ANAHEIM, Calif. -- The Detroit Tigers almost pulled off the type of comeback that could have acted as a temporary salve on some of the club's festering wounds, but any such hopes were dashed with a walkoff home run in the ninth inning that saddled the Tigers with an 11-9 loss -- their fourth straight defeat -- and some sobering realities to face.

Chief among them is the fact that Anibal Sanchez has become a liability on the mound, evidenced by another abysmal performance Tuesday night in which he lasted only three innings and served up what amounted to batting practice for the Los Angeles Angels.

It was not only the six runs -- including three homers -- he surrendered over the span of 64 pitches; it was the palpable feeling that this is a pitcher who is desperately searching for traction, some sort of mental foothold, and is failing.

"I don't think he's real confident on the mound right now," manager Brad Ausmus said. "We're going to have to make an adjustment with [Sanchez], something's gotta be done, because we need better starts than that."

Ausmus and the Tigers now face a choice: Does Sanchez remain in the starting rotation, or is it time for someone else to occupy his spot?

"Obviously, I wouldn't discuss that here," Ausmus said, repeatedly declining to elaborate further and growing cagey when pressed about the team's plans.

The choice should not be a difficult one. Sanchez even admitted that the way he's pitching right now was "not competitive." Plus, the Tigers have the luxury of options, with six starting pitchers on the roster, Shane Greene nearing a return from the disabled list and Daniel Norris throwing more and more like the top prospect the club believes him to be.

The decision in reality is difficult, however. With two years remaining on a five-year, $80 million contract, Sanchez is too expensive to designate for assignment, especially for a team already sporting an extremely costly payroll. Sanchez could pitch out of the bullpen, similar to what the Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins have opted to try with Clay Buchholz and Phil Hughes, respectively, in the past week, though there is no guarantee that would buoy his confidence or rectify what is plaguing him. Even identifying the issue ailing Sanchez has been difficult.

"I don't know what's going on right now," he said.

Sanchez has shown flashes of the pitcher he was in previous years, but not with the sort of consistency the Tigers need to justify keeping him in the rotation. In 11 starts this season, he has given up 14 home runs and his ERA has ballooned to a career-high 6.67 ERA in 56 2/3 innings pitched, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

Ausmus says he believes Sanchez still has the talent to be a big-league pitcher. So do his teammates. That makes his painful deterioration on the mound all the more baffling.

"It's always tough to see a teammate struggle,: said veteran second baseman Ian Kinsler, whose first career grand slam helped fuel the Tigers' just-shy-of-miraculous comeback in the seventh inning. "This game can humble you. The good thing about this game is he's going to have another opportunity."

What remains murky is exactly where and when that will be.

The pitching foibles extend beyond the starting rotation, with reliever Mark Lowe struggling as well; he served up the walkoff home run to C.J. Cron in the ninth and took a backbreaking loss that leaves him now 1-3.

"He's obviously not throwing the same way as he was last year. His results aren't the same. We know he's better than what we've seen," Ausmus said. "He's struggled quite a bit here recently, but we've got to get him going here somehow because we need people at the back of the bullpen."

The Tigers can take solace from an inspired rally that culminated with Victor Martinez's solo shot that tied the score in the eighth inning, and the fact that both Justin Upton and J.D. Martinez blasted slump-busting homers of their own. Cameron Maybin's seventh-inning scare, mercifully for the Tigers' sake, does not appear to be anything serious. His left wrist, which was injured in spring training, flared up on him when he fouled off a pitch, but he was optimistic he'd play Wednesday.

Those feel like small consolations right now, however, considering the bigger issues that loom.

And right now, Sanchez is one of them.