DETROIT – Weekends are sacred, so I hope you didn’t spend yours watching the Detroit Tigers get knocked around by the Cleveland Indians.
We warned you on Friday that things could start getting ugly. But let’s be honest, you probably didn’t need to be told that the team’s 3-3 start wouldn’t last.
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There’s something about a weekend in Progressive Field that just feels... worse, though.
On Friday, the Tigers managed just four hits and one run. They gave up three in the bottom of the first inning because a routine bouncer hit the second base bag. If it hadn’t, Niko Goodrum was there to make an easy play, and the inning would have ended after the next at-bat.
Instead, three runs -- and the game was over before it began. If you watched the offense trip over itself for the ensuing three hours, I am truly sorry. You probably should have gone for a walk or finally fixed the gutter or at least stared at your grass for awhile to see if it grew.
How bad was Saturday? It made you wish you were rewatching Friday’s game.
Cleveland scored six runs in the first four innings, ruining one of the most interesting parts of the season: watching Tarik Skubal.
Then, for good measure, the Indians tacked on five more runs in their last three at-bats. Jeimer Candelario hit a home run in the ninth inning, but by then everyone had switched over to Big Bang Theory re-runs.
Sunday’s game was cool for a minute because the Tigers took a 1-0 lead in the first inning. But Cleveland tied it in the second, took the lead in the third and extended the lead in the sixth and eighth.
All in all, the Tigers got swept by a combined score of 20-6. The Indians had 23 hits, which doesn’t sound like many until you realize the Tigers only had 13.
Julio Teheran went from the scheduled starter minutes before Friday’s game to the 60-day injured list. Miguel Cabrera injured his biceps again. Akil Baddoo went 0-5 and then hit the pine.
For a fan base that has seen unrelentingly awful baseball pretty much start to finish since 2017, this weekend was an abrupt reminder that another long summer is ahead.
As fun as the first week was, there are going to be plenty of moments like Sunday night, when Nomar Mazara unfathomably sailed two straight balls over his cutoff man for errors that allowed the Indians to extend their lead. You will have to watch Goodrum hit left-handed, on occasion. Grayson Greiner gets to bat.
If you love baseball and watch the Tigers through thick and thin, there’s going to be plenty of thin this year. The last three days were just a taste.