Angels’ Albert Pujols falls homer short of cycle in 8-1 win over Texas

Albert Pujols is a nine-time All-Star who has won three most valuable player awards and two World Series championships, and last weekend he became the 16th player in major league history to amass 2,500 hits, 1,500 runs batted in and 500 homers.

But one thing Pujols has never done in his distinguished 14-year career is hit for the cycle. The Angels slugger’s lack of speed is the primary reason he had only 15 triples, and none since 2010, entering Wednesday night’s game against the Texas Rangers in Globe Life Park.

Then Pujols legged out a triple on a drive into the right-field corner in the first inning of an eventual 8-1 Angels victory, he doubled off the wall in right in the third and blooped a single to right in the fifth.

Pujols needed a homer in one of baseball’s most hitter-friendly parks for his elusive cycle, and he had three more chances, the Rangers even daring Pujols by intentionally walking Mike Trout ahead of him to load the bases in the sixth. But all Pujols could muster were three grounders, and for the third time in his career he came up a homer short of the cycle. He has finished a triple short of the cycle 32 times.

“It would have been pretty cool to do something I’ve never done in my career, to have it on my resume, especially with the win,” Pujols said. “It’s not easy to do. That’s why you don’t see them every day. Everyone says the triple is the hardest part, and I believe it is, but that home run is pretty tough too.”

That hardly put a damper on an evening in which the Angels extended their winning streak to seven, reached 90 victories for the first time since 2009, opened a nine-game lead over Oakland in the American League West and reduced their magic number to clinch the division title to nine.

A piping-hot offense banged out another 15 hits, including three by David Freese and Kole Calhoun’s solo homer, giving the Angels 64 runs and 94 hits, including 10 homers, in their last seven games.

Not that Matt Shoemaker needed that much support. The Angels rookie, who opened the season as a long reliever but has been a savior of sorts to a rotation that lost Garrett Richards and Tyler Skaggs to season-ending injuries, allowed one run and seven hits in 62/3 innings to improve to 15-4 with a 3.16 earned-run average.

“Shoe is one of the big reasons we’re even contending,” Manager Mike Scioscia said of the right-hander, who set a franchise rookie record for wins. “To do what he’s done is spectacular. It’s important. To come out here, especially after not starting in the rotation, and to get the rookie record for wins is impressive.”

Many wondered whether the Angels would survive the loss of Richards, who was 13-4 with a 2.61 ERA when he tore the patellar tendon in his left knee Aug. 20. They have essentially filled his rotation spot with a series of relievers.

But since Richards went down, the Angels have allowed 63 runs in 20 games, the fewest in the AL in that span, and pitched to a 2.98 ERA, the second-lowest mark in the league.

“There are a lot of factors,” pitching coach Mike Butcher said. “Guys are throwing well, we’re playing great defense and scoring early runs. That helps alleviate some of the stressful innings you can have. Overall, we’re executing game plans and guys are working ahead in the counts for the most part. That’s a big plus.”

Pujols believes Richards’ injury actually had a unifying effect on the team.

“Losing Garrett was tough, but it kind of pulled us together,” Pujols said. “We not only want to do it for our club and our organization. We have a guy on the disabled list who had an All-Star year, who deserves Cy Young consideration. He put us in this situation. He deserves for us to go deep and to reach our goal.”