Browsing: McKinstry

SEATTLE — Zach McKinstry singled home the tiebreaking run with two outs in the 11th inning and the Detroit Tigers outlasted the Seattle Mariners for a 3-2 victory in Game 1 of their AL Division Series on Saturday.

Kerry Carpenter hit a two-run homer in the fifth for the resurgent Tigers, who squandered a huge lead in the AL Central and nearly collapsed entirely down the stretch before squeezing into the playoffs.

After winning their Wild Card Series at Cleveland, they can take a commanding 2-0 lead in this best-of-five matchup against AL West champion Seattle with dominant ace Tarik Skubal on the mound Sunday.

“All year long, I feel like we were either down or we were up,†McKinstry said. “Weâ€re up right now, and weâ€re getting a lot of wins. Things are going our way.â€

In the first extra-inning game of this postseason, McKinstry pounced on the first pitch he saw from reliever Carlos Vargas, a 99.6 mph sinker, and grounded it up the middle to score Spencer Torkelson from second base.

Torkelson, who walked leading off the 11th, advanced to second on a wild pitch by Vargas earlier in the inning.

Unlike during the regular season, there is no automatic runner placed at second base to begin extra innings in the postseason.

It was the Mariners†second consecutive postseason loss at home that went extra innings. They were beaten 1-0 by Houston in 18 innings on Oct. 15, 2022.

Will Vest worked two perfect innings for the win, and Keider Montero got three outs for his first major league save. Montero extended the scoreless start to his postseason career and put the finishing touches on seven innings of one-run ball by Detroitâ€s bullpen.

The Mariners struck first, thanks to a solo homer by Julio Rodríguez in the fourth inning. Rodríguez, fresh off his second season with at least 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases, launched an elevated four-seam fastball from rookie Troy Melton, who was making just his fifth career start.

Seattleâ€s lead didnâ€t last long, though. Carpenter capitalized on an elevated fastball from right-hander George Kirby in a two-strike count, depositing it into the right-field seats to give the Tigers a 2-1 advantage.

Left-handed reliever Gabe Speier was warming up in the Seattle bullpen, but manager Dan Wilson elected to have Kirby face the left-handed-hitting Carpenter.

“We thought George continued to throw the ball pretty well there and still had pretty good stuff and a lot left in the tank,†Wilson said, “and he had been in a couple of tough spots earlier, but really pitched out of it well. And, like I said, (Carpenter) was able to get to the one up in the zone.â€

It was the fifth career homer for Carpenter off Kirby, making him the fourth player in major league history with five or more hits off a particular pitcher — and all of them home runs. It also was the second career postseason homer for Carpenter, who set a career high with 26 during the regular season.

“I tend to see him well,†Carpenter said. “Heâ€s so good, though. He has great stuff, and in the first inning he was really good. So yeah, Iâ€m pretty confident against anybody I go against. I was seeing him well tonight, especially after that first at-bat.â€

Kirby was otherwise sharp in his second postseason start, striking out five across five innings.

Rodríguez ensured the Mariners did not go down easily, poking an RBI single to right in the sixth that tied it at 2.

Seattle closer Andrés Muñoz worked two scoreless innings, the first time he had done so since he was a rookie in 2019 with San Diego.

The Mariners didnâ€t get hits from any players besides Rodríguez and AL MVP contender Cal Raleigh, who chipped in three singles for his third career three-hit game in the postseason.

“All of our bullpen guys, including Troy, even though Troy started, it was a job well done in an environment where the fans were looking to help them get anything started,†Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “We would squash the rally every time.â€

Up next

Mariners RHP Luis Castillo is expected to start against Skubal in Game 2. Castillo is 1-2 with a 1.83 ERA in 19 2/3 postseason innings with 19 strikeouts. Skubal, the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner, pitched 7 2/3 innings of one-run ball in the Wild Card Series opener against Cleveland. He has a 2.03 ERA in four postseason appearances.

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The Detroit Tigers are one win closer to their first ALCS trip in 12 years.

Zach McKinstry’s RBI single in the 11th frame Saturday night lifted the Tigers to a 3-2 extra-innings win over the Seattle Mariners in Game 1 of the ALDS.

McKinstry had gone 0-for-17 at the plate prior to his clutch hit. He was the first Tigers batter to record a go-ahead extra innings hit in the postseason since 2012, per Underdog’s Justin Havens.

The Mariners got in trouble early in the 11th inning when Spencer Torkelson reached second on a walk and wild pitch from Carlos Vargas.

Vargas struck out consecutive batters but was unable to get the final out before McKinstry sent Torkelson home with an RBI single. Tigers closer Keider Montero then stepped up to close out the win in the bottom of the 11th.

Earlier in the evening, Tigers starter Troy Melton was able to keep the Mariners off the board until the fourth inning. That’s when Julio Rodríguez hit the first postseason home run of his career.

The hit also marked the first time the Mariners sent a postseason runner home since Game 2 of the 2001 ALCS.

The Tigers answered in the top of the fifth, starting with a Parker Meadows single. Kerry Carpenter then hit a homer off George Kirby to give Detroit its first lead of the game.

The hit improved Kirby’s career record against Carpenter to 5-for-11 with five home runs, per MLB.

Rodríguez stepped up again for the Mariners in the bottom of the sixth inning with an RBI single to tie the game at 2-2.

Meadows looked like he might have gotten the game-deciding hit when he connected again in the top of the ninth, but Mariners reliever Andrés Muñoz snagged the ball to keep the game tied.

The Mariners got one final shot in extra innings when Rodríguez singled in the bottom of the 11th frame. Montero then forced Josh Naylor into a ground out to seal the win.

The Tigers will now have the chance to take a 2-0 series lead when Tarik Skubal takes the mount to start Game 2 of the ALDS on Sunday night at 8:03 p.m. ET in Seattle.

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