Scary fall for Teixeira

DETROIT -- The Angels breathed a huge sigh of relief Thursday when first baseman Mark Teixeira emerged from a nasty tumble over a tarpaulin with no serious injury.

Teixeira caught Miguel Cabrera’s popup in foul territory in the second inning and flipped over the tarp, the back of his head hitting the padded railing atop the wall behind the tarp.

Teixeira’s head bent forward, driving his chin into his chest, and for a moment it appeared the Angels, who are without injured second baseman Howie Kendrick and shortstop Erick Aybar, might lose their top hitter and a Gold Glove defender.

But Teixeira not only remained in the game but followed his run-scoring double in the first inning with an RBI single in the third, giving him a run or an RBI in nine straight and 11 of 12 games.

“That was scary,” Manager Mike Scioscia said. “The tarp was not right up against the fence, and that created a cavern that he fell into. We were fortunate there.”

Teixeira said he had “a little headache, but luckily nothing else.”

Rally caps

Sean Rodriguez led off the third inning with a single that sparked a four-run rally. Gary Matthews Jr., Robb Quinlan, Teixeira and Vladimir Guerrero all followed with singles, the latter three driving in runs and Guerrero’s hit knocking starter Kenny Rogers out of the game.

Juan Rivera, who hit an RBI double in the second, capped the rally with an RBI single to give the Angels a 6-0 lead.

“We had some good looks early and squared some balls up,” Scioscia said. “We really jumped on them.”

Torii Hunter treated a Nate Robertson pitch just as viciously in the eighth, blasting a solo home run to center, a shot that traveled an estimated 435 feet, for his 20th homer of the season.

“That was wind-aided,” Hunter said. “When I hit it, I thought it was a triple. I was almost at third when it went out. I’ve hit so many balls here that didn’t go anywhere. That’s the longest one I’ve ever hit here.”

Short hops

Shane Loux, on the disabled list after undergoing oral surgery, will make a rehabilitation start for Salt Lake tonight in the triple-A playoffs. . . . Reliever Alex Serrano cleared waivers and became a free agent.

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mike.digiovanna@latimes.com