Midway through the Tigers' 5-2 loss to the Angels Tuesday night Ron Gardenhire left the dugout and never returned.
Bench coach Steve Liddle, who took over as manager for the rest of the game, said afterward Gardenhire suffered an allergic reaction from something he ate or drank. His face started swelling and he broke out in hives, so team doctors took him inside for treatment.
"About the third inning," Liddle said. "We needed to rush him up there (to the clubhouse) and make sure it didn’t get any further. Our team doctor wouldn’t let him come back downstairs. But he’s doing fine now and he’ll be able to tell you about it tomorrow."
Gardenhire never had trouble breathing, Liddle said.
Daniel Norris, who allowed three runs over five innings Tuesday night, said he first noticed Gardenhire was having trouble when he saw him in the clubhouse after being lifted from the game.
Naturally, Gardenhire had a joke ready.
"He was up here with a swollen lip and hives and stuff," said Norris. "I think he’s fine. He was joking about it. I said, 'Man, did I give you the hives watching me pitch?' He said, 'No, no.' And then he came back a couple innings later and he’s like, 'Yeah, probably you did.'"
The Tigers play the second game of three versus the Angels Wednesday night at Comerica Park.