Hao-Yu Lee Homers, but Tigers Drop Fourth Straight in 3-1 Loss to Royals

The Detroit Tigers’ pursuit of the final American League wild-card position continues to fade, but their youth movement is giving them something else to evaluate.

Hao-Yu Lee hit his seventh home run, Brett Callahan collected his first major-league double and Drew Sommers struck out four over two perfect innings Saturday night. Those performances were not enough to prevent Detroit from falling 3-1 to the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium.

The loss was Detroit’s fourth straight and seventh in eight games, dropping the Tigers to 61-68. Kansas City extended its winning streak to seven games.

Instead of another game lost entirely because of the bullpen, this one followed a different and equally frustrating script. Drew Anderson kept Detroit close, but the offense produced three hits and went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position.

The Tigers had a chance to give Anderson an early lead against Michael Wacha.

Colt Keith drew a two-out walk in the first inning before Dillon Dingler singled to right, moving Keith to third. Zach McKinstry then lifted a fly ball to center field, allowing Wacha to escape without surrendering a run.

That was Detroit’s best opportunity until the seventh inning.

Wacha settled in after the opening frame and retired the Tigers in order in the second and third. He completed seven innings, allowing one run on three hits and one walk while striking out six.

Kyle Isbel gave Kansas City a 1-0 lead with a solo home run in the third. Anderson recovered to retire the next three hitters, including his second strikeout of Jac Caglianone.

Salvador Perez doubled the advantage with another solo home run in the fourth. It was his 17th home run of the season and another reminder of how consistently the veteran catcher has damaged Tigers pitching throughout his career.

Anderson allowed three runs over five innings, although the final run scored after he departed. He gave up five hits and one walk while striking out four. The right-hander did not dominate, but he provided enough length to give Detroit an opportunity.

Lee cut the deficit to 2-1 with two outs in the fifth, driving a Wacha pitch over the wall in left-center field for his seventh home run.

It was another productive moment for a player making a strong case for consistent playing time. Lee has occasionally been squeezed out of the lineup when Detroit’s veterans are available, but his power and ability to handle multiple infield positions are becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.

The home run was also Detroit’s final hit until Callahan doubled in the seventh.

Kansas City restored its two-run lead in the sixth. Caglianone doubled to right and advanced to third on a Salvador Perez groundout. Tanner Rainey replaced Anderson and nearly escaped the inning, but a wild pitch allowed Caglianone to score.

The run was charged to Anderson and made it 3-1.

Callahan gave Detroit another chance with a one-out double in the seventh, the first double of his major-league career. Spencer Torkelson flew out to right, and Max Clark grounded out to end the inning.

Clark finished 0-for-3, including a sharp lineout in the second. The results were not there Saturday, but his continued presence in center field alongside McGonigle, Lee and Callahan represents where the Tigers are beginning to turn their attention.

McGonigle and Gleyber Torres combined to go 0-for-8 at the top of the order. Torkelson struck out twice, while Dingler’s first-inning single accounted for Detroit’s only hit outside the Lee home run and Callahan double.

Craig Kimbrel worked the ninth for Kansas City. McKinstry drew a two-out walk and advanced on a balk, but Callahan struck out to end the game.

Detroit’s strongest performance came from Sommers.

The left-hander retired all six batters he faced and struck out four, including Isbel, Carter Jensen and Bobby Witt Jr. Sommers attacked the strike zone with confidence and kept Kansas City from extending its lead over the final two innings.

The outing continued an encouraging stretch for a pitcher who is beginning to look like a legitimate part of Detroit’s future bullpen.

Sommers, Lee and Callahan did not change the result, but they gave the Tigers something worth carrying into Sunday.

Detroit will add another young pitcher when left-hander Andrew Sears makes his major-league debut in the series finale. Sears is expected to cover multiple innings after producing a 2.16 ERA across four minor-league levels. He finished his stay with Toledo by throwing 9⅔ scoreless innings with 14 strikeouts.

The Tigers entered Saturday 2½ games behind Texas for the final wild-card position. Other results will determine the updated margin, but another Detroit loss creates even more distance between the Tigers and a playoff position.

For most of the summer, Detroit’s positive run differential and the unusual weakness of the American League race provided reasons to believe another run was possible. The Tigers have now lost seven of eight and must find a way to stop the slide before returning home to face Tampa Bay and Los Angeles.

The playoff race remains important, but Saturday provided another reminder that the final weeks may also become an extended evaluation of Detroit’s young players.

Lee and Sommers passed their latest tests. The Tigers will get their first look at Sears on Sunday.