As is customary in Anaheim these days, the Angels' imposing offense continued to apply firm pressure to the throat of the opposing rotation, plating five runs in a 12-hit effort. But for the second time in as many nights, Houston's bats dealt their own torrent of punishment, surpassing the mighty Anaheim armament while tearing the wings from the back of yet another Halos starter. Bartolo Colon played victim this time, watching helplessly as the scoreboard columns totaling opposing runs and hits ballooned to a mass befitting of his burly frame. He surrendered seven runs on a season-high 11 hits with a pair of homers before being forced from the mound after six innings in a 9-5 loss to the Astros in front of 42,156 at Angel Stadium on Tuesday.
Colon's latest outing marked the fifth straight start in which he's allowed four earned runs or more. Over that span, his ERA has swelled considerably, jumping from 3.69 to 6.17.
"It was a little frustrating because I thought the ball was really coming off Bart's hand well," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "His command was a little off as far as elevating some pitches. He just missed on some corners. He had good movement, had good life on the ball. It's just when he made a mistake, they didn't miss it."
Astros left fielder Orlando Palmeiro didn't miss much of anything, racking up four hits to match a career high while knocking in a run and scoring one more. Mike Lamb recorded his sixth consecutive multi-hit game, taking two in his second game at the Big A.
Designated hitter Carlos Lee blasted his team-leading 12th jack of the year, a three-run shot in the third to knot the score at 3-3. Hunter Pence added three hits, including a two-run drive in the sixth, his sixth of the season, to put Houston up 7-5. The visitors tacked on two more runs in the seventh to go up 9-5 and never looked back.
"The reason I got hit tonight was because my location was very poor, and every time I tried to locate better, I left the ball over the plate and they took advantage of it," Colon said through interpreter Jose Mota. "It's frustrating, yes, because I know that I'm a better pitcher than this. Not winning games is not a comfortable feeling right now."

The Angels' offense, anchored by left fielder Reggie Willits' three hits, tried to tap into some of the magic it wielded so forcefully Monday, but relinquished a pair of leads that the pitching staff could not protect. Willits also finished with an RBI and two stolen bases to give him a team-best 18 for the year. Second baseman Howie Kendrick added a pair of doubles with an RBI and has now hit safely in 12 of his last 13 games.
Outfielders Garry Matthews Jr. and Vladimir Guerrero each drove in a run. Matthews has driven in 32 runs in his last 37 games, while Guerrero now has 35 RBIs in 34 home games.
The Angels enjoyed their final lead of the contest in the third with one out and the game tied at 3-3. Guerrero lined a double to left field before Matthews sent him home on a single to right. Matthews advanced to second on the throw and crossed home plate on a Kendrick double to left, putting his team up 5-3, but the Halos would not score again.
"We pressured [starter Jason Jennings] a lot," Scioscia said. "We had two leads that Bart would usually hold, but we didn't get it done tonight. We had the lead, they came back, got the lead again, they came back. Those guys are attacking the baseball. We need to pitch a little better to get through that lineup. The last couple of nights, we scored a lot of runs. We certainly had enough offense to win and couldn't get it done, but that's going to happen from time to time."



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