Jack Flaherty finally notched his first win in 13 starts this season on Tuesday.
The Detroit Tigers right-hander will go for two straight when he starts the finale of a three-game home series against the Seattle Mariners on Sunday afternoon.
Flaherty (1-7, 5.31 ERA) hadn’t been credited with a victory since last Sept. 10 until he pitched five scoreless innings against the host Tampa Bay Rays in the 8-0 shutout. Detroit had lost the last eight games he had started.
“It is good to get one,” he said afterward.
Flaherty did have to deal with some traffic during those innings. He gave up five hits and two walks and required 94 pitches to reach the five-inning minimum needed for starting pitchers to record a victory.
“Jack knew going in we were going to lean heavily on him,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “I think getting through those stressful innings was big. He didn’t cave, he didn’t concede, he didn’t make a mistake. He just kept going at them and got some key outs.”
Flaherty needed to put May in his rear-view mirror. He posted a 6.26 ERA in six starts while going 0-5 and allowing 33 hits in 27 1/2 innings.
In four career outings against the Mariners, Flaherty is 2-0 with a 4.22 ERA.
Seattle starter Luis Castillo (2-5, 5.53) made just the second relief appearance of his career last Sunday. The right-hander pitched five innings against the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks, giving up two runs (one earned) and two hits.
“It doesn’t matter what situation, what position you put me in,” Castillo said. “Once I cross that white line, I’ve got to go in there and do my job, get those outs.”
Castillo is 2-4 with a 3.95 ERA in seven career starts against Detroit.
Seattle first baseman Josh Naylor has gotten under the Tigers’ skin with his aggressive and borderline chippy play in the first two games. Naylor was hit by a Keider Montero pitch on Saturday and felt it was on purpose.
“(Detroit pitcher Framber) Valdez was pointing and laughing at me on the bench,” Naylor said, “so I knew it was on purpose.”
He hasn’t made any friends in the Tigers’ dugout.
“I think he’s a guy that you like him if you’re his teammate, and you hate him if you’re on the other team,” Detroit infielder Colt Keith said. “I’ve seen him do some questionable, like borderline dirty baseball stuff. But I think he plays hard, and he’s just trying to get in our heads. I don’t think Keider hit him on purpose, but obviously he brings a little bit more intensity to the series.”
Dominic Canzone was the Mariners’ offensive leader on Saturday. He had an RBI double and a 451-foot home run to straightaway center field in the Mariners’ 4-0 win.
“It usually doesn’t fly too well in center. So, if I hit anything to center, I’m hustling out of the box,” Canzone said.
The shutout snapped the Tigers’ four-game winning streak. They had scored 32 runs during the streak.
Seattle shortstop J.P. Crawford sat out Saturday’s contest after getting hit in the hand by a pitch in Friday’s series opener, a 7-3 Detroit victory.
–Field Level Media
