MINNEAPOLIS — There wasn’t a baserunner until the fifth inning.
Finally, the Detroit Tigers put theit first runner on base with Zack Short’s walk and collected their first hit with Miguel Cabrera’s ensuing double — his 3,116th career hits, surpassing Alex Rodriguez on MLB’s all-time list.
But Short was thrown out trying to score, and in the bottom of the fifth inning, the Minnesota Twins scored the only runs Saturday at Target Field in the third of four games in the series. The Tigers lost, 2-0, despite left-hander Joey Wentz completing six innings in the best start of his season.
“It’s a run-scoring play, and you couldn’t tell if he got him,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “We didn’t have a perfect angle on it. … I couldn’t tell if he tagged him or not. Shorty didn’t feel anything. Reviewing whether he blocked the plate, it wasn’t the case because the throw was outside the line, and the tag, New York (replay review room) confirmed it. That was a decisive defensive play.”
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The Tigers (29-40) have a 3-12 record in June. They have been shut out for the fourth time in the past 15 games and the ninth time this season, tied with the Kansas City Royals (their opponent beginning Monday) for the most in baseball.
A two-out walk from Short in the fifth provided the first scoring opportunity, and when Cabrera pulled a first-pitch fastball from left-handed reliever Brent Headrick down the left-field line, Short tried to score from first base.
The Twins, though, completed a perfect relay — from left fielder (and ex-Tiger) Willi Castro to shortstop Carlos Correa to catcher Ryan Jeffers — to throw out Short at home. The Tigers challenged the play but lost the replay review.
“I didn’t feel anything,” Short said. “I thought he was going to get me (out) for not touching the plate, but I touched it. (The umpire) said they confirmed it, so they must have had a good angle (in New York) that we didn’t see.”
“It’s the fifth inning, 0-0,” Short added, when asked about the aggressive send from third base coach Gary Jones. “They have to make two perfect throws, and they did. We would do it again, 100 times out of 100.”
Nick Maton singled to start the eighth inning, but Short grounded into a double play and Cabrera grounded out.
In the ninth, pinch-hitter Zach McKinstry opened the inning with a single off flame-throwing right-handed closer Jhoan Durán, but he was stranded by pinch-hitter Eric Haase (grounded into double play) and Matt Vierling (strikeout).
The Tigers’ offense had three hits, one walk and five strikeouts.
In the bottom of the fifth, the Twins snapped Wentz’s momentum and scored two runs for a 2-0 lead over the Tigers.
“It takes some success for guys to get back in the rhythm and feel good,” Hinch said. “I know he’s going to be upset because the team didn’t win, but for us, if we get this type of outing from Joey, we’re going to be really happy.”
No average Joey
Wentz, who entered with a 7.23 ERA in 13 games (12 starts) this season, delivered one of the best starts in his career. The 25-year-old retired the first 13 batters he faced in his 14th appearance this season.
He registered a career-high nine strikeouts.
“For me, it’s committing to the pitch that’s called,” Wentz said. “Not babying it, just committing to it and trying to throw it hard. I’m setting my sights, and whatever happens after that, happens.”
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After 13 outs in a row, the Twins finally disrupted Wentz with one out in the fifth inning on Royce Lewis’ eight-pitch walk. The next batter, Castro, hit a third-pitch cutter through the infield and into left field.
Alex Kirilloff drove in the first run for a 1-0 lead when he hit a first-pitch cutter through the infield and into right field. The Twins tacked on another run, taking a 2-0 lead, when Jeffers grounded into a force out.
A hard slide from Kirilloff into Maton, the second baseman, helped break up the double play, allowing the second run to score.
“That’s a legal play,” Hinch said. “We get so conditioned nowadays to think that any contact is bad contact, but that was a normal slide into the base. Nick hung in there to try to turn the double play. That was a big play, and we didn’t get it, but I had no problem with the slide.”
Wentz, aside from the two-run fifth inning, looked sharp as he mixed four pitches and painted the corners. He decreased the usage of his cutter and increased the usage of his changeup and slider.
Throwing 69 of 107 pitches for strikes, Wentz mixed 41 four-seam fastballs (39%), 32 changeups (30%), 22 curveballs (21%) and 11 cutters (10%). He generated 13 whiffs and 13 called strikes.
His 11 cutters were extremely effective — despite the limited usage compared to his 26.4% usage entering Saturday’s start — with three whiffs (on nine swings) and two called strikes. Wentz has a 3.48 ERA over his past two outings.
“On the scouting report, they had some guys that handle the cutter pretty well,” Wentz said. “I still threw a couple of them, but I knew going in that the curveball and changeup were going to be big. … I was able to throw some quality pitches in there.”
Walking away
Left-hander Tyler Alexander, known for his ability to throw strikes, walked Willi Castro in the seventh inning —Alexander’s first walk allowed since April 22, snapping a 19⅓-inning streak.
He also walked Donovan Solano in the eighth inning.
But Alexander kept the Twins from scoring in the seventh and eighth. On Alexander’s third-pitch fastball, Correa flew out to deep right field to strand runners on first and second base in the eighth.
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The Twins beat the Tigers by using six relievers in a bullpen-only game: right-hander José De León (two innings), righty Emilio Pagán (1⅔ innings), Headrick (2⅓ innings), righty Brock Stewart (one inning), righty Griffin Jax (one inning) and Durán (one inning).
Durán, the majors’ leader in fastball velocity, pitched the ninth inning; 11 of his 15 pitches topped 100 mph as he earned his ninth save.
“It’s always tough in a bullpen game because you’re facing three different guys before the fifth inning,” Short said. “We’ve been hitting for the last week and a half or so, and it’s just one of those days.”
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanPetzold.