The wind officially left Detroit’s sails. After getting swept by the Chicago White Sox last week, the Tigers just dropped their seventh game in their last eight, losing the series to the Kansas City Royals by a score of 3-1. Talk about a brutal stretch. The bats were absolutely asleep in this one, another frustrating effort from an offense that’s clearly struggling to find any rhythm.
Bats Stay Buried: Wacha’s Wicked Mix
From the jump, this was Michael Wacha’s show. The veteran right-hander, with his deep pitch mix and deceptive stuff, has been a nightmare for the Tigers over the past two seasons, and today was no different. Kevin McGonigle and Gleyber Torres led off the game with weak flyouts. Colt Keith managed a walk and Dillon Dingler blooped a single, but Zach McKinstry flew out to end the first. That’s how it went all day. Brett Callahan struck out looking in the second, Spencer Torkelson got eaten alive by a curveball and struck out, and Max Clark lined out. Even in the third, Wacha made Hao-Yu Lee, McGonigle, and Torres look easy. Seriously, this offense needs a jolt, and fast.
Anderson’s Fastball Fails: Royals Capitalize
Drew Anderson came into this game needing a strong start after some mediocre efforts since joining the rotation, and while he pitched pretty well at times, two poorly located fastballs proved costly. He gave up a single to Bobby Witt Jr., who promptly stole second, but Anderson escaped the first inning. Then, in the third, Kyle Isbel, the nine-hitter, jumped on a first-pitch fastball right in the heart of the plate and smoked a solo shot to open the scoring. Ouch. In the fourth, Anderson again left a fastball vulnerable. Dingler called for a fastball up to Salvador Perez, but it came in more center away in a 1-2 count, and the veteran catcher crushed it for another solo homer, making it 2-0. Anderson’s fourseamer has a good .283 wOBA, but his fastball command has certainly been an issue, and today it cost him big.
Hao-Yu Lee finally cut the Royals’ lead in half in the top of the fifth, destroying a 1-1 sinker on the inner third for a homer after Torkelson and Clark struck out. It’s too little, too late for a team that has to find a way to get going. The Tigers will try to salvage one game on Sunday. They absolutely need to turn things around before this spiral gets even worse.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Bless You Boys.
Leave a Reply