ANAHEIM, Calif. — On a day that began with another significant shakeup for a team with the worst record in baseball, the Angels ended it with something that has been increasingly difficult to come by this season — a win.
Zach Neto drove in a run and scored another during a three-run third inning as the Angels held on for a 3-2 victory over the Texas Rangers on Tuesday night at Angel Stadium, snapping a three-game losing streak and winning for just the fourth time in their last 14 games.
The victory came hours after the Angels fired pitching coach Mike Maddux, bullpen coach Dom Chiti and assistant pitching coach Darryl Scott as the organization continued to make changes during a disappointing season. Maddux had joined the Angels during the offseason after serving as the Rangers' pitching coach and was working on a one-year contract. The Angels entered Tuesday with one of baseball's highest staff ERAs and had issued an MLB-high 508 walks.
On Tuesday night, however, the Angels' pitching staff did enough to make one productive inning at the plate stand up.
Texas wasted little time taking the lead when former Dodgers outfielder Joc Pederson crushed Ryan Johnson's third pitch of the game 416 feet into the ficus trees beyond center field. It was Pederson's 21st home run of the season, his seventh leadoff homer of the year and the 33rd leadoff home run of his career.
The Angels responded in the third against Cody Bradford. Wade Meckler opened the rally with a single and came around to score when Neto singled him home to tie the game. Neto then stole third and scored on Nolan Schanuel's sacrifice fly, giving the Angels their first lead of the night.
Mike Trout followed by reaching base and Vaughn Grissom doubled him home for a 3-1 advantage. The three-run inning would account for all of the Angels' offense, but it proved to be enough.
Johnson gave the Angels a solid start, allowing three hits while striking out five before departing in the fifth inning. José Fermin followed with four outs of relief and ultimately earned the victory to improve to 4-2.
The Rangers pulled within a run in the sixth when Brandon Nimmo singled and eventually scored on a soft RBI single by pinch-hitter Jarred Kelenic, cutting the Angels' lead to 3-2. Kelenic had been added to the Rangers' roster earlier Tuesday for his third stint with the club this season after being designated for assignment in June, released in July and subsequently re-signed twice.
It turned out to be Texas' final hit of the night.
The Angels' bullpen protected the one-run advantage the rest of the way before rookie Samy Natera worked a scoreless ninth for his third save. Texas stranded eight runners and lost for just the second time in its last seven games.
Bradford was the tough-luck loser for the Rangers, allowing three runs on five hits over seven innings in just his second start since returning from elbow surgery that had kept him out since 2024. He fell to 0-1 despite keeping the Angels off the scoreboard outside of their third-inning rally.
For the Angels, the win provided a rare positive moment amid a stretch filled with losses and organizational changes. Interim general manager John Mozeliak said Tuesday's coaching moves were made after discussions with manager Kurt Suzuki about the direction of the pitching staff and how the organization wants to build its pitching program moving forward.
The Angels will try to build on Tuesday's win when the four-game AL West series continues Wednesday at Angel Stadium. George Klassen (0-1, 7.27 ERA) is scheduled to start for Los Angeles against Texas right-hander Cal Quantrill (4-4, 3.56 ERA).