MLB Rewind: Detroit Tigers stun Texas Rangers in the 9th inning with 13 runs
You have to trace back to the Ty Cobb era to witness a franchise feat that the Detroit Tigers accomplished on August 9, 2001. It was a night the Texas Rangers would rather forget. The set was a muggy, humid evening at the Ballpark at Arlington. The score, amazingly enough, was a 6-6 tie game as the Detroit Tigers came to bat to begin the ninth inning.
The intensity of the tightly-locked American League bout leading up to that moment reflected itself in the tense atmosphere exhumed from the restless crowd. The once raucous clamor of the Texas Rangers crowd disapated into a fierce hush of nervous anticipation as the ninth began. The events that unfolded would soon transfer the collective tension into a mingling of multiple emotions across the ballpark. The events themselves tell a story from beginning to end. Here are the details that headlined the biggest single-inning onslaught in Tigers history.
The early tone set
From the instant Rob Fick stepped into the batter's box, the tone was immediately set for what was destined to transpire. Mike Venafro's first pitch fastball beaned Fick to lead off the inning. As a chorus of boos rang out from the stands, the next Detroit hitter stepped up.
A string of extra base hits
Things only got worse from there. Following the leadoff walk, the Tigers never looked back. In just half an inning, it became a long night for Texas Rangers fans. The next hitter, Bobby Higginson, followed up the hit-by-pitch with an opposite-field line drive double that landed just to the right of the chalk for a fair ball and rattled into the outfield corner.
With the game still knotted at six apiece and runners on second and third, Venefro intentionally walked Clark to load the bases and open the potential for a force out. But the inning only grew worse for the Texas Rangers and Mike Venefro. A triple cleared the bases, bursting the game wide open for Detroit, who now possessed a 9-6 lead. A double and a single in successive at-bats ran the toll up to 11-6 to mark the fifth run of the inning. An already deflated crowd had begun dispersing into the night, leaving empty patches all around the park. When Venefro left the game, he was tagged with five runs and was responsible for the runner on first.
Detroit Tigers power enters the scene
As if a five-run lead wasn't enough ot solidify the win, then entered the power. First came a two-run home run. After a string of three straight singles loaded the bases again, the Tiger offense unloaded a grand slam.
August 8, 2001 - The Detroit Tigers explode for 13 runs in a wild 9th inning. https://t.co/PjcmPKjbzJ
"August 8,2001 - The Detroit Tigers explode for 13 runs in a wild 9th inning" - @ Iffy The Dopester
When it was all said and done, the final score was 19-6, concluding a historic offensive feat that Tigers fans will never forget and Rangers fans don't want to remember.
What went wrong with the Texas Rangers?
It's easy to impulsively rebut, "Everything," or, "What didn't go wrong?" in sarcastic jeering. But, there was one specific problem that all Rangers pitchers struggled with that night, specifically in the ninth inning. Nearly every damaging pitch — and there were many — was a result of a missed target. Anywhere the catcher set up, the pitches sailed to the opposite side of the plate, and several hung out over the middle. Check out the video below, and you'll see the location mistakes on nearly every pitch.
Tigers Score 13 Runs in the 9th Inning youtu.be/1bz97bCDTMo via @YouTube
The 2001 Detroit Tigers will always have a soft spot in my heart. Just pure childhood joy.
"Tigers Score 13 Runs in the 9th Inning https://youtu.be/1bz97bCDTMo via @YouTube The 2001 Detroit Tigers will always have a soft spot in my heart. Just pure childhood joy." - @ Benjamin
In the MLB, you need to hit your targets consistently to be successful. Put simply, it didn't matter if Venefro or the Easter bunny was out there, because location mistakes will do you in every time at the big-league level.