ANAHEIM, Calif. -- The Kansas City Royals were so happy after Thursday's game they didn't know what to celebrate most -- another monster of an offensive game or another surprising starting pitching performance from a non-starter.

Lorenzo Cain and Alex Gordon hit solo home runs as part of a 15-hit attack and second-year reliever Matt Strahm allowed just three hits and an unearned run in his first major league start as the Royals extended their winning streak to a season-high five with a 7-2 win over the Los Angeles Angels.

The Royals, who had 31 hits in a two-game sweep of the San Francisco Giants earlier this week, have hit 14 home runs during the five-game winning streak and scored 42 runs, a far cry from the month of April when the 2015 World Series champs averaged 2.7 runs a game while starting the season 7-16.

Gordon had three hits and Cain, Salvador Perez, Whit Merrifield, Mike Moustakas and Alcides Escobar two each for the Royals. That took a lot of pressure off Strahm (2-3), whose previous 41 major league appearances had been in relief.

"A lot of good things happened tonight," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "The offense is really rolling, and guys like Alex (Gordon) and Esky (Escobar) are getting hot." Gordon came into the game hitting .185 and Escobar .193. Gordon, who was dropped to the No. 9 spot in the lineup during a season-long slump, also had a double, giving him seven extra base hits in June, two more than he had in April and May.

"You just want to continue to build on this. It's just not the offense, it's the defense and the pitching," Yost said.

Strahm was handed the start because of a lack of options. Two starters, Danny Duffy and Nate Karns, are on the disabled list, and it's the third time in two weeks the Royals have tapped a first-time starter -- Erik Skoglund threw 6 1/3 innings of shutout ball in his major league debut two weeks ago and rookie Jake Junis started and won this week in San Francisco.

"I wanted to attack and be effective as I could because I was on a pitch limit," Strahm said. He was going to be held to 70 pitches and finished the night with 68, 47 for strikes. "That was always the goal, to go as long as I could."

"It's pretty good for a guy who hasn't pitched out of a wind-up in a long time," Yost said. "I think the big thing was seeing how well he did having to get up and down four times."

Strahm, a native of Kansas, last started a game last year in the minor leagues before getting his call to the majors. "I threw a side session earlier this week and (the wind-up) felt weird," Strahm said. "I threw a bullpen two days ago and it started to feel normal."

The Angels, meanwhile, suffered deja vu. Once again, starter Ricky Nolasco (2-8) was touched for home runs. He's now allowed 21 this season, the most in the majors, and he also allowed four doubles. Once again, the Angels gave him no run support. In his 14 starts, his team has scored 24 runs for him while he was still on the mound.

"It's really the same thing," manager Mike Scioscia said of Nolasco. "He pitches well for the most part but makes a couple of mistakes and it costs him."

The Angels, who have won three consecutive series, managed just six hits, two by Kole Calhoun.

NOTES: The Angels recalled RHP Daniel Wright from Triple-A Salt Lake City on Thursday. ... The Angels agreed to a contract with their first-round pick in this week's draft, Jordan Adell from Ballard High School in Louisville. ... Angels RHP Matt Shoemaker, who left his start against the Yankees on Wednesday in the fourth inning after feeling tightness in his right forearm, is not expected to miss a start. The team will wait for his symptoms to subside before running tests. ... Angels RHP Cam Bedrosian made his last rehab appearance Thursday night and could be activated this weekend. ... Royals LHP Danny Duffy remains on the disabled list with a strained oblique suffered in late May. Manager Ned Yost said the team is not going to rush Duffy back despite his injury having thrown the rotation out of whack. ... The Royals were set to recall Miguel Almonte from the minors for an emergency start but Almonte suffered shoulder soreness in his last outing.