ANAHEIM -- Pick your spot to plant the "Caution" sign. The banged-up, hard-knock, rough-luck Angels certainly have had multiple areas where they've had to tread carefully in the early parts this season. But Wednesday night's 5-4, 12-inning win that easily could have gone the other way moved them past what could have been another early-season booby trap. 
The come-from-behind win was cast when Chris Iannetta powered a home run over a leaping Craig Gentry and over the center-field fence with two out in the 12th off Drew Pomeranz, after Howie Kendrick's ground ball scored Mike Trout to knot the game at 4 in the ninth.It was the fourth extra-inning game on this homestand. Last time the Angels played four extra-inning games in one homestand? June 1975. Long live Frank Tanana, Nolan Ryan, Leroy Stanton, Dave Chalk -- and the Captain and Tennille.The win was put into place because of Oakland's shoddy eighth-inning defense.With two out and the A's leading, 4-3, Ryan Cook threw a third strike past a swinging Iannetta. But the ball got by catcher Derek Norris -- a passed ball was called -- and Iannetta wound up at first. Next, Josh Donaldson mishandled Brennan Boesch's ground ball, putting runners at first and third.Even though Erick Aybar harmlessly ended the inning with a simple bouncer back to the pitcher -- no runs, no hits, one error, A's held their one-run lead -- the significant damage had been done.Because of the two extra outs the A's surrendered, that meant both Trout and Albert Pujols would come to the plate in the ninth. Had the A's completed what should have been a 1-2-3 eighth, they very well might have escaped without ever seeing Trout and Pujols again until they next meet on May 30 in Oakland.Instead, with one out in the ninth, Trout ripped a single against Luke Gregerson to start things, Pujols followed with another hard single and, soon, it was 4-4.Until then, when Brandon Moss' three-run homer dropped into the right-field seats in the fourth inning, the Angels were in serious danger of getting swept, which would be nothing new for Mike Scioscia's club against the A's in Anaheim: As it is, even by eking out a win Wednesday, the Angels are still have lost 15 of their past 22 to Oakland in Angel Stadium.Despite the homer to Moss, rookie Tyler Skaggs, 22, acquired from the D-backs in the Mark Trumbo deal, continues to show both promise and poise. He threw 95 pitches in six innings -- 57 strikes -- scattering seven hits. He walked three and fanned two.He battled out of trouble in the first inning (first and second, none out), and again in the third (runner on second, two out). Things got away from him in the fourth.Donaldson, who finished fourth in American League MVP Award voting last season, punched a single to start the fourth, and Norris followed with another with one out. Former Angel Alberto Callaspo, scorching hot so far this season at the plate, scuffed up his old club with an RBI double. Two batters later, with two out, Moss seemingly put things out of reach.That last part is important, especially in the early life of the 2014 Angels: Including Moss' blast, the Angels now have surrendered 71 runs in their first 15 games. Of those 71, 37 have come with two out.Scott Miller /MLB.com
The come-from-behind win was cast when Chris Iannetta powered a home run over a leaping Craig Gentry and over the center-field fence with two out in the 12th off Drew Pomeranz, after Howie Kendrick's ground ball scored Mike Trout to knot the game at 4 in the ninth.It was the fourth extra-inning game on this homestand. Last time the Angels played four extra-inning games in one homestand? June 1975. Long live Frank Tanana, Nolan Ryan, Leroy Stanton, Dave Chalk -- and the Captain and Tennille.The win was put into place because of Oakland's shoddy eighth-inning defense.With two out and the A's leading, 4-3, Ryan Cook threw a third strike past a swinging Iannetta. But the ball got by catcher Derek Norris -- a passed ball was called -- and Iannetta wound up at first. Next, Josh Donaldson mishandled Brennan Boesch's ground ball, putting runners at first and third.Even though Erick Aybar harmlessly ended the inning with a simple bouncer back to the pitcher -- no runs, no hits, one error, A's held their one-run lead -- the significant damage had been done.Because of the two extra outs the A's surrendered, that meant both Trout and Albert Pujols would come to the plate in the ninth. Had the A's completed what should have been a 1-2-3 eighth, they very well might have escaped without ever seeing Trout and Pujols again until they next meet on May 30 in Oakland.Instead, with one out in the ninth, Trout ripped a single against Luke Gregerson to start things, Pujols followed with another hard single and, soon, it was 4-4.Until then, when Brandon Moss' three-run homer dropped into the right-field seats in the fourth inning, the Angels were in serious danger of getting swept, which would be nothing new for Mike Scioscia's club against the A's in Anaheim: As it is, even by eking out a win Wednesday, the Angels are still have lost 15 of their past 22 to Oakland in Angel Stadium.Despite the homer to Moss, rookie Tyler Skaggs, 22, acquired from the D-backs in the Mark Trumbo deal, continues to show both promise and poise. He threw 95 pitches in six innings -- 57 strikes -- scattering seven hits. He walked three and fanned two.He battled out of trouble in the first inning (first and second, none out), and again in the third (runner on second, two out). Things got away from him in the fourth.Donaldson, who finished fourth in American League MVP Award voting last season, punched a single to start the fourth, and Norris followed with another with one out. Former Angel Alberto Callaspo, scorching hot so far this season at the plate, scuffed up his old club with an RBI double. Two batters later, with two out, Moss seemingly put things out of reach.That last part is important, especially in the early life of the 2014 Angels: Including Moss' blast, the Angels now have surrendered 71 runs in their first 15 games. Of those 71, 37 have come with two out.Scott Miller /MLB.com
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