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Matt Shoemaker pays visit to Angels teammates before they beat Blue Jays, 4-0

Angels outfielder Mike Trout scores ahead of a tag by Toronto Blue Jays catcher Dioner Navarro in the fifth inning.

Angels outfielder Mike Trout scores ahead of a tag by Toronto Blue Jays catcher Dioner Navarro in the fifth inning.

(Christine Cotter / Associated Press)
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Just when it seemed like nothing could distract the Angels from their fantasy football teams Sunday morning, Matt Shoemaker walked through the clubhouse.

It wasn’t Shoemaker’s first time back since a 105-mph line drive fractured his skull two weeks ago. The pitcher stopped by Angel Stadium a few times during this 10-game homestand, when his head felt normal and he wanted to get out of the house.

But any Shoemaker sighting these days incites cheery hellos from his coaches and teammates.

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“The guys are great. It’s just welcoming, happy to see me,” Shoemaker said before the Angels beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 4-0, on Sunday. “I’m sometimes at home going crazy, haven’t been able to be up here too much. It’s good.”

On Sept. 4, Seattle Mariners third baseman Kyle Seager hit a line drive that connected with the right side of Shoemaker’s head. A CT scan revealed a small skull fracture and a hematoma. He underwent brain surgery that night in Seattle after a third CT scan showed the bleeding had not stopped.

Now Shoemaker is resting at home — when he’s not chasing around his 1-year-old son Brady — and is expecting to be at the park every day when the Angels return from their seven-game trip.

“Great to see Shoe. … He’s just healing up nicely and I know he’s excited and anxious to get back in some physical drills and start to throw again. That won’t happen until the off-season, but he’s ready,” Manager Mike Scioscia said.

Shoemaker, who is 9-13 with a 3.88 earned-run average, hasn’t thought too much about pitching. He has received support from players who have suffered similar injuries and said that Seager has texted him every other day to check in.

The time away from the field has left him restless at times, but Shoemaker’s focus is on properly healing. He is not sure whether he will be allowed to watch from the dugout when he returns to the park, or when his rehabilitation plan will be nailed down.

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There are only two things Shoemaker can do as the Angels hit the last leg of their season: Get follow-up scans and wait.

“It’s only been two weeks so far,” Shoemaker said. “I want to be here, but I get it.”

A delayed first win

Alex Meyer had his best start to date with the Angels — and collected his first major league win in four tries — throwing five innings and striking out seven batters.

The Angels knocked the Blue Jays into second place in the American League wild-card standings. But the most interesting moment of Sunday’s game involved bees.

Before Blue Jays starter Marcus Stroman eased into his wind up in the third inning, Albert Pujols stepped out of the batter’s box and pointed at a swarm of bees in shallow right field. That prompted every player on the field to vacate the area, and first baseman Edwin Encarnacion swatted at bees with his glove. Play resumed after a 13-minute delay.

“We got to share the world,” Scioscia said. “That’s the best way I could put it.”

Once the bees surrendered, Meyer pushed past the fourth inning. The offense built him a two-run lead using a run-scoring groundout by Juan Graterol in the second and a single by Pujols that drove in Mike Trout in the fifth.

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The Angels scored two runs in the seventh, ensuring that Meyer left the park a winner.

“It’s something you think about for a long time,” said Meyer, who, because he’s a rookie, will wear a “Cat in the Hat” suit on the team’s flight to Texas. “I don’t say to have the monkey off your back, but to be able to get that it’s pretty special.”

Jett Bandy has back spasms

Catcher Jett Bandy left the the Angels’ game with Toronto on Saturday night because of back spasms, and Scioscia said Bandy will be monitored daily during the team’s final trip of the season.

The rookie is hitting .238 with eight home runs in 193 at-bats. Graterol started at catcher Sunday and finished 0 for 4 with a run batted in and a strikeout.

jesse.dougherty@latimes.com

Twitter: @dougherty_jesse

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