1. Detroit Tigers Demote Closer Alex Lange to Triple-A After Outburst

2. The move comes after Lange threw a baseball over the Tigers dugout into the protective netting in a reckless fashion following a series of poor outings.

The Detroit Tigers have demoted closer Alex Lange to Triple-A Toledo after a series of events that did not make manager AJ Hinch happy.

According to the Tigers' broadcast on Bally Sports Detroit, Lange had given up two runs on two hits and two walks in the top of the eighth inning of a game against the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday. After walking in the go-ahead run, Lange threw a baseball "about 90 miles per hour over the Tigers dugout" into the protective netting in a "reckless" fashion.

Hinch came out for a mound visit and visibly scolded Lange, who was visibly frustrated.

"I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a pitcher throw a ball that hard when they want a new baseball," Tigers broadcaster Jack Benetti said. "Usually they just lob it over there, and as soon as the ball ricocheted off the netting, I saw A.J. Hinch go to the steps, and it didn’t look like a pitching change."

The Royals went on to win the game, 8-3.

Lange's frustration is understandable. He went from a 26-save season in 2023 to being demoted to lower-leverage spots in 2024. His ERA has jumped from last year's 3.68 to 4.34, he's walking a career-high 8.2 batters per nine innings, and his WHIP is an astoundingly high 1.77.

After the outburst, Hinch said the demotion was purely performance-related.

"I’ll answer the obvious question: After all the emotion yesterday, is this a reaction to something? The answer is no," Hinch said. "We’ve talked about Alex in recent weeks, or actually, for the entirety of his major league career, about strike-throwing and execution."

"His role has changed a little bit," Hinch continued. "That was due to his struggles with the strike zone, and as it continued yesterday, and he started falling further and further behind in the role category in a bullpen, we decided the best place for him to go work on that is in Toledo."

Lange started off the season great, allowing just one earned run in his first 14 innings pitched. However, this had been the second time in his last five games allowing four earned runs in an inning or less of work.

The Tigers are hoping that a stint in Triple-A will help Lange get back on track.