ANAHEIM, Calif. -- He could have quit. Most guys probably would have. Cesar Puello
was in his 10th minor league season, still waiting for his first call
to the majors, when he was released by Texas' Triple-A team in June.
Only the Los Angeles Angels gave him a call and the outfielder did not hesitate. He was back at Triple-A, this time with Salt Lake.
On a warm Wednesday afternoon, his unlikely dream came true.
Called up in the morning, Puello started for the Angels and drove in the go-ahead run in their 5-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles.
"I'm so happy for him," Angels right-hander Troy Scribner said. "He works his butt off. I played with him quite a bit in Salt Lake and he's just one of those guys who would literally run through a wall for you.
"He's one of my favorite guys."
Scribner (2-0) benefitted from Puello's debut in his second start for the Angels. He held the Orioles to a solo homer by Wellington Castillo in his five innings.
"He kept those guys off-balance and got it to a point in the game where we could turn it over to our bullpen," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "He did a great job. He had good stuff out there, moved it around, changed speeds. He did what he's good at doing."
The Orioles had won eight of their last 10 after winning the series opener against the Angels, but they dropped the last two, scoring a combined three runs.
"Every team does (struggle) when a team pitches well," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. "I'll tip my hat to them. We had four hits today. They pitched well. They pitched well the most part for the whole series."
The Angels led 2-1 after Puello's single up the middle off right-hander Kevin Gausman's glove in the fourth. Puello then stole two bases.
C.J. Cron added a two-run homer in the sixth and Zach Britton walked in a run in the eighth.
Gausman (8-8) went 5 1/3 innings, giving up four runs, eight hits and two walks.
"He was real good," Showalter said. "He made one mistake trying to go up and in off the plate to Cron."
Relievers Yusmeiro Petit, Keynan Middleton and Blake Parker held the Orioles scoreless over the final four innings.
RICKARD HIT
Baltimore outfielder Joe Rickard was hit on the helmet by a fastball from Scribner in the sixth and left the game. Showalter said outside of a bruise above his left eye, he appeared all right.
"Thankfully, he's OK," Showalter said. "We'll have an evaluation tomorrow and we'll kind of have an idea of what to do. All indications are good right now."
Said Scribner: "It was scary to watch it and I hope he's OK. I hope I didn't injure him. It looked like it got a lot of the helmet."
COOL PUELLO
Puello is 26, so he's hardly a kid, but most players tend to have serious butterflies when they're making their major league debuts. Still, he appeared remarkably at ease.
"I was relaxed," Puello said. "I've been playing baseball for a long time. One thing I like to control is slow the game down and do what I gotta do."
CRON RISING
The Angels' first baseman was off to such a slow start this season, twice he was sent down to the minors. But with three hits Wednesday he has 10 in his last 26 at-bats (.385) and 11 RBI in his last 10 games.
"I felt confident the whole time," Cron said. "Things weren't great early on. Getting some consistent at-bats here has been nice. Now hopefully we can keep it going."
TRAINER'S ROOM
Orioles: Activated DH Mark Trumbo (strained right rib cage) and optioned LHP Donnie Hall to Triple-A Norfolk. Trumbo started Wednesday against the Angels and went 0 for 3 with two strikeouts.
Angels: DH Albert Pujols was not injured but simply given the day off. ... LHP Andrew Heaney's next start is expected to be a final, and sixth rehab appearance, for Triple-A. Heaney had Tommy John surgery 13 months ago.
UP NEXT
Orioles: LHP Wade Miley (5-9, 5.51 ERA) tries to get his season turned around when he opens a four-game series in Oakland on Thursday. He has gone 3-6 with an 8.55 ERA in his last 12 starts.
Angels: LHP Tyler Skaggs (1-2) is scheduled to make his second start since missing over three months with a strained oblique in Seattle on Thursday. In his first start back, he went four innings against the Athletics, allowing three runs, six hits and two walks.
---
https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball
Only the Los Angeles Angels gave him a call and the outfielder did not hesitate. He was back at Triple-A, this time with Salt Lake.
On a warm Wednesday afternoon, his unlikely dream came true.
Called up in the morning, Puello started for the Angels and drove in the go-ahead run in their 5-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles.
"I'm so happy for him," Angels right-hander Troy Scribner said. "He works his butt off. I played with him quite a bit in Salt Lake and he's just one of those guys who would literally run through a wall for you.
"He's one of my favorite guys."
Scribner (2-0) benefitted from Puello's debut in his second start for the Angels. He held the Orioles to a solo homer by Wellington Castillo in his five innings.
"He kept those guys off-balance and got it to a point in the game where we could turn it over to our bullpen," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "He did a great job. He had good stuff out there, moved it around, changed speeds. He did what he's good at doing."
The Orioles had won eight of their last 10 after winning the series opener against the Angels, but they dropped the last two, scoring a combined three runs.
"Every team does (struggle) when a team pitches well," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. "I'll tip my hat to them. We had four hits today. They pitched well. They pitched well the most part for the whole series."
The Angels led 2-1 after Puello's single up the middle off right-hander Kevin Gausman's glove in the fourth. Puello then stole two bases.
C.J. Cron added a two-run homer in the sixth and Zach Britton walked in a run in the eighth.
Gausman (8-8) went 5 1/3 innings, giving up four runs, eight hits and two walks.
"He was real good," Showalter said. "He made one mistake trying to go up and in off the plate to Cron."
Relievers Yusmeiro Petit, Keynan Middleton and Blake Parker held the Orioles scoreless over the final four innings.
RICKARD HIT
Baltimore outfielder Joe Rickard was hit on the helmet by a fastball from Scribner in the sixth and left the game. Showalter said outside of a bruise above his left eye, he appeared all right.
"Thankfully, he's OK," Showalter said. "We'll have an evaluation tomorrow and we'll kind of have an idea of what to do. All indications are good right now."
Said Scribner: "It was scary to watch it and I hope he's OK. I hope I didn't injure him. It looked like it got a lot of the helmet."
COOL PUELLO
Puello is 26, so he's hardly a kid, but most players tend to have serious butterflies when they're making their major league debuts. Still, he appeared remarkably at ease.
"I was relaxed," Puello said. "I've been playing baseball for a long time. One thing I like to control is slow the game down and do what I gotta do."
CRON RISING
The Angels' first baseman was off to such a slow start this season, twice he was sent down to the minors. But with three hits Wednesday he has 10 in his last 26 at-bats (.385) and 11 RBI in his last 10 games.
"I felt confident the whole time," Cron said. "Things weren't great early on. Getting some consistent at-bats here has been nice. Now hopefully we can keep it going."
TRAINER'S ROOM
Orioles: Activated DH Mark Trumbo (strained right rib cage) and optioned LHP Donnie Hall to Triple-A Norfolk. Trumbo started Wednesday against the Angels and went 0 for 3 with two strikeouts.
Angels: DH Albert Pujols was not injured but simply given the day off. ... LHP Andrew Heaney's next start is expected to be a final, and sixth rehab appearance, for Triple-A. Heaney had Tommy John surgery 13 months ago.
UP NEXT
Orioles: LHP Wade Miley (5-9, 5.51 ERA) tries to get his season turned around when he opens a four-game series in Oakland on Thursday. He has gone 3-6 with an 8.55 ERA in his last 12 starts.
Angels: LHP Tyler Skaggs (1-2) is scheduled to make his second start since missing over three months with a strained oblique in Seattle on Thursday. In his first start back, he went four innings against the Athletics, allowing three runs, six hits and two walks.
---
https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball
3:37PM,EDT,August 9,2017
Angel Stadium of Anaheim, Anaheim,California
Angel Stadium of Anaheim, Anaheim,California
| View: Play-By-Play | Pitch-By-Pitch | Inning: All | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| Baltimore - Top of 1st | SCORE | |
|---|---|---|
| Troy Scribner pitching for Los Angeles | BAL | LAA |
| Jones popped out to first. | 0 | 0 |
| Machado lined out to left. | 0 | 0 |
| Schoop struck out looking. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Los Angeles - Bottom of 1st | SCORE | |
| Kevin Gausman pitching for Baltimore | BAL | LAA |
| Revere struck out swinging. | 0 | 0 |
| Trout walked. | 0 | 0 |
| Simmons lined into double play, pitcher to first, Trout out at first. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Baltimore - Top of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Troy Scribner pitching for Los Angeles | BAL | LAA |
| Davis grounded out to pitcher. | 0 | 0 |
| Trumbo struck out swinging. | 0 | 0 |
| Mancini lined out to center. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Los Angeles - Bottom of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Kevin Gausman pitching for Baltimore | BAL | LAA |
| Calhoun singled to center. | 0 | 0 |
| Calhoun to second on wild pitch by Gausman. | 0 | 0 |
| Cron flied out to center, Calhoun to third. | 0 | 0 |
| Valbuena struck out swinging. | 0 | 0 |
| Puello lined out to second. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Baltimore - Top of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Troy Scribner pitching for Los Angeles | BAL | LAA |
| Beckham struck out swinging. | 0 | 0 |
| Castillo homered to center (393 feet). | 1 | 0 |
| Rickard grounded out to third. | 1 | 0 |
| Jones grounded out to third. | 1 | 0 |
| 1 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Los Angeles - Bottom of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Kevin Gausman pitching for Baltimore | BAL | LAA |
| Cowart singled to center. | 1 | 0 |
| Graterol lined out to center. | 1 | 0 |
| Revere walked, Cowart to second. | 1 | 0 |
| Trout singled to shallow right, Cowart to third, Revere to second. | 1 | 0 |
| Simmons hit sacrifice fly to center, Cowart scored, Revere to third. | 1 | 1 |
| Calhoun struck out swinging. | 1 | 1 |
| 1 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Baltimore - Top of 4th | SCORE | |
| Troy Scribner pitching for Los Angeles | BAL | LAA |
| Machado popped out to third. | 1 | 1 |
| Schoop flied out to left. | 1 | 1 |
| Davis grounded out to second. | 1 | 1 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Los Angeles - Bottom of 4th | SCORE | |
| Kevin Gausman pitching for Baltimore | BAL | LAA |
| Cron hit a ground rule double to deep left. | 1 | 1 |
| Valbuena struck out swinging. | 1 | 1 |
| Puello singled to center, Cron scored. | 1 | 2 |
| Puello stole second. | 1 | 2 |
| Cowart flied out to center. | 1 | 2 |
| Puello stole third. | 1 | 2 |
| Graterol grounded out to third. | 1 | 2 |
| 1 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Baltimore - Top of 5th | SCORE | |
| Troy Scribner pitching for Los Angeles | BAL | LAA |
| Trumbo popped out to first. | 1 | 2 |
| Mancini struck out swinging. | 1 | 2 |
| Beckham singled to left. | 1 | 2 |
| Castillo flied out to center. | 1 | 2 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Los Angeles - Bottom of 5th | SCORE | |
| Kevin Gausman pitching for Baltimore | BAL | LAA |
| Revere lined out to left. | 1 | 2 |
| Trout reached on infield single to first. | 1 | 2 |
| Simmons struck out swinging. Trout caught stealing second, catcher to second. | 1 | 2 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Baltimore - Top of 6th | SCORE | |
| Troy Scribner pitching for Los Angeles | BAL | LAA |
| Rickard hit by pitch. | 1 | 2 |
| Gentry ran for Rickard. | 1 | 2 |
| Petit relieved Scribner. | 1 | 2 |
| Jones fouled out to third. | 1 | 2 |
| Machado struck out swinging. | 1 | 2 |
| Schoop singled to center, Gentry thrown out at home. | 1 | 2 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Los Angeles - Bottom of 6th | SCORE | |
| Kevin Gausman pitching for Baltimore | BAL | LAA |
| Gentry in right field. | 1 | 2 |
| Calhoun singled to right. | 1 | 2 |
| Cron homered to left (436 feet), Calhoun scored. | 1 | 4 |
| Valbuena struck out swinging. | 1 | 4 |
| Castro relieved Gausman. | 1 | 4 |
| Puello grounded out to third. | 1 | 4 |
| Cowart fouled out to catcher. | 1 | 4 |
| 2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Baltimore - Top of 7th | SCORE | |
| Yusmeiro Petit pitching for Los Angeles | BAL | LAA |
| Davis flied out to left. | 1 | 4 |
| Trumbo struck out swinging. | 1 | 4 |
| Mancini struck out swinging. | 1 | 4 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Los Angeles - Bottom of 7th | SCORE | |
| Miguel Castro pitching for Baltimore | BAL | LAA |
| Graterol grounded out to shortstop. | 1 | 4 |
| Revere grounded out to second. | 1 | 4 |
| Trout grounded out to shortstop. | 1 | 4 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Baltimore - Top of 8th | SCORE | |
| Keynan Middleton pitching for Los Angeles | BAL | LAA |
| Middleton relieved Petit. | 1 | 4 |
| Beckham reached on infield single to third. | 1 | 4 |
| Castillo flied out to right. | 1 | 4 |
| Gentry struck out swinging. | 1 | 4 |
| Jones grounded out to second. | 1 | 4 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Los Angeles - Bottom of 8th | SCORE | |
| Miguel Castro pitching for Baltimore | BAL | LAA |
| Simmons fouled out to right. | 1 | 4 |
| Calhoun singled to center. | 1 | 4 |
| Cron singled to left, Calhoun to second. | 1 | 4 |
| Britton relieved Castro. | 1 | 4 |
| Maybin hit for Valbuena. | 1 | 4 |
| Maybin walked, Calhoun to third, Cron to second. | 1 | 4 |
| Pennington ran for Maybin. | 1 | 4 |
| Puello struck out swinging. | 1 | 4 |
| Cowart walked, Calhoun scored, Cron to third, Pennington to second. | 1 | 5 |
| Graterol struck out swinging. | 1 | 5 |
| 1 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Baltimore - Top of 9th | SCORE | |
| Blake Parker pitching for Los Angeles | BAL | LAA |
| Pennington at second base. | 1 | 5 |
| Cowart at third base. | 1 | 5 |
| Parker relieved Middleton. | 1 | 5 |
| Machado grounded out to first. | 1 | 5 |
| Schoop struck out swinging. | 1 | 5 |
| Davis flied out to left. | 1 | 5 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Baltimore Orioles | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hitters | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | #P | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| Jones CF | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | .268 | .308 | .444 |
| Machado 3B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 20 | .254 | .315 | .457 |
| Schoop 2B | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 18 | .302 | .351 | .547 |
| Davis 1B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | .212 | .311 | .427 |
| Trumbo DH | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 13 | .237 | .298 | .402 |
| Mancini LF | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 11 | .291 | .339 | .507 |
| Beckham SS | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 | .284 | .334 | .457 |
| Castillo C | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 13 | .288 | .322 | .464 |
| Rickard RF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | .255 | .289 | .370 |
Gentry PR-RF
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | .195 | .276 | .273 |
| Totals | 30 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 128 | |||
| BATTING HR: Castillo (12, 3rd inning off Scribner 0 on, 1 Out) RBI: Castillo (36) Team LOB: 3 | ||||||||||
| FIELDING DP: 2 (Gausman-Davis, Castillo-Schoop). | ||||||||||
Game Notes
| RF RICKARD (HIT BY PITCH ) LEFT GAME TOP 6TH |
Game Information
| Stadium | Angel Stadium of Anaheim, Anaheim, CA |
| Attendance | 36,202 (79.6% full) - % is based on regular season capacity |
| Game Time | 3:06 |
| Weather | 81 degrees, sunny |
| Wind | 9 mph |
| Umpires | Home Plate - Ramon DeJesus, First Base - Carlos Torres, Second Base - Dana DeMuth, Third Base - Paul Nauert |
No comments:
Post a Comment