Angels roll to 10-3 win, send D-backs to 10th straight loss
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Max Stassi hit a two-run homer in the first, Patrick Sandoval pitched four-hit ball into the seventh inning and the Los Angeles Angels won their sixth straight game by beating the Arizona Diamondbacks 10-3 on Sunday.
The Angels moved above .500 for the first time since May 1 at 33-32. The Diamondbacks have lost 10 straight games and 33 of 38, falling to a big-league worst 20-46 this season.
Stassi crushed his two-run shot on a full count, with the ball traveling 440 feet as it easily cleared the left-center field fence. The Angels added four more runs in the second for a 6-0 lead, which chased Jon Duplantier (0-3).
Duplantier lasted just 1 1/3 innings and gave up six runs. His ERA jumped to 13.15 this season.
Sandoval (1-2) gained his first win this year, easing through his first six innings without much trouble. He walked his first two batters and the Angels went to the bullpen.
The 24-year-old has helped stabilize the Angels' rotation with five solid outings since moving into a starter's role.
The left-handed Sandoval gave up two earned runs, struck out four and walked two. Angels leadoff hitter Justin Upton had three hits and scored two runs. Jared Walsh added a two-run homer — his 14th of the season — in the eighth.
Sandoval helped himself at the plate in the second inning, getting his first big league hit when he faked a bunt, pulled the bat back and then slapped a bouncing single over the a charging defense.
The 30-year-old Stassi continued his breakout season. This is the ninth straight year he's been in the big leagues, but he's only once had more than 100 at-bats in a season.
These days, he's a key contributor in the middle of the Angels' order, batting .339 with five homers. It's a big reason Los Angeles has been able to rise in the standings without star Mike Trout, who has missed multiple weeks with a strained right calf.
Arizona is on its second double-digit losing streak this season after a 13-game skid from May 17-29.
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