The Detroit Tigers traded a two-time Cy Young Award-winning pitcher and tumbled out of the playoff race last month. A jolt of youth and energy has given them hope for the future.
Detroit, which hosts the Colorado Rockies on Saturday afternoon in the second game of a three-game series, has won four of its last six games.
Infielder Kevin McGonigle appears headed for the American League Rookie of the Year award, and center fielder Max Clark is among numerous prospects getting extended playing time as the season winds down.
Clark belted a solo homer on Friday and scored another run after getting hit by a pitch. He stole second, then reached third and home on wild pitches in Detroit’s 6-2, series-opening victory.
“When you see him running in open speed, he’s top-tier speed,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “And he’s going to learn how to use it and trust that he can do even more than what he’s doing now. And that’s exciting.”
Another rookie, left-hander Andrew Sears (0-1, 4.38 ERA), is expected to be recalled from Triple-A Toledo to make a spot start for Detroit on Saturday. He will be facing the Rockies for the first time.
Sears was optioned after his first career start on Sept. 4, when he held the Cleveland Guardians to one run and four hits in 5 2/3 innings during a no-decision.
“Definitely felt good,” he said after that contest. “I was back in my own routine and in my element. Definitely just attacked it like any other start.”
And Sears likes to attack quickly. He wastes little time between pitches.
“It just keeps the hitters dialed in,” he said. “They don’t like working fast. They’re trying to use the clock against me. But as soon as they look at me, I’m throwing the ball.”
Sears is 3-2 with a 2.16 ERA in 16 games, including 12 starts, in the minors this season. He is a candidate to win a starting job with the Tigers next spring.
“He can handle the moment and the responsibility,” Hinch said. “(The Sept. 4 start) was even more impressive because he knew going into the game he was going to be leaned on quite a bit. It’s the most pitches he’s thrown this year, and he knew he had to carry the lion’s share of the workload.”
Right-hander Tanner Gordon (1-4, 5.40 ERA) will get the ball for the Rockies. He will be making his 10th start to go with 12 long-relief stints. Gordon has pitched at least three innings in all but one of his appearances this season.
After giving up just one run in each of his last two August starts, Gordon was rocked for five runs and eight hits in 4 2/3 innings by the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday.
He is 0-2 with a 10.24 ERA in two career starts against the Tigers.
The Rockies, who have lost five straight, produced 10 hits during the series opener but left nine men on base. Zac Veen, who finished 1-for-2 after entering in the seventh inning, drove in a ninth-inning run with an infield hit.
“I like doing whatever I can to help the team win,” said Veen, who comes off the bench more than he starts. “Every game you might get one or two moments to make an impact.”
–Field Level Media
