Oneil Cruz crushed a towering 463-foot homer to dead center — the fourth-longest in the majors this season — and Andrew Heaney dominated early as the Pittsburgh Pirates shut out the Los Angeles Angels 3-0 on Wednesday night.
Heaney (2-1) was nearly untouchable, striking out nine and allowing just one hit across six innings for his first victory at Angel Stadium since being dealt by the team in 2021. He began the game by fanning six consecutive batters and retired the first 13 he faced.
The Angels didn’t get a hit until the fifth, when Travis d’Arnaud doubled with one out. Their only other hit came in the ninth, but reliever Dennis Santana shut the door to earn his third save, getting Mike Trout to pop out for the final out.
Trout went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts and has struggled as the Angels continue to slide, dropping seven of their last nine games.
Pittsburgh, meanwhile, secured its first road series win of the year after also taking the opener 9-3.
Bryan Reynolds opened the scoring with a sacrifice fly in the third, and Cruz added to the lead with a massive solo shot in the fifth — his sixth home run and 12th RBI of the season.
Jack Kochanowicz (1-3) took the loss, giving up eight hits and two earned runs over six innings. He’s now allowed five homers in 25 innings this year.
Despite the loss, the Angels turned three double plays, leading the majors with 27.
Key Moment
Tommy Pham delivered an insurance run in the ninth, singling up the middle to score Adam Frazier after a leadoff hit and stolen base.
Key Stat
Cruz’s 463-foot homer ranks fourth in MLB this year, just behind blasts from Mike Trout (484), Aaron Judge (468), and Christian Yelich (465).
Up Next
The Pirates hand the ball to RHP Carmen Mlodzinski (1-3, 7.41 ERA) for the series finale. The Angels will start LHP Tyler Anderson (2-0, 2.08 ERA).
