ARLINGTON -- After the Angels dropped two of three games in Minnesota and lost the first two games of this series against the Rangers, they needed a boost heading into the All-Star break.
They got it on Sunday behind JC Ramirez, who hurled six innings of shutout ball in the Halos' 3-0 win, and it might've been because he turned to a pitch nearly every pitcher uses -- a four-seam fastball.
Ramirez said he and pitching coach Charles Nagy discussed using it in his final bullpen session before his Sunday start. He had used a two-seamer primarily this year after nearly abandoning it following his 2016 season, but it returned to his repertoire in full force on Sunday, and it led to him giving up just two hits in six innings, albeit with five walks.