Rays 1
Angels 3
Final
  for this game

Angels edge Rays behind strong effort from Haren

Jul 28, 2012 - 5:17 AM Anaheim, CA (Sports Network) - The Angels got a boost Friday afternoon when they won the Zack Greinke sweepstakes, and hours later put one in the win column with a 3-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.

The Angels parted ways with three prospects for Greinke, a former AL Cy Young Award winner who went 9-3 with a 3.44 ERA for the Brewers this season. Greinke will serve as another formidable arm in a solid rotation that includes Jered Weaver, C.J. Wilson, Ervin Santana and Dan Haren.

Haren (8-8) opened the three-game series by holding Tampa Bay to one run -- on Jeff Keppinger's homer -- and five hits over six-plus innings.

"They came out aggressive, and I tried to keep them off-balance with my soft stuff," Haren said. "My command was better tonight, working it in and out."

The Angels scored all of their runs in the third thanks to Albert Pujols' two- run double off the glove of a diving Sam Fuld and Mark Trumbo's run-scoring base hit to left.

The inning was the only hiccup for Alex Cobb (4-8), who lasted seven innings and allowed three runs on eight hits -- four coming in the pivotal third.

Keppinger went 3-for-4 and cranked his fourth homer of the season in the second inning. He was the lone bright spot for the Rays' offense, which went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position.

"We have to do better. We're just not hitting," Rays manager Joe Maddon said.

Haren was cruising until the seventh, when he gave up a leadoff double to Keppinger and walked Carlos Pena.

Kevin Jepsen entered from the bullpen and retired the next three hitters, and Scott Downs worked a scoreless eighth to keep it a two-run game.

Ernesto Frieri closed out the Angels' fourth win in five games and his 12th save of the season with a perfect ninth.

Game Notes

In exchange for Greinke, the Angels dealt 22-year-old shortstop Jean Segura and a pair of Double-A pitchers -- Ariel Pena and Johnny Hellweg...Pujols, who missed the Angels' previous game due to a sore elbow, went 3-for-4...The Angels had lost the previous six in the series...Haren has allowed at least one home run in seven straight games...Tampa Bay fell to 2-2 on its nine-game road trip.






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