Detroit’s long-awaited offensive surge vanished at Comerica Park as defensive blunders and a crushing eighth-inning grand slam allowed the Angels to snatch a chaotic comeback victory.
The Tigers’ offense finally woke up Tuesday night, but Detroit’s bullpen and defense could not hold up its end.
Vaughn Grissom hit a go-ahead grand slam off Will Vest in the eighth inning, and the Los Angeles Angels rallied past the Tigers 10-6 at Comerica Park.
The loss wasted one of Detroit’s better offensive nights in recent games. The Tigers scored six runs, got a game-tying triple from Kevin McGonigle, a go-ahead single from Jahmai Jones and a solo homer from Wenceel Pérez, but it was not enough on a night when the Angels took advantage of extra outs and shaky execution.
Los Angeles entered the game as one of the weaker offensive clubs in the American League, but the Angels hit three home runs and made Detroit pay for nearly every mistake.
The first defensive miscue came in the third inning. After Logan O’Hoppe singled and Zach Neto walked, Grissom sent a ground ball single into center field. O’Hoppe scored easily, but Neto also came all the way around from first after a lazy throw from Matt Vierling allowed the Angels to turn a simple single into a two-run play and take a 2-1 lead.
The Angels added on in the fourth. Jo Adell led off the inning with his eighth homer of the season, and Neto later doubled to left to score Donovan Walton, pushing Los Angeles’ lead to 4-1.
Detroit had taken the first lead of the night in the second inning. Colt Keith singled, Spencer Torkelson was hit by a pitch and both runners moved up on a wild pitch. Zach McKinstry brought Keith home with a sacrifice fly to give the Tigers a 1-0 lead.
After falling behind by three runs, the Tigers answered in the fourth and fifth innings. Keith tripled to lead off the fourth and scored on McKinstry’s second sacrifice fly of the night, cutting the deficit to 4-2.
The fifth inning was Detroit’s best offensive frame. Vierling singled, Pérez walked and McGonigle tied the game with a two-run triple to right. Dillon Dingler and Riley Greene later walked to load the bases before Jones, pinch-hitting for Keith, lined an RBI single to right to put the Tigers ahead 5-4.
Detroit had a chance for more, but Torkelson and McKinstry struck out, and Hao-Yu Lee flew out to end the inning with the bases loaded. That missed opportunity loomed large later. Torkelson finished the day going 0-for-4 with four strikeouts.
Pérez extended the lead to 6-4 in the sixth with a solo homer to left, but the Tigers again failed to add on after McGonigle and Greene reached base.
Keider Montero worked into the sixth for Detroit, allowing four runs while striking out seven. Brenan Hanifee helped the Tigers escape the sixth and began the seventh, but the inning turned when Neto singled and Grissom followed with a single to center. Vest entered with runners on the corners and one out, then struck out Jorge Soler and got Wade Meckler to fly out to left, preserving the 6-4 lead.
The eighth was where the game unraveled.
Oswald Peraza singled with one out and moved to second on Walton’s groundout. O’Hoppe then doubled to right, bringing Peraza home to make it 6-5. Neto followed with an infield single that deflected off Vest, putting runners on the corners. Vest walked Mike Trout to load the bases, bringing up Grissom.
Grissom drove Vest’s pitch to right-center for his third homer of the season, a grand slam that flipped the game and gave the Angels a 9-6 lead.
Jose Siri added a solo homer in the ninth off Tyler Holton to make it 10-6.
The Tigers went quietly after Pérez’s homer. Detroit’s final 10 batters were retired, including a 1-2-3 eighth inning against Chase Silseth after the Angels had taken the lead.
McGonigle had three hits, including the two-run triple, and Pérez homered and walked. McKinstry drove in two runs on sacrifice flies, while Keith had two hits before leaving for a pinch-hitter.
But on a night when the Tigers finally produced enough offense to win, the combination of defensive mistakes and another late bullpen collapse proved too much to overcome.
