

Jered Weaver has been one of the American League’s most effective pitchers since late June, compiling a 3.24 earned run average in his last 14 starts, but the Angels’ right-hander is only 4-7 in those games.
The reason? The Angels’ offense has scored only 26 runs in the 14 games, including one in a 3-1 loss to the Oakland Athletics on Saturday in which Weaver gave his team another quality start, giving up three runs and six hits in seven innings.
“It is what it is,” said Weaver, who is 11-11 with a 3.14 ERA and a league-leading 205 strikeouts on the season. “I can only go out there and do my job, go out there and battle.”
It’s not easy taking the mound in the first inning knowing one run could beat you–the Angels were shut out in each of the last three games Weaver started before Saturday, and their run in the eighth inning Saturday snapped a string of 31 1/3 innings over five games in which the Angels hadn’t scored with Weaver on the mound–but Manager Mike Scioscia has been impressed with Weaver’s composure.
“These guys have pitched with their backs against a wall for a long time,” Scioscia said. “Jered, as much as anybody, is trying to deal with it and work through it without changing his game plan too much. What you really have to fight is that tendency to put too much pressure on every pitch, to make every pitch perfect. Overall, he’s pitching his game, and that’s really all a pitcher can do.”
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