Colt Keith had three extra-base hits, including a solo home run, and the host Detroit Tigers opened a week-long homestand with a 5-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday night.
Keith, who scored two runs, supplied two doubles as the American League-leading Tigers won their fourth straight. They were coming off a three-game road sweep of Cleveland.
All-Star Javier Baez smashed a two-run homer while Zach McKinstry supplied a solo shot. Riley Greene added an RBI single.
Winning pitcher Keider Montero (4-1), elevated from Triple-A Toledo earlier in the day, held the Rays to one run and four hits with four strikeouts in six innings. Tyler Holton, Brenan Hanifee and Will Vest each tossed an inning of scoreless relief.
Tampa Bay starter Shane Baz (8-4) gave up three runs and seven hits with seven strikeouts in six innings. Jonathan Aranda had an RBI single. The Rays have lost six of their last eight contests.
The Tigers stranded two runners in the first but the right-handed Baz couldn’t prevent damage in the next inning. Dillon Dingler led off with a double. After Baz struck out the next two hitters, Baez clubbed his 10th homer on an 0-2 offering, a hanging curveball.
The Rays made it 2-1 in the third. Taylor Walls drew a one-out walk. He moved to second on a Danny Jansen single and scored on Aranda’s single. On that play, right fielder McKinstry threw out Jansen at third.
Chandler Simpson had a one-out double in the top of the fifth but the right-handed Montero retired the next two batters. Keith smacked his second double of the game leading off the bottom of the inning. Baz struck out the next two batters, but Greene brought in Keith with a bloop single.
Keith greeted reliever Paul Gervase in the seventh by ripping a fastball over the right field wall for his seventh homer. Two batters later, McKinstry did the same thing with a Gervase fastball to increase Detroit’s lead to 5-1.
–Field Level Media
