Blue Jays fall to Halos, slip to 3 back in East

ANAHEIM — The Blue Jays had a prime opportunity to take sole possession of the first American League Wild Card spot but Ricky Nolasco and the Angels made sure that would not happen for at least one more day.

Nolasco tossed six scoreless innings and Albert Pujols added his 30th home run of the season in Los Angeles’ 6-1 victory on Saturday night at Angel Stadium. With the loss, the Blue Jays dropped to three games back of Boston for first place in the American League East and they remained tied with Baltimore for the top AL Wild Card spot.

Toronto’s offense continued its September woes and Nolasco was the main reason why. The veteran right-hander scattered five hits and two walks while striking out seven en route to a third quality start in his last four outings. Toronto finished 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position and left 11 runners on base.

Pujols and Kole Calhoun had the lone extra-base hits on the night for Los Angeles but the Angels still managed to piece together a well-rounded offensive attack. Shane Robinson, Mike Trout and Andrelton Simmons chipped in with RBI singles while Jefry Marte brought home the club’s other run with an infield grounder.

Blue Jays second baseman Devon Travis extended his hitting streak to a personal-best 14 games in the losing effort. He hit a pair of singles and a double but the Blue Jays could not find a way to bring him around to score during any …

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