Aybar, Callaspo homer to lead Angels over Dodgers

Aybar led off the ninth inning with his first homer of the season, Alberto Callaspo also went deep and the Los Angeles Angels beat the Dodgers 2-1 Wednesday night in the rubber game of the season's first Freeway Series.

"Both teams had a lot of chances to score, it seemed like, and nobody did anything with guys on base," Angels pitcher C.J. Wilson said. "It's just kind of ironic that we won on a solo homer from a guy who hadn't hit one yet, so it was kind of cool."

The switch-hitting Aybar jumped on a 1-1 pitch from right-hander Kenley Jansen (4-2) and deposited it into the pavilion seats in right-center. It was his 25th homer in 2,395 big league at-bats — including a career-high 10 last season, which matched his total for the previous two seasons combined.

"Erick is getting a little bit better feel from the right side. But from the left side, it's really been a struggle for him trying to find his rhythm — how he loads, how he gathers himself," manager Mike Scioscia said. "He's changed some things mechanically, and hopefully he's going to start contributing more offensively. We know he's a presence at shortstop, but we need him to be more of a presence in that batter's box."

LaTroy Hawkins (1-1) earned his first victory with the Angels after pitching a hitless eighth in relief of Wilson. Ernesto Frieri got three outs for his sixth save in six chances, retiring pinch-hitter and former Angel Bobby Abreu on a comebacker with two runners in scoring position.

Wilson allowed a run and four hits over seven innings in his Dodger Stadium debut, striking out three and walking five. The left-hander, who did not give up a hit over his final 4 2-3 innings, has a 0.77 ERA over his last five starts, with three wins and two no-decisions.

But he's not a guy who's impressed with personal numbers — just results.

"I'm a pitcher, not a statistician, so I just try to go out there and follow the plan," Wilson said. "We set a really good plan with our scouting, and the catchers are really on board. I also do a lot of video preparation and stuff. So if I hit my spots, that's the best chance I can give myself. The walks tonight were really embarrassing. I was upset about that because my pitch count was up and I wasn't able to pitch as long into the game as I wanted to."

Second base umpire Sam Holbrook made a key call in the sixth when he ruled that Aybar could have caught Andre Ethier's line drive toward the middle of the diamond and instead intentionally dropped the ball with the thought of starting an inning-ending double play.

First baseman Albert Pujols handled the relay throw after Aybar stepped on second for the "force" on Juan Rivera, and the Angels started trotting off the field. But Holbrook ordered them back to their positions and Rivera back to first, prompting a brief argument from Scioscia. Wilson walked the next two batters before James Loney flied out on a cutter, keeping the score tied 1-all.