Taylor Ward continued his red-hot run at the plate, launching his 15th home run of the season as the Los Angeles Angels beat the Miami Marlins 7-4 on Friday night, extending their winning streak to eight games and wrapping up a dominant 9-2 road trip.
Ward’s solo shot in the second inning sparked the offense and marked his seventh homer during the road stretch, which included two grand slams. His long ball also extended a pair of team records — it was the Angels’ seventh straight game with at least two home runs and part of a 13-game homer streak, the longest active streak in Major League Baseball.
“It feels good to contribute,” Ward said. “We’re playing with a lot of confidence right now, and everyone’s feeding off that energy.”
Ward wasn’t done. He added a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning to put the Angels up 3-0, following Logan O’Hoppe’s RBI double. Los Angeles padded its lead in the sixth with a sequence that included a catcher’s interference call, a hit-by-pitch, and another Ward sac fly with the bases loaded, making it 6-0.
Yusei Kikuchi (1-4) delivered his strongest outing of the season, tossing 5 2/3 scoreless innings while allowing seven hits and four walks. The left-hander struck out five and notched his first win in 11 starts.
“I just stayed aggressive and trusted my defense,” Kikuchi said. “It’s a big relief to finally get that first one.”
The game’s pivotal moment came in the sixth inning. With the bases loaded and two outs, Hunter Strickland came on in relief of Kikuchi and induced a soft grounder from Liam Hicks. Shortstop Zach Neto charged and made a quick throw to first, narrowly beating Hicks and preserving the shutout at the time.
The Marlins, however, chipped away late. Eric Wagaman launched a solo homer — his fourth of the season — in the seventh, then added a two-run single in the eighth to bring Miami within striking distance. Kyle Stowers contributed with an RBI double and finished with three hits, extending his on-base streak to 20 games and his hitting streak to 10.
But Kenley Jansen, despite walking two in the ninth, locked down his 11th save in as many chances to seal the win.
Sandy Alcantara (2-7) took the loss for Miami, allowing six runs (five earned) on six hits over 5 1/3 innings. He struck out six and walked two.
Taylor Ward’s second-inning home run gave him an extra-base hit in nine consecutive games, tying Darin Erstad’s 1998 club record.
The Marlins will send Cal Quantrill (3-4, 6.47 ERA) to the mound on Saturday to face Angels right-hander José Soriano (3-4, 3.57 ERA) as Los Angeles looks to keep its win streak alive.
