KANSAS CITY, MO – The Kansas City Royals have turned into a royal pain in the Detroit Tigers’ – ahhhh– postseason chances.
The Royals blasted two homers and scored on a wild pitch in a 3-1 victory over the Tigers at Kauffman Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 22. It was the Royals’ second straight victory over the Tigers, who have now lost seven of their last eight, including four in a row. And each one of those losses makes it harder for the Tigers to make the AL wild-card, as they dropped to three games behind the final playoff spot Saturday.
So, what has gone wrong for the Tigers? Considering they were in a great position just about a week ago – on the verge of climbing to .500 and in the thick of the postseason race?
They just can’t seem to get the big hit at the big moment. Here’s a subtle yet significant fact: Riley Greene went on the 10-day injured list with a hamstring injury on Aug. 11. Since then, the young Tigers have gone 2-8.
“We have a lot of new faces,” Zach McKinstry said after Friday’s loss. “A lot of young guys in the lineup that haven’t really been through it yet. So you know it’s hard. You lose Greenie, which is always hard. He’s a staple in our lineup, and he’s a great hitter. And he goes and plays left field every day. So you know that kind of sucks.”
Is that the only reason? No.
But it’s one of the explanations for why this team keeps losing close games.
On the mound: Drew Anderson doomed by dingers
After the Tigers traded Tarik Skubal and Casey Mize, the Tigers needed starting pitching.
So, right-hander Drew Anderson was moved from the bullpen to the starting rotation, which set up an unique situation. He made 38 relief appearances for the Tigers this season and he made his sixth start on Saturday. That was a rare accomplishment – he is the first Tigers righty with that many starts and relief appearances since Pat Dobson (39 relief appearances, 10 starts) in 1969.
In the third inning, Anderson threw a 94 mph four-seam fastball to Kyle Isbel and he pounced on it, hitting his sixth homer of the season, but his second in as many games.
That continued an alarming trend: Isbel has done some serious damage to the Tigers, after hitting a homer and double on Friday.
In the fourth inning, Anderson had Salvadore Perez on an 0-2 count. But then, Perez crushed a fastball – a no-doubter that traveled 424 feet to center to give the Royals a 2-0 lead.
In the fifth inning, the Royals threatened again after Jac Caglianone hit a double. Tigers manager A.J. Hinch didn’t allow Anderson to face Perez again. He brought in Tanner Rainey to face Perez, even though he had thrown just 75 pitches.
Rainey got Perez to ground out and then he got Vinnie Pasquantino to ground out to first base. He was in a great position to get out of it until Caglianone scored on a wild pitch when Rainey put a fastball in the dirt and Dillon Dingler couldn’t grab it on a backhand.
At the plate: What’s up with Tigers’ offense?
Kansas City starter Michael Wacha baffled the Tigers, mixing six different pitches.
He gave up only one hit through the first three innings, and that was a soft line drive by Dillon Dingler.
But hey, Dingler has been struggling and he’ll take it.
The Tigers’ only bright spot was a massive homer by Hao-Yu lee, who hit a launched a 446-foot shot with a 110 mph exit velocity.
It was his second homer off Wacha in just five at-bats over two games.
If only he could face him every day.
Next up: The K.C. finale
The Tigers will employ a bullpen game on Sunday (2:10 p.m., Detroit SportsNet) in the finale of this three-game series, though we know at least one of the pitchers: Left-hander Andrew Sears, who is expected to be called up from Triple-A Toledo, will make his MLB debut. If all goes well, he will handle the bulk of the innings. But Hinch did not announce a starter.
Left-hander Daniel Lynch IV (4-4, 2.83) will get the start for the Royals, who have now won seven straight.
Contact Jeff Seidel: jseidel@freepress.com. Follow him on X @seideljeff.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Tigers offense stymied by Michael Wacha for 3rd time in 2026
Reporting by Jeff Seidel, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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By Jeff Seidel, Detroit Free Press | USA TODAY Network
