The Angels are still searching for runs, and the latest chapter looked painfully familiar. On a night when the pitching held up long enough to give them a chance, Los Angeles fell to the Phillies, 4-2, in 10 innings and dropped its second straight to Philadelphia.
Ryan Johnson gave the Angels another strong start, but it didn’t turn into the kind of night they needed. Los Angeles fell behind in the second inning after Alec Bohm singled, Bryson Stott walked, and Brandon Marsh followed with an RBI single to make it 1-0. From there, the Angels’ offense never found much traction against Cristopher Sanchez.
Sanchez was dominant for seven innings, allowing just two hits while walking one and striking out eight. The Angels simply couldn’t string anything together against him, and Johnson spent much of his outing trying to survive traffic after issuing five walks across five innings.
Johnson did enough to keep the game within reach, and the Angels finally cracked the scoreboard in the eighth when Zach Neto launched a solo homer off Jonathan Bowlan to tie it at 1-1. That was as close as Los Angeles would get in regulation.
Philadelphia took control in the 10th against Trevor Martin. The inning opened with Brandon Marsh, the ghost runner, being thrown out at third on a fielder’s choice grounder from J.T.
Realmuto. But Justin Crawford then singled to move Realmuto to third, and Kyle Schwarber followed with a double to put the Phillies ahead 2-1.
Trea Turner then added two more with a single, pushing the lead to 4-1. The Angels answered once, with Wade Meckler bringing home ghost runner Denzer Guzman on a groundout, but that was it. Jhoan Duran closed things out for Philadelphia in the final inning.
In Other News...
Angels Rotation Hit With Another Setback At The Worst Time
The Angels took another hit to their pitching depth this week when rookie George Klassen landed on the 15-day injured list with left lower back inflammation, a setback that arrives as the club tries to patch together its rotation for the stretch run. The move was retroactive to Thursday, and it pushed Los Angeles back to a five-man rotation with Mitch Farris and Blake Weiman coming up to help absorb the innings.
Klassen is expected to be sidelined until at least September 11, leaving the Angels to manage without one of their young arms for the near term. Manager Kurt Suzuki said the issue is not season-ending, and Klassen is still hopeful the recovery will be minor, but for a team already dealing with rotation uncertainty, the timing could hardly be worse. [Read more 🡒]
Angels Suddenly Face A Real Tyler Heineman Decision
Tyler Heinemans arrival gave the Angels a veteran catching option with a track record that suggested he could help stabilize the position, even if the bat was never going to be the main selling point. Acquired from the Blue Jays, he has continued to work through a difficult stretch at the plate since landing in Los Angeles, but the larger story around him has been less about numbers than about a player trying to show he still belongs in the majors.
Heineman has made it clear he wants to keep his MLB career going, leaning on his passion for the game and on the value he believes he can still provide when the moment gets tight. The challenge for the Angels is whether that belief lines up with the reality of his recent production, especially after a stronger 2025 season in Toronto and with the club now having to decide how much patience there is left for a catcher whose case rests more on trust and fit than offense. [Read more 🡒]
Austin Gordon Is Giving The Angels A Rotation Question They Needed
Austin Gordon has spent the summer making a serious case that he belongs in the Angels long-term pitching conversation. The 23-year-old right-hander in the clubs minor league system was part of a combined no-hitter recently, and his work at Double-A has been even more eye-catching over a longer stretch, with a run of dominance that has turned heads inside the organization. For a team that is always searching for answers on the mound, that kind of rise matters.
Over his last eight starts, Gordon has gone 7-0 with a 1.88 ERA and has paired the results with a strong strikeout-to-walk profile, the sort of efficiency that usually gets player-development staff members paying closer attention. His performance has boosted his standing as a prospect, and it has put him on a path that could bring him into MLB consideration in the next year or two, even if the exact timing remains part of the story still unfolding. [Read more 🡒]