In the bottom of the fifth inning of a baseball game in Pittsburgh, Tuesday, May 7, 2024, Willie Calhoun, 5, of the Los Angeles Angels, hits a single by Logan Ohop off of Pirates starting pitcher Quinn Priester. He beat catcher Yasmani Grandal to score. (AP) Photo/Jean J. Pasker)
PITTSBURGH — Kevin Pillar had two home runs and six RBIs to help Patrick Sandoval’s Los Angeles Angels defeat the Pittsburgh Pirates 9-0 on Tuesday night.
Logan Ohop had four hits and two RBIs for Los Angeles, which dropped for the third year in a row and went 5-for-6 with RBIs overall. Willie Calhoun scored three points with two walks.
Sandoval (2-5) had seven strikeouts in seven innings, his first win since April 3 against Miami. The left-hander allowed three hits and one walk.
The Angels decided to stay in the game in the fourth inning when Pillar hit a three-run hit against Quinn Priester. Mickey Moniak singled, Calhoun walked and Pillar reached the left field seats for his second home run of the season.
Pillar led Roancey Contreras to a drive to left off starting in the seventh inning. This was Pillar’s seventh career multi-home run game and his first since 2021 with the New York Mets. He hit a double off Josh Fleming in the eighth inning.
The veteran outfielder signed with Los Angeles on April 30 after Angels star Mike Trout was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a knee injury. Pillar, 35, appeared in just three games with the Angels before Tuesday, going 1-for-6 at bat.
The Angels will be Pillar’s ninth team since 2019.
Nolan Chanuel and Moniak each had two hits, giving Los Angeles nine points while scoring a total of three runs in its past three games.
Priester (0-3) allowed five runs (three earned) and seven hits in 4 2/3 innings. The Pirates have yet to score in Priester’s four games and 21 innings this year.
The start of the game was delayed by 20 minutes due to the threat of rain.
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Angels: INF Luis Rengifo (illness) missed 4 consecutive games. …LF Taylor Ward missed his first game of the season due to a scheduled day off.
Pirates: SS O’Neal Crews spent the night in Pittsburgh against a left-handed starting pitcher.
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Angels right-hander Jose Soriano (1-4, 3.77 ERA) will face left-hander Martin Perez (1-2, 3.15 ERA) on Wednesday in the final game of a three-game series. Soriano spent the entire 2021 season on the Pirates’ disabled list while recovering from elbow surgery after being selected by the Angels in the Rule 5 draft.
