Meckler's 1st career slam supplies early fuel for Angels' runaway rout

ST. PETERSBURG -- A little more than a week after making his Angels debut, Wade Meckler launched the first grand slam of his career to power the Halos to a 14-3 win over the Rays on Saturday at Tropicana Field.

Meckler has provided a spark for an Angels offense that has struggled for consistency for much of the season, owning a .230 team batting average and leading the Majors in strikeouts with 563.

Since being called up, Meckler has shown an ability to thrive in big moments, and he set the tone for an Angels offense that broke out for a season-high 14 runs against one of the American League's top teams.

“He's been putting some good at-bats together every time he's up there,” manager Kurt Suzuki said. “You feel good that he's got a barrel ball up, has quality at-bats, moves the ball forward and comes up with some big hits. I think he loves being in that moment… being up there when [there are] big situations, and it's showing.”

In the opening frame, Mike Trout hit a single to left field after a seven-pitch at-bat. Vaughn Grissom and Jorge Soler followed with back-to-back walks to load the bases for Meckler.

Rays starter Drew Rasmussen stayed on the inner half of the plate throughout much of the at-bat. Meckler fouled off an 89.9 mph cutter down and in on the second pitch. When Rasmussen went back to the same offering on pitch No. 4, Meckler didn't miss.

The lefty sent the 88.6 mph cutter a Statcast-projected 397 feet to right field with an exit velocity of 105.5 mph for his second homer of the season.

“Honestly, I was just happy that I achieved what I was trying to achieve,” Meckler said. “Getting the ball in the air. Obviously, home runs are better than a sac fly, but the main thing for me in that at-bat was to get the job done, and I was just happy I got the job done.”

Meckler connected for his first career home run on May 22 against the Rangers, a three-run shot in the first inning that also gave the Angels a 4-0 lead. In the Minors, the 26-year-old hit 21 homers across five years, but a tweak in his approach has led to more power at the plate.

“Even in the Minor Leagues, I've been doing a better job of backspinning the ball to the pull side,” Meckler said. “It's always been the thing that's limited the power. Just better spin on the ball this year.”

He was involved in five of the Angels' runs, while the rest of the lineup continued to put together quality at-bats and show patience at the plate, drawing six walks.

Trout, who reached base four times with two hits and two walks, added to the lead in the fifth, taking a 79.7 mph sweeper from Casey Legumina and sending it a Statcast-projected 417 feet to left field for his 14th homer of the season. Legumina replaced Rasmussen to begin the inning.

“I was just trying to get some pitches to hit,” Trout said. “Fouled off some good pitches, and then just not giving in. In my second at-bat, where [I] grounded out to third, I pulled off a little bit. The next at-bat [when I hit the homer] I got a similar pitch a little more up and tried to stay through it.”

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The homer continued Trout's long history of success against Tampa Bay. Trout now owns a .680 slugging percentage in 75 career games against the Rays, the highest mark by any player against the franchise (minimum 150 plate appearances). He also has 28 home runs in those 75 games. The veteran also leads the Majors with 56 walks this season.

Leadoff hitter Zach Neto added to the Angels’ lead in the seventh, scoring on a wild pitch by reliever Ian Seymour before leaving the game with an apparent injury. Nick Madrigal also exited the game in the ninth after a ball ricocheted off his wrist and struck him in the face, cutting his lip.

His exit came in the middle of the Angels putting the game away with a seven-run frame. Jo Adell and Oswald Peraza hit back-to-back home runs to highlight the offensive outburst.

“They had a good approach in the beginning. I mean, Rasmussen is a tough starter,” Suzuki said. “I thought the guys did a really good job laying off some good pitches. Meckler obviously had the big blow in the first inning. The good thing is they kept on it, kept putting good at-bats together and kept adding on.”