Mike Trout’s two homers sink Mets as Angels roll

ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Mets weren’t lucky enough to leave town before Mike Trout got healthy.

Flush it and move on. That is the best advice Buck Showalter’s team can take after Trout tormented them Saturday night with a 3-for-4, two-homer performance in the Mets’ 11-6 loss to the Angels.

It was a third non-competitive loss in the past four contests for the Mets, who were outscored 20-2 in losing the final two games of their series in San Diego this week. If the Mets are going to salvage a .500 road trip they will have to win Sunday’s series finale at Angel Stadium.

Already, damage has been inflicted. The Mets began this West Coast trip with a 10 ½-game lead in the NL East. That lead has shrunk to 5 ½ lengths, powered by the Braves’ 10-game winning streak. The Phillies are eight back after winning nine straight games.

Trout, who missed the Angels’ previous three games with groin soreness, homered against Carlos Carrasco in the third inning. In the sixth, he went deep against Jake Reed, giving Trout the 23rd multi-homer game of his career. Jared Walsh hit for the cycle for the Angels, bashing a triple in the eighth to reach the achievement. On Monday in San Diego, Eduardo Escobar tripled in his final at-bat to complete the Mets’ first cycle in 10 years.

Mike Trout belts the first of his two home runs in the third inning of the Mets' 11-6 loss to the Angels.
Mike Trout belts the first of his two home runs in the third inning of the Mets’ 11-6 loss to the Angels.
USA TODAY Sports

In his worst start in 5 ½ weeks, Carrasco allowed five earned runs on nine hits with seven strikeouts and one walk over 4²/₃ innings. The right-hander departed after throwing 77 pitches, two of which went for homers (to Trout and Shohei Ohtani). In the process, Carrasco’s ERA jumped from 3.52 to 3.93.

Andrew Velazquez went deep against Reed in the sixth for the Angels’ third homer of the night. Trout’s two-run blast later in the inning extended the Angels’ lead to 8-0. In the seventh, Walsh homered against Chasen Shreve. The five homers allowed were a season high. Walsh returned with a two-run triple in the eighth (both runs were charged to Shreve).

The Mets didn’t score until the seventh on Mark Canha’s RBI single, facing former Mets reliever Aaron Loup. The run was charged to Angels starter Michael Lorenzen, who allowed one earned run on six hits and one walk over 6 ¹/₃ innings. Pete Alonso homered in the eighth inning. The blast was Alosno’s 17th of the season, moving him alone into first place in the National League. The Mets tacked on four runs with two outs in the ninth, with Khalil Lee’s first major league homer, a three-run blast, providing most of the boost.

Shohei Ohtani (left) accepts congratulations from Mike Trout after hitting a two-run homer in the fifth inning of the Mets' loss.
Shohei Ohtani (left) accepts congratulations from Mike Trout after hitting a two-run homer in the fifth inning of the Mets’ loss.
AP

Carrasco started shaky, allowing two runs in the first. Brandon Marsh walked leading off the game for the Angles before Ohtani smashed an RBI double with one out, taking third on Luis Guillorme’s errant throw. Anthony Rendon followed with an RBI double that placed the Mets in a 2-0 hole.

Trout announced his return to the Angels lineup by launching a 425-foot shot that cleared the left-field fence in the third inning to extend the Angels’ lead to 3-0. The homer was Trout’s 15th this season and the first allowed by Carrasco in six starts, dating to May 10.

Ohtani created further havoc for the Mets in the fifth, blasting a two-run homer against Carrasco that gave the Angels a 5-0 lead. Trout doubled in the inning before Ohtani cleared the fence in right-center with a shot that left his bat at 113.5 mph. The homer was Ohtani’s 13th of the season.

The Mets looked ready to jump on Lorenzen early, with Brandon Nimmo reaching on Luis Rengifo’s error leading off the game before Canha walked. But Francisco Lindor hit into a double play to kill the threat.

Escobar doubled in the second and Guillorme singled him to third, but with two outs Tomas Nido was retired.

source: nypost.com