LOS ANGELES — Joel Pineiro knew
his stuff was good when the ground balls kept coming. He was almost as
good at the plate, becoming the first Angels pitcher to score three runs
in a game since 1962.
Pineiro pitched a five-hitter for his
second complete game win of the season and the rest of the Angels gave
him a big offensive cushion in a 10-1 victory over the Dodgers on Friday
night.
"I felt good all the way. I was able
to relax and [Mike] Napoli called a great game," Pineiro said. "I made
sure to keep the ball down in the zone."
Hideki Matsui and Torii Hunter had
three-run doubles, helping the Angels win for the eighth time in 10
games and snapping the Dodgers' four-game winning streak.
"That's a great ballgame against a
team scoring a lot of runs," Angels manager and former Dodgers catcher
Mike Scioscia said.
When he wasn't busy on the basepaths,
Pineiro (5-6) was dictating from the mound in the Freeway Series opener
between two surging teams. The right-hander struck out seven, walked one
and retired his final 14 batters to earn his second straight win.
"It seemed like he had command of all
of his pitches and he just kept us off-balance," Dodgers catcher Russell
Martin said.
Pineiro was especially effective
against the heart of the Dodgers' lineup. Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier, Manny
Ramirez and James Loney were a combined 1-for-15. Ethier walked once,
while Loney's home run in the fourth was the lone Dodgers' run. Kemp is 0-for-11 in his last three games.
"He pitched that way against us last
year," Dodgers manager Joe Torre said. "He's that type of pitcher where
if his stuff is working and stays down, you're going to have to be very
patient with him."
The three runs by Pineiro, who never
bats in the AL and didn't get a hit Friday, were the most scored by an
Angels pitcher since Ken McBride did so on June 10, 1962, against Kansas
City. Before Friday, Pineiro had only scored 10 runs in his nine-year
career.
"That's not something you expect, but
he's been in the batter's box before," Scioiscia said. "He was
definitely setting the table. He finished strong. His last 10 pitches
were strong."
Chad Billingsley (6-4) gave up seven
runs and nine hits in 5 2/3 innings. He struck out three and walked
three in losing his second straight, while his seven earned runs were a
career-high.
"I can't explain it. I mean, I felt
good out there and felt like I had pretty good stuff," he said. "But
they just found holes, and you can't do much about that. I did leave
some balls up in the zone, but I thought I had pretty good command."
Pineiro scored the Angels' first run
on Bobby Abreu's two-out single in the second. Loney's homer tied it.
Billingsley walked Pineiro in
consecutive innings.
"When you get the pitcher up there,
you just want to throw strikes and not worry about being too perfect,"
he said. "Sometimes you find yourself aiming the ball."
Martin added, "I'm sure the last
thing he wanted to do was walk the pitcher. You've got to make him earn
his way on."
Matsui doubled to right field with
two outs in the fifth, giving the Angels a 4-1 lead. The ball deflected
off Ethier's glove as he made a diving attempt, allowing Pineiro, Erick
Aybar and Hunter to score.
The Angels added four runs in the
sixth. Reliever George Sherrill walked Abreu, the first batter he faced,
with the bases loaded, bringing in Pineiro. Hunter's three-run double
extended their lead to 8-1.
Pineiro took a called third strike in
his fourth at-bat.
Howie Kendrick added a two-run homer
in the ninth.
Notes
Hunter got hit on his left
elbow by a pitch in the fifth. "It hurt so bad. It was a not-so-funny
bone," he said. … Pineiro became the first pitcher to throw a complete
game against the Dodgers since Houston's Roy Oswalt last July 17. …
The Angels improved to 9-3 on their road trip, their most wins on a trip
since April 12-26, 1984, when they went 9-5. … Matsui turns 36 on
Saturday. He's one homer away from 150 in his career. … The Angels are
6-3 in their last nine games at Dodger Stadium. … The Dodgers are 2-2
in interleague play this season.