Make it 18 straight losses.
The Detroit Tigers fell to the Cleveland Indians, 10-5, on Friday night at Comerica Park and extended their franchise-record losing streak against one team.
The Tigers (9-8) haven’t beaten Cleveland since April 11, 2019.
Starter Ivan Nova struggled mightily.
Nova picked up his first win as a Tiger in Pittsburgh on Saturday, when he allowed five runs on six hits with three walks and three strikeouts in 5 innings.
But on Friday, Nova couldn’t get out of the fourth inning. The Tigers led, 3-2, entering the fourth but Nova squandered the lead when he allowed six runs, including a three-run homer to Domingo Santana.
Nova (1-1) lasted just 3 ⅓ innings and gave up eight earned runs on five hits, two walks, one wild pitch and one strikeout. He also allowed two homers.
Niko Goodrum ended an 0-for-9 streak and hit a two-run homer — his fourth — in the third inning. Cameron Maybin hit a solo homer off Dominic Leone in the ninth inning and Victor Reyes and Jeimer Candelario each had two hits.
Cleveland right-hander Aaron Civale (2-2) allowed some hard hits early but he settled down. He allowed four runs on eight hits with one walk and three strikeouts.
Here are some observations from the game:
Danny boy
Left-hander Daniel Norris looked very good in relief of Nova. He allowed one hit with one strikeout in 1 ⅔ innings. On Monday he earned a win against the White Sox, tossing two shutout innings of relief, allowing one hit and striking out two.
Funkouser struggles
Right-hander Kyle Funkhouser didn’t fare as well when he took over for Norris to start the sixth. He retired the Indians in order in the sixth, but he gave up two runs in the seventh after he allowed two walks and a gap triple to Tyler Naquin for a 10-4 Indians lead. Carson Fulmer came in and got Bradley Zimmer to pop out to end the threat.
Miggy’s day
Miguel Cabrera didn’t look comfortable at the plate, either letting close pitches go by or swinging at heat out of zone. He went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts and left three men on base.
Stranded on third
It didn’t end up making much of a difference to the outcome, but the Tigers missed an easy chance to score a run and go up 4-2 in the third. Instead, Victor Reyes hit a triple with no outs and was stranded when Cabrera hit a shallow grounder, Jonathan Schoop popped out to the catcher and Candelario struck out. Those are the kinds of opportunities good teams don’t waste.
Roster move
Before the game, the team reinstated outfielder Cameron Maybin from the 10-day injured list and optioned Travis Demeritte to the club’s alternate training site in Toledo.
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