Hendricks Dominates, Angels Offense Explodes in 12-2 Rout of Twins

ANAHEIM, Calif.  — Kyle Hendricks turned in his best performance of the season Tuesday night, tossing seven scoreless innings to lead the Los Angeles Angels to a commanding 12-2 win over the Minnesota Twins.

Backed by three-run home runs from Chris Taylor and Yoán Moncada, the Angels scored all 12 of their runs with two outs, racking up 17 hits in a lopsided victory.

Hendricks (7-9) was sharp from the start, scattering four hits while striking out six and walking just one. He threw 58 of his 80 pitches for strikes, keeping the Twins off balance all night. Minnesota’s Zabby Matthews (4-5) took the loss after surrendering five runs on seven hits over 4 ⅔ innings.

Los Angeles wasted no time getting on the board, thanks to Luis Rengifo’s two-out, two-run single in the first inning. Rengifo added another clutch hit in the fifth — an RBI single — as the Angels built a 5-0 lead.

The offensive floodgates opened in the sixth, when Taylor launched a three-run homer to center field following an RBI single from Taylor Ward. One inning later, Moncada followed singles from Sebastian Rivero and Bryce Teodosio with a three-run blast of his own — his 12th of the season — extending the lead to 12-0.

Minnesota avoided a shutout in the ninth, when infielder Ryan Fitzgerald — who had pitched a scoreless eighth — hit a two-run homer.

Despite the blowout, the Twins had a brief window to get back into the game in the sixth. With two on and one out, Hendricks calmly retired Trevor Larnach and Luke Keaschall to end the threat and preserve the shutout.

Notable Stats

• The Angels went 8-for-17 with runners in scoring position.
• Mike Trout and Moncada each scored three times.
• Trout is in the longest home run drought of his career — 119 plate appearances and 27 games without a homer since hitting No. 398 on August 6.

Injury Note
Right fielder Jo Adell, who ranks fourth in the AL with 35 homers and seventh with 94 RBIs, was scratched for the second straight game due to vertigo.

Next Up
The series wraps up Wednesday with Minnesota’s Taj Bradley (6-7, 4.92 ERA) facing off against Angels right-hander Jose Soriano (10-10, 4.07 ERA).