Anthony Fenech

Detroit Free Press

LAKELAND, Fla. – It wasn’t how Anibal Sanchez looked.

And in his spring training debut on this afternoon against the Braves, he didn’t look good. He looked like the pitcher the Detroit Tigers haven’t been able to count on over the past two seasons – up in the zone, with diminished stuff and frustrated.

It wasn’t the ugly line: Three runs on four hits with a walk in an inning pitched.

It was the way the veteran right-hander sounded after the short outing. He sounded lost, like he has each of the past two seasons, trying desperately to search for something – anything – to inspire confidence.

“I don’t know,” he said, when asked what he made of the results. “I don’t know. Watch the videos. I don’t know what’s going on.”

Sanchez allowed all singles – most on hard contact – and did not record an out until the 24th pitch of his outing. His fastball was clocked at 89-91 m.p.h., according to a major league scout in attendance who noted the changeup was his best pitch.

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Sanchez threw 20 pitches and allowed three runs. If not for a dandy defensive stop by third baseman Nick Castellanos, who dove to his backhand to assist on the final out of the third inning, he could have been pulled without escaping the inning.

“He just left some balls up,” manager Brad Ausmus said. “It’s obviously not the results he wants but it’s just one outing. We’ll see how he progresses.”

Sanchez, who was celebrating his 33rd birthday today, reported to Tiger Town in better shape than in years past because he had no lingering health issues into the off-season. His main focus was getting back some of the fastball oomph that has dropped off since exiting his prime years.

“I feel good,” he said. “I feel good. And I think my body feels strong and I feel really good. … I think I was working really hard in the off-season and to be able to do this in the first outing, I don’t need something like that.”

The Tigers were hoping Sanchez – due $16.8 million this season, the last of a four-year, $80 million contract signed prior to the 2014 season – would make a strong run at the fifth starter’s spot, reverting to something resembling his front-line form of yesteryear.

In 2016, he went 7-13 with a 5.87 ERA and 1.46 WHIP last season, looking like the shell of a pitcher that was once considered top-of-the-rotation caliber.

One outing in, and it looked like more of the same.

During the lengthy inning, he was visibly frustrated. After his 12th pitch, he slammed his glove. After his 27th, his discontent could be heard.

But in trying to stay the course and keep the optimism of his off-season workouts alive, he ended a brief session with reporters by saying, “I’ll be fine. I’ll be fine.”

One for the books: In the fourth inning, a play that you will rarely see.

A fly ball towards the leftfield line, with shortstop Jose Iglesias and leftfielder Justin Upton converging. Iglesias, ever the glovesman, threw out a backhand. The ball bobbled out of his glove and into Upton’s for a 6-7 put-out.

“I’m sure I have seen one of those at some point,” Ausmus said. “I don’t know if it was like that but I’ve probably seen it before.”

Contact Anthony Fenech: afenech@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @anthonyfenech.