Angels’ Torii Hunter also injured
The Angels’ 5-1 win Saturday over Seattle became more of a loss when first baseman Kendry Morales went down on the game’s final play with fractured left leg.
He is probably gone for the season.
Manager Mike Scioscia declined comment as to what potential moves the team would make to replace Morales, saying “We’ve turned a lot of stuff inside out here, and we’ll see where we are.”
It was the second injury in the game to one of the Angels’ middle-of-the-order bats.
In the first inning, center fielder Torii Hunter was nailed on the left wrist by a 95-mph fastball from Seattle right-hander Felix Hernandez.
The three-time All-Star and nine-time Gold Glove recipient left the game with a contusion on that hand.
Precautionary X-rays came back negative and Hunter is listed as day to day.
“It’s sore, but knowing Torii, he’s going to come in tomorrow and want to play so we’ll have to evaluate him,” Scioscia said, adding that Hunter wanted to stay in the game “but probably within 10 minutes he wasn’t going to be able to grip a bat.”
Said Hunter: “I don’t think [Scioscia is] going to let me play [Sunday] … I’ll be in there — I wish I could say tomorrow, I want to say tomorrow — but Monday or Tuesday for sure.”
When the pitch hit Hunter, Scioscia and trainer Ned Bergert immediately came out from the dugout to check on Hunter, who stayed in the game to run the bases but left the next inning.
Hunter was replaced in center by Reggie Willits, who went one for four with a run scored while making a few diving catches in center field.
From the top
In an effort to get more from the top of the lineup so the Angels could get more production from the middle of the lineup, Scioscia batted Maicer Izturis second in the lineup, the first time Izturis has batted there all season.
“One thing that’s apparent is we’re not setting the table for the middle of the lineup the way we want to,” Scioscia said before the game.
Izturis went one for five, and started the winning rally in the 10th with a one-out double.
Where’s the relief?
Entering Saturday, Angels’ relievers had built up an American League-worst 5.29 ERA.
Despite that, Scioscia said before the game that the club isn’t looking to trade or pull from their minor league system for some additional help. He stated, instead, that some of the players who are struggling, such as Scot Shields and Jason Bulger, need to improve.
Etc.
Bobby Abreu’s long homer to center tied the score at 1-1 in the eighth inning. …Saturday’s win was the Angels’ first this season when trailing after six innings (1-21). … Shortstop Erick Aybar’s throwing error in the fourth inning, which gave the Mariners a 1-0 lead, was the Angels’ 26th of the season, which leads the major leagues. … Angels catcher Bobby Wilson made his third major league start, going 0 for 4. … Left fielder Juan Rivera, who is riding an 0-for-18 batting slump, was given the day off. He was replaced by Michael Ryan, who went 0 for 4.
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