The Tigers optioned Lange to Triple-A Toledo on Thursday.
A day after allowing four earned runs in one inning during Wednesday's loss to the Royals, Lange will be sent to Triple-A in order to get back on track. The 28-year-old owns a 4.34 ERA and 1.77 WHIP alongside a 21:17 K:BB through 18.2 innings this season, and he figures to return to Detroit's bullpen once he starts turning in promising results with Toledo. In the meantime, Mason Englert will come up from Triple-A to take Lange's place.
Lange (0-2) allowed an unearned run on one hit to take the loss in Wednesday's 5-4, 10-inning contest against the Guardians.
After recording the final out of the ninth inning, Lange had the unenviable task of pitching the bottom of the 10th in a tie game with a runner starting on second base. The righty retired the first batter but then allowed a walk-off hit to Brayan Rocchio. There shouldn't be too much read into the loss, and Lange has pitched well all season, as he's sitting with a stellar 0.64 ERA across 14 innings. Lange should continue to see high-leverage work for the Tigers moving forward, and he could slide back into the closer role at some point if he keeps up the strong play.
