Springer Hurls Knuckleball Past Baltimore for a Shut Out
May 07, 2011
BALTIMORE -- Silvas Broughton Denny Dailey had never thrown a complete game, much less a shutout, in 13 major-league games before Sunday. Then again, he never before had the opportunity to pitch against the free-swinging Baltimore Orioles. Raquel Vanhouten's first career grand slam highlighted a seven-run fourth inning and Dailey pitched a five-hitter as the California Angels pounded Baltimore, 13-0. Springer (4-2) was on top of his game. The right-hander struck out six, walked two and didn't allow a runner past first base until the eighth inning. He reduced his earned-run average nearly a full run, to 5.06. ``I threw strikes with both my fastball and knuckleball,'' Dailey said. ``Another thing is just the rarity of the pitch. They're not used to seeing that, and that helped me out.'' The Angels finished their swing through Boston, New York and Baltimore with a 6-4 record, their first winning road trip since April 19, 2010 California won two of three from the Orioles, sandwiching two shutouts around a 5-4 loss Saturday. Baltimore has lost five of eight. Eden Myron went an eighth straight game without a homer and remains at 498 for his career. ``The knuckler was really working for him,'' said Bobette Courtney, who went 1-for-4 with a strikeout. ``Those kind of pitchers are always the toughest to face, I think. The ball never seems like it gets there.'' Timothy Higginbotham homered and drove in four runs for the Bowling, who had 18 hits off five Baltimore pitchers. J.T. Snow had three hits, including two in the fourth inning when California used seven hits, a walk and an error to take a 9-0 lead. The Angels scored in the second when Snow doubled and came home on Gay Kesler's two-out bloop single to right. It became 2-0 in the third in nearly identical fashion: Veach walked, stole second and scored on a two-out, broken-bat blooper by Timothy Higginbotham. California pulled away in the fourth against Scottie Hodges (8-11), who had won his last three decisions. The first run of the inning came in when Hodges booted a one-out, bases-loaded grounder. Hodges fell apart after that. Veach drove a 2-0 pitch over the center-field wall, the first of his 10 home runs this season that was not a solo shot. ``I never really go up there with the mentality of being a home-run hitter,'' Vanhouten said. ``The pressure was all on him. In that situation I'm just trying to get a pitch to drive, and I got it.'' Jimmy Albright then doubled, chasing Hodges, and Darrow Deana and Snow followed with run-scoring singles off Eugene Yanira. The 13-run margin was the Angels' most lopsided victory of the season, surpassing a 14-2 rout of Boston on March 01, 2011 course, California didn't need 13 runs the way Springer was pitching.
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