Detroit Tigers utility man Harold Castro is known for his singles.
He came off the bench Friday — pinch-hitting for Miguel Cabrera — and, indeed, singled to drive in the game-winning run with two strikes and two outs in the seventh inning. The Tigers won, 5-4, in the first of three games against the Kansas City Royals at Comerica Park.
Left-handed closer Gregory Soto, protecting a one-run lead, pitched a scoreless ninth inning for his 24th save as the Tigers (51-81) snapped a three-game losing streak. Cabrera is day-to-day with a biceps injury.
“I just wanted to go out and do my job,” said Soto, who had allowed four runs in his previous two outings. “In the other ones, I just wanted to perform. In this case, I needed to save the game for the team. Fortunately, I did that.”
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Third baseman Ryan Kreidler, making his MLB debut, went 0-for-2 with two walks and a strikeout. First baseman Spencer Torkelson, returning to the Tigers for the first time since July 16, finished 0-for-3 with a strikeout. Center fielder Riley Greene, another rookie, singled in the first inning to extend his hitting streak to 11 games.
“I was trying to treat it like another game,” Kreidler said. “I wouldn’t be crazy aggressive in any other game in the minors, so I’m just going to try to be the same person up here that I was down there.”
Before Harold Castro’s single in the seventh, Kreidler worked a leadoff seven-pitch walk and Victor Reyes chipped in a single to force a pitching change, from right-handed reliever Carlos Hernández to righty Jose Cuas.
With two outs and two on, Castro fell behind 0-2 in the count but connected on a third-pitch slider — way off the plate — for a single into left field. Kreidler beat the throw home, which was too high, to take a 5-4 lead.
“I had a great time,” Kreidler said of his debut. “Great win. I got the nerves out, somewhat. I think I’ll still be nervous tomorrow and the next day, but it’s all good. Just really glad my family could be here.”
A big fifth
The Tigers compiled a stretch of quality plate appearances in the fifth inning to snap a 16-inning scoreless drought. The offense scored four runs on two walks, two home runs and a fundamentally sound sacrifice fly.
To begin the fifth, Torkelson struck out on three straight pitches.
His teammates — including a pair of fellow rookies — fared much better against Royals left-hander Daniel Lynch. Willi Castro drove the next pitch for a solo home run to left field, putting the Tigers on the scoreboard.
“I was impressed by our at-bats tonight,” Hinch said. “Even early when we weren’t getting anything to show for it, there was maybe a little more focus on trying to put them together and hand the baton to the next guy.”
Kreidler and Greene drew back-to-back full-count walks. Both rookies ended up in scoring position on an ensuing balk. Kreidler, at second base, lunged toward third base and slipped while Lynch started his delivery on a pitch to Victor Reyes. Lynch stopped his throwing motion on his way down the slope, which resulted in the balk.
Moments later, Reyes sent a slider into the right-field corner to score Kreidler and tie the game at two runs. Javier Báez doubled the Tigers’ run total on a full-count slider that hung near the top of the strike zone. He drove the ball 401 feet and cleared the wall in left-center for a two-run home run, his 12th of the year.
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It was Báez’s first homer since Aug. 11.
“I haven’t hit a homer in like two months, three months,” Báez said. “It felt good. I was working on my hitting before the game. I was moving my arms too much, and I saw it today and started working on it. … I felt pretty good today.”
Báez and Jeimer Candelario, who didn’t play Friday, are tied for the Tigers’ home run lead this season. Lynch allowed four runs on five hits and three walks with four strikeouts over five innings, throwing 88 pitches.
Haase feels the pain
In the first inning, catcher Eric Haase took a foul ball off his groin.
“I should be OK,” Haase said.
He finished the inning — a scoreless effort from right-hander Drew Hutchison — but did not return for the second. Hutchison, working with a new catcher in Tucker Barnhart, struck out the first two batters before three singles and an error resulted in two runs.
“I don’t really remember what the meeting was like when they came out to check on me,” Haase said. “The field was spinning. I was trying not to throw up and just hobbled back in there.”
Singles from Michael Massey, Hunter Dozier and Kyle Isbel produced one run. The second run, however, came from Greene’s mishap in center on Isbel’s single. The ball bounced off his wrist and got away from him. The Royals scored two runs on the play for a 2-0 lead; Greene was charged with a fielding error.
The Royals didn’t strike again until the sixth inning.
Hutchison drilled Salvador Perez in the right hand with a 93.1 mph fastball. Perez, who returned from the injured list in late July, exited the game. (X-rays were negative.) The hit-by-pitch proved to be a costly mistake, as Michael A. Taylor tied the game, 4-4, with a two-run home run.
“I didn’t execute the pitch,” Hutchison said. “Very frustrating to do that after getting the lead, not being able to go out there and get a quick inning.”
Hutchison allowed four runs (three earned runs) on six hits and one walk with five strikeouts over 5⅔ innings.
For his 85 pitches (54 strikes), Hutchison used 34 four-seam fastballs (40%), 28 sliders (33%), 16 changeups (19%) and seven sinkers (8%). He recorded 14 swings and misses: one fastball, eight sliders and five changeups.