Angels Give Up Unthinkable MLB History in Loss to Tigers

As any professional team, you never want to be on the other side of a player or franchise making history.

On Friday evening, the Los Angeles Angels watched as Detroit Tigers outfielder Riley Greene made history against the Halos at Angel Stadium.

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Greene became one of 62 players to hit two home runs in the same inning. Interestingly enough, Greene was the first in the history of Major League Baseball to hit two homers in the 9th inning.

Riley Greene is the first player in MLB history with 2 homers in the ninth inning of a game https://t.co/xYeojtpeLW
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) May 3, 2025

The most famous example of this occurence happened at Dodger Stadium back in 1999. Fernando Tatis Sr. of the St. Louis Cardinals inconceivably hit two Grand Slams in the same inning — and off the same pitcher in Chan Ho Park. To put this into perspective, current San Diego Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr. was only four months old when his dad etched himself into the history books.

That specific occurrence may never happen again. However, even if it's not quite as impressive, Greene's two-homer inning illustrates a major slump the Angels are currently in the midst of.

In Friday's 9-1 loss to the Tigers, LA allowed four home runs in the inning. Three of them were given up by future Hall of Fame closer Kenley Jansen. The Angels have lost 15 of their last 20 games.

Tigers hit FOUR home runs in the 9th.

It was the 1st time that’s happened since the Dodgers did it in 2006.

Riley Greene becomes the 1st player EVER to hit 2 HR in the 9th. #RepDetroit

pic.twitter.com/TpG5qE8r8X
— Ryan Field (@RyanFieldABC) May 3, 2025

To make matters worse, Mike Trout is on the IL with a knee injury. The Angels sit at 13-20 — good for dead-last in the AL West.

This is a precarious time for manager Ron Washington and the Halos. On one hand, it's still quite early in the year. There's ample time to right the proverbial shift before truly panicking.

On the other hand, the Angels are already seven games behind the Seattle Mariners for first place in the division. If another bad month occurs heading into June, LA will have to have some serious discussions as to how they'll approach the remainder of the year.

There's a real possibility some of the veteran players could be moved in order to build a younger ballclub. Should that happen, would Mike Trout be put on the trade block? Only time will tell.

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