Inside the Article:
They say that when it rains it pours. For all of the misfortune the Detroit Tigers experienced in 2022, they are off to the same exact start in 2023. Players with broken feet, Austin Meadows fighting his own personal demons, and a baseball team that looks non-competitive.
That bad luck (dare we say “cruse”?) reared its ugly head again on Tuesday night when Matt Manning's final pitch of the night hit off his foot and broke his fifth metatarsal. There is no clear indication of a timeline for Manning's recovery, yet. Though he was thinking he may make his next start, that is highly unlikely.
Why it matters
Manning has been Detroit's best starter through two rotations. While it's still early, he's pitched more innings than any of the other four starters and is the first Tigers' starter to pitch through six innings. He's walked the fewest amount of batters, left the most men on base, and has the lowest xERA. This injury comes at about the same time as his injury last season and is a blow to a promising start for the kid. With Michael Lorenzen due back from his Spring Training injury later this week, he'll slot in and Joey Wentz will get a further look in the rotation – should Manning miss one start or a few weeks.
Matt Manning by the numbers
It's only been two starts and 10 games for the Tigers, but Manning has been their best starter. He shoved last night, keeping the Toronto Blue Jays lineup at bay until the fifth inning. Two pitches were left up and the Jays went back-to-back to take a lead they never relinquished.
- 5.4 K/9, 2.3 BB/9 and a 95.7% LOB rate through 11.2 innings in 2023.
- 4.63 ERA, 3.61 xERA, and a 6.08 FIP
- He predominately uses his 4-seam fastball (49.4%) and his slider and curveball 23.6% and 20.1% of the time respectively.
The bottom line
Matt Manning's injury is another blow to an already bad situation. This was the year for Manning to prove he belonged to the long-term plans for this organization, after a few injury-plagued seasons. Once a top prospect in the organization and is still only 25 years old. Here's to a speedy recovery, not too long of a stint out, and a start to the curse breaking that obviously needs to happen.
