Tigers Boss Surprisingly Seems to Condemn Framber Valdez After Ejection
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It's been a rough go of it this week for the Detroit Tigers, and Tuesday night's game against the Boston Red Sox did not make the situation any better.
After losing Tarik Skubal conceivably for at least a few months due to elbow surgery and needing a strong performance from their remaining ace Framber Valdez, they got anything but that. In fact, Valdez was ejected in the fourth inning for the same kind of antics that kept him a free agent for so long this past winter.
The left-hander allowed back-to-back home runs before throwing at Trevor Story, leading to a bench clearing situation and Valdez being tossed out of the game. Afterwards, Detroit manager A.J. Hinch made some headlines by seemingly not having his pitcher's back and criticizing what he did instead.
Hinch Does Not Condone Actions of Valdez
"We play a really good brand of baseball here," Hinch told media including Chris McCosky after the game. "That didn't feel like it. I'm not judging intent. But I know when you go out on the field in those confrontations, you usually feel like you are in your right. It didn't feel good being out there."
That feels like as stern as a reaction as you will ever publicly see from a manager against his own player, which makes you wonder what the conversation was like behind closed doors in the clubhouse.
Valdez has for the most part been as advertised this season, but Detroit knew the baggage that comes along with his strong play, and it was a risk they were willing to take. Given their history, nobody knew that more so than Hinch, but clearly, he was annoyed with the southpaw on Tuesday.
How Tigers, Valdez Move Forward from Here
While the antics were obviously a concern, the bigger worry may be the performance from Valdez and the fact that he now sits with a very average 4.57 ERA and 1.41 WHIP on the season. If Detroit is going to survive the absence of Skubal, Valdez is going to be a huge part of the reason why.
He has bounced back from rough performances already this season, but his next start will be the ultimate test of mental and physical fortitude. Tigers fans will be more than willing to accept what comes with Valdez if he can perform and keep this rotation afloat, but things could get ugly if he keeps struggling.
When Valdez does make his next start, he is going to have more eyes on him than he has had in some time.
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Michael Brauner is a 2022 graduate of the University of Alabama with a degree in Sports Media. He covers various MLB teams across the On SI network and you can also find his work on Yellowhammer News covering the Alabama Crimson Tide and Auburn Tigers as well as on the radio producing and co-hosting 'The Opening Kickoff' every weekday morning on 105.5 WNSP FM in Mobile, Alabama.