"A group hug for Bobby Abreu after a game-winning hit in the bottom of the ninth sure beats the alternative.

Which was a chorus of groans from an Angel Stadium crowd a half-inning earlier after he fumbled away a fly ball in right field.

That error led to the tying run scoring and a sense of dread that the Angels bullpen was about to fail again. So Abreu fixed it with a two-out, bases-loaded single into left field to give the Angels an uneven 6-5 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday.

"I'm the one who screwed up," said Abreu, who had trouble picking up a fly ball by the Blue Jays' Alex Gonzalez in the setting sky and watched it kick off his glove after he called off second baseman Howie Kendrick on the play.

"I called it too late. It was my fault."

One out later, Toronto's John Buck doubled to left off closer Brian Fuentes to drive in Gonzalez and deadlock a game the Angels appeared to have control of after Hideki Matsui broke a 3-3 tie with a two-run homer to right field in the sixth.

In the bottom of the ninth, Angels catcher Mike Napoli legged out a double off Blue Jays reliever Scott Downs. After Maicer Izturis moved Napoli to third base with a grounder to second, Downs did the dicey duty of issuing intentional walks to pinch hitter Juan Rivera and Erick Aybar. That loaded the bases with one out. "