With a 4-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays, Justyn-Henry Malloy’s eighth-inning sacrifice fly enabled the Detroit Tigers to overcome a 3-0 deficit and advance to the postseason.
DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Tigers defeated the Tampa Bay Rays 4-3 on Thursday afternoon, coming back from a 3-0 deficit thanks to a sacrifice fly in the eighth inning by Justyn-Henry Malloy. The victory moved the team closer to the postseason.
“We have faith in our abilities,” stated A.J. Hinch, manager of the Tigers. “We love it and we want more of it, regardless of the magic, momentum, mojo, vibe, or anything else that may be involved.”
Detroit, who has won five straight games, is two and a half games ahead of the Minnesota Twins in a tie for the second and third American League wildcard spots.
A rookie who scored two runs and drove in two, Colt Keith, said, “We’re bringing the energy right now.” We are a really strong team. I adore this group.
With one out in the eighth, the Tigers were down 3-2, but Matt Vierling drew a walk and Riley Greene singled off Garrett Cleavinger (7-5).
After Keith’s RBI single tied the score, Malloy, the final position player on the Tigers bench, was brought up to pinch hit for Kerry Carpenter. Vierling easily outran Jose Siri’s throw after he lifted a fly ball to medium center.
We knew (Malloy) was going to hit against one of their four lefties in the bullpen, Hinch said. “He had been waiting for that exact spot all day.”
Beau Brieske (4-4) worked two relief innings to earn the victory. In the ninth inning, Jason Foley recorded his 27th save.
Tyler Alexander, the starter for the Rays, gave up four hits and struck out six without walking a batter. In his two career appearances against Detroit, where he played for five seasons, he has a 2.00 ERA.
The third saw the Rays take a 2-0 lead. After singles by Ben Rortvedt and Taylor Walls with one out, Brandon Lowe’s two-out base hit brought them both home.
In the fifth, Walls tripled with one out and came around to score on a wild pitch by Casey Mize.
Hunter Bigge walked Vierling with two outs in the sixth, setting the stage for Keith’s RBI triple to score the first run for the Tigers. Carpenter then tied the score at three with a pinch-hit single.
Cash declared, “That’s the last team in baseball that you want to give any momentum.” “They’re doing a great job at it right now.”
Kevin Kelly continued his scoreless streak over 25 games with a perfect seventh inning.
Next up
Rays: Play the Red Sox in a weekend series beginning in Boston; they need three victories to win 81-81. The first game on Friday will be started by RHP Taj Bradley (7-11, 4.30) against RHP Nick Pivetta (6-11, 4.21).
Tigers: Play the White Sox at home for three games, knowing that two victories will guarantee the team’s first postseason berth in ten years. Since it will depend on the outcome of the playoff race, they have not revealed their lineup for the championship series.
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