Los Angeles @ Detroit preview
Comerica Park
Last Meeting ( Jun 20, 2021 ) Detroit 5, LA Angels 3
More than 80,000 spectators came to Detroit's Comerica Park over the weekend to watch history.
However, Miguel Cabrera couldn't deliver what the crowds wanted -- his 500th career home run. He went 1-for-9 with a walk and a hit by pitch during the Tigers' three-game series against the Cleveland Indians.
Cabrera will get three more home games to achieve the milestone before the Tigers go on a road trip. Detroit plays host to the Los Angeles Angels for a three-game series beginning on Tuesday.
A different kind of history nearly occurred on Sunday. The Indians' Triston McKenzie came within four outs of a perfect game before Harold Castro smacked a single in the Tigers' 11-0 loss.
"He had his way through our lineup," Detroit manager A.J. Hinch said of McKenzie. "It was a good day for him and not a good day for us on a lot of levels. Luckily, we have a day off (Monday) to get this feeling out of the way and get to a new team and a new series."
The Tigers faced the Angels in a four-game series at Anaheim, Calif., in June, with the home team winning three times. Shohei Ohtani hit four home runs during those four contests and also won the opener on the mound, limiting Detroit to one run in six innings.
Detroit's Casey Mize had a no-decision in the finale of that series, throwing five innings and allowing three runs, including an Ohtani homer. That was his only career meeting with Los Angeles. He will start the series opener on Tuesday.
Mize (6-6, 3.66 ERA) has been victimized by the long ball frequently in his past two starts. He's given up three in each outing, including during a 4 1/3-inning effort at Baltimore on Aug. 10. He also made a throwing error, the first of his career.
"It just looked like he was out of sync and not really in rhythm," Hinch said. "He had a couple of mental lapses. He had a ball slip out of his hand and go to the backstop. And the error is very rare. He's an excellent fielding pitcher."
Mize will be opposed by Dylan Bundy (2-9, 6.17 ERA). The Los Angeles right-hander shut out the Texas Rangers over 6 1/3 innings on Aug. 5 before he allowed three runs, including two homers, in four-plus innings against the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday.
In four career outings (three starts) against the Tigers, Bundy is 0-2 with a 4.91 ERA. He had a no-decision in his one start against Detroit this season back on June 20, when he gave up two runs (one earned) on four hits in four-plus innings.
The Angels have lost seven of their past 10 games, including a 2-1 defeat to the Yankees on Monday in a makeup game at New York.
Los Angeles first baseman Jared Walsh, who homered in three consecutive games against Detroit in June, will be looking to regain his power stroke. He hasn't gone deep since a two-homer game on July 7.
Walsh struck out three times before hitting a ninth-inning single Monday. He hasn't had an extra-base hit since July 22.
"He's run into a little bit of a roadblock there," manager Joe Maddon said. "More than anything, I just think it's two things. He's fouled off his pitch and he's chased a little bit. And that's it. I know of his path from talking to other guys, he's gone through this before."
--Field Level Media