Detroit – You wanted to see the grit this team has been known for, especially after they stumbled early and fell into a 4-1 hole. You wanted to see them punch back.
And they did.
The Tigers, who had scored four runs or less in 13 straight games, posted five runs on the board through five innings and led 6-4 in the eighth inning.
And still found a way to lose the game.
Vaughn Grissom is the latest opponent to deliver a haymaker to the Tigers’ collective jaw. His two-out grand slam in the top of the eighth inning sent the Los Angeles Angels to a 10-6 win over the Tigers at Comerica Park Tuesday night.
It was the Tigers’ seventh straight home loss and the boos were audible from those remaining from the crowd of 21,954.
Reliever Will Vest inherited the two-run lead with two on in the seventh inning and got out of it. He struck out Jorge Soler and then got bailed out by a brilliant running catch at the wall in the right-center gap by Riley Greene.
In the eighth, he had two outs with a runner on, and was facing No. 9 hitter Logan O’Hoppe, who coming into the game was 10 for 68 against right-handed pitchers.
BOX SCORE: Angels 10, Tigers 6
O’Hoppe launched a fly ball to the wall i.n right field. Wenceel Perez tracked it and seemed in position to catch it. But he missed it. The ball fell at the base of the wall for a double. A run was in and the inning was extended. Fatally so.
Vest didn’t record another out. Zach Neto singled after a nine-pitch at-bat. Mike Trout walked and Grissom unloaded on a 2-0 fastball, sending it out to right-center. He had six RBI on the night.
It was Vest’s 34th pitch. The Tigers didn’t have anybody warming in the bullpen until he threw his 30th pitch.
A feel-good win turned into another sock-on-the-jaw loss just that fast.
After scoring single runs in the second and third innings on two sacrifice flies by Zach McKinstry, the Tigers scored three to take the lead in the fifth.
Angels starter Jack Kochanowicz had been getting hitters to chase his changeup out of the zone. Finally, after whiffing bad on another changeup, Matt Vierling adjusted, stayed back and poked a changeup to the opposite field to start the inning.
Perez, who came in hitting .162, drew a walk.
That set the table for rookie Kevin McGonigle. He’d already singled twice. This time he drove a first pitch fastball down the right field line for a two-run triple. Kochanowicz walked Dillon Dingler, ending his night, and then lefty reliever Mitch Farris walked Riley Greene to load the bases.
That set up a decision point for manager AJ Hinch. Left-handed hitting Colt Keith had singled and tripled and scored the Tigers’ first two runs in his two at-bats. But against the lefty, Hinch stuck to his process and summoned right-handed hitting Jahmai Jones to pinch-hit.
Jones delivered an RBI single to give the Tigers the lead.
They still had the bases loaded and no outs. Spencer Torkelson sent a ball over the foul pole in left. But replays confirmed it hooked just foul.
He ended up striking out, as did McKinstry and the Tigers ended up stranding those three runners.
That came back to bite them.
The sixth run came courtesy of Perez, who, batting right-handed against Farris, slashed an off-speed pitch over the Tigers’ bullpen in left in the sixth inning.
It ended up being an ugly sandwich for the Tigers, one good inning sandwiched between a bad start and a bad finish.
Starter Keider Montero gave up eight hits and four runs over 5.2 innings, including a solo homer by Jo Adell, a run scoring double by Neto and a head-scratching two-run single by Grissom.
The latter happened in the third inning after the Tigers had scored a run in the bottom of the second.
The first two Angels hitters got on again, O’Hoppe singled and Montero walked Neto. With one out, Grissom bounced a single up the middle. O’Hoppe scored easily. Neto, seeing the Tigers slow-play the ball, kept running.
Vierling collected the ball in center and threw it to shortstop McKinstry.
McKinstry seemed surprised that Neto was steaming toward the plate. His throw was way late.
The Tigers and Angels are both 21-34.
This story will be updated.
Chris.McCosky@detroitnews.com
@cmccosky
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Tigers’ Will Vest allows late grand slam, lose opener to Angels
Reporting by Chris McCosky, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
