ANAHEIM -- After falling to a season-worst 17 games under .500 after their loss on May 21, the Angels started to play much better baseball for the next five weeks, going 19-15 over their next 34 games.
But they’re in yet another downturn, as they were swept for a second straight series, punctuated by a 7-5 defeat to the Red Sox in the Sunday night finale to extend their losing streak to six games. It’s been a combination of things that have led to their rough play over the last week, especially with the offense going cold and starters failing to pitch deep into games.
“We just have to bring the energy every day,” manager Kurt Suzuki said. “We just got to keep staying with it, staying with what we're doing and things will change.”
Rookie right-hander Ryan Johnson lasted four innings against Boston, while the Angels' offense went quiet in the middle innings and another critical error by shortstop Zach Neto proved costly.
Here are three takeaways from Sunday’s loss and the club’s recent funk:
The offense has to wake up, but Trout is on the way
The Angels managed just five combined runs in their three-game sweep in Seattle this week, and it wasn’t much better against the Red Sox. They scored just twice in the series opener and once on Saturday before struggling in the middle innings against Boston’s bullpen.
They fared well early against All-Star lefty Ranger Suarez, scoring two runs in the first and another in the second. Suarez, though, left the game with two outs in the third with an injury and the Angels were held in check by Boston’s bullpen until finally scoring in the eighth and ninth innings.
“They had some good arms they rolled out there," Suzuki said. "Some different arm angles and different looks. Just nasty. We did our best to do what we could but their pitching just beat us tonight.”
The good news for the Angels is that superstar Mike Trout ran the bases without any issues before the game and went through his normal pregame routine. Trout, who has been out since June 17 with a right hamstring strain, could return as soon as Tuesday’s series opener in Texas or possibly be held back until Wednesday as a precaution. But it’s still a much-needed boost for the Angels, especially with Trout tuning up for his 12th career All-Star Game.
Neto needs to clean up his defense
Neto had been playing better defensively recently, but made a major miscue at an inopportune time in third. He helped the Angels take the lead with an RBI hustle double in the second and homered in the ninth, but with two outs in the third, he booted a routine grounder from Wilyer Abreu to put two runners on. The Red Sox immediately capitalized, as Willson Contreras crushed a go-ahead three-run homer on the next pitch to give them a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
“I just missed it,” Neto said. “I didn't catch it. It cost us three runs. It cost us pretty much the game.”
It was Neto’s 14th error of the year, which is the most in the American League and tied with Washington’s CJ Abrams for the most in the Majors. Last year, he made 11 in 125 games and made 18 in 155 games in '24, so it's been a major issue for him this season.
“He should’ve made the play,” Suzuki said. “But at the same time, his bat gave us almost all our runs tonight.”
Johnson the latest starter to get knocked out early
Johnson looked sharp early, striking out the first four batters he faced, but it was downhill after that. He was hurt by a pair of homers, as he served up a two-run blast to Jarren Duran in the second before giving up the three-run homer to Contreras in the third. Three of the five runs he allowed were unearned, but he still needed 87 pitches to register 12 outs and he has a 6.99 ERA in 28 1/3 innings this year.
It again taxed the bullpen, as lefty Reid Detmers went five innings on Friday and Sam Aldegheri went four frames on Saturday before being optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake on Sunday. Johnson could be the next to be sent down unless he shows signs of improvement.
“I just started leaving pitches more over the middle and they got hit,” Johnson said. “I liked the pitch mix that I had but I just had a couple get hit.”