ANAHEIM, Calif. — Gerrit Cole pitched four-hit ball into the seventh inning in his native Orange County, earning his third straight victory to open his major league career in the Pittsburgh Pirates' 5-2 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Friday night.
The Pirates' 22-year-old right-hander out of Orange Lutheran High School and UCLA dazzled the Angels in his first career road start, repeatedly hitting 100 mph on Angel Stadium's radar gun. He struck out five and retired 11 straight before Albert Pujols' leadoff homer in the seventh.
Cole (3-0) outpitched Angels ace Jered Weaver (1-4), who yielded nine hits and four runs over six rocky innings in his fourth straight winless start.
Pedro Alvarez and Jordy Mercer homered in the second inning of the Pirates' first game in Anaheim since 2007.