Angels and Dodgers tangle in important interleague series

The upcoming interleague battle of Los Angeles finds two teams in tight races with their eyes firmly on October.

The Dodgers (63-49), up 2.5 games over the San Francisco Giants in the NL West, will be sending Zack Greinke (12-6, 2.65) to the mound. The Dodgers ace is currently the NL leader in wins, ERA and strikeouts.

Even more amazing is at home Greinke is 14-3 with a 2.27 ERA over nearly two dozen starts during the last two seasons. The right-handed pitcher, whose latest game included 13 strikeouts against the Braves, has been dealing with right calf stiffness.

He said, “My calf got a little sore, similar to spring training, but not to the same level. Sore the first couple of innings and got better as the game went on.”

As for the Los Angeles Angels (66-44), which have lost four of six games at Dodger Stadium, the team won yesterday over Tampa Bay to pull the team within a game of the AL West leading Oakland A’s. Jered Weaver got the win for the Angles, who racked up five runs in the first inning.

Weaver said, “You can’t complain too much when (the bats) put five runs on the board there in the first. It makes the starting pitcher’s job a little bit easier.”

Pitching tonight for the Angles will be Garrett Richards (11-4, 2.74), who leads the team in ERA and Ks. While Greinke has been lights out this season, Richards makes the Angels money line (+111) enticing.