Ian Kinsler

The decisive moment in Texas' 7-3 victory over the Angels on Sunday came in the bottom of the seventh inning, when Rangers reliever Alexi Ogando shattered Albert Pujols' bat with a 100-mph fastball and induced a weak fly ball to left field to snuff out a bases-loaded, two-out threat and preserve a two-run lead. But another turning point for the Angels came in the top of the seventh inning, when Manager Mike Scioscia stuck with reliever Bobby Cassevah a lot longer than most in an announced crowd of 42,465 at Angel Stadium would have stuck with the right-hander.

ARLINGTON, Texas — This wasn't what slugger Mark Trumbo meant Saturday when he said the Angels need to "come out a little angry" and play with a "figurative chip on our shoulder. " Ace Jered Weaver took that suggestion to the extreme Sunday night, flying into a rage upon returning to the dugout after giving up a third-inning grand slam to Nelson Cruz, which helped power the Texas Rangers to a 13-6 romp of the Angels at the Ballpark in Arlington. "We had a chance to win the series, and I let the team down," said Weaver, who fell to 5-1 with a 2.83 earned-run average but is 2-7 with a 5.21 ERA in 14 career starts in the Rangers' hitter-friendly park.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- It was the baseball equivalent of hooking a tee shot into the woods, taking a mulligan and hitting a 280-yard drive down the middle of the fairway. C.J. Wilsongot a do-over Saturday, just 12 hours after taking the loss in a rain-shortened start Friday night, and the Angels' left-hander nailed it, subduing baseball's best offense for 5 2/3 innings and silencing a hostile Ballpark in Arlington crowd during a 4-2 Angels victory. The former Rangers ace, booed loudly in his old home park, gave up two runs and five hits, Mark Trumbo hit a two-run home run and sparked a decisive two-run rally with a walk, and four relievers combined for 3 1/3 hitless innings, as the Angels rebounded from Friday night's ugly 10-3 loss and evened the series against their American League West rivals.

ARLINGTON, Texas - C. J. Wilson, working on no days' rest, silenced a hostile Ballpark in Arlington crowd with 5 2/3 solid innings Saturday, and Mark Trumbo hit a two-run home run and sparked a two-run rally with a walk to lead the Angels to a 4-2 victory over the Texas Rangers. The Angels also got 3 1/3 hitless innings from their bullpen, including 1 2/3 superb innings from right-hander Ernesto Frieri, to trim Texas' American League West lead to seven games. Wilson, the former Rangers ace who signed a five-year, $77.5-million contract with the Angels in December, became the first pitcher in franchise history to start consecutive games after a 1-hour, 56-minute rain delay in the first inning cut his Friday night start short after 22 pitches.

It's almost serendipitous the way it worked out, with the rotations of the teams expected to battle for American League West supremacy aligning so that Angels left-hander C.J. Wilson will face Texas right-hander Yu Darvish on Friday night in the first game between the clubs this season. Wilson, 31, helped the Rangers reach the World Series in 2010 and 2011 and was somewhat disappointed with the team's halfhearted attempts to retain him before he signed a five-year, $77.5-million deal with the rival Angels on Dec. 8. Why the Rangers never made a formal free-agent offer to their ace became clear a few weeks later when they spent $107 million to acquire the rights to negotiate with and then sign Darvish, the hard-throwing, 6-foot-5 Japanese sensation who replaced Wilson in the Texas rotation.

NEW YORK - Negotiations for a contract extension that would lock up shortstop Erick Aybar and prevent him from reaching free agency have dragged on for nearly four months, but the sides appear to be moving toward an agreement. "Erick wants to be an Angel, we want Erick to be an Angel, and I feel very confident we'll be able to work something out," General Manager Jerry Dipoto said before Sunday night's game. "We've made progress. I'm very encouraged by where we are and that we will ultimately get there.

Reporting from Surprise, Ariz. -- Angels right-hander Ervin Santana continued to show no ill effects from a comebacker that hit him in the throwing shoulder earlier this month. He gave up only one run and five hits in five innings of a 3-2 exhibition victory over the Texas Rangers in Surprise Stadium Saturday. Santana, who has 2.19 earned-run average in 12 1/3 spring innings, struck out two and walked two against a lineup of Rangers regulars, his only blemish Ian Kinsler's solo home run to lead off the fifth inning.

Reporting from St. Louis — The Texas Rangers' clubhouse took Wednesday's postponement in stride, insisting Major League Baseball's decision to push Game 6 of the World Series back a day won't disrupt the team's momentum. "It's just a rainout. We have a ton of experience dealing with these things," infielder Michael Young said. "We're not going to sit in our hotel rooms biting our nails all night. There's nothing you can do about the weather. It's really not a big deal. " For second baseman Ian Kinsler , Texas' being one win away from its first World Series title makes the delay slightly more nerve-racking.

Texas Rangers infielder Ian Kinsler was standing on the grass near second base Saturday night, his jersey soaked with sweat beneath a red T-shirt drenched with celebratory ginger ale, the latter a nod to teetotaler teammate Josh Hamilton. His team had just thumped the Detroit Tigers, 15-5, to earn its second consecutive World Series berth. And while Kinsler looked every bit a winner, he wasn't sure the Rangers had done anything worth celebrating just yet. "This is unbelievable.

Reporting from Detroit — Nolan Ryan threw seven no-hitters and racked up a major league-high 5,714 strikeouts in his 27-year Hall-of-Fame career, but pitching is nowhere near as nerve-racking as watching his Texas Rangers in a postseason brimming with nail-biting moments. Several times this month, television cameras have caught the Rangers' CEO and president in his seat near the dugout gripping a baseball so tight it looks like he could squeeze the cover off. "It's hard being a fan," Ryan said.