It’s August 6. By now, we know the Detroit Tigers aren’t good.
But man, Sunday’s outing against the now-68-46 Tampa Bay Rays was not a good one for the boys donning the D, losing 10-6.
Intuitive fans could see destruction coming just by eying the matchup: The pairing of starting pitcher Matt Manning, who has allowed hard contact and 11 earned runs in his last two starts, with the Tampa Bay Rays, who has all but owned the Tigers in 2023, was a nefarious one at best. Naturally, the AL East’s second-place team leaped all over the right-hander, scoring three runs in the first inning and two in the second to give themselves a big early lead.