Trout does something he’s never done before

ANAHEIM -- Mike Trout continues to amaze, and on Sunday afternoon he accomplished something he never had before.

Trout homered for the fifth time in four games, hitting a two-run shot to left off Rangers reliever Kyle Bird in the sixth inning of a 7-2 win at Angel Stadium. It helped the Angels to their third straight victory and first series win of 2019.

It marked the second time in Trout’s career that he homered in four straight games -- he also did it from May 12-15, 2017 -- but he had never hit five homers in a four-game span. The club record for most consecutive games with a homer is five by Bobby Bonds from Aug. 2-7, 1977.

“I think it’s just knowing you’re in a good spot to hit when you get up there, being in the right position, feet-wise,” Trout said. “Now I’m really looking when I’m going good -- where I’m at, what’s my setup -- and trying to consistently go to the plate and come up with that. It’s been working, obviously, the last few games.”

In the four-game series, Trout batted .545 (6-for-11) with five homers, nine RBIs, six walks and a hit by pitch. He reached base safely in 13 of his 18 plate appearances. Trout credited a video session with hitting coaches Jeremy Reed and Shawn Wooten, as he watched his at-bats from his five-hit game at Yankee Stadium last year on May 26, when he set a career high with 11 total bases.

“I try to put myself and my body in that position every time, and it’s been good so far,” Trout said. “It’s been working. I just got to stick to it.”

It is the fourth time a Halos player has had five homers in a series of four or fewer games. Trout joins Vladimir Guerrero (2004 vs. Texas), Garret Anderson ('03 vs. Montreal) and Doug DeCinces (1982 vs. Minnesota).

The only other players to hit five homers in a four-game series against the Rangers are Carlos Delgado, John Mayberry and Adrian Gonzalez. Trout also is the fifth player and the first American League player to hit five homers in his club's first four home games of a season, joining Gonzalez (2015), Chase Utley ('10), Lou Brock (1967) and Eddie Mathews ('58), per the Elias Sports Bureau.

“He’s not missing anything,” Rangers manager Chris Woodward said. “He seems to be getting only one or two pitches a game, and he is hitting them out.”

Trout’s latest homer was absolutely crushed yet again. It had an exit velocity of 112.9 mph and went a projected 422 feet in 4.1 seconds, per Statcast. It's the seventh-hardest-hit homer from Trout since Statcast was introduced in 2015. His personal best on a homer is 115 mph off the bat against former Mariners right-hander Ryan Cook on June 11, 2018.

"It doesn't really surprise me," Angels manager Brad Ausmus said of Trout's outburst. "But I said at times Trout is going to be the bulk of our offense, but we need on any given day to have six or seven guys contribute to score runs."

Trout entered the series with no homers, but he hit a bases-empty shot on Thursday, two more solo blasts on Friday and a grand slam on Saturday before his two-run homer on Sunday. Trout now has five homers in 10 games, which is the fastest he has reached five homers to open a season in his career. His previous best was 14 games in 2014 and '18.

"Mike is the best player in the world," said reliever Justin Anderson, who got out of a pivotal bases-loaded jam with nobody out in the fifth. “No doubt about that one.”

Trout carried the offense in wins on Friday and Saturday, but he had more help from his teammates on Sunday. The Halos broke out for four runs in the second against right-hander Shelby Miller after loading the bases with nobody out. Zack Cozart was injured during the rally, however, as he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and suffered a left forearm contusion. X-rays were negative.

"It’s pretty stiff right now," said Cozart, who is hopeful to avoid the injured list. "I couldn't swing a bat. That’s why I came out. It locked up on me. It stiffened up all the way down to my wrist."

Right fielder Brian Goodwin also homered in the seventh, reaching the grass area beyond the bushes in center field. The solo shot off reliever Shawn Kelley went a projected 453 feet, per Statcast, and left the bat at 107.9 mph. It was the seventh-longest homer in the Majors this season and the second-longest homer by an Angels player behind Trout's 458-foot grand slam on Saturday.

"I just looked for a pitch I could handle," Goodwin said. "Kelley's actually one of my old teammates, so I kind of have a little advantage knowing the repertoire before stepping in the box."