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Angels starter John Lackey's season debut lasted only two pitches.
Lackey, activated from the disabled list earlier Saturday, was ejected after hitting Texas leadoff batter Ian Kinsler and the AL West-leading Rangers went on to beat Los Angeles 5-3 for their sixth straight victory.
The Angels led 1-0 after Chone Figgins walked on four pitches to start the game and scored on a wild pitch by Vicente Padilla (3-2).
Lackey's first pitch went behind the head of Kinsler, who homered twice Friday night. The next one hit him in the side of his upper body, and home plate umpire Bob Davidson, without a warning, immediately ejected Lackey.
Kinsler stole second and scored on the first of Josh Hamilton's two sacrifice flys. Texas went ahead to stay on Michael Young's tiebreaking RBI single in the fourth just before another run-producing flyball by Hamilton made it 5-3.
Texas (22-14) has won 12 of 14 and leads the Angels by 3 1/2 games in the AL West. The Rangers are eight games over .500 for the first time since June 2005.
Lackey raised his arms and had a look of disbelief on his face after he was tossed. Manager Mike Scioscia argued at length with Davidson and crew chief Tim Tschida to no avail, though he wasn't ejected.
During an in-game interview with Fox Sports, pitching coach Mike Butcher said the two pitches just got away from Lackey, who was on the mound for the first time after missing the first six weeks of the season because of a forearm strain.
Shane Loux (2-3), who threw 30 pitches over two inning and gave up a 460-foot homer to Hamilton on Friday night, replaced Lackey and allowed four runs over 3 1-3 innings.
Jarrod Saltalamacchia's two-run single in the second made it 3-1. After the Angels got even on RBI singles by Juan Rivera and Figgins in the fourth, the Rangers got those runs back in the bottom of the inning.
Padilla had allowed one hit in each of his previous two starts, the first Texas pitcher to accomplish that, even though he wound up with a no-decision in one of those. The right-hander allowed 10 singles against the Angels, including five in one inning.
When Bobby Abreu singled to put two runners on with one out in the seventh, it appeared the Rangers might make a pitching change. But manager Ron Washington never came out of the dugout, and Torii Hunter then grounded into an inning-ending double play.
Padilla then finished a 1-2-3 eighth in 10 pitches before C.J. Wilson worked a perfect ninth for his second save in two chances in place of injured closer Frank Francisco, who was put on the disabled list Saturday.
Lackey is the first starter in the majors to throw only two pitches in a game since Colorado's Zach Day on Sept. 16, 2005. Day was knocked out of that game at Arizona when a line drive broke his right thumb.
In his final start last season, Lackey allowed a career-high 10 runs in a career-low 2 2-3 innings in a 12-1 loss at home against the Rangers.
Lackey, activated from the disabled list earlier Saturday, was ejected after hitting Texas leadoff batter Ian Kinsler and the AL West-leading Rangers went on to beat Los Angeles 5-3 for their sixth straight victory.
The Angels led 1-0 after Chone Figgins walked on four pitches to start the game and scored on a wild pitch by Vicente Padilla (3-2).
Lackey's first pitch went behind the head of Kinsler, who homered twice Friday night. The next one hit him in the side of his upper body, and home plate umpire Bob Davidson, without a warning, immediately ejected Lackey.
Kinsler stole second and scored on the first of Josh Hamilton's two sacrifice flys. Texas went ahead to stay on Michael Young's tiebreaking RBI single in the fourth just before another run-producing flyball by Hamilton made it 5-3.
Texas (22-14) has won 12 of 14 and leads the Angels by 3 1/2 games in the AL West. The Rangers are eight games over .500 for the first time since June 2005.
Lackey raised his arms and had a look of disbelief on his face after he was tossed. Manager Mike Scioscia argued at length with Davidson and crew chief Tim Tschida to no avail, though he wasn't ejected.
During an in-game interview with Fox Sports, pitching coach Mike Butcher said the two pitches just got away from Lackey, who was on the mound for the first time after missing the first six weeks of the season because of a forearm strain.
Shane Loux (2-3), who threw 30 pitches over two inning and gave up a 460-foot homer to Hamilton on Friday night, replaced Lackey and allowed four runs over 3 1-3 innings.
Jarrod Saltalamacchia's two-run single in the second made it 3-1. After the Angels got even on RBI singles by Juan Rivera and Figgins in the fourth, the Rangers got those runs back in the bottom of the inning.
Padilla had allowed one hit in each of his previous two starts, the first Texas pitcher to accomplish that, even though he wound up with a no-decision in one of those. The right-hander allowed 10 singles against the Angels, including five in one inning.
When Bobby Abreu singled to put two runners on with one out in the seventh, it appeared the Rangers might make a pitching change. But manager Ron Washington never came out of the dugout, and Torii Hunter then grounded into an inning-ending double play.
Padilla then finished a 1-2-3 eighth in 10 pitches before C.J. Wilson worked a perfect ninth for his second save in two chances in place of injured closer Frank Francisco, who was put on the disabled list Saturday.
Lackey is the first starter in the majors to throw only two pitches in a game since Colorado's Zach Day on Sept. 16, 2005. Day was knocked out of that game at Arizona when a line drive broke his right thumb.
In his final start last season, Lackey allowed a career-high 10 runs in a career-low 2 2-3 innings in a 12-1 loss at home against the Rangers.
