Detroit — By the end of the day Sunday, the Tigers lost another starting pitcher (Rony Garcia) and absorbed another dispiriting loss to the Twins, 9-1. So it’s hard to look back on that carnage and pick a spot in the first inning as a pivotal moment.
But second baseman Jonathan Schoop did exactly that, kicking himself for an aggressive first-inning throw that was just inches off line.
“If I make that play, it changes the whole game,” Schoop said.
Maybe, maybe not. But it’s the beauty of baseball that we can pick apart a potentially pivotal play in the first inning of a blowout loss.
The play happened four batters in. Garcia, rusty after not starting a game since June 29, gave up a single to Carlos Correa and a double to Jorge Polanco with one out.
With the Tigers’ year-long struggle to score runs — and facing a tough day against Twins’ ace Sonny Gray — manager AJ Hinch played his infield in against left-handed hitting Max Kepler.
Schoop, though, didn’t play all the way in. He didn’t play on the infield grass, nor was he positioned halfway. He was in the middle of those two depths. And that proved to be a shrewd move when Kepler sharply hit (90 mph exit velocity) a ground ball to his left.
“If I was on the grass, that ball passes, it gets through,” Schoop said. “And if I’m too far back, I can’t make the throw to the plate. So I was in between.”
Schoop’s momentum was going toward right field when he gloved the ball. He spun and made a firm throw to the plate.
“It was a bad throw,” Schoop said. “If I would have thrown it inside, it would’ve been an out and maybe we get out of that inning. I didn’t grip it good, either.”
Catcher Eric Haase caught the ball on the first base side of home plate and made a quick sweep tag. Correa, though, smartly slid headfirst to the back of the plate. Haase’s tag was a tick late.
“The pitch before we saw (Correa) was going on contact,” Schoop said. “We knew he was going. The first baseman helps you, too. If I hesitate, I got no chance. Harold (Castro) was yelling, ‘four, four, four,’ so I know I’ve got to throw it home.”
The risk-reward on that play can be debated. The Tigers barely average three runs a game, so conceding any runs at any time is bad business. The counter argument is, with Garcia on the mound, just back off the injured list with no rehab starts, getting a second out right there, even yielding a run but limiting the damage, might have been more advantageous.
“With our offense not scoring a ton, it doesn’t feel like we can give anything away,” Hinch said. “Jonathan can make up for that. If it’s a foot over or if he threw it when he spins, to the glove side, he’s probably out.
“But the risk-reward is built on the concern about hitting Sonny Gray. That’s where the pressure mounts from the first inning.”
As it turned out, the Tigers did not hit Gray and Garcia endured a 34-pitch, three-run first inning.
“I’m going to play aggressive,” Schoop said. “I’m not afraid to make an error. Those guys know. I don’t get to do those back-throws much anymore because guys know I’m not afraid to throw it.”
Just guessing
The Tigers put Garcia on the injured list Monday with right shoulder soreness. It’s the same basic injury the put him on the shelf on July 3.
Rookie Garrett Hill was called up from Triple-A Toledo and he will start against the Padres on Tuesday.
If you are keeping score, after losing Michael Pineda (triceps) and Garcia in consecutive games, there are six starting pitchers on the injured list. The Tigers have used 14 different starting pitchers. Casey Mize, Alex Faedo and Kyle Funkhouser (reliever) are out for the season.
“I don’t know know what there is to do,” reliever Michael Fulmer said. “We’re just getting dealt a bad hand.”
Hinch was asked if he had any theories about the unceasing rash of injuries. He does not.
“I think we’re all guessing,” he said. “I don’t think any of us know, certainly to the level we’ve had injuries. Anyone’s guess is the right guess. We have no idea or else we would’ve solved it a long time ago.”
Pitcher injuries are up across baseball, so it’s not just a Tigers’ issue. There doesn’t seem to be any common thread to the injuries. Pineda has been on the injured list with a broken finger and now the triceps pain. Faedo has a hip injury. Funkhouser’s shoulder injury is different than Garcia’s shoulder injury. Tyler Alexander‘s elbow issues were different than Mize’s elbow issue.
“These are age-old questions,” Hinch said. “The more you protect pitchers, the more we hurt them. But if we run them out there and run them into the ground and they get hurt, then we abused them. It is a difficult process to get pitchers from start to finish in a season.
“It’s become more difficult with the short spring training, the shortened year (in 2020) and innings totals. A lot of variables are uncontrollable. Quite honestly, it feels like we’re all guessing what the right solutions are. The majority of the league is guessing, as well.”
Rough one for Riley
Rookie Riley Greene hates to give pitchers credit when they beat him. But he had to give Gray at least a partial hat-tip for punching him out three times on Sunday.
Gray got him to chase two curveballs out of the zone in the first inning. In the third, he fed him four straight four-seam fastballs, freezing him for a called third strike with the last. Then in the fifth, Gray struck him out on three pitchers — whiffing at a fastball and then two curveballs.
“He was throwing good,” Greene said. “He had his stuff going for him. For me, I wasn’t right. I was in the box and I was thinking about 20 different things in my swing. I was chasing pitches I never chase. It was just, he had his stuff and I didn’t feel good in the box.”
Bad combination.
Around the horn
Tigers first-base coach Gary Jones has left team after testing positive for COVID. Mike Hessman, assistant hitting coach, will take over Jones’ duties.
… The Tigers agreed to terms with their first two picks in the 2022 draft. First-round pick Jace Jung ($4.5 million, which is full slot value for the 12th overall pick) and second round pick Peyton Graham ($1.8 million, $300,000 over slot).
…The Tigers also signed 13th-rounder Dominic Johnson and 17th-rounder Cole Patten. Fourteen of the 19 picks have been signed. The club also signed two non-drafted free agents — catcher Archer Brookman (Ohio State) and catcher Alonzo Rubalcaba (University of Kentucky).
Padres at Tigers
► First pitch: 7:10 p.m. Tuesday, Comerica Park, Detroit
► TV/Radio: Bally Sports Detroit, 97.1 FM
Scouting report
► RHP Mike Clevinger (2-3, 3.50), Padres: Health issues continue to be bothersome for him. This is his first year back after Tommy John surgery and he’s already been shelved with a knee issue and a triceps strain. But when he’s on the mound, he’s as nasty as ever. Opponents are hitting .179 off his four-seamer and .150 with a 34% whiff rate off his slider. He’s also throwing more cutters than he did pre-surgery.
► RHP Garrett Hill (1-2, 5.63), Tigers: This will be a thrill for Hill. The San Diego State product’s fourth big-league start will be against his hometown team. He started in Oakland last Thursday and allowed just two singles through five innings. Then, in the sixth, he hung a breaking ball to Sean Murphy and the long, towering three-run homer ruined his night. When he’s been able to command both his four-seam and two-seam fastballs and throw his secondary pitches in pitcher-friendly counts, he’s shown his stuff will play at this level.
chris.mccosky@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @cmccosky