ARLINGTON, Texas -- Pitching with a chip on his shoulder, Garrett Richards succeeded Friday night in displaying what the American League All-Star team will be missing next Tuesday in Minneapolis. The right-hander allowed five hits over seven innings to extend his personal winning streak to seven decisions as the Los Angeles Angels handed the Texas Rangers their sixth consecutive loss, 3-0. Richards (11-2) is unbeaten in his last eight starts and he has an ERA of 1.27 during that span. His last loss was May 30, at Oakland. Mike Trout provided Richards all the run support he needed with a solo home run in the fourth inning, his 22nd of the season. After not being chosen initially for the AL All-Star squad, Richards was one of the five players nominated for the final, vote-in slot that went to Chicago White Sox left-hander Chris Sale. "Its some motivation for the whole year," Richards said of not making the All-Star team. "Ill probably end up carrying that with me the whole year." "Hes an All-Star in our mind; no doubt about it," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "Hes having an incredible first half, and hopefully hell pick it right up after the break." Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus said the key with Richards is "You dont know whats coming. He can sink. He can cut the ball. Hes controlling his breaking pitch the way he wants to, to keep the ball down." Albert Pujols and Erick Aybar had two hits each for Los Angeles, and Alex Rios had two for Texas. Rangers right-hander Nick Tepesch (3-5) retired the first 10 batters he faced before Trout sent a 1-0 sinker 418 feet to centre field for the games first run. Tepesch allowed two runs in the seventh. The Rangers left eight men on base and went 0 for 6 with runners in scoring position, each of the latter coming with two outs. The Angels have won eight of their last nine games and 17 of their last 21. Their record of 24-9 since June 6 is the best in the majors during that span. "The team chemistry is unbelievable," Trout said. "We have to keep thinking one game at a time. We cant look too far ahead." The Rangers (38-55) have lost 12 of their last 13 games and 20 of their last 23, saddling them with the worst record in the major leagues. Texas manager Ron Washington delivered a passionate, 30-minute talk to his players after their 15-6 loss to Los Angeles on Thursday night and said he saw progress from his team in Fridays defeat. "We played a much crisper game," Washington said. "Its tough when you have to face a guy like Richards." Pujols opened the Angels seventh with a shot that went under Andrus glove and was ruled a single. Josh Hamilton pulled a liner to the right side that skimmed off the glove of second baseman Rougned Odour, sending Pujols to third. Aybar hit an opposite-field flare to left that scored Pujols and ended Tepeschs night. David Freese greeted reliever Neftali Feliz with a single up the middle to score Hamilton. Rangers third baseman Adrian Beltre, one of the clubs two All-Stars, extended his hitting streak to 15 games with a third-inning single. NOTES: The Rangers signed RHP Jerome Williams, released by Houston in June, to a minor league contract and assigned him to Triple-A Round Rock. Williams was 1-4 with a 6.04 ERA in 26 appearances. ... Angels RHP Jared Weaver said he will be ready to start Saturday after leaving Mondays game after two innings with a stiff back. ... Rangers C Geovany Soto made a written apology through the club after being arrested Wednesday on a misdemeanour charge of marijuana possession. Caleb Swanigan Blazers Jersey . Called on from the college ranks to replace Andy Reid, Kelly implemented a whole new atmosphere in the City of Brotherly Love and now has the Eagles in the playoffs for the first time since 2010. Zach Collins Jersey .C. -- Jackson Whistle made 26 saves for his first shutout of the season as the Kelowna Rockets blanked the visiting Lethbridge Hurricanes 5-0 on Saturday in Western Hockey League action. https://www.blazerslockerroom.com/Georgi...n-Jersey/.Kessy tried to show what he can do playing left wing for the Oilers in 5-0 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday in pre-season action. Hassan Whiteside Jersey . The Pope greeted Klose at his general audience Wednesday and the pair had a long chat. Klose is German like the pope, although he was born in Poland. In Sundays derby, Lazio took the lead in the seventh minute after Maarten Stekelenburg brought down Klose, resulting in the Roma goalkeeper being sent off and a penalty that Hernanes converted. Anthony Tolliver Blazers Jersey . And theyre pointing to the NHLs biggest market: Toronto. With Gretzky paid out for what is believed to be $7 to 8 million, Gretzky may be eager to get back into the NHL and TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger reports that the Maple Leafs are very much interested in The Great Ones services.LONDON -- At this point, the top Tour de France sprint star might be called Sir Marcel. Marcel Kittel, the German with a French first name, led a bunch sprint to win Mondays Stage 3 with a finish on the doorstep of Queen Elizabeths Buckingham Palace. Two days earlier, he courted royal attention as Prince William and Kate saw him win Stage 1 in Yorkshire in another sprint. The stage wrapped up the English debut to this 101st Tour edition, a rousing success among cycling-crazed British fans. Riders hopped on planes and bid "au revoir" to the UK before flying across the English Channel onto the races home turf. Rain in the City of London doused riders at the end of the 155-kilometre (96-mile) ride from the university town of Cambridge to a dramatic finish past landmarks Big Ben and Westminster. Italys Vincenzo Nibali retained the overall leaders yellow jersey with a 2-second lead over the most likely contenders to win the three-week race in Paris on July 27. Svein Tuft was the top Canadian in 138th place, 16 minutes 13 seconds off the lead. Christian Meier, also from Langley, B.C., was 17:31 back in 154th. Kittel, led out perfectly by Giant-Shimano teammates, made it look easy as he sped down a final wide approach on The Mall with Buckingham Palace behind him. Peter Sagan of Slovakia was second and Australias Mark Renshaw was third. "Im really, really happy I could win in front of Buckingham Palace," said Kittel, who won four Tour stages last year. "It was one of the greatest finishes Ive ever seen in front of this great scenery." FIRST PARIS, NOW LONDON The hulking German made it a tale of two cities. He added London glory to his record after also winning on the Champs-Elysees in Paris, in the Tour finale last year. His job in the sprints got a lot easier after Britains Mark Cavendish pulled out of the race after injuring his shoulder in a crash in Saturdays Stage 1. "Its one big opponent that is not in the race anymore," Kittel said. "Of course, that changes things for me, but also for the team." Kittel is no threat for the yellow jersey. Like many sprinters, he struggles on climbs and fell nearly 20 minutes behind Nibali in the overall standings in an up-and-down ride on Sunday through the hills and dales of Yorkshire. Nibalis biggest challengers for the prized leaders shirt remain title-holder Chris Froome of Britain and Spains Alberto Contador, who finisheed with the same time as the Italian and Kittel in an 84-rider bunch.dddddddddddd. On Monday, the pack cruised nervously and let two breakaway riders go free on Monday. The duo was caught with about 6 kilometres (4 miles) left. EUROPEAN UNITY AMONG FANS? Tour officials estimated fans made nearly 5 million individual visits -- some may have attended more than one stage -- to the route in the first three stages. In signs of cross-Channel comity, Tour chief Christian Prudhomme took English lessons before the race; Britons waved both French tricolours and their beloved Union Jacks. But the teeming curbs, sidewalks and roadsides again caused trouble for the riders. With about 30 kilometres (19 miles) left, 2010 Tour winner Andy Schleck of Luxembourg was among riders who crashed briefly, and French TV showed a fan on the ground. Schleck, who gingerly returned to the race, said he didnt hit a spectator. "I guess it was my own fault," said Schleck, who collided with another rider and hurtled over his handlebars. His Trek Factory Racing teammate Jens Voigt said: "I saw about 15 crashes today. In the end there were two guys on the ground but I dont know what happened exactly ... Thats the Tour de France. The first week is always nervous." In other spills, Ted King of Cannondale and Jan Bakelants, a Belgian rider on Cavendishs Omega Pharma QuickStep team who wore yellow jersey two days last year, each scraped up their right elbows and knees. Some fans got political. A few held up placards imploring Prime Minister David Cameron not to back a U.S.-European Union free trade pact. Three topless protesters bearing slogans condemning female genital mutilation staged a brief protest near the Houses of Parliament before police bundled them away in fluorescent vests. The course route Monday notably bypassed Trafalgar Square, whose landmark Nelsons Column commemorates a British hero of the Napoleonic Wars. Stage 4 takes riders over 163.5 kilometres (105 miles) from Le Touquet-Paris Plage to Lille Metropole on the border with Belgium. Froomes Team Sky floated the idea that the pack might well ride under the sea rather than fly over it one day, if the Tour ever returns to the UK. The team released a glitzy video Monday saying that last month he became the first man to cycle through the Channel tunnel. In the video, Froome quipped: "This could be a really, really cool stage of a race." ' ' '