18th save. JC Ramirez(9-9) took the loss.

Bauer worked out of a jam in the seventh that began with runners on second and third and no out. The

right-hander realized he had one of two options.

July 28, 2017 Page 14 of 20

"I either give up runs and we probably lose or I find a way to get out of it," he said. "Thankfully, it

worked out."

Andrelton Simmons led off the inning with a single and took third on Luis Valbeuna's double. The

runners held when C.J. Cron grounded out. Pinch-hitter Yunel Escobar struck out and Juan

Graterol grounded out to end the inning.

The Indians have gone with six starters their last two turns through the rotation, but will return to five

soon.

"I don't really think it's a problem," Francona said. "There's a lot of things we could do. We're not going

to just banish somebody to the bullpen."

Lindor's two-out single off Ramirez in the seventh scored Brandon Guyer, who drew a leadoff walk and

moved to second on a sacrifice. After pinch-hitter Austin Jackson walked, Bradley Zimmer struck out, but

Lindor lined a 1-2 pitch to right.

"It was my best pitch of the day," Ramirez said. "It was down and he hit it good."

The Angels were swept for the first time since April 14-16 at Kansas City.

"We're not going to look back at the series," manager Mike Scioscia said. "Those guys, that's a good

team over there, and we cracked open the door for them a couple of times."

Carlos Santana hit a leadoff home run in the bottom of the second. Bauer held the Angels scoreless until

the fifth when C.J. Cron's two-out single tied the game.

TOUGH DAY

Angels star Mike Trout complained to plate umpire Adam Hamari after being called out on strikes in the

fourth and sixth. Valbuena was upset that third base umpire Nic Lentz ruled he went around on a

strikeout to end the game and was led back to the dugout by Scioscia.

LOOK OUT

Second baseman Jose Ramirez hung on to Cron's third-inning popup despite being knocked to the

ground by Zimmer in shallow center field. Ramirez camped under the ball and made the catch before

Zimmer ran into him from behind. Zimmer grabbed Ramirez as the two fell.

"That was the only really negative today," Francona said. "Rammer was thrown for a 3-yard loss. But on

the good side, he didn't fumble."

TRAINER'S ROOM

Angels: LHP Andrew Heaney (Tommy John surgery) pitched 4 2/3 scoreless innings in the Arizona Rookie

League on Wednesday. His next rehab start could be at Triple-A Salt Lake.

July 28, 2017 Page 15 of 20

UP NEXT

Angels: RHP Parker Bridwell makes his first appearance against the Blue Jays in the opener of a three-

game series Friday in Toronto. He pitched a career-high seven innings and beat Boston in his last start.

Indians: RHP Danny Salazar, who held the Blue Jays to one hit in seven innings in his first start after

coming off the disabled list, goes in the opener of a three-game series in Chicago on Friday.

Streaking Blue Jays look to keep Angels down

Associated Press

TORONTO -- The Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Angels will meet at Rogers Centre on Friday

night after being on opposite sides of series sweeps.

Friday's game is the opener of a three-game set with Toronto's J.A. Happ (3-7, 4.13 ERA) facing Los

Angeles' Parker Bridwell (4-1, 3.09).

The Blue Jays are coming off a four-game sweep of the Oakland Athletics, with the final two

victories coming as the result of game-ending home runs. It was the first time in franchise history

they had won back-to-back games in such fashion.

They completed the sweep Thursday on a grand slam by Steve Pearce with two outs in the bottom

of the 10th inning.

The Angels, meanwhile, were swept by the Cleveland Indians in a three-game series that was

completed Thursday with Cleveland's 2-1 victory at Progressive Field.

The Angels, who were swept for the first time since April 14-16 against the Kansas City Royals,

dropped to five games below .500 for the first time this season.

"We just had a tough series," Angels designated hitter Albert Pujols said. "The road trip is not over.

We need to go to Toronto and try to win tomorrow and hopefully win the series. I think that's the

way that I look at this team. Everybody just goes out there and gives everything that they have.

We're not throwing in the towel. We have a lot of games left."

"Every single game, we were there with them," said Angels outfielder Ben Revere, who was with the

Blue Jays for part of the 2015 season. "We just can't get a break."

The Angels (49-54) are 7-12 in July. The Blue Jays (48-54), who have won four in a row after a 3-7

road trip, are 11-12 for the month.

The Blue Jays have had only one winning month this season when they went 18-10 in May. They are

hoping they can make a surge that can revive their faint postseason hopes. The Angels also have

July 28, 2017 Page 16 of 20

similar hopes, which makes the series so important since they would be competing for wild-card

spots.

Los Angeles is 5 1/2 games out of a wild-card spot while Toronto is six back.

"Hopefully we just keep the ball rolling," Pearce said. "We're getting down to the end of the season,

so we've got to step it up. And this was a great series (against Oakland) to get it started."

Happ will be looking for his first win since July 4 at Yankee Stadium.

The left-hander is 0-2 with a 6.60 ERA in three starts since his last win and the Blue Jays are 0-3 in

those starts. He allowed four runs in the first inning Sunday in an 8-1 loss to Cleveland at

Progressive Field. He allowed nine hits and seven runs.

He has not had much success against the Angels, going 1-5 with a 6.52 ERA in six career starts.

Bridwell will be making his ninth appearance (eighth start) of the season and fourth on the road in

his first career appearance against the Blue Jays.

He earned the win against the Boston Red Sox on Sunday after tossing a career-high seven innings,

allowing two runs and five hits with one walk. He had three strikeouts. He lost his no-hitter with

two outs in fifth inning on a single by Sandy Leon.

In three starts on the road this season, is 2-0 with a 2.04 ERA. The Angels are 7-1 in the games he

has pitched, and he has allowed two runs or fewer in five of his past six starts. He is 2-0 with a 1.86

ERA in his past three outings.

FROM ESPN.COM

Olney: Players who must be traded now before their value is lost

By Buster Olney / ESPN Senior Writer

The second after Major League Baseball’s non-waiver trade deadline passes on Monday, that thud you

hear will be trade value plummeting. Sure, deals can still be made in August, when pricey players such

as Jacoby Ellsbury will breeze through waivers easily, with no one wanting to claim them.

But good, cheap players will inevitably get claimed by a rival team in August, leaving clubs with an

unsavory choice: Either swap valued players to the claiming team for less than their perceived value, or

pull back the players from waivers altogether -- which doesn’t make a lot of sense when it involves

impending free agency.

Because of this reality, some general managers will be working with a special urgency over the next 100

hours, to take advantage of the value of low-salaried veterans.

July 28, 2017 Page 17 of 20

Brad Hand, San Diego Padres

A couple of weeks ago, rival executives said that San Diego was looking for enormous return on Hand,

who was picked for the NL All-Star team. "A package [of prospects] equivalent to the Ken Giles deal or

the [Andrew] Miller deal," one executive said. With other accomplished lefties available, Padres general

manager A.J. Preller probably won’t get that, and given the volatility of reliever performance and Hand's

salary -- just $1.375 million -- the left-hander's value may never be higher than it is right now. If Preller

holds onto Hand into August, he'll be claimed on waivers.

Padres owner Ron Fowler said this week that he thinks his team might keep Hand. If that happens, San

Diego will be gambling that Hand's performance won’t take a turn for the worse -- and remember, it was

only 15 months ago that the Padres claimed Hand on waivers from the Miami Marlins.

Alex Avila, Detroit Tigers

Through adjustments to his workout regimen, Avila has kept his legs fresher, and he is having one of the

best offensive seasons of his career, with a .398 on-base percentage, after signing a one-year, $2 million

deal to return to the Tigers. Because the left-handed hitter is owed relative pennies for the last two

months of the season, Avila would almost certainly get claimed. There is interest from the Chicago

Cubs and perhaps the Colorado Rockies, but he is so cheap that other teams would probably consider

adding him as a third catcher or for first base and DH depth.

Lance Lynn, St. Louis Cardinals

The right-hander is headed into free agency in the fall, and he is among the most experienced starting

pitchers available now. Lynn is making $7.5 million this season, meaning he’s owed about $2.5 million

for the final two months of the year, and he has performed effectively, with a 3.21 ERA in 21 starts. The

Cardinals haven’t played well, but they are just 3½ games out of first place in the NL Central mud bog,

and St. Louis could decide to win with Lynn before he departs at the end of the season.

But the Cardinals have told other teams they are open to moving him, and Lynn probably would get

some decent return from one of the clubs that doesn’t win the bidding for Sonny Gray or Yu Darvish --

maybe the Los Angeles Dodgers, maybe the New York Yankees, etc.

David Hernandez and Bud Norris, Los Angeles Angels

Norris has 15 saves with a 3.12 ERA, and he is making just $1.75 million. Hernandez is earning even less -

- $535,000, and he has a 2.34 ERA in 36 appearances. The Angels have about a dozen players headed

into free agency in the fall, and if they decide to sell, it would make sense for them to move Hernandez

and Norris. The Angels are out of the running for the division title, and according to FanGraphs, they

have a 10 percent chance of winning a wild-card spot.

July 28, 2017 Page 18 of 20

Kurt Suzuki, Atlanta Braves

Suzuki has served as the backup to Tyler Flowers for a lot of this season and has played well under a

one-year, $1.5 million deal, with 10 homers and a .262 batting average in 167 plate appearances. He’d

be a fit for the Rockies, and perhaps for the Cubs.

FROM THE ATLANTIC

Don’t Take Mike Trout for Granted

The Los Angeles Angels centerfielder shouldn’t need to be on a contending team for baseball fans to

appreciate his consistent excellence.

By Robert O’Connell

For more than a month, from the end of May to the middle of July, baseball was without its best player.

Mike Trout, the 25-year-old centerfielder for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, slid into second base

one afternoon, tore a ligament in his thumb, and went on the disabled list for the first time in his career.

Gone were his airborne catches at the outfield wall, his piston-footed stolen bases, his home runs

scattered to every part of the park. Gone too was the visible sense of mastery that always hangs around

Trout, regardless of momentary success or failure: the comma of a swing, the strangely unhurried speed.

Trout re-joined the Angels after the midseason All-Star break, and in his time back, he’s been his usual

self, doing everything a ballplayer can do about as well as it can be done. He has also reclaimed his old

spot in the daily attention of baseball fans worldwide—which, curiously, is not at the top. Despite his

brilliance, Trout appears in fewer commercials than Anthony Rizzo and Carlos Correa; The New York

Times called him“Baseball’s Best, Without the Brand.” His even-keel bearing might have something to

do with this, but the chief culprit is the mediocrity of his team. While the Dodgers, Astros, Nationals, and

Red Sox ready their rosters for the postseason, the Angels figure to fall short again, for the sixth time in

Trout’s seven seasons. The one year they did make it, they lost the division series to the Kansas City

Royals in three straight games.

This information is usually presented as a problem to be solved; articles lamenting Trout’s relative low

profile are a cottage industry. Some writers note that, given the realities of baseball, one player can

do only so muchto help his team, and others speculate about when he might be able to move on to a

contender that could make better use of his talents and raise his Q score. But while it would certainly

thrill to see Trout play meaningful games deep into October, such forecasting overlooks the appeal he

holds right now, on a middle-of-the-pack club without realistic title aspirations. Plenty of superstars

demonstrate what it looks like to rise to occasions and embrace big moments, but Trout fills in a

neglected corner of sports’ emotional spectrum. He tolerates and hangs in; he does his best, even

without much chance for ultimate glory.

* * *

July 28, 2017 Page 19 of 20

This is an athletic era of overblown narrative, of hyper-Hollywood endings. Last year, LeBron James and

the Cleveland Cavaliers knocked off a seemingly unbeatable Warriors team in the NBA Finals. In

February, Tom Brady brought the New England Patriots back from a 25-point Super Bowl deficit. In

between, the Chicago Cubs ended what may have been history’s most famous championship drought.

Anybody who watched those games has a collection of moments they can recall on demand: James

materializing to block a late layup, Kris Bryant smiling as he threw to first for the final out.

Trout has had no such moments and won’t for the foreseeable future; his current contract runs through

2020. He plays with a mix of past-prime stars and fill-ins, and his home stadium features a pile of ersatz

rocks behind the outfield wall and, usually, a bunch of empty seats. The Angels start their games at 7

o’clock Pacific time, when much of the baseball-watching population is nodding off on sofas. Even in this

uninspiring atmosphere, though, Trout astonishes. Baseball aficionados treat his statistics like a holy

text—he has led the American League in the catch-all category Wins Above Replacement, which

summarizes a player's total offensive and defensive contributions, every year for a half-decade—but the

sight of him on the field renders those gaudy numbers somehow underwhelming. Trout’s acumen is

such that it seems impossible for him to have a truly bad game. He has a millimeter-fine understanding

of the strike zone, a missile-launching bat, and an innate sense of the various strategies at work with

each pitch: These traits never leave him all at once.

“He does it the right way every single day,” said Bryce Harper, the closest thing Trout has to a peer,

before the Angels and Harper’s Nationals met for a July series. “He’s one of the best in the game at

being himself and never changing.” What was unsaid but implied was how tempting it might be for any

other player in Trout’s circumstance to lapse into bad habits. Harper himself has alternated MVP-quality

seasons with down years, and he has had the adrenal pick-me-up of playing for a contender. Nobody

familiar with the 162-game haul of the baseball season would begrudge Trout the occasional off night.

Trout’s unflagging demeanor, then, is as noteworthy as his skill. Eyes darting, toes tapping, a smile on his

face, Trout looks as if the idea of being disenchanted on a baseball field has never occurred to him. This,

too, keeps him off front pages and away from the top of SportsCenter—there are no locker-room tirades

or trade requests to make him newsworthy—but it enamors him of purists. There is a tendency, when

talking about Trout’s accomplishments, to refer to the habitual instead of the specific, to note that

whatever spectacular thing he did is just one more instance of what he always does. So it was when

Trout stole third base with a daring, multi-part slide one evening last September. Asked about the play

after the game, Mike Scioscia, the Angels’ manager, deemed it standard. “Mike plays the game one

way,” he said. “Full out.”

The recent run of massive comebacks, historic showdowns, and legacy-sealing plays across the major

professional sports has been a gift to fans; it seems as if no stretch of three months goes by without

some new championship-round installment of the impossible. It has also, though, played into a growing

trend of seeing the biggest games as the only ones that matter. Seasons start, and the chatter

immediately centers on who will prevail at the end. Anything that happens in the meantime is preamble,

useful only insofar as it informs the important stuff to come.

July 28, 2017 Page 20 of 20

At their best, though, sports operate on not only a mythic scale but also a daily one. They reveal long-

haul determination in addition to clutch heroism. Today’s inclination is to feel sorry for Trout, to wish

him into a condition suitable to his gifts. But he’s already in one. No World Series walk-off home run

could tell us any more about him than we can learn watching him play on a weeknight in a half-full park,

going about his remarkable routine.