ANAHEIM — A disappointing Angels season is finally over.
The Angels lost to the Houston Astros, 6-2, in the season finale on Sunday afternoon, their 13th loss in the last 16 games.
Rookie left-hander Sam Aldegheri pitched four solid innings before getting knocked out in the fifth, with four runs allowed.
Mike Trout’s first-inning home run – his 404th career homer, and fifth in his last seven games – was all the offense could produce for the first eight innings.
Down by five when they came to bat in the ninth, they scored a run and loaded the bases. Taylor Ward went to the plate representing the tying run but was called out on strikes.
Ward and Nolan Schanuel were both out of the starting lineup on the final day, which left the Angels with a lineup that seemed more fit for Tempe Diablo Stadium than Angel Stadium.
The Angels finished with a 72-90 record, marking their 10th consecutive losing season. They have missed the playoffs each of the last 11 seasons.
General Manager Perry Minasian is expected to speak to reporters later in the week to answer questions about what’s ahead for the organization.
The first issue will be what to do about the manager job.
Ron Washington, who finished the season on a medical leave, has an option for next season and has said he wants to return to the dugout. Washington underwent a quadruple bypass operation this summer.
If the Angels decide to move on from Washington, interim manager Ray Montgomery will be a candidate to keep the job.
Before the game, Montgomery said there should be only minimal satisfaction with their nine-game improvement from last year or the development of a handful of young players.
The Angels have been hanging their hopes on the young core for a few years, still waiting for that to translate to actual major league success.
“It can’t continuously be like, we have a good young core and now they’re in place,” Montgomery said. “It really has to be that good young core is now added to, and there’s a group capable of, you know, .500 should be the lowest standard, and then getting to the playoffs should be the focus.
“At some point there has to be a line drawn in the sand. And while we’re happy that (Zach) Neto and (Schanuel) have emerged, and Jo (Adell) has done what he’s done, I think there’s still a lot of room left for him to take the next step too, which is what we’re all shooting for. We don’t play to get to .500.”
The Angels had a .500 record on July 3, but they never got back to that level. They remained within a few games of .500 until mid-August, when injuries began to take their toll.
Schanuel and Neto each missed at least a week, as did catchers Logan O’Hoppe and Travis d’Arnaud. Pitchers José Soriano, Reid Detmers and Tyler Anderson also spent time out.
Aldegheri got the ball to finish out the season on Sunday. He gave up a run in the first, then he tacked on three scoreless innings. In the fifth, he gave up homers to Yainer Diaz and Ramon Urias, putting the Angels in a 4-1 hole.
“Some things to like, and some things that we got to work on,” Montgomery said of Aldegheri’s performance on Sunday. “Getting young kids to find his way through the sequencing and stuff, fastball command, the things we talked about, he’s got to get better at. He knows that. But overall, I’m pleased with him and the fact that he made it back here and went back and went to work after what happened earlier in the season, and to be able to come back and contribute, it’s good sign for him, good sign for us.”