WASHINGTON — Watching Joey Wentz take another beating in the 6-4 loss to the Nationals in the series finale Sunday, the first natural thought is, the Tigers need to make some renovations to their starting rotation.
Then you dive into it. Spencer Turnbull, Matt Manning, Tarik Skubal are all on the injured list for at least a few more weeks. Beau Brieske is also on the 60-day IL and not close to a return. So you look at what’s available at Triple-A Toledo.
Not much.
The only option on the 40-man roster is right-hander Reese Olson. He’s coming off a strong start on Saturday, pitching five shutout innings with nine strikeouts. But his ERA is over 7.0, his WHIP is 1.895 and he’s walked 22 hitters in 31.2. innings.
Garrett Hill, who started the season in the Tigers’ bullpen, is still working two- and three-inning stints.
Two other non-roster options would be right-hander Brenan Hanifee and lefty Zach Logue. In Hanifee’s last three starts, he’s been tagged for 20 hits, 11 runs in 14.2 innings with opponents hitting .328 and slugging .557.
Logue, the former Oakland Athletics pitcher, is also scuffling this month. In three starts in May, he’s allowed 14 runs (11 earned) in 10.1 innings with opponents hitting .340 and slugging .660.
So, who you got? One of the long relievers? Mason Englert and Tyler Alexander combined to pitch four scoreless innings Sunday.
Manager AJ Hinch has stayed patient with Wentz, even Sunday allowing him to go back out for the third inning after he’d given up four runs and was in constant trouble in the first two.
Didn’t go well.
Ildemaro Vargas hit a two-run homer and Hinch had to go get Wentz.
Wentz’s line was ugly: Two innings, 10 hits, six runs, two home runs (the other by catcher Riley Adams, who had four hits). Wentz’s month of May has been ugly: Four starts, 16.1 innings, 28 hits, 15 earned runs.
He seems in need of a reset. If only it was that easy.
The Tigers, to their credit, made a game of it — thanks, in part, to eight walks issued by Nationals pitchers.
Starter Josiah Gray walked six in his five innings of work, but the Tigers didn’t accept the charity. Spencer Torkelson’s two-out single in the third was the only run they got off him.
They loaded the bases with no outs in the fourth and came up empty. Gray got Jake Rogers on a fielder’s choice, Zack McKinstry on a pop up and Javier Baez on flyout to center.
The Tigers left the bases loaded again in the sixth.
Nick Maton, who also walked and singled, blasted a 96-mph fastball off reliever Andres Machado into the bullpen in right for his fifth homer of the season.
After Akil Baddoo walked (for the third time) and Matt Vierling singled, McKinstry ripped an RBI single to make it 6-3 and chased Machado.
Right-hander Kyle Finnegan, after walking Riley Greene to load the bases, got Torkelson to foul out to end the inning.
The Nationals gifted the Tigers a fourth run in the seventh. Finnegan drilled Andy Ibanez with a 96-mph sinker in the shoulder — the ninth free base for the Tigers. A throwing error by first baseman Dominic Smith sent Ibanez to third and he scored on a ground out by Baddoo.
That’s where it ended, though. The Tigers didn’t threaten against Carl Edwards, Jr., or Hunter Harvey.
Former Tiger Jeimer Candelario put it to his former mates pretty well, going 6 for 13 in the series with a home run. He had four hits Sunday.
