Kenley Jansen Placed on 15-Day IL; Tigers Recall Drew Sommers
Wednesday night saw a dominant pitching performance from the Detroit Tigers , as five pitchers combined for a 4-0 shutout win over the Los Angeles Angels in what many have jokingly called the “Sacko Series” for the worst team in the American League.
Though you don’t get to a series like that without a ton of bad luck.
The Tigers have had plenty of bad luck this season, especially in the injury department, where they’ve battled issue after issue across multiple positions. No position group has been hit harder in Detroit than the pitching staff.
Unfortunately for the Tigers, that bad luck remains front and center.
During Wednesday’s 4-0 victory, despite Detroit arguably pitching its best game in weeks, there were two major injury scares involving pitchers — and both were forced to leave the game early.
To kick things off, Casey Mize exited after four innings with right groin tightness. Then, fast forward to the ninth inning with two outs, and Kenley Jansen looked long and hard toward the dugout, practically screaming with his eyes while trying to stay calm on the mound. The Tigers training staff came out to check on him and ultimately removed Jansen from the game with right groin tightness as well.
Now, less than 24 hours later, we’ve learned that Kenley Jansen is heading to the 15-day injured list.
Even though Jansen was in the middle of a solid-looking inning before being pulled — recording two outs while leaving a runner on first base — the veteran closer has struggled through much of his first season in Detroit.
Heading into Wednesday’s game, Jansen carried a 5.02 ERA with seven saves and four blown saves on the year.
Blown saves in Detroit have been nearly as ugly as the injury list itself. The Tigers entered the Angels series having blown 13 saves in 23 opportunities, with Jansen responsible for four of them.
I’m not saying the groin tightness has been lingering all season, but when you look at the numbers, it’s fair to wonder if something physically has been affecting him for a while now.
Still, Jansen is now headed to the IL, and in his place, the Tigers are recalling Drew Sommers .
Sommers appeared in four games for Detroit last season, totaling three innings while posting an 18.00 ERA. He allowed six runs on seven hits, walked three batters, hit one, and struck out three.
This season with the Toledo Mud Hens, however, Sommers has looked significantly better. Across 17 appearances, he owns a 3.00 ERA and a 1-0 record while earning one save. Over 21 innings pitched, Sommers has allowed 16 hits and seven earned runs while walking 11 batters and striking out 35.
The Tigers will most likely turn to Will Vest for closing duties now, though that hasn’t exactly been a comforting option either. Vest currently holds a 7.88 ERA and has blown three saves of his own this season.
It’s ugly in Detroit right now, and the injuries aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. Now we wait to see how AJ Hinch is able to maneuver through yet another challenge for this Tigers pitching staff.
