Heading into their Saturday afternoon game against the New York Yankees in the Bronx, the Los Angeles Angels were 2-5. They had scored only 30 runs over their first seven games, tied for 17th in the league, and nine of those runs came in Thursday's 10-9 loss to the Minnesota Twins. The offense has sputtered, even with the addition of Albert Pujols and the return of Kendrys Morales.
The Angels' bats awoke on Saturday, pounding out seven runs on nine hits, including three home runs, matching their season total to date. And while Pujols has yet to hit one out of the yard, he smacked a single and a double, for his second two-hit game of the season. C.J. Wilson pitched well and the Angels beat the Yankees 7-1.
Even with Saturday's offensive performance, the Angels have exhibited some early-season tendencies that are likely to hamper the offense in the long term if not corrected. The most pressing issue is lack of patience at the plate.