Detroit Tigers Manager Explains What Issues He's Seeing From Slumping Star Slugger

The Detroit Tigers need to get their star going again at the plate, and their manager discussed what he thinks is going wrong.

Detroit Tigers left fielder Riley Greene (31) walks out of the dugout before the first inning against New York Yankees at Comerica Park in Detroit on Monday, April 7, 2025 | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

It has been a brutal stretch for Detroit Tigers star Riley Greene.

To close the month of March and during the early part of April, the lefty slugger looked like he was living up to the preseason AL MVP billing when he hit a home run in three out of four games.

However, he's cooled off tremendously.

Entering Thursday's action, Greene has gone 11-for-58 in his last 15 contests, slashing .190/.230/.397 with those three homers boosting his stat line.

In the last seven games, he has one hit in 27 at-bats, striking out 15 times while walking twice.

It shouldn't be a surprise that Greene's struggles have coincided with a tough stretch at the plate for the entire team, scoring more than one run just twice in their last six contests.

Manager A.J. Hinch is aware of the struggles his star outfielder is going through, and he explained what he's seeing that is making Greene perform in this manner.

"It's a vicious sport when you are chasing something. And I'm seeing it pile up on him a little bit," he said, per Chris McCosky of The Detroit News. "I know he's carrying the weight of the last at-bat into the next at-bat ... We're just trying to grind him through this a little bit and get him swinging at better pitches."

Baseball has a funny way of driving players crazy.

Greene looked unstoppable during the early part of April, and when seeing the same type of pitches he had been crushing, he's either striking out or rolling the ball over with soft contact.

The good news is the rising star has proven what he's capable of doing at this level.

Following his rookie season in 2022 where he got into 93 games, Greene has increased his OPS+ each year since that point, putting up a figure that was 19 points above the league average of 100 in 2023 before producing an OPS+ that was 133 last season.

He can hit, and a turnaround will be coming at some point.

How long the star slugger will be in this slump is what both parties are trying to figure out as Detroit faces the Kansas City Royals in a massive four-game set that could determine who sits atop the AL Central standings when it's finished.