Angels’ breakdowns not limited to home run in latest loss to Rangers

ARLINGTON, Texas — It was another sudden and painful ending for the Angels Thursday night at the Ballpark in Arlington, where Jurickson Profar’s ninth-inning home run gave the Texas Rangers a 6-5 victory and their fourth straight home win over the Angels to be decided by a walk-off homer dating back to late July.

But it would be unfair to pin this loss on Angels reliever Michael Kohn, who tried to go down and away to the left-handed-hitting Profar but left too much of his fastball over the plate.

Third-base coach Dino Ebel may have gotten a little too aggressive sending Howie Kendrick from second base on a firm Mark Trumbo single that would have loaded the bases with no outs in the fifth inning.

Texas left fielder Craig Gentry made a strong and accurate one-hop throw home to nail Kendrick. After Chris Iannetta walked to load the bases, Andrew Romine flied to shallow right, the runners holding, and J.B. Shuck popped out to first.

Angels reliever Buddy Boshers retired the first two batters in the sixth before giving up a single to Gentry. Cory Rasmus replaced Boshers and walked pinch-hitter Jeff Baker before giving up a two-run double to Leonys Martin that gave the Rangers a 5-4 lead.

The Angels tied the score, 5-5, on Kole Calhoun’s triple and Trumbo’s RBI single in the seventh. They put a runner on third with one out in the ninth, but Texas closer Joe Nathan struck out Calhoun and Trumbo to end the inning.

“I don’t believe in being snake-bit,” Manager Mike Scioscia said in response to a question about giving up four straight walk-off homers to the Rangers. “You have to finish games out, make pitches, and at the plate you have to execute.

“There are some growing pains with some young pitchers. Boshers looked good but couldn’t finish out the sixth, and Rasmus couldn’t get that last out that inning. But we kept fighting hard. Guys are playing hard, the energy is good. It’s tough to lose a game late, but it happens.”

Of Ebel’s decision to send Kendrick, Scioscia said, “Dino is as good as there is down there, and I trust his judgment 100%. Gentry happened to put a throw right on the money to get Howie.”

Jerome Williams survived a three-run first inning and lasted five innings for the Angels, pitching out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the fifth when he struck out Ales Rios and got cleanup batter Adrian Beltre to ground into a double play, preserving a 4-3 Angels lead.

Trumbo survived a scary moment in the ninth when, while standing in the on-deck circle near the third-base dugout, Calhoun lined a foul ball that grazed Trumbo’s right ear. Trumbo returned to the dugout to be checked by the team’s medical staff but remained in the game.

“It was pretty scary, pretty close to the mouth, and I didn’t want to lose any teeth,” said Trumbo, who ended an 0-for-25 skid with three singles and drove in his 100th run of the season. “But it was just a grazing blow. No blood, no foul.”

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