Angels score in ninth to beat Blue Jays, 4-3

KEY MOMENT: The Blue Jays twice walked Albert Pujols intentionally to get to Raul Ibanez, and both times the Angels scored — in the seventh inning, when Ibanez walked to load the bases and Howie Kendrick followed with an RBI walk, and in the ninth, when Ibanez delivered the game-winning sacrifice fly to score Erick Aybar. Ibanez is batting .144, but the Jays managed to walk him three times.

AT THE PLATE: Aybar had three extra-base hits, a triple and two ground-rule doubles, and is batting .397 over his last 15 games. Mike Trout hit his seventh home run. Efren Navarro, called up Friday from triple-A Salt Lake to fill the roster spot vacated by reliever Nick Maronde, doubled in his first two at-bats.

ON THE MOUND: Garrett Richards was in line for the victory after seven innings, before Joe Smith replaced him and gave up a tying home run to the first batter in the eighth inning, Jose Reyes. Richards gave up two runs in seven innings, lowering his earned-run average to 2.80. Smith got the win, and Ernesto Frieri worked a perfect ninth for the save, striking out two.

ON THIRD BASE: Ian Stewart went 0 for 4 and is hitless in his last 22 at-bats. He is batting .169, with three walks and 29 strikeouts in 65 at-bats. Angels third basemen are batting .178, the lowest for any American League team at that position except the Kansas City Royals.

ON LEFT FIELD: Navarro became the sixth player to start in left field for the Angels this season, as many as started there all of last season. In the absence of the injured Josh Hamilton, the Angels have used two outfielders (Collin Cowgill and J.B. Shuck), two infielders (Navarro and Grant Green) and a designated hitter (Ibanez) in left. Hamilton is expected to return in about two weeks.

REHAB REPORT: Left-handed reliever Sean Burnett is scheduled to start a minor league rehabilitation assignment Saturday at double-A Arkansas. Burnett had elbow surgery in August and has not pitched in the majors since last May, so he’ll probably approach the 30-day maximum allowed for a pitcher on a rehabilitation assignment.

POMP AND CIRCUMSTANCE: Manager Mike Scioscia will rejoin the Angels for Sunday’s game, after missing the first two games of this series to attend his daughter’s graduation from Loyola Marymount. Bench coach Dino Ebel is the interim manager. “It’s always exciting when you have the card in your back pocket,” Ebel said. Rick Eckstein, usually the out-of-sight player information coach, put on a uniform and served as interim bench coach.

UP NEXT: The Angels’ Tyler Skaggs (2-1, 4.54) faces the Blue Jays’ J.A. Happ (1-0, 1.93) on Saturday at 10 a.m. PDT at Rogers Centre. TV: FS West. Radio: 830, 1330.