LOS ANGELES — Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch marched to the pitcher's mound with one out in the third inning. He reached out and took the ball from left-hander Tyler Alexander.
Alexander, for the third consecutive start, failed to complete four innings.
He gave up four runs, three of them on a pair of home runs, and was stopped short of finishing the third frame in Friday's 5-1 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first of three games at Dodger Stadium.
The Tigers (6-13) have lost six games in a row.