Back from bruised hand, Simmons goes deep

ANAHEIM — Andrelton Simmons picked up right where he left off in his return to the Angels on Thursday.

The shortstop produced another multihit game, including a two-run home run, in a 7-2 loss to the Blue Jays in the opener of a four-game series at Angel Stadium. It was Simmons’ first action after missing three games with a bruised right hand.

Simmons drove a 1-0 fastball from Blue Jays starter J.A. Happ into the visiting bullpen in the seventh inning for his fourth homer. The ball traveled a projected 382 feet with a launch angle of 24 degrees and an exit velocity of 100 mph, according to Statcast™.

The homer was a welcome sign for the Angels, as it came in the following at-bat after Simmons had jammed his hand again on an inside pitch in the fourth. He was seen shaking his hand on the field, but said there was no pain on the homer.

“It felt good,” Simmons said. “Hitting homers makes everything a little better.”

Simmons has three homers in his past two games, having gone deep twice Sunday before injuring his hand when he …

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