The Detroit Tigers had a lead late against the Kansas City Royals, battling back despite not swinging the bats well all series, but their makeshift bullpen couldn’t seal the deal. Michael Massey stepped up in the eighth inning and absolutely crushed a two-run homer, ripping the heart out of the Tigers faithful at Comerica Park. The Royals took that 5-4 lead and held on, splitting this four-game set right there. What a gut punch.
Valdez on the Mound: A Wild Ride of “Mediocre at Best”
We got the “shaky version” of Framber Valdez to start this one, and man, it was a ride. He gave up a solo shot to Lane Thomas on a 3-2 sinker that looked way too hittable, and his misses early on were just non-competitive. Nick Loftin singled, then Valdez hit Salvador Perez, which is never a good sign. Jac Caglianone grounded into a force, but even after Valdez punched out Starling Marte with a good curveball, he was still struggling to find his rhythm. The game was teetering on disaster early when rookie second baseman Hao-Yu Lee clanged one off the heel of his glove on a grounder from Tyler Tolbert, letting Loftin score. Just like that, it was 2-0. Luckily, Luke Maile flew out to Kerry Carpenter to end the first, but Valdez definitely bent in that inning. He did bounce back with three quick ground ball outs in the second and then again in the third, finally feeling that curveball and righting the ship after 50 pitches. But man, those early jitters cost ’em.
Bullpen Meltdown and Royal Power Moves
While Valdez settled, the Tigers offense was quiet against Luinder Avila early on. This 24-year-old righty came into the game with “miserable numbers,” and his 12.8 percent walk rate is, frankly, grisly, but he’s got a high 90’s heater and good breaking stuff. Colt Keith popped out, Kevin McGonigle and Gleyber Torres flew out in the first. Riley Greene grounded out in the second, and James Outman struck out on a 98 mph sinker. Dillon Dingler and Spencer Torkelson did work long at-bats and draw walks, showing some fight, but they just couldn’t capitalize. And when your starter struggles like Valdez did early, you absolutely need your bullpen to be lights-out. But that “makeshift bullpen” just couldn’t get it done. Allowing Massey to hit that two-run bomb in the eighth to flip the score to 5-4? That’s just inexcusable after fighting so hard to get the lead in the late innings.
What This Loss Means for Early Season Form
This kind of loss, especially after battling back and taking a lead, just deflates a team. Giving up a two-run homer in the eighth to cough up the lead, after an early error helped the Royals get on the board, that’s tough to swallow. The Tigers need to find some consistency, both from their starters and that bullpen. Getting runners on, drawing walks like Dingler and Torkelson did, that’s great, but you have to convert. Moving forward, the Tigers need to iron out these late-game issues and clean up the errors if they want to build any kind of momentum. Every game matters, and letting one slip away like this? It stings.
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