Pujols cements Astros-killer legacy in comeback

ANAHEIM -- The Angels overcame a shaky outing from rookie Griffin Canning and the absence of Mike Trout with a right calf strain, as Taylor Cole threw 3 1/3 scoreless innings in relief and Albert Pujols added three hits and three RBIs in a 9-6 win over the first-place Astros on Monday night at Angel Stadium.

It marked the fourth straight win for the Angels, who are a season-high three games above .500 at 49-46 and are 4 1/2 games back of the second American League Wild Card spot.

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“Any time you play a team you’re chasing, it’s important,” Angels manager Brad Ausmus said. “I don’t really look at .500 as a goal. It’s something you pass on the way to your goal. I know we’ve won four in a row. It was nice to get the win tonight, but I don’t really care about that. Now my focus is we’ve got to win a game tomorrow against a very good team."

Here’s a look at Pujols’ impressive night at the plate, Canning’s scuffles and Cole’s bullpen-saving performance:

Pujols sets record

With his three RBIs, Pujols set the record for most career RBIs against the Astros with 160, passing Hall of Famer Tony Perez (158). Pujols also holds the record for most career postseason RBIs vs. the Astros with 15.

Pujols helped the Angels mount a comeback against left-hander Framber Valdez, who gave up four runs in four innings. They got on the board in the third on a solo shot from Andrelton Simmons before scoring twice in the fourth and four times in the fifth.

Justin Upton and Pujols connected on back-to-back doubles in the fourth, with Pujols tying Hall of Famer Honus Wagner for eighth on the all-time doubles list. In the fifth, Pujols came through again with a key two-run single after an RBI groundout from Simmons.

“Trout has been carrying the team for a couple years now, and he did most of the damage as of late, but everybody else has been putting up good at-bats," Simmons said. "Even though we missed him a bit today, we kept putting together good at-bats."

Kevan Smith gave the Angels two insurance runs with a double in the seventh that featured Pujols dashing for home after Jose Altuve, making a rare appearance at shortstop, couldn't handle the throw in from right field.

"If you pay attention to how he plays the game, he's one of the smartest guys we have,” Simmons said of Pujols. “I know he doesn't have that blazing speed, but he knows how to run the bases.”

Canning scuffles

Canning retired the first two batters he faced on two pitches, but he struggled to find the strike zone from there, walking six and throwing four wild pitches in 1 1/3 innings. He was charged with three runs on two hits with only 20 of his 50 pitches going for strikes.

Canning walked four straight batters in the first to bring home a run before striking out Robinson Chirinos to escape the jam. In the second, he threw a wild pitch that scored a run and exited after giving up an RBI single to Alex Bregman with one out.

“The ball just wasn’t going where I wanted it to,” Canning said. “Physically, I felt good, but I’m not gonna panic. I’m not gonna feel sorry for myself. I’m just gonna do what I do, keep working, keep trying to get better.”

Cole keeps it rolling

Cole, in his first appearance since throwing two perfect innings in Friday’s combined no-hitter against the Mariners, came up huge, getting a key double play to get out of the second. Cole kept the Angels in the game with his strong performance, lasting until the fifth, when he was replaced by Justin Anderson with two outs.

"You just want to minimize the damage,” Cole said. “At that point, it's just give us a chance to win. You want to put up as many zeros as you can until the bats get going. That's what happened. A lot of guys stepped up tonight and the outcome was really good."