Posted on 09/05/2003 8:08:19 PM PDT by Land_of_Lincoln_John
TORONTO (AP) -- Mike Maroth became the first major league pitcher in 23 years to lose 20 games in a season as the Detroit Tigers lost to the Toronto Blue Jays 8-6 on Friday night.
Maroth (6-20) allowed eight runs and nine hits in three-plus innings, becoming the first 20-game loser since Oakland's Brian Kingman went 8-20 in 1980.
Kingman, who wanted to remain baseball's last 20-game loser, attended the game and brought a voodoo doll with him. It's the same doll he took to four other starts in which a major league pitcher could have lost his 20th game but didn't.
"I just don't want Mike to lose," Kingman said before the game.
Maroth wasted 2-0 and 5-2 leads as Kingman kept his doll -- nicknamed "The King" -- by his feet. Asked if he would destroy the doll if Maroth lost, Kingman said: "He'll be 4-1. That's a whole lot better than I was, so I'm going to keep him."
Kingman watched Omar Daal and Albie Lopez avoid becoming 20-game losers. The 49-year-old Phoenix native chatted and joked with reporters throughout the game.
Detroit (37-103) needs at least six wins in its final 22 games to avoid matching the post-1900 record of 120 losses in a season, set by the 1962 New York Mets.
Toronto ended the Tigers' fourth three-game winning streak of the season despite a poor start by Mark Hendrickson, who allowed five runs and seven hits in three innings.
Tanyon Sturtze (7-6), who went 4-18 for Tampa Bay last season, pitched three innings for the win. Aquilino Lopez pitched the ninth for his ninth save.
Craig Monroe's two-run homer gave Detroit a 2-0 lead in the first, but Toronto's Eric Hinske tied it with a two-run shot in the second. Monroe's RBI single and Carlos Pena's two-run single made it 5-2 in the third.
Toronto's Josh Phelps cut it 5-4 with a two-run homer off Maroth.
The Blue Jays scored four runs in the fourth as Maroth failed to get an out. Dave Berg led off with a single, Kevin Cash hit a double and Reed Johnson followed with a two-run single. Mike Bordick chased Maroth with an RBI double that gave Toronto a 7-5 lead, and Carlos Delgado hit an RBI grounder off Matthew Roney.
Brandon Inge's run-scoring single cut it to 8-6 in the sixth.
In point of fact, Martin was a GREAT manager (even if it was only for short periods of time).
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