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The Detroit Tigers are limping back home after having been swept in both of their recent road series, first against the division rival Chicago White Sox and then by the National League's Philadelphia Phillies. The latest setback came in the form of tonight's walk-off loss at Citizens Bank Park which also saw the Tigers being no-hit through eight innings. Detroit has now lost eight of nine games and dropped to 26-33 overall, but they have no time to feel sorry for themselves in the mind of manager A.J. Hinch.
Tigers have now dropped eight of nine games
Phillies starter Zack Wheeler was dominant on the mound, preventing the Tigers from registering a single hit until Tyler Nevin broke up the no-hit attempt with one out in the 8th inning. Unfortunately, it was former Tiger Kody Clemens who came back to haunt his old teammates, as his single off Alex Lange in the bottom of the ninth gave the host Phillies the walk-off win.
Manager A.J. Hinch says the team must find a way to win
“We wanted to steal a game back from them before we go back home,” Hinch said afterward. “We played well at the end, but they played better at the end and they got the last crack at it. I was proud of our guys for hanging tough against a real good pitcher, we didn't do anything until the very end.”
“This is the big leagues, so it's tough love when it comes to that,” Hinch continued. “It's not going to change. We have to get ourselves together and create some momentum for ourselves. We're a little beat up mentally and physically, but it's the big leagues. We have to find a way.”
“We played well at the end, but they played better at the end and they got the last crack at it,” Hinch said. “I'm proud of our guys for hanging in there against a really good pitcher. But we didn't do anything until the very end.”
Meanwhile, Hinch was sure to give praise to Wheeler, who picked up eight strikeouts over the course of his outing.
“Mostly he just powered it past us,” Hinch said. “We couldn't hit the fastball hardly at all. We don't recognize spin because we were a little concerned about the fastball.”
Wrapping It Up: The Tigers return home to face Arizona
The Tigers are going to attempt to stop the bleeding when they begin their series tomorrow night against another National League opponent, the Arizona Diamondbacks.
It will be Michael Lorenzen taking the mound for the series opener at Comerica Park; fans are encouraged to try and arrive earlier, as the game coincides with the sold-out Taylor Swift concert next door at Ford Field.
