Detroit Tigers score: Riley Greene homered in the ninth inning to keep the Tigers from being shut out for the second straight game in Texas.
ARLINGTON, TX — The first hit occurred with two outs in the sixth inning.
Texas Rangers right-hander Kumar Rocker was no-hitting the Detroit Tigers on Saturday, July 19, until Wenceel Pérez saved them from being on the wrong side of history, hitting a two-strike cutter to right field for a single.
The Tigers still lost, 4-1.
The Tigers (59-40) have lost six games in a row, including back-to-back matchups against the Rangers at Globe Life Field. The offense hadn't scored a run since the seventh inning Sunday, July 13 – before the All-Star break – until Riley Greene snapped a 19-inning scoreless streak with a solo home run in the ninth inning.
Before this losing streak, the Tigers hadn't dropped more than three games in a row, doing so three times. They've now lost two series in a row, for the first time all season.
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In Saturday's loss, the Tigers were limited to three hits and four walks.
The three walks: Gleyber Torres in the first inning, Torres in the fourth, Pérez in the fourth and Jake Rogers in the seventh.
The back-to-back walks from Torres and Pérez opened the fourth inning, but the next three batters were retired to strand the runners: Greene (flyout), Spencer Torkelson (strikeout) and Zach McKinstry (groundout).
In the seventh inning, pinch-hitter Matt Vierling delivered the second hit for the Tigers — a two-out single off left-handed reliever Hoby Milner's full-count changeup below the strike zone. After the single, Rogers drew a walk to put a runner into scoring position, but pinch-hitter Jahmai Jones struck out swinging to end the inning.
Greene saved the Tigers from getting shut out for the second game in a row, crushing right-handed reliever Jacob Webb's first-pitch changeup for a solo home run in the ninth inning.
It was his 25th homer in 97 games.
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Keider Montero starts for Tigers
Right-hander Keider Montero allowed four runs on four hits and three walks with five strikeouts across 4⅓ innings, throwing just 57.3% of his 82 pitches for strikes.
The 25-year-old entered Saturday's start with a 68.2% strike rate in his first 13 games (seven starts) in the 2025 season, but he failed to throw strikes against the Rangers.
In the second inning, Rowdy Tellez hit a three-run home run off Montero's fastball in a 3-0 count — giving the Rangers a 3-0 lead. Before the homer, Adolis García hit a single and Evan Carter drew a walk.
A single and a walk in the fifth inning led to Corey Seager's RBI single off Montero's slider, extending the Rangers' lead to 4-0. The single from Seager chased Montero.
Montero owns a 4.28 ERA.
Kumar Rocker stars for Rangers
For the Rangers, Rocker completed 6⅓ scoreless innings on one hit and three walks with five strikeouts. It was the second scoreless start of his 15-start MLB career — and his first scoreless start of more than five innings.
The Rangers selected Rocker with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2022 MLB Draft.
He has a 5.66 ERA in 12 starts in 2025.
In Saturday's game, Rocker retired eight batters in a row before Pérez snapped his no-hit bid. A mound visit from Rangers pitching coach Mike Maddux helped him lock in after the back-to-back walks in the fourth inning.
Rocker threw 96 pitches.
Contact Evan Petzold at [email protected] or follow him @EvanPetzold.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers losing streak hits six with 4-1 loss to Texas Rangers
Category: Baseball
