BASEBALL/Lee Hao-yu blasts 4th home run in Tigers' loss

Taipei, July 3 (CNA) Detroit Tigers rookie Lee Hao-yu (李灝宇), one of only two Taiwanese position players in Major League Baseball, hit his fourth home run of the season in a 10-4 road loss to the Texas Rangers on Thursday.

The blast, Lee's first two-run shot this season, came in the fifth inning, one inning after he struck out against Rangers starter Nathan Eovaldi.

With Zack McKinstry on first and the Tigers trailing 5-1, Lee jumped on a hanging splitter over the inner half of the plate and sent it just over the left-field wall.

According to MLB.com, the ball left his bat at 98.9 mph and traveled 383 feet.

Lee had another opportunity to drive in runs in the sixth when he came up with the bases loaded, but he struck out on three pitches against reliever Peyton Gray to end the inning.

The 23-year-old finished 1-for-4 with three strikeouts, leaving his batting average at .255. The home run also extended his on-base streak to 11 games.

Eovaldi struck out nine over five innings to earn his ninth win after allowing three runs on six hits and one walk. All three runs came on two home runs.

Tigers starter Framber Valdez allowed five runs over five innings to take his sixth loss.

The defeat snapped Detroit's three-game winning streak. The Tigers fell to 38-50, fourth in the American League Central, eight games behind the division-leading Chicago White Sox and Cleveland Guardians.