The Detroit Tigers made history by going without a run or combo hit against the Toronto Blue Jays, who had a terrible day at the office on Saturday at Comerica Park.
Starter Matt Manning, who was on the mound for six and two-thirds of the inning, joined substitutes Jason Foley and Alex Lange in that feat. They allowed the Jays only three small walks against the Jays during that encounter that ended in a 2-0 score, the second in a three-game series.
• Also read: Jays destroy the Tigers, overtake the Yankees
• Also read: Perfection for Domingo German
“I’m feeling good now,” Manning said, relieved on the ground after the meeting. There isn’t another guy I would have liked to have done it with more often. […] I wanted these guys to be a part of it. What counts for me is victory and not individual success.
Above all, it is a very special turn of events, as the Tigers lost 12 to 2 to their visitors the day before.
“They kicked our ass and the next day we have a game with no run or hit. This is baseball,” recalled receiver Eric Haase, who was working in secret at that meeting.
“Their execution was excellent,” he added of the pitchers. They made the batsmen uncomfortable. Foley and Lange closed the door. Around the sixth inning, you start counting outs and paying closer attention to batting order.
It was the first game without a run or hit of the Major League Baseball season. On June 28, New York Yankees marksman Domingo German had a perfect game against the Oakland Athletics.
This is the seventh time in their history that the Blue Jays have suffered such an affront. They went unanswered in front of opposing courts and it was Vladimir Guerrero Jr. who was Lange’s final victim in the ninth inning.
On offense, Spencer Torkelson and Kerry Carpenter each scored a double and a treble.
A good game by Julien, but…
In Minnesota, Édouard Julien performed well for the Twins, who lost 6-2 to the Baltimore Orioles.
It wasn’t long before the Quebecer made his presence felt by scoring a double in his first attempt at batting. Byron Buxton then sent him to third base where Julien completed his turn of the trails after a miss by Tyler Wells.
He also hit a single in the third inning.
The Orioles collected all their points in the second round. They brought their runners and took advantage of the walks offered by pitcher Sonny Gray and three singles.