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Hunter leads home-run parade as Angels down Rangers

Jul 8, 2008 - 5:37 AM ARLINGTON, Texas (Ticker) -- The Texas Rangers learned on Sunday that four players from their league-best offense were voted to the All-Star Game. One day later, they could only watch as the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim's hitters stole their thunder.

Torii Hunter had his second two-homer game of the season, powering the Angels to a 9-6 victory over the Rangers on Monday.

Jeff Mathis and Vladimir Guerrero also homered during the six-run second for Anaheim, which set a season high with four homers in a single game.

After the Angels jumped out to an early 2-0 lead after one inning off Texas starter Luis Mendoza (1-3), Mathis followed a leadoff single from Howie Kendrick with his sixth homer of the season, a 402-foot shot to left.

"I think it was a changeup that he left over the plate," Mathis said. "I was just happy because I thought it would give Ervin (Santana) a bit of a cushion so he could relax and be comfortable out there."

Maicer Izturis pushed across the third run of the inning with an RBI single three batters later before Guerrero turned on an outside fastball from Mendoza and belted a 436-foot, two-run homer to left-center.

Not to be outdone, Hunter became the third opposing player to reach the middle deck of Rangers Ballpark in its 14 years of existence when he crushed Mendoza's next pitch 442 feet to left for his 11th home run of the year, sending the Angels to an 8-0 lead after just two frames.

"It was wind-aided," Hunter said. "It just came up hanging there and I shocked myself. I didn't feel any different when I hit it but as I rounded the bases I had an idea where it went."

Texas mounted its first offense in the next inning when Josh Hamilton - who leads the majors with 85 RBI - drove in a run with a run-scoring double off Santana (10-3).

The Rangers finally found the type of offense that has allowed them to lead the league in runs scored with two outs in the fifth but, surprisingly, most of the damage was not created by All-Star selections Hamilton, Ian Kinsler, Michael Young or Milton Bradley.

With two runners on, rookie David Murphy pounded an 0-1 fastball over the fence in right for a three-run blast to trim the Rangers' deficit to 8-4. The rally continued off Santana as rookie Chris Davis followed a single from Marlon Byrd with a two-run shot that hit off the middle-deck facade in right, his fourth home run in 11 major league games.

"The Rangers have a great lineup with four guys having terrific seasons," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "But they've got young guys down the lineup like Murphy that can hurt you as well. In this park, you've got to hit the ball and then hold them down. Fortunately, we swung the bats well, got some home runs and then held on."

However, Hunter halted the momentum in the seventh when he led off the seventh with his second home run of the contest, giving the two-time All-Star his 10th career multi-homer game and the Angels a 9-6 lead.

"We just wanted to chip away any way we could, anything to eat away at the deficit," Murphy said. "Everybody in the dugout thought we were going to pull it out. We had the one big inning where the momentum swung our way but it just wasn't enough."

Santana settled down after the fifth, picking up the win one day after receiving his first All-Star nomination despite surrendering six runs and 10 hits over seven innings. Scot Shields pitched a flawless eighth before closer Francisco Rodriguez worked around a hit and a walk in the ninth to record his 35th save in 37 chances, breaking John Smoltz's 2003 record for most saves before the All-Star break.

"When you think of nearing 40 saves, you think of an entire season," Rodriguez said. "But I've been able to almost get there in half a season. If you had told me that before the year started, I would have laughed in your face."

Hunter's heroics spoiled the efforts of Dustin Nippert, who more than capably replaced Mendoza in the second inning for Texas. The righthander yielded just one run and four hits over his seven innings - the longest relief effort by a pitcher in the major leagues this season.