Detroit Tigers Fall to Fourth Place With 6-2 Loss to Orioles

Detroit Tigers starter Anibal Sanchez was roughed up for five runs in the first four innings while the offense stagnated in a 6-2 loss to the Baltimore Orioles. The loss, coupled with an 8-2 win by the Chicago White Sox over the New York Yankees dropped the Tigers into sole possession of fourth place in the AL Central.

The Tigers neeeded Sanchez (10-9) to pitch deep into the game to provide some rest to the overworked bullpen but he was immediately touched for two runs in the first while needing 17 pitches to escape the inning.

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In the second inning Caleb Joseph singled in Jimmy Peredes, who led off with a double, to extend the Orioles’ lead to 3-0.

Sanchez retired the side in order in the third but was touched for two more runs in the fourth when J.J. Hardy opened the inning with a single and, two outs later, scored when Joseph lined a home run into left-center field.

In the meantime, Orioles starter Kevin Gausman (2-2) was setting down twelve of the first thirteen Tigers hitters he faced.

To make matters worse, J.D. Martinez fouled a ball sharply off the inside of his left knee in the second. Martinez stayed in the game as long as he could before leaving in the fifth for pinch hitter Tyler Collins. He struck out on four pitches but James McCann followed with a single. Nick Castellanos drove him home with a towering home run to right-center to give the Tigers their only runs of the game.

On Sunday afternoon the Tigers will attempt to salvage a split of the four game series when they send newly acquired left hander Daniel Norris (1-1) to the mound against the Orioles and Ubaldo Jimenez (8-6).