Minnesota Twins fall to Detroit Tigers as Bailey Ober’s month of difficulty continues

DETROIT - Bailey Ober equaled a record held by a Hall of Famer on Saturday.

If only that accomplishment was as great as it sounds.

Ober, scuffling through perhaps the worst month of his career, surrendered four home runs to Detroit’s rugged lineup, more than enough to end the Twins’ three-game winning streak. The Tigers scored in seven of the eight innings they batted and walked — well, trotted — away with a 10-5 victory at Comerica Park.

In succumbing to all that firepower, Ober tied Bert Blyleven’s Twins record of 14 home runs allowed in a calendar month, a mark that has stood for 39 years and one month. In fact, only one pitcher in MLB history has allowed more: Pedro Ramos of the Washington Senators — yep, the Twins’ original forefathers — with 17 in June 1957.

It’s quite a tumble for the tall righthander who surrendered only three homers over 30 innings in April, and only two in 29⅓ innings in May. And perhaps most distressing of all: Nobody, particularly Ober, can pinpoint the problem.

“I wish I knew. I’m throwing good pitches. They’re hitting them. Sometimes they’re 40 exit velocity, and sometimes they’re home runs right now,” a somber Ober said after giving up seven runs for the third time in four starts. “I’ve just got to try to figure something out, make some adjustments. I feel good. Throwing good pitches and just getting hit.”

Ober (4-6) still made a contribution, manager Rocco Baldelli said, by absorbing almost six innings despite giving up a hit in each of them and at least one run in five. His pitch count remained low against the aggressive Tigers. In the fourth inning, for instance, after a six-pitch leadoff walk to Matt Vierling, Ober gave up a single, a sacrifice bunt, a sacrifice fly, a two-run home run and an inning-ending flyout — all on just eight pitches.

“You’re not going to figure it out by not pitching. You’re going to figure it out on the mound, with the ball in your hand, trying something different,” Baldelli said. “He’s a guy who’s not afraid of an adjustment. He’s a guy that normally, when he gets into situations, can make a pitch, can figure out a way to get through. But it’s not just one pitch. Different pitches are getting hit right now.”

That’s for sure. Kerry Carpenter got the Home Run Derby started in the third inning with a shot into the right field seats off a 3-2 slider. An inning later, Gleyber Torres bombed a first-pitch fastball over the center field fence, just out of Harrison Bader’s reach. Riley Greene led off the fifth inning by blasting a low-and-in sweeper into the seats in right, and Zach McKinstry hooked a knee-high changeup just inside the right field foul pole in the sixth.

Four different pitches, four home runs. It was a long day for the Twins, who earlier this season won seven consecutive games started by Ober but who now have lost seven of his starts in a row.

“This game is really cruel. The last couple of years, he’s been that rock in our rotation,” catcher Ryan Jeffers said. “He’s going out and giving us steady outings every time he’s out there. It doesn’t matter what’s going on right now, we still trust in that guy and believe that guy is in there.”

The Twins showed a little power of their own, too, though it made little difference.

BOXSCORE: Detroit 10, Twins 5

MLB standings

Byron Buxton collected three hits for the Twins, including his 19th home run of the season, and Carlos Correa cracked a two-run shot, his seventh.

“We actually had good at-bats today” against Tigers righthander Casey Mize, Baldelli said. “Buck was fantastic again, another great day for him. You know, I’m getting in a habit of saying that right now, and that’s a good thing for us.”

Jeffers could have hit two home runs, but Carpenter reached over the wall in left field to rob him in the second inning, and Vierling took one away at the center field wall in the seventh.

“You have to [laugh],” Jeffers said. “That’s the maturity in me understanding you play the long game and you keep putting good swings on the ball, good stuff is going to happen. When you’re young in this game, it’s hard to realize that.”