Detroit Tigers: Gregory Soto takes a sharp decline after excellent start

The Detroit Tigers saw Gregory Soto get off to a roaring start, but now he has seen a sharp decline based on his past couple outings.

The Detroit Tigers bullpen got off to a stunning start, Gregory Soto looked to be settling in as a left-handed flamethrower trusted with the seventh inning. Water always finds its level, and Soto’s streak of scoreless innings was put to bed by his last two starts.

Not to say that Soto will not be dominant in his return to the mound, but the latest series with the Chicago White Sox seems to have been quite the struggle for the pitching staff. Beyond Soto, some of the White Sox hitters were true “Tiger-killers” in the box.

Soto’s presence on the mound so far in 2020 has been dominant and quite the turnaround from the 2019 version of himself. He looks to have settled in, and the break that COVID-19 caused allowed him to work on things and show up a new version of himself.

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So far, in 2020, Soto has appeared in 12 games, totaling 11.1 innings pitched where he has a 4.86 ERA and a 0.90 WHIP. Soto has walked three, struck out 15, hit two, and allowed seven total hits on the 2020 season.

The issue for Soto has come in the last two outings that he had against the White Sox where things have gone haywire, and his inability to control the longball has begun to hurt him.

His last two appearances have seen Soto give up all six earned runs he has surrendered in 2020. Two home runs have contributed to that as well.

His outing on August 18th against the White Sox saw Soto exit the game before recording an out, he gave up two hits, walked one batter, hit another, and allowed four earned runs. He got the hook before recording an out, the next night he would not do much better.

While things got off to a much better start, Soto led off with a strikeout, but that was followed by two home runs that would ultimately tack onto his recent struggles. His struggles on the mound turned a tie game into a loss, on a day where there was plenty of excitement around the debut of Casey Mize.

Now, Soto will get things figured out and be back to form, in an ideal world. Soto can take this series, chalk it up as a tough go and get back out there sooner than later. He should be able to return to form, but there is no denying that he took a sharp decline after an incredible start.

The Detroit Tigers should not be too worried yet, remain optimistic, it was an unfortunate series for Soto, and he will have things figured out for his next outing. Water always finds its level, but remain optimistic.