Another fielding error comes back to bite Tigers in loss to Rangers

The Tigers beat up Leiter in the bottom of the fourth to end his MLB debut with a thud.

With two outs and runners on first and second, Kerry Carpenter hit a long fly ball to center field that couldn't be corralled by center fielder Taveras and resulted in a two-run triple. Torkelson tied the game at 7 with an RBI double. Báez roped his second double of the game during the fifth inning.

Alex Faedo, who came on in relief for Maeda, pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings and struck out one. After Tyler Holton retired the side in order during the sixth, Holton then came back out for the seventh — but didn't find the same success.

Holton gave up two singles and hit Smith with a pitch to load the bases. Tigers right-hander Alex Lange came on with one out in the inning and struck out Langford and Heim to maintain an even score into the seventh-inning stretch.

Rangers reliever Jose Urena, who pitched for the Tigers in 2021, got Texas out of the fourth without any further damage and pitched scoreless fifth and sixth innings before returning for the seventh, where he got into a little bit of trouble. He walked Torkelson and gave up a single to Urshela before Rangers right-hander Jose Leclerc came in to shut down the threat.

The Tigers' eighth-inning error proved fatal, though the Tigers mustered a comeback attempt.

Greene and Canha each drew a one-out walk in the eighth but were both left on base as Carpenter and Torkelson were sat down on strikes. The Rangers added an insurance run off Tigers reliever Andrew Chafin in the ninth inning to make it 9-7.

With one out in the ninth, Urshela singled to keep the Tigers alive. Báez put a charge into a ninth-inning pitch, but his potential tying home run was caught on the warning track to end the game.