After Saturday night’s thrilling, extra-inning, come-from-behind, down-to-their-last-strike win, the Tigers looked to carry that momentum into the Sunday afternoon finale of their four-game series against the visiting Kansas City Royals. As it turned out, the visiting team had some late comeback heroics of their own as the Royals stunned the Tigers with a 3-2 win.
It was yet another bullpen game for the Tigers, although this one would be a little more settled: Alex Faedo would kick things off, and the relief pitcher parade would eventually include Brant Hurter, the 6’ 6” (198 cm) lefty making his major-league debut. Hurter’s stats at Triple-A Toledo this year, well, they’re not great — but since the starting-pitcher cupboard is pretty bare these days, it’s pretty much all we’ve got. Besides, he was great last year at Double-A Erie and he just came off a solid start for Toledo, so let’s roll the dice, shall we?
Michael Wacha, who’s pitching for his sixth team in six seasons — it’s nice to be wanted, right? — made his 20th start for the Royals today. He’s been solid, with a 3.58 ERA and a decent 1.204 WHIP; he won’t strike out a ton of guys, but he typically won’t walk a bunch either, and has always limited the home-run power.
Faedo got the first five outs, surrendering a pair of hits, walking one and striking out a trio of Missourians. Next up was Brenan Hanifee, who needed one pitch to induce a groundout for the third out of the second.
In the bottom of the second Zack McKinstry spanked a triple to right-centre, and Gio Urshela cashed him in with a single for a 1-0 Tiger lead.
In the fourth, a pair of singles put runners on the corners with two outs and Urshela at the plate again, but he struck out and that was that.
Hurter made his debut in the fifth, and he needed eight pitches to get three ground balls and OH MY GOODNESS DID WE ACTUALLY FIND A STARTING PITCHER??!!?!?!
The Tigers had first-and-third in the bottom of the fifth with one out, via a Javier Báez walk and a Colt Keith single stung to right field. Matt Vierling lifted a fly ball to right, plenty deep to score Báez and push the lead to 2-0. Justyn-Henry Malloy singled to skooch Keith up to second with two outs, and Bligh Madris walked to load the bases for McKinstry. Alas, he grounded out to second and the inning was over.
Because it looked like such a fun thing to do, the Tigers put runners on the corners with one out again in the sixth, but Wenceel Pérez grounded into a 4-6-3 double play, and when the “6” there is Bobby Witt Jr., that double play is going to happen pretty much every time.
Hurter’s day was done after the seventh, and his final line is a sight for sore eyes: 3 IP, 2 H, 0 BB, 3 K. He gave way to Will Vest, who gave up a leadoff single to the dangerous and speedy Witt, who the Tigers have somehow mostly contained in the series so far. Well, Vest got Vinne Pasquantino to ground into a double play, and he got Salvador Perez to line out to centre, so there you go.
Shelby Miller, who has been decent lately but his most recent appearance was disastrous, was brought in to start the ninth. Hunter Renfroe led off with a single, but pinch-hitter Michael Massey popped out harmlessly to third. Freddy Fermin singled to right, pushing Renfroe up to second. Another pinch-hitter, Adam Frazier, hit a long fly ball with home run distance but was just foul down the right field line, but eventually lined out to centre, pushing Renfroe up to third with two outs. Could Miller nail down the victory with the final out?
He could not, as yet another pinch-hitter, MJ Melendez, jumped all over a first-pitch hanging splitter for a three-run home run to right, putting the Royals up 3-2. “Fiddlesticks,” I said to myself, and that’s two lousy Miller Times in a row.
Maikel Garcia followed with a walk, Jason Foley was summoned, Witt flied out harmlessly, and it was up to the Tigers’ 9-1-2 hitters to summon a potential comeback against Hunter Harvey.
Báez started off by striking out swinging at a shoulder-high fastball, but Pérez gave the home-team faithful some hope with a single to centre. That hope lasted exactly two pitches, as Keith hit a bullet right at third base; Pérez was doubled off first and that was the game.
Notes and Observations
- Since the All-Star Break, Javier Báez — hear me out here, people — has an OPS of .634. Now, that doesn’t sound like much, but it’s… uh… a little better, I guess?
- I finally watched The Godfather last night. It was good. Can recommend.
- On this day in 1921, Maurice Richard was born in Montreal. He would go on to become a legendary player for the Canadiens, becoming the first player to score 50 goals in a season in the NHL. He would also later be the focal character in the charming short story The Hockey Sweater by Roch Carrier (its original title is Le chandail de hockey). If you grew up in Canada in the ‘80s, you definitely read this story in either English or French, or maybe both. It was animated into a short film by the NFB which you can watch here.