ARLINGTON, Tex. -- The losing streak for the Los Angeles Angels reached three for the first time this season as they fell 3-1 at the hands of the Texas Rangers on Wednesday evening at Globe Life Field. They are now 9-8 and 3-4 on the current road trip, holding second place in the AL West.
An RBI single from Luis Rengifo in the sixth helped the squad snap a 17 1/3 inning scoreless streak, but it would be the only run they could muster up in the game. Texas starter Patrick Corbin had his way for the majority of his 5 1/3 innings of work, allowing only the run on Rengifo's single as he struck out six and walked just one.
It was not an ideal performance from the Angels' lineup against a pitcher in 35-year-old Corbin who entered Wednesday as the pitcher with the highest ERA in baseball across the last three seasons (minimum 60 starts). The left-hander hasn't posted an ERA below 4.66 since 2019, but now holds a 3.86 after earning his first victory of the year and first since September of 2024.
Los Angeles hit 1-5 with runners in scoring position for the second consecutive night as they once again had a single extra-base hit, a Taylor Ward double off of Corbin in the top of the sixth. The double put runners on second and third with just one out before Rengifo's run-scoring single, but Mike Trout and Jorge Soler both recorded back-to-back outs to spoil the chance to add on further.
In the seventh, the Angels would get another chance to score as a single from Nolan Schanuel off of Shawn Armstrong, who then hit Kyren Paris, putting runners on first and second with one out. Once again, the lineup could not convert as Jo Adell struck out and Logan O'Hoppe just barely missed a go-ahead three-run homer as a pinch hitter.
On the mound, Jose Soriano made his fourth start of the season as he allowed ten hits and three earned runs across 5 2/3 innings. He struck out just two, falling to 2-2 on the year as his ERA rose to 3.16.
The right-hander had his biggest struggles in the second inning, where a one-out double from Dustin Harris was followed up by a Jake Burger RBI single to get the Rangers on the board. He then walked two of the next three batters to give Corey Seager a chance with the bases loaded and one out.
Seager came through, singling into center field as a pair of runs crossed the plate and made it 3-0. Soriano did allow more hits to the Texas lineup before he was pulled, but ultimately limited any further damage on the scoreboard.
Facing Corey Seager with the bases loaded is not fun.#ALLForTX pic.twitter.com/yfBNusKJV9
— Victory+ (@victoryplustv) April 17, 2025
Brock Burke and Michael Darrell-Hicks did a nice job out of the bullpen for the Halos, combining for 2 1/3 innings of shutout baseball to close the game. The Texas bullpen was even more impressive, holding Los Angeles to just one hit over its final 3 2/3 innings as they could not put together a comeback.
The Angels, now having gone two games in a row without a home run, are raising concerns about their ability to produce in games where the longball isn't working for them. They had homered in 10 consecutive games before Tuesday's loss, and needed one home run on Wednesday to break the franchise record for the most homers during a 12-game stretch in team history.
As they try to avoid their first sweep of the season in Thursday's series finale, their ability to bring back the power swings should play a big role. It will be the final game of nine on the road trip before they head back to Anaheim for a six-game home stand.
Right-hander Jack Kochanowicz (1-1, 5.74 ERA) will get the start for the Angels as he opposes Rangers' right-hander Kumar Rocker (0-2, 7.94 ERA).
First pitch is scheduled for 5:05 p.m. PT.
