The Angels were able to capitalize on the Rangers' loss and extend their division lead to 4.5 games. In an exciting pitching duel between Zach Greinke and John Lackey, the Angels finally preveiled 2-1 in eleven innings. Greinke held an early 1-0 lead until the eigth inning, when lead-off man Chone Figgins reached on an error and moved to third on a single by Maicer Izturis. Greinke then struck out Abreu and got Vlademir Guerrero to pop up, it looks like Greinke would once again strand a runner on third with less than two outs like he did in the fifth, but Torii Hunter lined a single to center to tie the game. In two starts again the Angels, Greinke has now pitched 16 innings with a 0.56 ERA and all he has to show for is a 0-1 record. John Lackey meanwhile pitched nine innings of one run ball himself, striking out four while walking none and allowing six hits. The game was decided in the eleventh when a single, a walk and another single pushed the winning run across for the Angels.

Meanwhile, the Rockies, under pressure from the Giants after their 3-2 win against the Diamondbacks, kept their one game lead in the wild card standings thanks to great pitching by Jose Contreras, who made his first start for Colorado after being traded by the Chicago White Sox. The Cuban hurler threw 6.2 innings of one run ball and the Rockies bullpen took over from there. A home runs by Carlos Gonzales and Seth Smith plus a two-run two-out by Todd Helton were more than enough to secure the win.

---

Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites