Brewers' late HRs steal win from Angels

March 21st, 2016

PHOENIX -- Brewers prospects Yadiel Rivera and Jacob Nottingham drilled home runs off Deolis Guerra in the ninth inning to grab a 4-3 walk-off victory over the Angels on Monday at Maryvale Baseball Park.
Rivera has made a habit of late-inning drama. Monday marked his third ninth-inning, lead-changing home run of the spring. He's making a strong case for a spot on the Brewers' bench. 
"That's safe to say, yeah," Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. "He's had a very good spring. And the homers are something that's fun for everybody." 

Right fielder Kole Calhoun hit a pair of RBI singles and Mike Trout stayed hot with two more hits as the Angels jumped out front early.
Calhoun and C.J. Cron delivered run-scoring singles in the first inning off Brewers starter Matt Garza to back Angels bullpen candidate Cory Rasmus, who worked two innings in a spot start for Nick Tropeano after Tropeano was scratched with the flu.

Trout went 2-for-2 with a bunt single, a walk and a run scored. He is hitting .394 (13-for-33 with six walks) in Cactus League play.
Trout hasn't had a bunt single in a regular-season game since 2012, a year when he notched three, but Angels manager Mike Scioscia said he's open to squaring around if the situation presents itself. 
"Mike has the opportunity of getting on base and turning anything into a double [with a steal of second]," Scioscia said. "There are times when, if he's got a nice pad back there, and the third baseman is playing soft, he's a good bunter." 

Angels closer Huston Street followed Rasmus and pitched a scoreless third inning for his sixth scoreless outing this spring.
For the Brewers, outfielder Alex Presley had two hits including an RBI single in the first inning. Garza was charged with three runs (two earned) on eight hits in five innings, and deemed the day a success.
"I'm out over my front side again," Garza said. "Last year [when he dealt with a hip issue], there was a lot of stuff I couldn't do, physically. Now I'm back to the stuff I can do, and it feels good again to get out in front of the ball and see your release instead of hoping you're on time. …
"It feels good to be able to pitch again."
Up next for Angels: The Angels will take part in a unique split-squad day on Tuesday, with half the organization playing an exhibition game in Salt Lake City, Utah, home of the club's Triple-A affiliate, and the other half hosting the A's at Tempe Diablo Stadium. The home game takes place at 1:10 p.m. PT, live on MLB.TV and Gameday Audio, with left-hander Hector Santiago taking the ball opposite righty Kendall Graveman. The Salt Lake game starts at 3 p.m. PT, with Trout, Calhoun and Cron all slated to be on hand.
Up next for Brewers: Taylor Jungmann will carry a 1.08 ERA in Cactus League play to the mound when he faces the Rockies at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick. First pitch is at 3:05 p.m. CT, live on Gameday Audio.