ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Los Angeles Angels honored their late teammate, Tyler Skaggs, in the best way possible Friday night. They all wore his No. 45 jersey onto the field, played a montage on the giant video board, brought his mother out to the pitcher’s mound and then put together one of the most impressive and inspired performances of the 2019 season.
Two pitchers, Taylor Cole and Felix Pena, teamed up to no-hit the Seattle Mariners in a 13-0 victory at Angel Stadium in the Angels’ first home game since Skaggs died in his hotel room on July 1 in Texas. Cole worked two perfect innings to open the game, and Pena dominated through the final seven, allowing just one fifth-inning walk.
They both pitched with the comfort of a massive lead, the product of a seven-run first inning that saw Mike Trout drive in four runs — two on a home run and two on a double.
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“What an incredible night it was,” Trout said in an appearance on ESPN’s SportsCenter. “To be able to go out there for the whole team, the whole organization to honor him. Wearing Skaggs 45 on the back, to see his mom throw out the first pitch, see Carli, his wife, see his family, just to be out there to honor him. And then the game — just speechless.”
“Really didn’t think anything of it until about the seventh inning, and I knew we had a no-hitter going,” Trout told ESPN’s Stan Verrett. “The crowd was getting more into it, and what a — there’s no better way to honor him tonight. You know, throwing that no-hitter. Last out was something special, for his family just to look back and know that was for him and that he was watching over us tonight. It was pretty incredible.”
Skaggs was a local product who was drafted 40th overall out of high school by the Angels in 2009. After three years with the Arizona Diamondbacks, he found his way back to Anaheim in 2014. Tommy John surgery followed shortly thereafter, and the occasional struggles arose. But Skaggs was at his best leading up to his death, with a 1.62 ERA in his past three starts. He was emerging as the best pitcher in the Angels’ rotation.
“He became the ace of the staff,” said Angels broadcaster Mark Gubicza, the former All-Star pitcher who forged a close bond with Skaggs. “He’d really figured out how to pitch.”
The Angels cancelled their game the day of Skaggs’ death, then continued with their final six games of the season’s first half, splitting them against the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros, two teams ahead of them in the AL West.
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Mike Trout delivers an emotional reflection on the Angels’ no-hit performance in their first home game since Tyler Skaggs’ death.
When players returned from the All-Star break on Friday, they saw the shrine that was built by fans in front of the main gate of Angel Stadium, filled with caps and candles and hand-written letters. They saw images of Skaggs everywhere, including on the center-field wall.
They saw his locker preserved in its usual spot. They saw his No. 45 painted behind the pitcher’s mound. They found their own No. 45 jerseys hanging in their lockers.
“Tonight’s about him,” Angels infielder Zack Cozart said. “We’re going to do what we can to honor him and keep his legacy going.”
Trout reached base five times and drove in six runs. He is batting .407 with seven home runs and 16 RBIs in the seven games he has played since the death of one of his closest friends.
In that time, Angels general manager Billy Eppler has seen Trout emerge as a leader.
“His shoulders are broad because he carries around a lot,” Eppler said prior to the game. “This kid — or this young man — has just continued to be there for everybody.”
Before the game, Debbie Skaggs was noticeably anxious as she boarded the elevator that would take her to the field for the heart-wrenching ceremony to honor her son. She was to deliver the ceremonial first pitch to Andrew Heaney, her son’s best friend on the team.
“I hope I make him proud,” Debbie, a longtime high school softball coach who in many ways inspired Tyler’s love of baseball, said from the suite level of Angel Stadium.
She threw a perfect strike without hesitation, then took four steps to the edge of the mound, brought her hands together and looked up to the heavens.
Then she watched as Skaggs’ teammates honored him in the best way possible.
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