Miguel Cabrera nearly sent Comerica Park into a frenzy in the eighth inning of a tight game, but a potential grand slam only went 418 feet for a sacrifice fly, and the Tigers offense came up just short in a 4-3 loss to the Baltimore Orioles. Cabrera did add two hits, however, bringing his career total to 2,941.
The majority of this game was rather boring, as Orioles starter Matt Harvey continued his recent run of good form, and held Detroit’s offense in check for 6 1⁄3 scoreless innings. All the while, his offense staked him to a 4-0 lead, with Baltimore’s first three runs all coming via solo homers off Tigers starter Tarik Skubal. This marked the second start in a row, and fourth time in 2021 that Skubal has allowed three homers in a single start.
All of the fireworks came in the bottom of the eighth. Derek Hill led off the inning with a triple, then scored on a wild pitch to bring the score to 4-1. A single, hit-by-pitch, and walk loaded the bases for Cabrera, who hit a center-cut slider to the deepest part of Comerica Park, only for it to drop into center fielder Cedric Mullins’ glove for a sacrifice fly.
If Miguel Cabrera didn’t call Comerica Park (and it’s massive center field) home, he’d be approaching 600 home runs, not 500. And I don’t think that’s much of a stretch.pic.twitter.com/nI2h9mc8jW
— Miguel Cabrera’s Bat (@Miggysbat) July 31, 2021
That’s just about all the momentum the Tigers could manage in the inning, however. A groundout and a wild pitch brought home a third run, but Zack Short’s line drive found leather, ending the inning. Kyle Funkhouser pitched a scoreless ninth to give the Tigers another shot at tying the game, but Orioles reliever Cole Sulser worked a 1-2-3 frame to shut the door.