Detroit Tigers, Game 17: One thing I loved, one thing I didn't

Q: What was the final score of the Tigers vs. Royals game on Tuesday?

The final score was 2-1 in favor of the Detroit Tigers.

Q: What changes did the Tigers make to their broadcasting network?

The Tigers transitioned from FanDuel Sports Network to Detroit SportsNet under the MLB Media umbrella.

Q: How has the new broadcasting network improved the viewing experience for fans?

Fans have noted a cleaner broadcast with fewer gambling graphics and a simple, easy-to-read score display.

Q: What were the Tigers' offensive stats in the game against the Royals?

The Tigers had only two hits entering the eighth inning, both of which were infield singles.

The News' Tony Paul gives his quick takes on the Tigers' 2-1 win over the Royals on Tuesday:

One thing I loved

It wasn't a long broadcast — that happens when the teams combine for three runs; the Tigers had just two hits entering the eighth inning, both infield singles — but it was a clean broadcast.

I've been meaning to say this for a while about the Tigers' new TV network, Detroit SportsNet.

The Tigers moved on from the soon-to-shutter FanDuel Sports Network and moved under the MLB Media umbrella, and it's been beneficial for the fans, who no longer are inundated with constant gambling odds and crawls and unnecessary graphics. There's a single score bug in the bottom right-hand corner that's small but has all the information you need (even ABS challenges remaining) and is very easy to read.

The Tigers, in taking over more control of the broadcast, clearly have decided that less is more, and kudos to them. They're nailing it.

Let's hope it stays that way, especially once Detroit SportsNet's presenting sponsor, bet365, becomes a legal betting operator in the state of Michigan later this month.

One thing I didn't

It's shaping up to be another lost season for Parker Meadows.

Meadows — the Tigers' center fielder who was an invaluable piece to the playoff puzzle in 2024 before falling off in 2025 amid a freak spring-training nerve injury from which he never did get right — was transferred to the 60-day injured list earlier this week after his scary collision with left fielder Riley Greene last Thursday.

Meadows, 26, suffered a broken arm and concussion in the collision with Greene, he's had surgery on the arm, and he now stands to be out of action until at least early June — just as he was starting to look a bit more like the Meadows of old, with that athleticism that can play so well in center field and on the bases.

It'll mean more center-field reps for Javier Báez and more shortstop reps for Kevin McGonigle, and probably more third-base reps for Colt Keith, too. The offense shouldn't suffer, thanks in large part to McGonigle's scorching start to his major-league career, but there might be a sight fall off defensively, at multiple positions, as a ripple effect.

Meadows, a second-round pick by the Tigers in 2018, is on the injured list for the sixth time since 2021.

Who is Ted Kazanski?

There was an interesting historical stat from the Detroit SportsNet crew Tuesday: The record for at-bats to start a season without a walk, hit or strikeout belongs to a man named Ted Kazanski (yes, that's Ka-ZAN-ski). Kazanski went 22 at-bats to start the 1954 season.

It wasn't the most exciting Tigers game, at least until the bottom of the eighth inning (what instincts by Zach McKinstry, what a rope by Dillon Dingler, so I went down the rabbit hole on Kazanski. Here's what I learned:

He was born in Hamtramck.
He played at the University of Detroit (back when it had a baseball team).
He was a bonus baby who signed with the Philadelphia Phillies for $100,000 in 1951.
He played parts of six seasons in the major leagues, and had four RBIs in his major-league debut in 1953. He once had an inside-the-park home run and started a triple play in the same game.
Post-playing days, he had coaching stints with the Tigers and the University of Detroit, before retiring to northern Michigan.
According to Baseball-Reference.com, he's still living. He's 92 years old.