This is the kind of game you can kind of sit back, kick your feet up, and remember how fun it is to watch good baseball.
Tarik Skubal was on the mound for the Tigers, up against George Kirby, and yes, it feels like deja vu, but that is sort of how these things go sometimes.
Let’s take a look at how this all shaped up.
The Mariners went 1-2-3 in the top of the first. In the home half, the Tigers wasted little time getting on the board. Matt Vierling opened the inning with a single, then Gio Urshela got a two-out single. Bligh Madris then had his turn, singling to score Vierling.
Julio Rodriguez doubled to start the second, but three outs quickly followed. The Tigers likewise went down in order in the bottom of the inning.
The Mariners were again three-up, three-down in the top of the third. Then Kerry Carpenter, just freshly back in the bigs, hit a solo home run with one out. The Tigers weren’t done there, though. Colt Keith, Gio Urshela, and Bligh Madris with Madris scoring Keith. Jake Rogers then got a two-out double to score two more runs.
Randy Arozarena singled to start the fourth, then Justin Turner got aboard by being hit by a pitch. A double play eliminated Arozarena and Julio Rodriguez. A Mitch Haniger single scored Turner to put the Mariners on the board. No runs scored. In the home half Matt Vierling got a one-out single, then stole second base. Carpenter then homered for the second time in the night, scoring two.
Colt Keith and Gio Urshela both singled, then Bligh Madris walked to load the bases. Then a Jake Rogers grand slam cleared the bases.
That was it for George Kirby, who was replaced by Trent Thornton, who got the final out of the inning.
Mitch Garver opened the fifth with a walk, then Josh Rojas was hit by a pitch—Skubal’s second of the night—but even with two men on the Mariners were not able to score. Kerry Carpenter managed a two-out single in the bottom of the inning, but the Tigers didn’t score anything, which is a rarity for this game.
The Mariners went 1-2-3 in the top of the sixth, and that was the end of the night for Skubal, who went 6.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 9 K on 88 pitches. In the home half, the Tigers’ hits just kept on coming as Gio Urshela hit a solo home run. Parker Meadows then hit a one-out double, and Jake Rogers doubled to score Meadows. Rogers tried to stretch the double into a triple and got tagged out, but it was a valiant hustle. Rogers had seven RBIs for the night, the first Tigers’ catcher to do it since Bill Freehan. Zach McKinstry then doubled, chasing Thornton from the game. The new pitcher was Troy Taylor, who gave up a home run to Javier Baez, putting the Tigers up 15-1. Justyn-Henry Malloy came in as a pinch-hitter and singled, but no additional runs scored.
Joey Wentz was up from the Tigers’ dugout, and Mitch Garver got a one-out walk in the top of the seventh, but was then eliminated on the double play. The Tigers went 1-2-3 in the bottom half.
The Mariners had another three-up, three-down inning in the eighth, and the Tigers managed only one baserunner in the home half with a McKinstry double.
The Tigers shut things down nice and easy in the ninth, putting the Mariners out in order.
Final: Tigers 15, Mariners 1