BALTIMORE – Need a snapshot of the Detroit Tigers’ 2026 season?
Watch the fourth inning on Friday, May 22.
That’s when Jackson Holliday lofted a two-run home run off right-hander Jack Flaherty that barely snuck underneath the left-field foul pole at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. The ball traveled just 337 feet with a modest 93.5 mph exit velocity, but it still counted for two runs.
A few feet shorter? Flyout.
A few feet farther left? Foul ball.
Instead, it was another bad break for the Tigers.
The bad luck – and bad baseball – continued Friday as the Tigers fell apart in a 7-4 loss to the Baltimore Orioles in the opener of a three-game series. The Tigers have now lost 15 of their past 17 games, including seven straight.
As for the bad baseball?
Shortstop Kevin McGonigle – who hit the first pitch of the game for a solo home run – was responsible for a fielding error that led to three unearned runs in the third inning, and Flaherty balked in the game-tying run before Holliday’s go-ahead home run in the fourth inning.
The two-run homer from Holliday put the Orioles ahead, 6-4.
Next up for the Tigers
The Tigers (20-32) and Orioles (22-29) are scheduled to meet again Saturday (4:05 p.m., Detroit SportsNet), but rain in the forecast could force a doubleheader Sunday. (The teams spent the final five innings Friday playing in the rain.)
Kevin McGonigle goes deep
In Friday’s game, the Tigers captured the momentum early for a 1-0 lead on the first pitch, as McGonigle hit a leadoff home run on a fastball from left-handed reliever (and Western Michigan alumnus) Keegan Akin.
It was the second leadoff homer of his MLB career.
McGonigle has slumped recently (without a multi-hit game since May 16), but he is still hitting .285 with three home runs and an .812 OPS through 50 games in his rookie campaign.
Right-hander Chris Bassitt took down the majority of the innings after Akin served as the opener.
The Tigers attacked Bassitt for a 2-0 lead with back-to-back doubles from Gage Workman and Hao-Yu Lee in the third inning, then again for a 4-3 lead when Zach McKinstry grounded into a fielder’s choice and Lee singled in the fourth inning.
Between those spurts, the Tigers surrendered three runs to the Orioles on a mistake from McGonigle, who was sped up on a grounder that took a weird hop off the mound.
His fielding error with one out in the third inning extended the inning, which led to Pete Alonso demolishing Flaherty’s up-and-away fastball for a three-run home run to right field with two outs.
All three runs were unearned because of the error.
Fourth-inning flop for Jack Flaherty
The Tigers squandered their 4-3 lead in the fourth inning.
It started with back-to-back singles from Leody Taveras and Colton Cowser against Flaherty, putting runners on the corners. Facing Coby Mayo, Flaherty balked in the tying run, making it 4-4.
From there, Holliday pushed Flaherty’s up-and-away 90.6 mph fastball for the bizarre two-run home run underneath the left-field foul pole, providing a 6-4 lead for the Orioles.
Flaherty failed to finish the fourth inning.
The 30-year-old allowed six runs (three earned runs) on eight hits and zero walks with seven strikeouts across 3⅓ innings, throwing 78 pitches. He owns a 5.94 ERA in 11 starts, but on a positive note, he didn’t issue any walks for the second start in a row.
Meanwhile, Bassitt surrendered three runs on six hits and no walks with four strikeouts across 4⅓ innings, throwing 58 pitches.
The Orioles extended their lead to 7-4 in the sixth inning, thanks to back-to-back singles from Gunnar Henderson and Adley Rutschman off right-handed reliever Connor Seabold to put runners on the corners.
Alonso followed up with a sacrifice fly.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers lose 7th straight on bizarre home run from Orioles
Reporting by Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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