ANAHEIM (Interstat) — Tarik Skubal pitched seven dominant innings, striking out nine while scattering five hits, and Spencer Torkelson homered twice and drove in four runs as the Detroit Tigers shut out the Los Angeles Angels 7-0 on Saturday night at Angel Stadium.

Skubal (6-5) did not allow an earned run, walked none and retired 12 of the first 14 batters he faced. The left-hander yielded only one hit through the first three innings and faced minimal trouble throughout his 97-pitch outing. He was backed by a relentless Detroit offense that struck early and never let up.

The Tigers sent nine men to the plate in a four-run first inning. Kevin McGonigle led off with a double, Dillon Dingler was hit by a pitch and Colt Keith lined a single to center that drove in McGonigle. After Riley Greene struck out, Torkelson launched a 1-1 pitch to left-center field for a three-run homer, his 17th of the season, giving Detroit a 4-0 lead.

Detroit added two more in the second inning. James Outman singled, McGonigle singled and Dingler was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Keith then lifted a sacrifice fly to center that brought home Outman. Greene followed with a second sacrifice fly to center, scoring McGonigle and making it 6-0.

Torkelson struck again in the fifth inning, leading off with a solo homer to center field, his 18th of the year and second of the game, to push the lead to 7-0. The Tigers managed only one more hit after that, but the damage was done.

Colt Keith collected four hits in four at-bats, including two singles in the first and fourth innings, the sacrifice fly and a single in the ninth. He drove in two runs and scored once. McGonigle finished with two hits, including a double, and scored twice. Zach McKinstry doubled in the eighth and walked once.

Angels starter Grayson Rodriguez (3-3) took the loss, allowing six runs on six hits and two walks over two innings. He struck out two. The Detroit offense batted around in the first and second frames against Rodriguez, who could not escape the early onslaught.

Los Angeles relievers Brent Suter, Jose Fermin and others held the Tigers to one run over the final seven innings. Suter worked three innings, allowing one run on two hits with two strikeouts. Fermin pitched two scoreless innings, giving up two hits while striking out two.

The Angels offense managed seven hits but could not push a run across against Skubal and a quartet of Detroit relievers. Nolan Schanuel, Logan O’Hoppe, Vaughn Grissom, Denzer Guzman and Jorge Soler each had one hit. Mike Trout singled in the sixth and walked in the eighth, but the Angels left six runners on base and grounded into two double plays.

Detroit’s bullpen closed the door after Skubal departed. Kyle Finnegan recorded the final out of the seventh, Brenan Hanifee worked a scoreless eighth, and Jacob Waguespack struck out one in the ninth. The Tigers turned three double plays, including a key one in the third inning when third baseman Colt Keith started a 5-4-3 double play to wipe out a leadoff single.

The victory gave Detroit a 2-0 lead in the three-game series after a 2-1 win Friday night. The Tigers improved to 46-52, while the Angels fell to 38-61.

Skubal’s outing was a rebound from his previous start, a 5-0 loss to Philadelphia on July 12, when he allowed two earned runs in five innings. On Saturday, he threw 69 of 97 pitches for strikes and fanned nine, his second consecutive start with at least nine strikeouts.

The game lasted 2 hours, 29 minutes in front of an announced crowd of 32,003 at Angel Stadium.

Detroit continues its road trip Sunday against the Angels before traveling to Chicago to face the Cubs on Monday. The Angels host the Tigers again Sunday and then welcome the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday.

Interstat’s game simulator projected a final score of Detroit 5, Los Angeles 3. Interstat’s ELO system gave Detroit a 57.00 percent probability to win. The Tigers were installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus-1.5. The total score of 7 went over the over-under line of 8.