Lee's Ninth-Inning Double Buries Angels After Detmers Gem

Hao-Yu Lee doubled to center in the ninth, scoring two runs and swinging the win probability from 87% in LAA's favor to 18% — a 69-point collapse in a single swing. Detroit stole a 2-1 decision from the Angels on July 18, erasing a lead that had stood since the first inning.

The Angels looked in control from the jump. In the first, Josh Lowe grounded out to second, but the play scored Zach Neto and pushed runners to second and third — LAA 1, DET 0, and that's where the scoreboard sat for the better part of the night. Reid Detmers made sure of it, spinning six innings of four-hit, zero-run ball with seven strikeouts and not a single walk. That's a performance that deserves a win, and for eight innings, it looked like it would get one.

Troy Melton gave Detroit a credible start — 5.2 innings, nine strikeouts, just one earned run — but four walks kept him from ever looking comfortable. The story of the night, though, belongs to Keider Montero, who appears to have been the bridge that kept Detroit alive. Montero threw 3.1 innings of one-hit, scoreless relief, striking out five without issuing a walk. That kind of efficiency from a reliever is what allows a team to stay within striking distance long enough for something improbable to happen.

And improbable is exactly what happened. With LAA sitting at 87% win probability in the ninth, Lee stepped in and doubled to center. Greene scored. Outman scored. The umpires reviewed the call and upheld it. Just like that, the win probability cratered to 18% for the home side, and Detroit walked out with a 2-1 final. Lee finished 1-for-4 with both RBI on the night — the only two Detroit runs scored. Matt Vierling went 2-for-4 and Riley Greene reached base and scored, but this game will be remembered for one swing. Sam Bachman worked a clean inning of relief for LAA — three strikeouts, no runs — but it didn't matter. When a team scores once in nine innings and hands the ball to a pitcher who throws six shutout frames, the margin for error is zero. Lee found the one crack in the wall, and Detroit didn't need another.