ANAHEIM — Freed of the burden of a historic losing streak, the Angels just suffered a garden-variety loss.

A night after the Angels snapped their 14-game losing streak, they lost, 7-3, to the New York Mets on Friday night.

Brandon Marsh hit two home runs, including a titanic two-run shot, but the Angels otherwise did nothing to parlay the good vibes from Thursday’s victory into an actual winning streak.

Left-hander Jhonathan Diaz got the spot start, apparently because the Angels are trying to give their starters as many extra days of rest as possible. They could have used Michael Lorenzen, Patrick Sandoval and Noah Syndergaard, all on five days of rest, for this weekend’s series, but they opted to push each of them back and use Diaz for the series opener.

Diaz had not allowed a run in either of his two earlier starts, and he gave up just two runs in four innings in mop-up duty last week at Yankee Stadium.

This time, working around a walk and a hit in a scoreless first, Diaz couldn’t get through the second.

He nearly escaped, but Thomas Nido’s sharp one-hopper barely eluded the back-hand attempt of shortstop Andrew Velazquez, pushing home a run.

Diaz then walked Brandon Nimmo and gave up a two-run double to Mark Canha, ending his night early.

“He just couldn’t get it back into the strike zone,” interim manager Phil Nevin said. “I thought (catcher Max Stassi) did a great job in the first inning going out with his visit. He kind of started setting up a little more down the middle, let his pitches work to each side. The talk didn’t work as well in the second inning and he just didn’t get it back.”

The Angels then had to maneuver through what amounted to a bullpen game. Right-hander Archie Bradley picked up four outs without allowing a run, but neither Andrew Wantz nor Jimmy Herget was as effective.

Wantz gave up a Brandon Nimmo homer in the fourth, and the only out that Herget recorded was one that the Mets gave him.

Nimmo punched a two-run double down the left field line and then Canha poked an opposite-field single to drive in another, putting the Angels in a 7-2 hole.

Marsh had put the Angels on the board in the second with a 449-foot homer, the Angels’ second-longest homer of the season.

The blast was all the Angels managed in 3-2/3 innings against Tylor Megill, a Los Alamitos High product who was returning from the injured list for the Mets.

The Angels had a chance after Megill issued a leadoff walk and then Marsh reached on a bunt single in the fourth, when it was still 4-2. Megill then struck out Jo Adell and left-handed reliever David Peterson got Tyler Wade to ground into an inning-ending double play.

The Angels didn’t score again until the sixth, when Marsh dropped a homer just over the fence down the right field line. That homer, against a left-hander, was especially encouraging to Nevin.

Related Articles

“Marsh’s at-bats were really promising,” Nevin said. “He made a little adjustment with his front foot and I thought it was noticeable, seeing him get that swing off against the lefty right there. That was was a big positive too.”

Marsh said it wasn’t much of an adjustment.

“I just saw the ball over the plate and just tried to put my best swing on it really,” Marsh said. “Just try to keep it as simple as possible.”

Marsh had a chance to get the Angels back in the game in his next trip, but he struck out with two on and a four-run deficit in the eighth.

“We just didn’t get the big one in those spots,” Nevin said. “One swing might have gotten us back into the game or kept the rally going. Just didn’t happen tonight.”

Brandon Marsh HR (5). His first since May 7.

449 feet. This is the 2nd longest HR of the season for the Angels (Trout 472).

The #Angels are down 3-2 in the 2nd. pic.twitter.com/xm3Xli8RNi

— Jeff Fletcher (@JeffFletcherOCR) June 11, 2022