Angels fall to Cubs, 5-1, for fifth loss in a row

The trade deadline behind them, the roster largely here to stay, the rest of the 2016 Angels season is an exercise in futility. Beyond the search for reasons to believe in the future of the franchise, it is competition merely for the sake of it.

The plight is perhaps best depicted by Jered Weaver, the 33-year-old right-hander who for many years exceeded industry-wide expectations because of his thirst for conquest and now confronts the daily reality of a body worn down by years of pitching.

He started Tuesday for the Angels against the Chicago Cubs and John Lackey, a longtime friend four years his senior. The Cubs won, 5-1, at Wrigley Field. Losers of five consecutive contests, the Angels have again descended into last place in the American League West. With 49 victories in 112 tries, they trail division-leading Texas by 17 games.

Weaver and Lackey exchanged encouraging texts Monday, the day before they matched up for the third time. They split the prior decisions.

“I really respect the way he’s still competing and still getting after it with stuff that’s a little less than he used to have,” Lackey said. “He’s still grinding, still trying to help his club win. It’s still a little weird, because I root for him when he’s not facing us.”

Weaver and Lackey have been close since Weaver debuted as an Angel in 2006. When Weaver became the Angels’ opening-day starter two years later, he took it over from Lackey, a torch-passing he referenced in March, when it became clear Garrett Richards would be the Angels’ opening-day starter.

Kole Calhoun hit Lackey’s third pitch Tuesday into the overhang above the ivy in left-center field. The Angels would amass only two more hits, singles from Ji-Man Choi in the fifth inning and Calhoun in the sixth. They never had a man in scoring position, as Lackey deployed a mix of steady heat, cutters and curveballs.

Weaver experienced little trouble before catcher Willson Contreras led off the third with a score-tying home run. Lackey followed with a drive to right field that excited the crammed crowd but did not depart the ballpark.

When Anthony Rizzo led off the fourth inning with a double, the Angels threw back to first base to check, thinking he had missed it. He had not. Ben Zobrist then hit a go-ahead double down the right-field line. Jorge Soler hit the next pitch into left field for a single, putting runners on the corners without an out. Addison Russell’s sacrifice fly drove in Zobrist.

After Weaver retired Lackey to lead off the fifth, the inning devolved into a mess of poor plays and poor decisions. Dexter Fowler popped a foul just past the Cubs dugout and Yunel Escobar jogged after it. As he reached out to grab the baseball, a spectator reached both his hands above Escobar’s glove. Interference was not called. Manager Mike Scioscia protested. After the four umpires conferred, an out was called.

Kris Bryant hit the next pitch for a home run. After a double and walk, the Cubs scored when Weaver took his eyes off Albert Pujols’ flip to first base on a dribbler. His day was done after the inning: five innings, five runs.

“I felt all right,” Weaver said. “It’s one of those lineups where you can’t really breathe while you’re out there. There’s no leeway. I grinded, tried to make some outs, and some things didn’t go my way there towards the end.”

At one point this spring, Weaver intimated he would rather retire than again pitch as unsuccessfully as he did in 2015. His earned-run average now is more than half a point higher, but he does not sound like a man ready to depart for good in seven weeks. He has more command of his pitches now, he said, and that makes the endeavor more enjoyable.

He noted the message he received from Lackey, admiration that he is still competing, unfazed by the decreased velocity.

“That’s pretty much all I got right now,” Weaver said. “Until I can go out and get healthy again.”

pedro.moura@latimes.com

Twitter: @pedromoura