PHILADELPHIA — On the day the Angels losing streak reached double-digits, Joe Maddon was asked another version of the same question he’s been asked just about every day this week.
At what point does he need to call a meeting or somehow express his anger at what’s happened?
“Who should I be angry at?” Maddon said after the Angels’ 7-2 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday night. “They’re busting their butts. We’re playing hard. Their prep work is great. There are so many good things we’re doing, except we’re not winning. And so for me, you gotta read the situation properly.
“It’s not a lack of effort, which is my big reason to get upset. It’s not a lack of work, which would be another big reason to get upset. It’s just that we’re not hitting. And that’s it. So everybody wants (Vince) Lombardi to show up. But for me, read the situation right and work with your guys till we come out the other side. Nothing we’ve done is worthy of punitive measures.”
The Angels (27-27) dropped back to .500 for the first time since they were 4-4. They have lost 14 of their last 17 games.
The Angels’ longest losing streak since they dropped 11 in a row in August 2016 has been a group effort, with the offense and pitching both failing. The Angels have a 6.99 ERA and .617 OPS during the last 10 games.
Mike Trout also continued his unprecedented slump, striking out three times while running his drought to a career-worst 23 straight hitless at-bats. He’s struck out nine times in that span. His previous worst was an 0-for-21 in May 2018.
During the 10-game losing streak, Trout has hit .103 with a .372 OPS. He has four hits, and three of them were in one game.
“I’m in it right now,” Trout said. “I just gotta figure a way to get out of it… Just searching too much right now. I’ll be fine. Stay positive. Look at last night, could have had two hits, just got robbed (on two diving catches). Just gotta start seeing the ball better.”
Trout is just one of the ice-cold Angels hitters, as the team’s bats have gone virtually silent on this trip. The two runs actually marked their most productive game in the five games in New York and Philadelphia.
Considering the way they have been hitting, they certainly couldn’t afford to have their starter put them in a five-run hole immediately.
Michael Lorenzen was amped up when he took the ball, wanting desperately to be the pitcher who led the way to a victory, and it cost him.
“I wanted to turn it around for the guys and I was just going way too fast,” Lorenzen said. “Once I slowed down, trusting my stuff, was actually finishing my pitches and not flying open, I didn’t look like I was out there closing the ninth inning. I looked like a starter. I just made made an adjustment and it worked out but it’s a little too late.”
Lorenzen did make it through 5-2/3 innings, without allowing a run past the first inning, but he’d already given up five in a nightmare first that included four walks and a few poorly located pitches that the Phillies hammered.
“This is a start I’ll learn from,” Lorenzen said. “It’ll be a difference-maker for the rest of my career.”
He learned the lesson too late to help the Angels get a victory, though.
Afterward, he echoed Maddon’s sentiment about the mental state of the team.
“Man, it’s not fun, but everyone’s showing up and working and doing their jobs when it comes to preparation,” Lorenzen said. “Play this game long enough, you can only control so much, but obviously it’s not pretty. I think we’re gonna turn the corner. We’re gonna forget about this. By the time mid-season and end of the season comes around, I think we’re gonna forget about all this.”
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