Toronto – The gut punches just keep coming for the Tigers.
Minutes after the Toronto Blue Jays secured a 9-3 win in their home opener Tuesday − hitting five home runs in the newly-renovated, dimensions-shortened Rogers Centre − manager AJ Hinch announced that right-hander Matt Manning, who became the first Tigers’ starter to go six full innings, had broken the fifth metatarsal on his right foot on the last pitch of his outing.
“I didn’t think it was that bad,” said Manning, who gave up three solo home runs and very little else in six solid innings. “It was the last ball that hit off my foot. I covered first and thought it was just normal. Maybe a little bruise. We had it looked at just because and it’s got a little crack.”
The ball, hit by Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk, had an exit velocity of 97 mph. It caromed off Manning’s right foot right to first baseman Spencer Torkelson. Manning never broke stride, covering first to get the out.
“This is the same time I got hurt last year,” said Manning, who was wearing a protective boot. “Just a freak accident. Can’t do anything about it. But I’m trying to think that I will be out there. Give it a week, see how it feels and get back out there. It’s just a foot.”
The right foot is Manning’s drive foot. And typically a broken fifth metatarsal comes with a six-week recovery time − two weeks in a boot, four weeks regaining strength.
Hinch didn’t say how the roster would be impacted going forward, but most likely right-hander Michael Lorenzen will be activated off the injured list and take Manning’s spot. Not that Manning is going to accept that.
BOX SCORE: Blue Jays 9, Tigers 3
“I need to be out there,” he said. “I need to be out there to pitch. I need to be out there to get that experience and keep growing as a pitcher. Something like this I don’t really have time for.”
Manning, staked to a 3-0 lead on a three-run homer by Nick Maton in the second inning, gave up a solo home run to Matt Chapman in the fourth inning on a center-cut 93-mph four-seamer. That was probably his only misfire. He gave up back to back homers in the fifth to Kevin Kiermaier on a 3-2 fastball and then George Springer got him on the very next pitch, a slider − neither of them were horrible pitches.
“His secondary stuff was good and his stuff got better as the game went on,” Hinch said. “He pounded the strike zone. He used all his pitches and he was able to disrupt timing. There was a lot of good in tonight’s start for him. The score doesn’t indicate how Manning threw.”
Manning was using his curveball (to left-handed hitters) and slider (to righties) to steal strike one. He threw first-pitch strikes to 16 of the 25 batters he faced. Springer was the only one who burned him. He didn’t get a lot of swinging strikes (seven on 39 swings) but he got 19 called strikes (eight with he slider, six with the four-seamer).
“There were a few sequences I would like to have back,” he said. “But I thought I pounded the zone pretty good. Just a couple of solo homers bit me. Other than that, I thought I threw the ball well.”
Still, he was seething after he gave up the two homers in the fifth.
“No one likes to give up homers,” he said. “I take that personally.”
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The Blue Jays unloaded on rookie right-hander Mason Englert, scoring five times in the eighth inning. Bo Bichette hit a solo homer and Kirk (three-run shot) launched a three-run shot.
“I was encouraged by our at-bats early, though without the knockout punch,” Hinch said. “Maton’s homer was a good sign. We drew a bunch of walks (six), that’s a great sign.”
The Tigers had Blue Jays’ All-Star starter Alek Manoah on the ropes early, specifically in a 42-pitch second inning. But, after Maton’s three-run homer, the Tigers stranded the bases loaded.
“We had great at-bats and we were making good swings on pitches but only came up with the three-run homer,” designated hitter Kerry Carpenter said. “We will keep doing that and that’s going to lead to some success.”
Carpenter made 804 feet of outs to center field. Kiermaier, the Blue Jays’ center fielder, took a home run away from him in the second inning making a sensational catch with a perfectly-timed leap, reaching over the 400-foot short wall in center field.
“It’s frustrating because you want the homer,” Carpenter said. “But that’s why he gets the big bucks. He’s a heckuva player. You just tip your cap. I made a good swing. He made a better play.”
Manning isn’t giving up on being back on the mound in five days and Carpenter won’t bet against him.
“It’s just really frustrating,” Carpenter said. “It stinks for him. He’s worked so hard to get here. It’s just an unfortunate circumstance. If anyone can come back from it, it would be him. He’s going to be OK.”
chris.mccosky@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @cmccosky