Spencer Torkelson Delievers Another Game Winner

That is where Drew Anderson changed the game.

Anderson gave the Tigers exactly what they needed: four scoreless innings, one hit, no walks and one strikeout. He entered in the fifth and retired 12 of the 13 batters he faced, helping settle a game that could have easily drifted away after another early pitching disruption.

The timing was important because Detroit’s pitching picture is finally beginning to look a little healthier. Earlier Friday, A.J. Hinch said Casey Mize is expected to return Saturday, giving the Tigers a needed rotation piece, even if his workload is monitored. Justin Verlander also threw a 50-pitch live batting practice session, with Hinch noting improved velocity and sharper pitch quality, while Troy Melton continues to build back toward a longer workload.

Friday night did not solve all of Detroit’s pitching issues, but it gave the Tigers a bridge. Anderson’s outing kept the bullpen from being completely exposed, and Kenley Jansen finished it with a clean ninth, striking out two in a tie game.

Offensively, Detroit did just enough. The Tigers trailed 2-0 after Giménez’s double, but Kevin McGonigle scored on a wild pitch in the third to cut the deficit to one. Dillon Dingler helped set up the tying run in the sixth, reaching on a single and advancing to second on an error. After Colt Keith moved him to third, Riley Greene doubled into right field to tie the game at 2.

Vierling then made one of the key defensive plays of the night in the ninth, diving in center field to take a hit away from Vladimir Guerrero Jr. before Jansen struck out Kazuma Okamoto to keep the game tied.

For Detroit, this was less about style points and more about stopping the slide. The Tigers caught a struggling Toronto team at the right time, but they still had to take advantage of it. They broke a strange losing, in which they had lost six in a row in one-run games.

The Tigers still have issues to sort through. The lineup remains inconsistent. The pitching staff is still waiting for reinforcements to fully arrive. Madden’s status now becomes another injury item to monitor.

But finally, on a warm night in May, which is odd to say that it has taken that long to happen, that was enough. They improve to 13-6 at home.

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