Angels fall again to the Orioles

The Angels have become equal-opportunity imploders, failing to execute baseball basics against some of the best and worst teams in baseball.

Four days after shortstop Erick Aybar lost track of the number of outs in an inning against division-leading Tampa Bay, first baseman Mike Napoli failed to cover first base on a grounder and the Angels committed a pair of errors Saturday at Angel Stadium during a 5-0 loss to the last-place Baltimore Orioles.

Napoli’s mental gaffe allowed a runner to score from second base without the ball leaving the infield as the Angels continued to blur the distinction between themselves and a team that is 36 games under .500, falling to 0-5 this season against the Orioles.

Second baseman Howie Kendrick also mishandled a routine grounder in the fourth inning and catcher Bobby Wilson threw a ball into center field on an eighth-inning stolen base attempt, allowing a runner to take third base and eventually score on Craig Tatum’s two-out single.

The Angels have lost five of six games while the resurgent Orioles clinched their first winning month since June 2008 and improved to 17-17 against the American League West, a mark of distinction for a team that is only 11-37 in its own division.

Kevin Millwood became the latest struggling Baltimore pitcher to defeat the Angels, holding them scoreless in eight innings. This, after going 2-10 over his previous 15 starts and 0-4 in five previous starts this month.

Then again, it should have come as little surprise given what’s transpired between these teams recently. The winning pitchers in Baltimore’s five victories over the Angels had a combined record of 16-47 entering those games.

Millwood (3-14) was locked in a scoreless duel with Scott Kazmir until Josh Bell blasted a two-run homer to right-center field off the Angels left-hander with one out in the fifth inning.

Baltimore’s Ty Wigginton doubled down the left-field line leading off the sixth before things took an embarrassing turn. With one out, Kazmir fielded Jake Fox’s grounder on the first-base side of the mound before realizing that Napoli had failed to cover the bag. Kazmir lost a footrace with Fox and stumbled over the baserunner at the bag as Wigginton rounded third base and scored ahead of the pitcher’s throw to Wilson.

Hitting with runners in scoring position continued to be something of a misnomer for the Angels, who went one for six and are now one for 12 in that situation in their last two games.

A two-on, one-out threat fizzled in the fifth for the Angels when Peter Bourjos grounded into a double play. The Angels again had two on with one out in the seventh after Napoli doubled to right-center and Aybar singled to left. But Wilson popped up to first baseman Wigginton in foul territory and Bourjos popped up to second baseman Julio Lugo in the infield to end the inning.

Kazmir (8-12) pitched better than his final line indicated, giving up eight hits and four runs in 5 2/3 innings. He has a 5.31 earned-run average in five starts since coming off the disabled list, a considerable improvement over the 14.06 ERA he had compiled in his last three starts before being sidelined nearly a month because of shoulder fatigue.

ben.bolch@latimes.com