ANAHEIM, Calif. – Time is dwindling for the Los Angeles Angels, who can't afford to be losing games to teams with records as poor as the Minnesota Twins.
Carl Pavano won for the first time in 10 starts since the All-Star break, Trevor Plouffe homered and the Twins received four bases-loaded walks in a 13-5 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Friday night.
The Halos, who took the field knowing Texas beat the Boston 10-0 at Fenway Park, began a nine-game homestand with their fifth loss in eight games and slipped 4 1/2 games behind the Rangers in the AL West.
"We have a finite amount of games now," manager Mike Scioscia said. "You see the end. The only way to get there is on that day-to-day approach. We have to play a better game tomorrow. Our focus can't change. We really didn't give ourselves a chance on the mound tonight."
Rookie right-hander Tyler Chatwood (6-10) threw 83 pitches over 3 2-3 innings, giving up six runs, five hits and five walks in a spot start after getting recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake. Angels ace Jered Weaver, the scheduled starter, was in Oregon to attend his grandfather's funeral and was pushed back a day in the rotation.
Chatwood is 0-4 with a 9.53 ERA in five starts with the Angels since his most recent victory July 24 at Baltimore. He's 0-7 with a 7.06 ERA in nine starts at Anaheim since his last home win May 22 against Atlanta.
"The first three innings I felt like I was able to command counts and then the fourth couldn't," Chatwood said. "I fell behind a lot. I tried to be too fine and walked too many guys. I tried to go a little harder and that is when it snowballed on me and I walked more than I should. You never want to lose one like this, but the biggest thing is trying to turn the page and not keep this one in the back of your mind."
Plouffe, the second batter Chatwood faced, drove a 2-1 pitch to left-center for his seventh homer. The 21-year-old right-hander has allowed a home run in each of his last six starts with the Angels, after giving up just one in 62 2-3 innings over his previous 11 starts with the big club.
The Twins sent 11 men to the plate in the fourth and scored five runs to pull ahead 6-2. Danny Valencia led off with a single, took third on Rene Tosoni's double down the right-field line and continued home when nine-time Gold Glove winner Torii Hunter misplayed the ball for his third error of the season.
Tosoni scored on a double by Luke Hughes, who started at first base after three-time AL batting champ Joe Mauer was scratched because of an upper respiratory infection. Chatwood walked three straight batters with two outs — including Jason Kubel to force in a run — and was relieved by Jerome Williams.
Michael Cuddyer then beat out a dribbler to shortstop that drove in Ben Revere, and Plouffe scored on another bases-loaded walk to Valencia.
Fernando Rodney walked both Tosoni and Hughes with the bases loaded in the eighth, and two more runs were charged against him when No. 9 hitter Drew Butera singled against Hisanori Takahashi to make it 12-4.
"Some guys in our 'pen have been doing a good job, but the depth has really hurt us," Scioscia said. "We have some guys that are going to be important. Some of the guys that we are counting on haven't pitched to their capabilities."
The Angels got their runs on Bobby Abreu's sacrifice fly, RBI singles by Howie Kendrick and Hunter, a run-scoring triple by Erick Aybar and an RBI double by Hank Conger.
Abreu would have to play in each of the Angels' final 24 games to reach 150 for the 14th consecutive season, which would break the record he shares with Willie Mays (1954-66). But it doesn't seem likely, with the team scheduled for only two more days off. Scioscia had already given the 37-year-old outfielder and designated hitter five days off since Aug. 1, and used him as a pinch hitter on two other occasions.
"The one thing Bobby brings is that he gives you gives you a great at-bat every time. But he really hasn't been in synch at times, and he's really struggled with some things," Scioscia said. "I don't know if it's been a fatigue issue, but Bobby obviously hasn't been as productive this year as we had hoped and the hits haven't fallen in there for him like we need them to.
Abreu is hitting .252 with six homers and 52 RBIs.
"Bobby works very hard at and he takes this very seriously," Scioscia said. "I mean, he usually rolls with the flow and knows that if he has a bad game, he's going to come back with a good game. I think there's been a little frustration level in his game at times this season, which shows how much he cares and how much he wants to do well. We've still got a month, so hopefully he's going to contribute."
Pavano (7-11) allowed four runs and six hits over 6 2-3 innings with four strikeouts and no walks. It was the first victory since July 7 for the 35-year-old right-hander, who has given up the most runs (107) and hits (221) in the majors. He had gone 0-5 with a 5.74 ERA since beating the White Sox 6-2 at Chicago.
"Nothing replaces the feeling you get from a win, but I didn't see it as a drought," Pavano said. "I mean, I pitched plenty of games where I was good enough to win. Tonight, the guys put together some great at-bats and scored some runs. Some of those long innings sometimes can backfire on you, but I'm not complaining that we scored a lot of runs."
Notes: Jeremy Moore and Efren Navarro both made their major league debut with the Angels, each flying out to left field back-to-back in the eighth as pinch-hitters. Last Sept. 11, Conger and Mark Trumbo made their big league debuts for the Halos as pinch-hitters and both struck out back-to-back. ... Moore and Navarro are the 15th and 16th players to make their big league debuts with the Angels since the start of last season — including Trumbo, who leads the team with 24 homers and 73 RBIs. ... Had Angels closer Jordan Walden converted all five of the blown save opportunities he had that resulted in losses, they would be a half-game ahead of the Rangers. Walden is 3 for 3 against Texas.
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