ARLINGTON -- Angels right fielder Jo Adell was supposed to receive a well-deserved day off against the Rangers on Thursday after his massive two-homer, five-RBI performance the night before. He’d started the previous 11 games, and manager Kurt Suzuki said before Thursday’s series finale that it was time to give Adell a rest rather than play him on the turf at Globe Life Field three days in a row.
But when duty called, Adell answered. His game-tying, pinch-hit single capped off an encouraging seventh-inning rally as the Angels’ offense, having stagnated all night, finally sprang into action. The Halos hitters made the Rangers earn their 7-6 walk-off win on Wyatt Langford’s single off former Texas closer Kirby Yates.
“These guys never give up, and as a manager, as a coaching staff, that’s something that we take a lot of pride in. ... To come back and really have a chance to win that game was impressive,” Suzuki said.
The Angels lost two of three in Texas, but they battled Thursday, even after Rangers starter Nathan Eovaldi dominated them early. He notched a season-high 10 strikeouts through six-plus innings, recording the third out via strikeout in each of the first five frames.
Eovaldi didn’t record an out in the seventh, allowing all three batters he faced to reach base on a catcher’s interference, a walk and a single. The Halos sent eight batters to the plate before Suzuki dispatched Adell to pinch-hit for lefty Josh Lowe, after the Rangers brought lefty Tyler Alexander to the mound.
“We went with the best matchup for us, obviously, and Jo handles lefties really well,” Suzuki said. “He's been around a long time. He knows the situations; he knows what he has to do.”
Still, Adell hadn’t amassed much experience -- or success -- as a pinch hitter in his six-plus MLB seasons before he found himself in that position once again on Thursday. He entered the night only 2-for-25 (.080) as a pinch hitter, and had just one hit in 29 at-bats (.034) over his career with two outs and runners on the corners.
Given another chance Thursday, Adell reached down and got his bat on a low, 84.8-mph changeup, driving it over the left side of the infield to bring home Nolan Schanuel for the tying run.
“I just went in trying to hunt a strike,” Adell said. “[To] pinch hit is never easy. ... I was just trying to get something close, and I put a good swing up.”
In the ninth, Adell put up an even better swing, but to no avail. With men on first and third and two outs, Adell scorched a 108.8 mph liner directly at center fielder Evan Carter.
“That’s part of it -- when you hit it well, sometimes they find a glove,” Adell said.
The lineout ended the Angels’ comeback bid after Schanuel doubled and was lifted for a pinch runner. Vaughn Grissom worked an 11-pitch walk before Cole Winn came in to retire Adell.
Schanuel had a banner night, going 4-for-4 with a pair of doubles and a walk as the No. 3 hitter in the Angels’ lineup. The top of the Angels’ order -- leadoff man Zach Neto, Mike Trout and Schanuel -- scored three runs and drove in three runs following an even more productive performance in Wednesday’s 13-1 rout of the Rangers.