Detroit – Tigers manager AJ Hinch wasn’t around to see the end of this one. At least not from the bench. He missed some drama.
After being no-hit for seven innings by lefty Framber Valdez, the Tigers went into the ninth down 1-0. They strung three straight singles off closer Ryan Pressly, with Javier Báez’s broken bat dunker into center field tying the game.
Then rookie Parker Meadows, in his third big-league game, blasted a game-winning, three-run homer, sending the Tigers to an improbable 4-1 win over the Houston Astros Friday.
Hinch was ejected in the bottom of the seventh inning after a spirited face-to-face with home plate umpire Laz Diaz. Watching Valdez carve up Tigers hitters inning after inning, Hinch came out of the dugout after Diaz called Báez out on a borderline third strike.
Hinch’s beef was that Valdez threw the final pitch to Báez after the pitch-timer expired. Replays confirm that the clock had hit zero before the pitch was thrown.
It wasn’t as animated as Yankees manager Aaron Boone’s beef with Diaz last week, but Hinch got his money’s worth. The frustration with Diaz’s call was probably only part of it. In the top half of the inning, Hinch had to pull his starting pitcher Matt Manning out of the game with what looked like a back issue.
More on that in a minute. First, Valdez.
He’d thrown a no-hitter against the Guardians on Aug. 1 and needed only 93 pitches to do it. On this night, though, he was at 114 pitches through seven no-hit innings. He’d walked five and hit another. So he had to pass the baton to his bullpen.
With one out in the eighth, pinch-hitter Kerry Carpenter rapped a single to right against right-handed reliever Bryan Abreu to take the no-hitter off the board.
Valdez did what he always does. He pounded hitters with his bowling ball sinker. He threw 51 of them and induced 13 ground ball outs. He also struck out six.
The Tigers had chances to get to him early. He hit Jake Rogers and walked Riley Greene to start the second inning, but nothing came of it. Miguel Cabrera lashed a 3-2 fastball to wall in right field but Kyle Tucker reached above the wall to haul it in.
Parker Meadows walked and was bunted to second by Matt Vierling in the third inning. He only got far as third base. That was the last Tigers runner to get into scoring position.
As good as Valdez was, Manning was right there with him. Through six innings, Manning allowed just one hit (an infield single) and an unearned run. He was so efficient, dotting edges with four-seam fastballs and sliders, that he needed only 74 pitches to get through those six innings.
That earned him the seventh inning for the first time since he’s come back from the injured list. But one out into the seventh, he grabbed at his back after throwing a slider to Yainer Diaz. Catcher Rogers came out, as did Báez. Báez beckoned for the trainer to come out.
Manning threw one test pitch but didn’t look comfortable. Hinch pulled him from the game.
There was no further word from the Tigers as to the exact nature of Manning’s injury.
It was the third straight stellar start for Manning. The Astros run came in the second and was set up by a throwing error on third baseman Zack Short, one of his two throwing errors in the game, and a catcher’s interference call on Rogers on a pitch that would’ve been strike three.
An infield single by Jose Altuve plated the run.
The Tigers have lost three of four on this homestand.
chris.mccosky@detroitnews.com
X: @cmccosky