TORONTO — When Detroit Tigers manager AJ Hinch changed his mind and benched Miguel Cabrera in Baltimore eight days ago, he did so to give the fans at Comerica Park the best chance to watch their superstar reach 500 home runs.
Cabrera smashed No. 499 on Aug. 11, followed by a day off during the series finale at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. He returned to Detroit on Aug. 13 for a six-game homestand with Cleveland and the Los Angeles Angels. There were two near-home runs — a foul ball Saturday and a flyout to the back of the warning track Wednesday — but none of his 24 plate appearances at Comerica Park resulted in No. 500.
The chase continues in Toronto beginning Friday night.
“I think he’s holding up fine through this,” Tigers manager AJ Hinch said Friday. “I would be crazy to say he doesn’t feel a little extra pressure, but that’s the life of a star.”
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This time, Hinch’s plan for the road trip isn’t going to change.
Cabrera will play all three games against the Blue Jays at the Rogers Centre. He then will start at first base for the first of two games against the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium before pinch-hitting in the finale. (The two games in St. Louis will be played under National League rules, with no designated hitter.)
“That would be the mapped-out plan,” Hinch said. “If he hits it tonight, I’m going to stay with the same schedule. If he doesn’t hit it, I’m going to stay with the same schedule.”
The 38-year-old Cabrera is hitting .252 with 12 home runs, 55 RBIs, 32 walks and 90 strikeouts over 96 games this season, along with a .316 on-base percentage and .384 slugging percentage. Cabrera went 4-for-20 (.200) with one double, four RBIs, three walks, five strikeouts and one hit-by-pitch during the six-game homestand.
Each time he stepped to the plate, the fans at Comerica Park stood in anticipation of history. The Tigers hosted 153,479 fans during those six games, averaging 25,580 per game and topping out at 32,845 in Saturday’s 6-4 win over Cleveland.
“It’s not a success, failure based on the homer,” Hinch said. “I know that’s what everybody was paying attention to. I love the fact that our fans came out and responded. They were very loud and very supportive. It was awesome to experience.
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“But Miggy is playing baseball, and he’s trying to help his team win. He had some really big at-bats. As the homestand went on, I thought he got a little more comfortable conducting his at-bats and not trying to create a storybook ending for the fans that were there. Just trying to see what happens and contribute to our team offense.”
In Thursday’s 13-10 loss to the Angels, in which the Tigers blew an eight-run lead in the final four innings, Cabrera went 2-for-5 with a single, double and four RBIs. The double cleared the bases in the second inning to give his team a 7-2 lead in the second inning.
But the embarrassing loss, Hinch said, left Cabrera more disappointed than not reaching 500 home runs.
“I certainly know he wanted to do it at home, but it’s not a video game,” Hinch said. “You can’t just create whatever you want whenever you want. I know he wanted to, but he wanted to win. We were talking postgame yesterday, and we weren’t even talking about home runs. We talked about what we could have done differently and how we need to bounce back.”
“It’s not at the forefront of every conversation behind the scenes. I don’t want to disappoint anybody, that’s not the topic of the day. He wants his team to win.”
Hill is ‘good to go’
Ahead of Saturday’s game, the Tigers plan to activate Derek Hill from the 10-day injured list. The 25-year-old center fielder hasn’t played since Aug. 10 in Baltimore, where he collided with left fielder Akil Baddoo in the outfield.
Hill was diagnosed with a left ribcage contusion.
“He’s going to work out and do his pregame activity with us on the field,” Hinch said. “He’s going to shag and do some center field stuff. He played a complete game the other day (in Triple-A Toledo). He should be good to go tomorrow.”
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To reinstate Hill from the injured list, the Tigers must demote a player to Toledo. Considering second baseman Willi Castro will continue playing left field, Victor Reyes could be the odd man out if the team decides to send down an outfielder.
Baddoo (concussion) is expected to connect with the Tigers in St. Louis on Tuesday. The 23-year-old has played two rehab games in Toledo, going hitless in both contests with one walk and three strikeouts.
Evan Petzold is a sports reporter at the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanPetzold. Read more on the Detroit Tigers and sign up for our Tigers newsletter.