ANAHEIM — Christian Moore fulfilled a childhood dream this week when the New York City native got to play in Yankee Stadium for the first time, but the rookie second baseman’s Angel Stadium debut on Friday night was far more memorable.
Moore, the eighth overall pick in the 2024 draft out of Tennessee, hit his first major-league home run, a game-tying solo shot to center field in the seventh inning, and preserved that tie with a superb diving catch of Yainer Diaz’s 109-mph line drive with two runners on to end the top of the eighth.
Moore had a chance to script an even more dramatic finish, but he struck out with the bases loaded to end the eighth, and the Angels ran out of chances – and heroes – in an eventual 3-2, 10-inning loss to the Houston Astros.
The Astros scored the go-ahead run in the 10th on a wild pitch by Hunter Strickland, who had not allowed a run in 14⅔ innings of his first 13 appearances with the Angels. Jeremy Peña led off the inning with a single that advanced automatic runner Mauricio Dubon to third.
Houston closer Josh Hader retired the side in order in the bottom of the ninth, and left-hander Bennett Sousa stranded the automatic runner by retiring three straight batters in the bottom of the 10th.
Two of Angels starter Yusei Kikuchi’s first seven pitches left the park, the left-hander giving up game-opening home runs to Peña and Isaac Paredes for a 2-0 Astros lead in the first.
But Kikuchi, who went 5-1 with a 2.70 ERA in 10 starts for the Astros last season after a trade-deadline deal from Toronto, was not to be deterred – he blanked the Astros on four hits, striking out nine and walking none, for the rest of his seven-inning, 103-pitch start to give the Angels a chance to come back.
The Angels did just that, Jo Adell trimming Houston’s lead to 2-1 in the fourth with a 426-foot homer off Astros starter Hunter Brown, Adell’s major league-leading ninth homer of June.
The Angels loaded the bases with one out in the sixth against reliever Shawn Dubin, but left-hander Bryan King replaced Dubin and struck out pinch-hitter Logan O’Hoppe with an 81-mph sweeper and Luis Rengifo with a 94-mph fastball to preserve the 2-1 lead.
But King left a 2-and-2 fastball to Moore over the inner half of the plate to open the seventh, and Moore drove a 411-foot homer over the center-field wall for a 2-2 tie.
Tempers flared in the bottom of the third when Brown hit Angels shortstop Zach Neto in the back elbow with a 95-mph sinker. Neto took exception, jawing at Brown and pointing two fingers at him to indicate it was the second up-and-in pitch to him during the at-bat.
Players from both benches and bullpens rushed onto the field, and there was a little shoving, but no punches were thrown, and order was quickly restored.
Rengifo had walked to open the inning, and Trout’s walk loaded the bases with two outs, but Brown got Taylor Ward to ground out to second, ending the inning.
For the Angels, Friday night’s game was the first of what could be several games without Manager Ron Washington, who is out indefinitely because of health issues that surfaced during this week’s series in New York against the Yankees. Bench coach Ray Montgomery will manage the team in Washington’s absence.
Angels general manager Perry Minasian said he doesn’t know how long Washington, who experienced shortness of breath and appeared fatigued toward the end of the Yankees series, will be out, but he fully expects him to return this season.
Among the well-wishers to reach out to Washington on Friday was Houston manager Joe Espada, who sent the Angels field boss a text message.
“Hopefully he can get back in the dugout here in a few days,” Espada said before the game. “He’s one of the best baseball men I’ve ever been around. I wish him the best.”
Espada was a second-round pick of the Oakland Athletics in 1996, the year Washington began the first of two stints as an A’s infield coach. Among Washington’s first projects was Eric Chavez, whom the A’s drafted as a shortstop with the 10th overall pick in 1996.
“Chavie got moved to third base, and I saw Ronnie transform him into a Gold Glove third baseman,” Espada said. “Ronnie’s one of the best infield instructors in the game. There are different ways he connects with players, and he’s one of the best.”
More to come on this story.
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