ANAHEIM, Calif. — Gerrit Cole wasn’t nervous about making his first major league road start in his backyard until he heard “Calling All Angels,” the syrupy Train ballad played before every game at Angel Stadium.

“I’ve probably been listening to that song here since I was like 6 years old,” said Cole, the Pittsburgh Pirates phenom with pure Southern California roots. “I might have a couple of Rally Monkeys at home.”

Once the music faded, Cole shook off his homecoming jitters and kept rolling on an outstanding start to his career.

Cole pitched four-hit ball into the seventh inning in his native Orange County, earning his third straight victory in the Pirates’ 5-2 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Friday night.

The Pirates’ 22-year-old right-hander out of Orange Lutheran High School and UCLA dazzled the Angels, repeatedly hitting 100 mph on the stadium radar gun. He struck out five and retired 11 straightbefore Albert Pujols’ leadoff homer in the seventh, leaving later in the inning to a warm ovation from his hometown fans.

“It was a lot of fun to see everybody and be back in California,” Cole said. “I wasn’t expecting to be back here for another few months, so it was great.”

Cole (3-0) is the first Pittsburgh pitcher to win his first three career starts since Myrl Brown in 1922. He even outpitched Angels ace Jered Weaver (1-4), who yielded nine hits and four runs over six rocky innings in his fourth straight winless start.

After beating Cy Young winners Tim Lincecum and Zack Greinke in his first two starts, it’s clear Cole can hold his own against the majors’ best — and still keep a sense of humor about his rising star.

“That’s like $400 million worth of pitching,” Cole said. “We’ve just been scoring runs and giving me a chance.”

Until they ran into Cole, the Angels had won six of eight while enjoying perhaps the best offensive stretch of their disappointing season. Los Angeles had scored at least five runs in six of its last eight games, including 10 runs and 17 hits while rallying from a seven-run deficit to beat Seattle on Thursday.

“That’s a power arm, there’s no doubt about that,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. “The ball comes out hot. I think we had some good at-bats against him and hit some balls hard, but for the most part, he was pounding the zone with good stuff and pitched a good game for those guys.”