MINNEAPOLIS - The Angels spent most of Saturday night putting themselves in position to win, then spent the rest of it watching those chances slip away.
Los Angeles left runners in scoring position in six different innings and still managed to claw back into a tie in the seventh. But the Twins answered immediately, and the Angels walked out of Target Field with a 5-3 loss.
The missed chances started right away. Nolan Schanuel opened the game with a double, Jorge Soler drew a walk, and Vaughn Grissom popped out to leave both men stranded. In the second, Wade Meckler singled to left and stole second, but Denzer Guzman and Logan O'Hoppe both struck out, another inning that ended with the Angels empty-handed.
Minnesota made the most of that early waste. Royce Lewis launched a two-run homer off Ryan Johnson in the second, and Victor Caratini followed later in the inning with a sacrifice fly to push the Twins ahead 3-0. Johnson settled in after that and went five innings, allowing three runs on three hits with three walks and a strikeout.
Los Angeles finally broke through in the third. With two outs, Soler ripped a double that brought home Zach Neto and Mike Trout, cutting the deficit to 3-2. But even that rally didn’t fully change the tone, because Soler walked again in the fifth and was left on base once more.
The Angels kept pressing and eventually tied it in the seventh. Neto singled, stole second and scored on a two-out single from Schanuel. For a moment, it looked like the momentum had turned.
It didn’t last long. Mitch Farris started the bottom of the seventh by giving up a double to Lewis, then Caratini doubled to drive him in. Alan Roden added a single that scored Caratini, and just like that, Minnesota had reclaimed the lead.
Los Angeles still had life in the late innings. In the eighth, the Angels put two runners on, but O'Hoppe lined out to end the threat.
In the ninth, Trout singled and Schanuel walked with one out, but Soler popped out and Grissom struck out on a foul tip to close it out. Farris took the loss and fell to 0-1.
Soler finished with a hit, two RBIs and two walks. Neto went 2-for-5 with two runs scored, and Trout added two hits.
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