ANAHEIM, Calif. -- In a season that has turned into a titanic struggle for the Los Angeles Angels, they suffered another pain-staking defeat Thursday.
The Halos tied a major league record with seven solo home runs, including two by Shohei Ohtani, but still lost to the Oakland Athletics 8-7 in a crazy matinee affair at Angel Stadium.
The Angels are the first team in the majors to hit seven solo homers and score no other runs in a game. They're also the sixth team to hit seven home runs and lose, according to STATS.
"I guess they always say solo home runs don't beat you, but you feel like if you hit seven, you might. It didn't work out for us," Angels interim manager Phil Nevin said.
Los Angeles was 24-13 and tied with Houston for the AL West lead after beating Oakland on May 15. Since then, the Angels have gone 20-48 and are a season-low 17 games under .500 at 44-61.
The tailspin has included a 14-game losing streak, the firing of Joe Maddon on June 7, blowing a four-run, eighth-inning lead at Philadelphia on June 5 and a wild, bench-clearing brawl against the Seattle Mariners on June 26.
Ramon Laureano homered and drove in four runs, and Seth Brown had a two-run shot during a six-run third inning for AL-worst Oakland. Sean Murphy also drove in two runs for the Athletics, who took the final two games of the series and have won six of their last nine.
"Today was a little bit of a different baseball game than I have probably been a part of. It is a very interesting boxscore," Oakland Manager Mark Kotsay said. "I'm happy that our eight held up, and we were able to get a win.
"The goal is to win the game and score more runs. Solo home runs at the end of the day are nice, but they don't necessarily always help you win games."
Paul Blackburn (7-6) picked up his first win since June 16 despite surrendering four home runs on six hits.
"It was one of those days where any ball hitting the air seemed like it went out," said Blackburn, who went five innings and struck out three. "I've never seen anything like that, but I'll take a series win any day."
Ohtani left Wednesday night's game due to a left forearm cramp, but he bounced back with three hits and two RBI. It was his 11th multi-home run game in the majors and fifth this season.
Mickey Moniak -- acquired from Philadelphia on Tuesday as part of the Noah Syndergaard trade -- homered to right with one out in the ninth to get the Angels within a run. Max Stassi drew a walk but Taylor Ward struck out and A.J. Puk got Ohtani to fly out to short on the first pitch for his third save.
Kurt Suzuki, Taylor Ward, Jo Adell and Jared Walsh also went deep for the Angels, who went 2-5 on their homestand. The seven home runs also tied an overall franchise record.
"It's obviously a positive thing. I would have liked to get the win, but you know, offensively we've been needing to pick it up a little bit. So it was a positive sign," said Ward, referring to the Angels batting .199 as a team in July.
The Los Angeles Dodgers were the last team to hit seven solo home runs on June 24, 2018, against the New York Mets.
ASTROS 6, GUARDIANS 0 Justin Verlander (15-3) pitched six scoreless innings for his MLB-leading 15th victory, Chas McCormick and Martin Maldonado each homered and had three RBI, and AL West-leading Houston beat Cleveland.
BLUE JAYS 9, TWINS 3 Vladimir Guerrero belted a three-run home run to cap a six-run eighth inning as Toronto defeated Minnesota. Teoscar Hernandez also went deep for the Blue Jays.
RANGERS 3, WHITE SOX 2 Meibrys Viloria had a tiebreaking pinch-hit single in the seventh inning and Texas beat Chicago.
RAYS 7, TIGERS 2 Brandon Lowe had a two-run home run among his three hits and drove in three runs as Tampa Bay beat Detroit.
ROYALS 7, RED SOX 3 Bobby Witt broke a 3-3 tie with a single in seventh inning and Salvador Perez followed with a three-run home run as Kansas City defeated Boston.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
CARDINALS 4-7, CUBS 3-2 Newly acquired Jose Quintana won in his debut with St. Louis, Tyler O'Neill and Nolan Arenado homered and the Cardinals beat Chicago to complete a doubleheader sweep of the Cubs. The Cardinals won the opener as Lars Nootbaar hit a tying sacrifice fly in the seventh inning and a game-ending RBI single in the ninth.
DODGERS 5, GIANTS 3 Clayton Kershaw left his start with low back pain and Los Angeles went on to beat San Francisco to complete a four-game sweep.
METS 6, BRAVES 4 Deadline acquisition Tyler Naquin homered twice in his home debut, Edwin Diaz locked down his first two-inning save as a pro and New York beat Atlanta to open a pivotal five-game series between the NL East rivals.
PHILLIES 5, NATIONALS 4 (5) Noah Syndergaard (6-8) won his Phillies debut despite giving up four runs, Alec Bohm hit a three-run home run and Philadelphia won a rain-shortened, five-inning game over Washington.
PIRATES 5, BREWERS 4 (10) Bryan Reynolds raced home on a wild pitch with one out in the 10th inning, helping Pittsburgh complete a three-game sweep of Milwaukee.
ROCKIES 7, PADRES 3 Ryan McMahon hit a three-run home run off Joe Musgrove and drove in five runs for Colorado, which beat Juan Soto and San Diego to avoid a five-game sweep.
Thursday’s games
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Pittsburgh 5, Milwaukee 4 (10)
St. Louis 4-7, Chicago Cubs 3-2
LA Dodgers 5, San Francisco 3
Colorado 7, San Diego 3
Philadelphia 5, Washington 4 (5)
NY Mets 6, Atlanta 4
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Oakland 8, L.A. Angels 7
Tampa Bay 6, Detroit 2
Houston 6, Cleveland 0
Texas 3, Chicago White Sox 2
Toronto 9, Minnesota 3
Kansas City 7, Boston 3
Fans cheer as Los Angeles Angels' Andrew Velazquez (4) puts a cowboy hat onto Shohei Ohtani (17) after Ohtani's second home run of the baseball game, during the seventh inning against the Oakland Athletics on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Oakland Athletics' Nick Allen throws to first base after forcing out Los Angeles Angels' Shohei Ohtani during the fifth inning of a baseball game Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022, in Anaheim, Calif. Luis Rengifo was safe at first. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Oakland Athletics' Ramon Laureano, center, is congratulated by teammates after hitting a two-run home run during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels, Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Los Angeles Angels' Shohei Ohtani (17), of Japan, strikes out during the third inning of a baseball game against the Oakland Athletics, Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Oakland Athletics' Sean Murphy celebrates his two-run double during the third inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels, Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Los Angeles Angels' Jo Adell, foreground left, pours water onto Mickey Moniak while celebrating a home run by Moniak during the ninth inning of the team's baseball game against the Oakland Athletics on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022, in Anaheim, Calif. The Athletics won 8-7. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Los Angeles Angels' Shohei Ohtani takes off his helmet after he popped out to end the baseball game against the Oakland Athletics on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022, in Anaheim, Calif. The Athletics won 8-7. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Oakland Athletics relief pitcher A.J. Puk, left, and catcher Stephen Vogt hug after the team's 8-7 win in a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Oakland Athletics players celebrate the team's 8-7 win in a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Los Angeles Angels manager Phil Nevin, right, watches from the dugout before the team's baseball game against the Oakland Athletics on Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)