The Detroit Tigers entered the fifth inning without a hit against Texas Rangers right-hander Jack Leiter.
And then Spencer Torkelson stepped to the plate.
A two-run home run from Torkelson fueled the Tigers in a 7-1 win over the Texas Rangers on Sunday, May 3, in the finale of the three-game series at Comerica Park, but “pitching chaos” set the tone.
Manager A.J. Hinch established the strategy in the final two months of the 2024 season, unleashing unpredictability from relievers in the bullpen. He turned back the clock in Sunday’s game against the Rangers, beginning with left-hander Tyler Holton as the opener.
The strategy was successful, as six relievers limited the Rangers to one run.
Not only did the Tigers (18-17) secure the series win over the Rangers (16-18), but they also moved above .500 for the first time in seven days, dating back to April 26. Next up, the Tigers welcome the Boston Red Sox on Monday (6:40 p.m., Detroit SportsNet) for a three-game series.
In Sunday’s game, the Tigers weaponized their relievers with Hinch’s genius in the chess match.
The best three hitters for the Rangers are Brandon Nimmo (left-handed hitter), Corey Seager (left-handed hitter) and Josh Jung (right-handed hitter). The trio finished 3-for-12 with zero walks and four strikeouts against the slew of relievers from the Tigers.
All three hits were singles.
The six relievers for the Tigers: Holton for two outs, right-hander Brenan Hanifee for five, left-hander Brant Hurter for 10, right-hander Ricky Vanasco for four, right-hander Kyle Finnegan for three and right-hander Burch Smith for the final three.
The offense supported the parade of relievers in the fifth inning.
Although Leiter retired the first 12 batters he faced, the Tigers responded with Riley Greene’s four-pitch walk to open the fifth – followed by Torkelson’s game-changing home run.
He pulled a hanging two-strike slider for a no-doubt homer, putting the Tigers ahead, 2-0.
The Tigers extended their lead to 3-0 on Kevin McGonigle’s RBI single off Leiter’s two-strike changeup in the sixth inning, which happened immediately after Jake Rogers legged out a leadoff triple on a two-strike curveball that got past center fielder Evan Carter and rolled to the wall.
The run-scoring didn’t stop there.
The Tigers put up four runs in the seventh for a 7-1 lead.
All four runs were scored with two outs.
The first run came from Hao-Yu Lee, delivering an RBI single off Leiter’s two-strike sinker for a 5-1 lead. The hit chased Leiter from a successful start – despite the crooked numbers in the box score – forcing the Rangers to call on left-handed reliever Tyler Alexander. After that, McGonigle hit an RBI single for a 5-1 lead and Matt Vierling hit a two-RBI double for a 7-1 lead.
Leiter – the No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 draft – allowed five runs on five hits and one walk with 10 strikeouts across 6⅔ innings, throwing 100 pitches. The 26-year-old has a 5.45 ERA through seven starts.
Two Tigers had two-hit performances: McGonigle and Rogers.
Both hitters collected one hit apiece against Leiter and Alexander.
The Rangers scored their lone run off Vanasco in the seventh inning, trimming the Tigers’ lead to 3-1. A double, a walk and a wild pitch put two runners in scoring position, then a groundout plated the run.
Aside from that, the Tigers kept the Rangers from crossing home in the other eight innings.
All thanks to pitching chaos.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Pitching chaos sets tone for Tigers’ win, fueled by Spencer Torkelson
Reporting by Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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