For 106 consecutive games, trailing after 8 innings meant an automatic loss for the Los Angeles Angels. On Monday night, Jo Adell finally ended that run by taking a 3-0 sinker from Riley O’Brien with the bases loaded.
The pitch forced home the winning run and gave Los Angeles a 3-2 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals at Angel Stadium. It also completed the Angels’ first win in 49 tries this season when entering the 9th behind.
There was nothing elegant about the finish. Los Angeles did not need a towering home run or a clean single through the infield. The Angels needed traffic, patience and one costly miss from a 2026 All-Star closer. Adell stood his ground, absorbed the pitch and ended a streak that had stretched across more than a season.
His bruise became the final act of a night that also included his 14th home run and the end of a miserable 0-for-24 slump.
O’Brien loses the strike zone
O’Brien opened the bottom of the 9th by striking out Mike Trout and appeared to have the inning under control. Nolan Schanuel changed the mood with a 1-out single before Jorge Soler reached when O’Brien hit him with a pitch.
Vaughn Grissom followed with the hardest swing of the rally. He drove the ball off the very top of the right-field fence. It missed clearing the wall by inches, but the double brought pinch runner Oswald Peraza home with the tying run.
St. Louis intentionally walked Josh Lowe to load the bases and create a force at every bag. That decision also removed O’Brien’s margin for error.
Adell stepped in looking for a pitch he could drive. Instead, O’Brien fell behind 3-0 and fired a sinker inside. The pitch clipped Adell and sent the Angels pouring out of the dugout. A fan captured the strange ending perfectly: “106-game losing streak when trailing after 8 innings. 0-48 this year. And they break it with a walk-off HBP. The most Angels way to do it.”
The humor surrounding the finish could not hide another serious problem for St. Louis. Before arriving in Anaheim, the Cardinals had blown a 7-0 advantage in an 8-7 loss to Arizona. One night later, their All-Star closer could not protect a 1-run lead.
Soriano gives the Angels a chance
José Soriano kept the Cardinals in check, giving the Angels a chance to strike late. St. Louis scored both of its runs in the 2nd inning, but the right-hander stopped the damage there.
Jordan Walker opened the frame with a double and moved to 3rd on Lars Nootbaar’s single. Nathan Church then ended his own 0-for-30 skid with an RBI single. Blaze Jordan added a run-scoring groundout for a 2-0 Cardinals lead.
Soriano settled in after the early trouble. The right-hander worked 7 innings, allowed 4 hits and 2 runs, struck out 7 and walked only 1. His steady command gave the Angels enough time to find an answer.
Kyle Leahy matched him for St. Louis. Across 6 innings, Leahy allowed 3 hits and 1 run while recording 4 strikeouts without issuing a walk. His only major mistake came against Adell in the 3rd.
Adell breaks through twice
Adell led off the 3rd by launching a 389-foot home run to left field. The solo shot cut the deficit to 2-1 and ended an 0-for-24 drought that had followed him into the series opener.
That swing carried more weight by the end of the night. Adell finished with 2 hits and drove in 2 of the Angels’ 3 runs. First came the power that pulled Los Angeles within 1. Later came the patience that allowed him to produce the winning run without swinging the bat.
The contrast made his performance stand out. Adell punished a hittable pitch early, then refused to chase when O’Brien lost the zone in the 9th. His biggest contribution came from understanding what the situation required.
A prolonged slump can make every plate appearance feel urgent. Adell avoided that trap when the pressure peaked. He did not expand the zone or try to force the winning hit. With the count in his favor, the Angels outfielder held his ground and made O’Brien throw a strike.
O’Brien never did.
A strange win that still counts
Los Angeles had been 0-48 this season when trailing after 8 innings. The wider streak had reached 106 straight losses. Those numbers turned an ordinary July game into a release for a team that had repeatedly failed to answer late deficits.
The victory will not erase the Angels’ larger problems or repair their season by itself. Still, it rewarded strong starting pitching and a patient 9th-inning rally. For one night, Los Angeles shifted the pressure to the other dugout.
Adell’s final plate appearance will appear in the box score as a hit-by-pitch, but the sequence around it tells the fuller story. Schanuel singled, Soler absorbed a pitch, Grissom missed a walk-off homer by inches, Lowe took an intentional walk, and Adell held his ground as O’Brien finally lost the strike zone.
After 106 straight defeats from the same position, the Angels finally found a different ending.
READ MORE: The Weight of a Curse: Tragic Events, Freak Injuries, and the Los Angeles Angels’ Dark History
FAQS
Q1. How did Jo Adell win the game for the Angels?
Adell was hit by a 3-0 sinker with the bases loaded. The pitch forced home the winning run in the bottom of the 9th.
Q2. What streak did the Angels end against the Cardinals?
The Angels ended a 106-game losing streak when trailing after 8 innings. They had also been 0-48 in those situations in 2026.
Q3. What did Jo Adell do before the walk-off hit-by-pitch?
Adell hit his 14th home run in the 3rd inning. The solo shot ended his 0-for-24 slump.
Q4. How did José Soriano pitch against St. Louis?
Soriano allowed 2 runs on 4 hits across 7 innings. He struck out 7 and walked 1.
Q5. Was Riley O’Brien a 2026 MLB All-Star?
Yes. O’Brien earned his first National League All-Star selection after emerging as the Cardinals’ closer.
I live for the roar of the crowd, the rush of a new city, and the kind of moments that turn into lifelong memories. Sports keep me energized, travel keeps me grounded, and every journey gives me a fresh story to tell.
