Coming off a three-game sweep of the division-leading Chicago White Sox, the Detroit Tigers had to prove their worth in the slumping American League Wild Card race. And that’s exactly what they did Monday night.
Detroit traveled to Pittsburgh and jumped out to a huge 8-1 lead. The Pirates tried to rally late, but fell short as the Tigers held on for an 8-5 victory. Detroit picked up its 61st win of the season, improving to 61-65 overall.
So where does Detroit land in the standings? With the Chicago White Sox and Baltimore Orioles both losing, along with the Texas Rangers having the day off, the Tigers moved back to 4.5 games out of the division. They now sit in a three-way tie with Texas and Baltimore for the final Wild Card spot, while Minnesota and Toronto sit just 0.5 games behind.
So, let’s get to the three stars from the game, along with the other news and notes from Monday’s big win.
3RD STAR: Kevin McGonigle
The lone home run in an eight-run game, McGonigle couldn’t be left out of the three stars.
McGonigle finished 2-for-6, scoring two runs while adding two RBIs. With two outs and a man on in the second inning, McGonigle got ahold of a pitch and sent it deep to center field for his 13th home run of the season, giving Detroit a 4-0 lead.
He also added a single in the sixth inning and eventually came around to score the Tigers’ sixth run, extending the lead to 6-1 at the time.
2ND STAR: Zach McKinstry
Fire up the Chips! McKinstry put on a show Monday night, going 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI.
In the first inning, McKinstry got things going with a single to center field that scored Torres. He then added two more singles in the fifth and eighth innings.
McKinstry also drew a walk in the sixth inning, loading the bases before he eventually came around to score on a Callahan base hit.
1ST STAR: Hao-Yu Lee
Lee came to play Monday night, reaching base in all five of his opportunities with three singles and two walks.
His singles came in the first, third and eighth innings, while his walks came in the fifth and sixth. Lee came around to score in the fifth, while his bases-loaded RBI walk in the sixth was a massive one for Detroit.
Lee continues to be an insanely bright spot in the Tigers lineup, and with a perfect 5-for-5 night in reaching base, he earns the first star of the game.
Honorable Mentions
Gleyber Torres: Led off the first inning with a walk and later came around to score the first run of the game. In the second, Torres singled to center with two outs and later scored again on McGonigle’s home run. He also drew a walk in the ninth.
Colt Keith: Added a two-out single in the first and later scored on a Hao-Yu Lee single. Keith also walked in the sixth and came around to score on Callahan’s two-RBI single.
Dillon Dingler: Singled in the second inning and added a walk in the fourth.
Max Clark: Picked up a single in the third before adding another in the fifth, scoring the Tigers’ fifth run of the game.
Brett Callahan: Reached on an error in the fifth. Then, in the sixth, Callahan came through with a two-RBI single up the middle, scoring both McKinstry and Keith.
Framber Valdez: Everything was smooth for 5.2 innings. Valdez had allowed just four hits and one run while striking out five and walking two. However, with a man on second and two outs in the sixth, Valdez walked two consecutive batters to load the bases. Nick Yorke then doubled to deep left, clearing the bases and pulling Pittsburgh within four runs. That ultimately ended Valdez’s day at 5.2 innings, allowing five hits and five runs, four earned, with five strikeouts and four walks.