ANAHEIM -- For veteran Taylor Ward, registering a three-hit game is something he’s done plenty of times in his career.
Ward picked up three hits for the 14th time and the second time this season, going 3-for-4 with two RBIs on Monday night, but it was rookie Bryce Teodosio who did it for the first time in his career in the series opener against the Rays. Teodosio, who entered with just one career hit in 16 at-bats, went 3-for-3 to help lead the Angels to a 5-1 win at Angel Stadium. The Angels improved to 55-58 to pass the Rays (55-59) and are five games back of the Mariners for the third and final AL Wild Card spot.
“It was awesome,” Teodosio said. “I was absolutely thrilled to do what I did today, but overall, the team win was the best part. So that was fantastic.”
Ward was the hero on Sunday, connecting on a walk-off homer to lift the Angels to an 8-5 victory over the White Sox, and kept it rolling against Tampa Bay. He singled to open the second inning off right-hander Adrian Houser and scored on a two-run blast from Jo Adell to get the Angels on the board. It was the 22nd homer of the year for Adell, who is back where he feels more comfortable in right field, with Teodosio taking over as the club’s regular center fielder since being called up on Saturday.
Ward gave the Angels some cushion with a two-run single in the third to score Nolan Schanuel, who was hit by a pitch, and Mike Trout, who ripped a double that left the bat at 113.4 mph, per Statcast.
It was a good sign for Ward and Adell, who have both been streaky this season offensively and could be turning the corner after having recent downturns.
“I know they go in and out of those stretches, they're going to do that,” interim manager Ray Montgomery said. “And Jo had a really nice BP today. Wardo is Wardo, so I'm not concerned about him. And Jo just keeps working at it. And he felt good coming out of BP today, and then took it into the game.”
Teodosio, meanwhile, was brought up because of his excellent defense, but showed that he can provide some offense as well. The 26-year-old singled in the second, reached on an infield single in the fourth before stealing second base and then added his first career extra-base hit with a double in the sixth.
“It was nice,” Montgomery said. “Anytime you contribute on both sides, it's big. We know what his calling card is: it’s his defense and ability to run. But three hits, good for him.”
Teodosio then scored on a double from Zach Neto that knocked Houser from the game in his Rays debut. The Angels roughed up Houser for five runs on 11 hits over 5 2/3 innings despite him coming in with a 2.10 ERA in 11 starts this year with the White Sox before being moved at the Trade Deadline.
Teodosio said the plan was to keep it simple against Houser and look for pitches up in the zone because he’s a noted sinkerballer. And while Teodosio hadn't hit much in his previous seven games in the Majors, he did bat .321/.368/.511 with a homer, four triples and five doubles in 16 games at Triple-A Salt Lake this season despite missing three months after undergoing hip flexor surgery.
“Really just trying to see the ball up, keep it simple, and stay in the middle of the field,” Teodosio said. “And everybody contributed. It was fantastic. Obviously, hitting is very contagious, so seeing guys swing the bat well, everybody just feeds off of it.”
It was more than enough for lefty Yusei Kikuchi, who dealt with an elevated pitch count early but settled in to get through six innings. He allowed just one run on four hits and two walks with seven strikeouts to get the victory, improving to 5-7 with a 3.22 ERA in 22 outings.
“Getting the third and fourth runs there was very big,” Kikuchi said through interpreter Yusuke Oshima. “I was able to pitch with the lead there. And I just made sure that I didn't give up any big hits or home runs. I was just able to attack the zone after that.”