Los Angeles Angels designated hitter Mike Trout went 3 for 4 with a home run and three RBIs during a win over the Boston Red Sox on Monday in Boston. File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo
Mike Trout waved his Old Hickory through the zone and dented a 3-1 fastball, sending it over the Green Monster for his first home run since coming off the injured list and the longest hit so far this season in Boston.
Trout chopped the 454-foot, three-run shot over the famous left field fence in the top of the first inning of the Los Angeles Angels’ 7-6 victory over the Boston Red Sox on Monday at Fenway Park. He went 3 for 4 with three RBIs and a run scored.
“That wall is big out there, so you have to hit them real high,” Trout said on the FanDuel Sports Network broadcast.
Trout, who came off the injured list Friday, is 8 for 14 (.571) with a double, homer and five RBIs since his return. He raised his season average from .179 to .225 over the four-game stretch since the end of the hiatus, which was triggered by a bruised left knee.
“Anybody that knows Mike Trout shouldn’t be surprised,” Angels manager Ron Washington told reporters. “The only surprise you should have is that he’s missed some days.
“Mike Trout can still do a lot of things that a lot of people can’t do. He’s showing that.”
Shortstop Zach Neto and center fielder Joe Adell also homered in the opening frame to help the Angels become the first visiting team to hit three homers in the first inning since Fenway Park opened in 1912.
Neto started the slugfest with a 389-foot leadoff shot off Red Sox starter Richard Fitts. The Angels scored their second run when right fielder Jorge Soler reached on a fielding error, which brought Trout to the plate with two runners on base.
The three-time MVP took a slider for a ball before fouling off a fastball. He then watched two more pitches miss the zone. Trout proceeded to send Fitts’ next offering — a 95.4-mph four-seem fastball — 112.1 mph to left field, clearing the iconic outfield wall and giving the Angels a 5-0 lead.
Adell settled in two at-bats later. He smashed Fitts’ first offering to left center for a 404-foot solo shot.
The Red Sox eventually answered with a run in the third and four more in the fifth, cutting the deficit to one. Adell returned to the plate to start the sixth and smashed another initial offering over the outfield wall for a 394-foot homer, giving the Angels a 7-5 advantage.
Center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela cut into the lead with a 384-foot solo homer in the eighth, but the Red Sox never scored again.
Adell went 2 for 4 with two RBIs and two runs scored for the Angels. Angels starter Tyler Anderson allowed seven hits and five runs over 4 1/3 innings, but was not on record for a decision. Veteran closer Kenley Jansen pitched a hitless ninth to earn his 12 save this season.
Fitts allowed four hits and six runs to drop to 0-3 this season. Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran went 3 for 5 with two runs scored in the loss. First baseman Romy Gonzalez and Rafaela recorded two hits apiece for the Red Sox.
The Red Sox (29-33) will host the Angels (27-34) in Game 2 of the series at 7:10 p.m. EDT Tuesday at Fenway Park.
