Kent Bewley's News Story Collection

On Sat, Apr 4, the Los Angeles Angels hosted the Seattle Mariners in their second home game of the 2026 regular season. After losing five of their past six games following a 2-0 start to the year and a dismaying home opening loss in extras to Seattle, the Angels desperately needed a good solid performance to get back on the winning track. Jack Kochanowicz was making his second start of the year while the Mariners countered with Emerson Hancock. The Angels were playing on the same night as the Final Four in the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball tournament. Hopefully this game could be a moment of exhilaration for the home fans in Anaheim.

The game started with a solid first inning pitched by Kochanowicz, who got some help from Jo Adell in right field. Adell jumped up to catch a well-hit ball by Cal Raleigh that could have been a home run above the yellow line on the right field pavilion wall. The Big Dumper was robbed early on, and in spite of Kochanowicz giving up two straight two-out hits to Julio Rodríguez and Josh Naylor, he got Randy Arozarena to strike out looking to end the inning. In the bottom of the first, Zach Neto provided something that the Halos could not achieve in the first nine innings of the 3-1 ten-inning loss the night before. That was a score as Neto unloaded on a fastball thrown by Hancock and the ball went into the left center field bullpen for the Angels and it was a leadoff homer. Just like that, a 1-0 lead for the Halos at the Big A. They had a chance to get some more runs after a double by Nolan Schanuel and a single by Jorge Soler that held Schanuel at third. Unfortunately, Hancock got Yoán Moncada to strike out and when Adell came up to bat, he threw a slightly wild pitch and Schanuel attempted to score. But Raleigh threw the ball fast towards home plate and Hancock covered the plate swiftly and applied the tag on a sliding Schanuel to get the out to end the inning. A missed chance to add-on to Neto’s lead-off home run, but the Angels at least had their first lead on their home dirt in this season.

Both pitchers had efficient second innings and in the top of the third, Kochanowicz got himself into a bit of a jam. He walked Leo Rivas to start out the inning and after getting back-to-back fly outs, he allowed another single to Rodríguez and walked Naylor to load up the bases with two outs. With Arozarena coming up to bat, Mike Maddux came out to calm down Kochanowicz and he ended up getting Arozarena to hit into a fielder’s choice to end the inning. An amazing escape act from Jack the K, who also got out of a jam in the top of the fourth after giving up a double to J.P Crawford.

The Angels went hitless for a few innings until Logan O’Hoppe got a two-out single in the bottom of the fifth. In the top of the sixth, Kochanowicz got Naylor and Arozarena out before Kurt Suzuki made a pitching change. A solid outing from Jack the K was set to be a win as long as the Halos could hold the slim 1-0 lead over Seattle. Joey Lucchesi came in and threw one pitch to Dominic Canzone, who flew out to Mike Trout to end the inning. In the bottom of the sixth, Neto led off and got his second hit of the game with a single to left. But Trout flew out and Schanuel grounded into a double play to end the inning.

In the top of the seventh, Lucchesi put two left-handed batters on base with Crawford walking and Cole Young being awarded first base after he was hit by a pitch. Chase Silseth came in to prevent the runners on first and second from scoring. Silseth struck out Rivas and Luke Raley before facing Cal Raleigh. Silseth ran the count full before getting Raleigh to ground out to end the inning. Another amazing escape from a Halos pitcher in a runners on base situation. In the bottom of the seventh, the Angels had another scoring opportunity when Adell got a two-out single and Josh Lowe hit a ball to right center that advanced Adell to third. Eduard Bazardo came in to pitch after Adell got his hit and he got Logan O’Hoppe to fly out to left field to end the scoring threat.

To start out the eighth inning, Suzuki made some defensive changes as he brought in Adam Frazier to play at second base, pushing Oswald Peraza to third. Bryce Teodosio also entered to play in left field as San Bachman was the new pitcher in the game for the Halos. Bachman got Rodríguez out to start the inning and then Naylor came up to bat. Naylor hit a ball out to right center that had a chance to be a home run. But just like in the first inning with Raleigh, Jo Adell jumped up to make a stunning grab to prevent another bullseye home run. Two home run robberies in the same game around the same spot for Adell. Arozarena came up and got a two-out single, forcing Suzuki to bring in Drew Pomeranz to pitch versus a left-handed batter. Instead Dan Wilson brought in Rob Refsnyder to pinch-hit and Pomeranz got him to hit into a fielder’s choice to end the inning.

After an actionless bottom of the eighth from the Angels bats, the top of the ninth came and Jordan Romano entered to pitch for the second straight night. This time, it would be a save situation for Romano, who would have to face the bottom third of the Mariners’ order. First up was J.P Crawford, who almost went up 3-0 on Romano but O’Hoppe challenged the call in thinking that the ball might have hit the bottom inside corner of the strike zone. The ABS visual on the big screen showed the ball barely scratching that inside corner and the call of ball three was overturned to a strike. A good ABS challenge there for O’Hoppe, who has gotten eight out of his nine challenges behind the plate correct to start the season. On the next pitch, Crawford hit a fastball from Romano hard down the right field line. But Adell was tracking the ball and he made the catch as the ball went over the wall in fair territory around the foul pole in right field. Adell tumbled into the seats and he hung onto the ball, with him rising up holding his glove up and the Halos fans sitting around him were amazed that Adell made a catch not seen at the Big A since J.B Shuck in 2013 on the opposite end in left field. Seattle requested an immediate home run review by the umpires and after review, crew chief Adrian Johnson announced that the ruling on the field was upheld. An exhilarating play by Adell to possibly save this game. It was still up to Romano to get the job done. Cole Young was up next and he popped out to Frazier for the second out of the inning. The last hope for the Mariners was Leo Rivas, but he swung and missed at a slick slider by Romano on a 2-2 count. The game was over, the Angels had won their first home game of the season and in thrilling fashion.

Jo Adell single-handedly helped win this game with not one, not two, but three awesome home run robbing catches. Everybody was amazed. Torii Hunter, who remains an assistant coach on the Angels coaching staff after not being hired as a manager in the offseason, was amazed. Another former Halo outfielder in Seattle first base coach Eric Young Jr tipped his cap to the soon-to-be 27 year-old Jordan Scott Adell after that third catch. The entire stadium was buzzing right before the first postgame fireworks show of the season. Jo Adell gave them every reason to be excited. He helped Jack Kochanowicz get his first win of the season. He was appropriately doused in Powerade by Neto while talking with Erica Weston during a postgame interview. An amazing defensive performance that should definitely award Adell with a bobblehead in the future. After an amazing 2025 season offensively, Adell is off to a good start defensively and he should have a bobblehead of his home-run robbing catch into the right field stands for next season, if not sometime this year if a merchandise factory can get it manufactured fast and there is no supply chain holdup. On this Final Four Saturday night, Adell stood out like a star in giving the Angels their fourth win of the season. He belongs right where he is in right field. That fact was cemented just four days before his 27th birthday.