The Athletics had one clean night against the Dodgers. Since then, the losses have taken over again.
The A’s opened their series in Detroit with a 6-2 loss to the Tigers on Tuesday at Comerica Park, their fourth straight loss since beating the Dodgers last week. The loss dropped the Athletics to 41-50, 5.5 games behind Seattle in the AL West.
Close until it wasn’t
Detroit grabbed the game early against J.T. Ginn.
Kevin McGonigle walked to open the bottom of the first, and Colt Keith followed with a two-run homer to right-center. That put the Tigers ahead 2-0 before the A’s had their first hit.
Ginn settled after that. He struck out Spencer Torkelson and James Outman in the second, then worked around an error and a walk in the third.
Still, the A’s had to chase the game from the first inning on.
Bolte cuts it close
Henry Bolte gave the Athletics their first answer in the third.
Bolte led off the inning with his third homer of the season, driving a 411-foot shot to left off Tarik Skubal. The swing cut Detroit’s lead to 2-1 and gave the A’s a chance to build pressure.
They had another opening in the second, when Jonah Heim singled and Joshua Kuroda-Grauer doubled with two outs. However, Max Muncy struck out to leave both runners stranded.
Then the A’s missed another chance in the fourth. Kuroda-Grauer singled, Muncy walked and Bolte lined out to end the inning.
Sixth inning breaks open
The game stayed 2-1 into the sixth. Then it unraveled quickly.
Jacob Lopez retired the first two hitters before Zach McKinstry walked and Spencer Torkelson singled. Ben Malgeri followed with an RBI double, stretching Detroit’s lead to 3-1.
Next, Matt Vierling doubled in two more runs. McGonigle followed with an RBI single, and the Tigers had a 6-1 lead.
That was the inning the A’s could not absorb.
Ginn took the loss after allowing two runs on two hits over four innings. He walked two, hit one batter and struck out four.
One more chance fades
The Athletics scored once in the seventh but left the inning feeling light.
Bolte was hit by a pitch, and Nick Kurtz reached on an error. Then Shea Langeliers singled to center, scoring Bolte and cutting the deficit to 6-2.
Heim was hit by a pitch to load the bases, bringing the tying run to the plate. However, Jacob Wilson struck out after an ABS challenge confirmed strike three.
After that, the A’s did not put another runner on base.
Numbers that mattered
The Tigers finished with six runs on eight hits. The Athletics had two runs on seven hits and committed one error.
Kuroda-Grauer stayed hot, going 3-for-4 with his third double. Bolte hit his third homer and scored both A’s runs.
Langeliers drove in the other Athletics run with his seventh-inning single. Heim also reached twice with a single and a hit by pitch.
However, the A’s went 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position and left nine runners on base. They also struck out 12 times, including four by Zack Gelof.
For Detroit, Keith hit the first-inning homer and drove in two. Vierling also drove in two, while McGonigle reached three times.
In the end, the A’s kept it tight for five innings. Then one messy inning turned another winnable game into their fourth straight loss.
Up next
The Athletics continue the series against the Tigers on Wednesday at Comerica Park. First pitch is scheduled for 3:40 p.m. PDT.
Jeffrey Springs gets the ball for the A’s. The left-hander enters at 3-8 with a 5.79 ERA and 80 strikeouts.
Springs is tied for fifth in the American League in losses, one behind the league leaders. Across from him, Detroit turns to right-hander Jaden Melton, who enters at 4-1 with a 2.05 ERA and 32 strikeouts.
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Dice City Sports editor Mark Hebert covers the Las Vegas Aces, Vegas Golden Knights, Las Vegas Raiders, Athletics, and UNLV baseball and softball. He has 24 years of journalism experience, is also a senior reporter at Exhibit City News, and previously covered the Dallas Stars and Texas Rangers. Follow him on X or connect on LinkedIn.
