ANAHEIM, Calif. — Los Angeles Angels manager Ron Washington was hoping to get a spark by putting Mike Trout in the leadoff spot.

The three-time AL MVP quickly obliged.

Hitting leadoff for the first time since 2020, Trout drove a fastball from Baltimore‘s Grayson Rodriguez off the auxiliary scoreboard above the wall in right-center field in the first inning to give the Angels an early 1-0 lead Tuesday night.

It was the sixth leadoff homer of Trout’s career and first since Sept. 28, 2012. Trout’s ninth home run of the season tied for the major league lead.

“I’m just trying to shake things up and trying to see if I can get some different cohesiveness with my lineup,” Washington said before the game.

The Angels entered it on a five-game losing streak.

Trout struggled at the plate over the previous seven games. He had gone 3 for 27 with eight strikeouts, including getting caught looking for the final out with the bases loaded in Monday night’s 4-2 loss to the Orioles.

Trout had a .236 batting average, on pace to be his lowest average in March and April in his career. He hit over .300 through the end of April the past three seasons.

It was the 163rd time in Trout’s 14-year, big league career that he topped the lineup, the first since the second game of a doubleheader against Houston on Aug. 25, 2020.

He hit leadoff in 138 games during his first full season in the majors in 2012, when he was voted AL Rookie of the Year.

Trout had batted first in only five games since 2014.

“He’s done it before, so it’s not foreign to him. If we can put him in there and get a run in the first inning I’m all for that. I’m just looking to try different things and see what works,” Washington said.

The three-time AL MVP was a career .321 hitter when in the leadoff spot with 33 home runs and a .398 on-base percentage.

WASHINGTON — Dave Roberts thinks Shohei Ohtani can be even better with more plate discipline with runners in scoring position.

The Los Angeles Dodgers manager approached the two-time AL MVP about a week ago to discuss how Ohtani could better control the strike zone.

“I thought he was expanding a little bit more than he needed to,” Roberts said Tuesday. “So, I just wanted to have a conversation with him.”

Ohtani hit his 176th home run Sunday, surpassing Hideki Matsui for the most in Major League Baseball among players born in Japan. Ohtani entered Tuesday night’s game in Washington leading the major leagues in batting average (.368), hits (35), doubles (11) and total bases (63).

“Any time he swings the bat he can change the game, and now being even more disciplined in the strike zone just makes him more scary,” Roberts said.

Ohtani left the Los Angeles Angels and joined the Dodgers in December for a record 10-year, $700 million contract. The two-way star had elbow surgery in September and won’t pitch this season.

Roberts has noticed Ohtani getting comfortable in his surroundings, acclimating with his new teammates and coaches.

“He is doing a great job with everyone,” Roberts said. “The hitting coaches are kind of building a really good relationship and trust. I see him more [now]. Before you sort of just see him when he gets in the batter’s box. So, he’s around a lot more, which is a good thing, too.”

With a goal of participating in his 17th major league season, veteran right-hander Johnny Cueto agreed to a minor league deal with the World Series champion Texas Rangers, according to multiple reports.

Cueto, 38, will be trying to pitch in the major leagues for his fourth organization in four seasons, and sixth overall, after he made 13 appearances (10 starts) for the Miami Marlins last season and 25 appearances (24 starts) for the Chicago White Sox in 2022. He finished the last of his six seasons with the San Francisco Giants in 2021.

In 368 career appearances (363 starts), Cueto is 144-111 with a 3.50 ERA for the Cincinnati Reds (2008-15), Kansas City Royals (2015), Giants, White Sox and Marlins. He was 1-4 with a 6.02 ERA for Miami in 2023, missing time with a biceps injury and a viral infection.

Cueto finished in the top six of National League Cy Young Award voting three times, including a runner-up finish in 2014 as a member of the Reds, when he earned one of his two All-Star Game nods.

With the Royals, Cueto made just 13 starts but helped the club to the 2015 World Series title.