Angels can’t catch a break in 4-0 loss to Blue Jays

It wasn’t only R.A. Dickey’s tricky knuckler that stymied the Angels in a 4-0 loss Tuesday. Not much went the Angels’ way, even when they tried to do the right things.

When Mike Trout was thrown out trying to stretch a double into a triple, it pretty much summed up the evening.

Right idea, it just didn’t work out.

“[Trout’s attempt is] easy to second guess, but I think when you have a knuckle-ball pitcher up there who has his share of passed balls and wild pitches, I think it’s certainly a play you’re going to look to,” Manager Mike Scioscia said. “You’re going to look to get to third base.”

The play was close too. The ball ricocheted off the wall, and an average throw doesn’t get Trout out. When the bounces don’t go your way, there’s not much you can do.

“You just react,” Scioscia said. “Mike thought he had it. [Melky] Cabrera made an incredible throw from the warning track.”

You can almost hear the “but” implied: Trout’s play made sense, but Cabrera made the throw.

The Angels came into the game with all the right pieces in place. An 11-game home winning streak, second best in club history. A 2.83 ERA at home. Some of the hottest hitters in baseball.

But — there’s that sneaky little word again — it didn’t come together.

Erick Aybar came the closest to solving Dickey with two singles, but the other Angels hitters had worse luck. Howie Kendrick and Chris Iannetta sang the sad chorus of the Angels’ frustrated lineup when they struck out back-to-back on called strikes to open the fifth inning.

If you didn’t see Trout’s play, or the strikeouts or anything else, Josh Hamilton can capture the essence of the game for you.

“I love knuckle-ball pitchers,” Hamilton said. “I just didn’t get any hits today.”

Right idea, but nothing doing.

Twitter: @szuuuubes