Reid Detmers tossed six brilliant scoreless innings against the Detroit Tigers on Friday night, an outing that screamed “dominant starter,” but it was all for nothing as the Angels somehow still blew it, losing 2-1. This gut-punch loss, with the trade deadline looming just weeks away, puts Detmers squarely in the spotlight as one of baseball’s hottest trade candidates.
Detmers Was Dealing, But It Wasn’t Enough
Seriously, Detmers was absolutely lights-out. He carved through the Tigers lineup, going six full innings without giving up a single run or a walk. He only allowed four hits and racked up seven strikeouts, including striking out the side in the top of the fourth inning against Detroit’s three, four, and five hitters. His slider was locked in as his go-to swing-and-miss pitch, and he credited his fastball command for making his whole arsenal even nastier. He was only at 86 pitches when manager Kurt Suzuki pulled him, even though Detmers himself said he “could have gone another inning.” Suzuki said the early exit was intentional, noting, “We felt like he threw the ball well coming off the [All-Star] break. It’s been a few starts [that] he struggled a little bit, so having him go six shutout coming off the break, we felt like was good for him.” That’s nice and all, but man, you gotta let your ace go.
The Ninth-Inning Collapse Puts Detmers’ Future on the Clock
The Angels had a measly 1-0 lead, courtesy of a Josh Lowe RBI ground out in the first inning. That’s all they needed going into the ninth. But then Kirby Yates, who has had his struggles in the closer role despite some recent bright spots, came in to seal the deal. Spoiler alert: he didn’t. Yates got two outs, then coughed up a hit batter and a walk, setting the stage for Hao-Yu Lee. Lee absolutely ripped a fastball from Yates, left right over the plate, deep into right-center field. Bases cleared. Tigers up 2-1. Detmers’ incredible start turned into a no-decision, and a brutal loss for the team. The Angels are stuck at the bottom of the American League West, way out of Wild Card contention. This team is *bad*. New general management, things rarely go this poorly, and now the trade deadline is right around the corner. Detmers himself admitted it’s “pretty hard to ignore” the trade rumors, but he’s trying to focus on “being here and helping this team win.”
What’s at stake here is Detmers’ future. His value just shot up again after Friday night’s performance. The Angels have rarely been sellers historically, but with this kind of season, and new management, it feels different. Detmers is one of the most attractive starting pitcher candidates out there. After a gem like that, it’s getting harder and harder to see him still wearing an Angels jersey much longer.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
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