Tigers beat Royals 2-1 thanks to Javier Báez's magical slide

Detroit Tigers outfielder Wenceel Pérez was still searching for his first hit when he stepped to the plate in the eighth inning for his 12th plate appearance of the 2026 season.

His first hit?

A massive home run.

The clutch dinger from Pérez carried the Tigers to a 2-1 win over the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday, April 15, in the second of three games in the series between American League Central rivals at Comerica Park.

The 26-year-old hit a third-pitch changeup from right-handed reliever Eli Morgan at the bottom rail of the strike zone over the right-field wall – only a half-inning after entering the game as a defensive replacement for an injured Zach McKinstry.

It's the fifth win in a row for the Tigers.

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The Tigers (9-9) and Royals (7-11) meet for the final time in this three-game series Thursday (1:10 p.m., Detroit SportsNet), with a pitching matchup between right-hander Keider Montero for the Tigers and left-hander Kris Bubic for the Royals.

In Wednesday's game, the Pérez home run against Morgan changed the scoreboard.

But Javier Báez stole the show with the best highlight.

In the third inning, Báez – nicknamed "El Mago" for his ability to make supernatural plays, both on defense and on the bases – tagged up from third base on flyout from Jake Rogers to right fielder Jac Caglianone, who threw a laser to catcher Salvador Perez.

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Javier Báez of the Detroit Tigers scores a run against Salvador Perez of the Kansas City Royals during the bottom of the third inning at Comerica Park in Detroit on Wednesday, April 15, 2026.

It was a magical throw from Caglianone.

And an even more magical slide from Báez.

For his latest trick, Báez eluded the tag at home plate by sliding around and over Perez's glove. Home-plate umpire Jansen Visconti initially ruled Báez out at the plate, but the Tigers' challenge overturned the call on the field.

Here's exactly what happened: Perez caught the ball on the first-base side of home plate, then lunged across the plate in an attempt to tag Báez, only for Báez to escape by lifting his hand in the air and over Perez's tag before tapping the plate.

It put the Tigers ahead, 1-0, in the third inning.

For the Royals, right-hander Seth Lugo allowed one run on five hits and zero walks with seven strikeouts across 6⅔ innings, throwing 92 pitches. He escaped further damage in the third inning by striking out Colt Keith with three pitches in a row to strand runners on the corners.

Lugo owns a 1.48 ERA across 24⅓ innings in four starts.

Right-hander Jack Flaherty led the way for the Tigers with a complete performance. He allowed one run on two hits and three walks with seven strikeouts across six innings, throwing 97 pitches.

The Royals scored their lone run for a 1-1 tie on Kyle Isbel's two-out single in the fifth inning, set up by back-to-back walks from Flaherty. Aside from that blunder, Flaherty shined with a a firm 93.7 mph fastball and swing-and-miss secondary pitches.

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Pitchers from the Tigers have made six consecutive starts of at least 5⅔ innings while allowing no more than one run – marking the longest such streak for the Tigers since late April and early May 2006.

The last MLB team to do that?

The New York Yankees in May 2024.

Right-handed reliever Kenley Jansen shut down the Royals in the ninth inning for his fourth save of the season.

He has 480 saves in his 17-year MLB career.

Kevin McGonigle finished 1-for-3 with one walk and two strikeouts across four plate appearances in his first game since signing an eight-year, $150 million contract extension. The 21-year-old started at shortstop, then moved to third base after McKinstry exited.

The Tigers and McGonigle agreed to the deal before Wednesday's game.

McGonigle hit a single against Lugo's first-pitch sinker in the third inning and drew five-pitch walk against Morgan in the eighth inning. He is hitting .313 with a .905 OPS through 18 games.

Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Javier Báez magical slide helps Detroit Tigers to 2-1 win vs Royals