Shohei Ohtani hits his 39th home run, but Angels fall in frustrating loss to Toronto

Lucas Giolito’s Angels debut wasn’t a smooth one.

Taking the mound two days after he was acquired by the Angels in a deal with the Chicago White Sox, Giolito didn’t get much help from the Angels — just a solo home run from Shohei Ohtani in the first inning.

Despite Ohtani’s MLB-leading 39th home run of the season, the Angels lost to the Blue Jays 4-1 at Rogers Centre on Friday in the opener of a crucial three-game series, dropping four games behind Toronto for the final wild-card spot in the American League.

Giolito was efficient through his first five innings. He gave up a pair of solo home runs in the second and third innings. After giving up a couple of singles in the third, he retired the next eight batters.

Giolito ran into trouble in the sixth, with Toronto loading the bases after an Andrew Velazquez fielding error. He left game giving up three earned runs, six hits, intentionally walked one and struck out five.

While Ohtani’s home run was the highlight for the Angels, the two-way star exited before his final at-bat because of cramping in his lower legs, Angels manager Phil Nevin said. He will be re-evaluated Saturday.

Ohtani’s replacement, Michael Stefanic, took a called third strike for the second out in the ninth, prompting Nevin to yell at home plate umpire Mike Estabrook. After the game Nevin got into a brief confrontation with Estabrook in the dugout and had to be held back by Angels coaches.