ANAHEIM — The thrill of victory helped erase the agony of the catch.
Finally peeved about it all some 24 hours later, Nolan Schanuel had an edge about him when he dunked his game-winning hit into shallow center field on Tuesday night to give the Angels a 2-1 victory over the Athletics in 10 innings.
His celebration in the immediate aftermath was part relief, a bit vindication and full elation.
“It’s electric,” Schanuel said after the Angels won for the sixth time in eight games. “I don’t know if I will be able to sleep tonight. The adrenaline was pumping through my veins once I saw it fall.”
It was a wild 24-hour ride for Schanuel that saw him robbed of a home run on Monday by a Spider-Man impersonation by A’s center fielder Denzel Clarke. The clip of the catch made national news, with “The Today Show” impressed enough to show it in the morning hours.
It was the talk of baseball how Clarke took away a sure homer by making a catch with half of his body over the top of the wall. Clarke did multiple television interviews from the warning track near the Angels’ dugout before Tuesday’s game.
Schanuel was playful with it all until the 10th inning Tuesday. With two outs and Joe Adell at third base, the A’s intentionally walked Zach Neto to have left-hander Hogan Harris face the left-handed hitting Schanuel. He decided he wasn’t playing along any longer.
“Once he did,” Schanuel said of the intentional walk, “I kind of flipped a switch. I went up there with the most confidence in the world and it turned out.”
And yet there was a beat when it all seemed in doubt. Schanuel’s sinking liner heading toward Clarke of all people. This one reached the ground.
“Yeah, try to keep it away from (Clarke) as much as possible, but if it’s going to fall, it’s going to fall in front,” Schanuel said.
Travis d’Arnaud and Jose Soriano each did their part. With the Angels’ offense stalled, d’Arnaud tied the game at 1-1 with a pinch-hit home run in the eighth. It came not long after Soriano departed following a career-best 12 strikeouts in seven innings.
Hunter Strickland, Kenley Jansen and Reid Detmers (2-2) each delivered a scoreless inning for the Angels (32-34) before Schanuel won it with his first career game-ending hit on his first career potential game-ending plate appearance.
“He went up there and did what he had to do, put the ball in play,” Manager Ron Washington said. “That’s what he can do. And that’s all we needed right there. … He’s figuring it out. He’s one of those kids who you could probably wake up in the snow, throw a pitch at him and he can get a base hit.”
Soriano pitched yet another gem yet remains without a home win since July 13 of last year when he limited the Seattle Mariners to one run over six innings.
Last season’s 3.42 ERA in 22 appearances (20 starts) showed more than enough promise, though, and this season there has been plenty to savor, like his seven shutout innings in the second game of the season against the White Sox in Chicago.
His third start lasted 7⅔ innings against Tampa Bay, when he gave up one run. There were the two unearned runs he allowed in seven innings in San Diego on May 13.
The common theme in all three was pitching in front of opposing fans. At home, Soriano entered 0-3 with a 5.92 ERA this season.
The only blemish on a 110-pitch night was a two-out double to center in the sixth inning by the A’s Brent Rooker on a ball that just eluded the glove of a diving Jo Adell. Max Schuemann scored from first base following his leadoff walk. It was the first hit Soriano allowed.
As good as the night was against an A’s team that has now lost 22 of 26 games, Soriano hesitated to call it his best.
“I think all of them are important. I think those other ones are important too. But the good thing is helping the team win,” Soriano said about keeping the A’s down with his sinker and curveball while inducing 22 swinging strikes.
The Angels’ offense scuffled through five scoreless innings against right-hander Mitch Spence and two more against right-hander Michael Kelly. But d’Arnaud delivered his home run in the eighth against left-hander T.J. McFarland.
It was the second career pinch-hit home run for d’Arnaud and his first since Sept. 4, 2021, as a member of the Atlanta Braves in Colorado.
“It’s a good day at the park. Only see one pitch, only take one swing,” d’Arnaud said. “And I didn’t have to sprint. It was a good day. I was happy to contribute as much as I could.”
After Schanuel won it two innings later, he made sure his uniform was taken out of the daily rotation. It might end up on a wall at his home one day as a reminder of a week that was anything but normal.
“I remember my first everything since I’ve been here,” Schanuel said. “Right when I took my jersey off I said, ‘I need to keep this.’ I mean, I’m a big fan of the game, I love being here and it’s a thrill.”
