The Detroit Tigers are running out of ways to explain what is happening to them.
Tuesday night’s 10-6 collapse against the Los Angeles Angels felt like the latest punch in a month filled with them. Detroit carried a late lead into the eighth inning, had momentum inside Comerica Park, and appeared ready to finally snap its miserable stretch.
Instead, the Tigers watched another game spiral away.
Afterward, Tigers manager A.J. Hinch sounded like a manager searching for answers while trying to hold together a clubhouse that is clearly feeling the weight of May’s collapse.
A.J. Hinch perfectly captured the turning point
For a few seconds in the fifth inning, Comerica Park exploded as Spencer Torkelson launched a towering drive down the left-field line with the bases loaded.
The ball looked destined to become a grand slam.
Then it sliced foul.
A few innings later, the Angels answered with Vaughn Grissom’s go-ahead grand slam that completely flipped the game.
Hinch’s postgame quote summed up the night perfectly.
“Our homer went two feet foul,” Hinch said after the loss. “Their homer went 10 feet over the fence. Both for four runs.”
That was the difference between hope and another devastating defeat.
Tigers bullpen collapse leaves Hinch searching for answers
The Tigers entered the eighth inning needing just four outs to secure a desperately needed win.
Instead, everything unraveled around reliever Will Vest.
A near catch at the wall turned into a double. A comebacker ricocheted off Vest’s backside for an infield single. Then came Grissom’s grand slam on Vest’s 34th pitch of the night.
Even after the collapse, Hinch defended his reliever.
“We had two outs and a runner on first with Will Vest and the ball in his hands,” Hinch said. “He can make pitches to get that out. I know we don’t like it when it doesn’t happen, but he can get that out.”
Still, the Tigers manager admitted the frustration level inside the clubhouse is reaching another level entirely.
“I don’t know that anything can add to the frustration,” Hinch said, “because it’s already at a pretty high level. I mean, it doesn’t matter how you lose; it’s still frustrating.”
A.J. Hinch knows Tigers are struggling to finish games
Detroit’s latest loss dropped the team to 5-18 in May and extended its home losing streak to seven games.
The Tigers are now tied with the Angels for the worst record in Major League Baseball, a stunning development for a team that entered the season expecting to compete in the American League Central.
Hinch acknowledged that belief inside the clubhouse is being tested right now.
“So, yeah, you want to address things and get back in that belief that when you have wins, you’re going to get to the finish line,” Hinch said.
Then came the comment that fully illustrated how painful Tuesday’s collapse felt from Detroit’s dugout.
“You look up tonight’s game, two outs, a runner on first, a two-run lead with four outs to go, and a five-spot comes up,” Hinch said. “That’s a hard one to digest right after the game.”
That sentence alone probably describes the Tigers’ entire month better than anything else could.
Tigers desperately trying to stop the spiral
What makes this stretch even more alarming is how many different ways Detroit is losing.
Earlier in May, the Tigers struggled to score enough runs. Now the bullpen is collapsing late in games. Bad bounces, defensive miscues, missed opportunities, and brutal timing have all piled together during a month that feels cursed.
And while Hinch continues trying to keep the group focused, his postgame comments Tuesday night sounded like a manager fully aware of how fragile things have become.
The Tigers still have time to turn their season around.
But right now, every loss seems to hurt a little more than the one before it.
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