Riley Greene, Dillon Dingler, Max Clark slug Tigers over Rockies

· Yahoo Sports

The Detroit Tigers slugged their way to a series-opening win.

Visit h-doctor.club for more information.

With home runs from catcher Dillon Dingler and center fielder Max Clark, the Tigers beat the Colorado Rockies, 6-2, on Friday, Sept. 11, at Comerica Park in Detroit. The win brings the Tigers to 68-79 on the season, with Detroit still mathematically alive in the playoff chase but facing less than 1% odds to make the postseason.

Dingler had the biggest swing of the night, smacking a two-run home run in the sixth inning that gave Detroit a 4-1 lead. It was Dingler's 27th home run and 87th RBI of the season, as he leads the Tigers in both categories.

Left fielder Riley Greene gave the Tigers the lead earlier in the sixth inning with a two-out, RBI stand-up triple that bounced off the wall in center field and scored designated hitter Gleyber Torres from first base. It was Greene's second of three hits on the night, as the slugger leads all Tigers in multi-hit games in 2026 with 38; he finished a home run short of the cycle.

Tigers starter Framber Valdez notched his 16th quality start of the season, allowing one unearned run over six innings while giving up six hits, walking two and striking out two. He escaped a wild fifth inning that included three Rockies hits, six baserunners and two defensive outs at home recorded by Dingler.

INJURY NEWS: Jack Flaherty to pitch sim game, Justin Verlander bullpen on Saturday

The win moved the Tigers to within six games of the third and final American League wild-card berth, occupied by the Cleveland Guardians (who played late on Friday).

At the plate: Late-inning surge

Tigers bats didn’t show much early on, with a Greene single and a Clark walk the only baserunners Detroit put on in the first four innings. Rockies rookie Mason Adams, making his fourth career start, struck out the side in the first inning and struck out four of the first five batters he faced. 

Clark got the Tigers on the board with a one-out solo home run off Adams in the fifth inning, tying the game at 1-1 with his third home run of the season. And though Detroit then put the go-ahead runners on with a walk from shortstop John Peck and a walk from right fielder Zach McKinstry, second baseman Javier Báez grounded into an inning-ending, 6-4-3 double play. 

Greene's triple in the sixth inning flew 420 feet off the center field wall and would have been a home run in 26 of 30 MLB ballparks. And though Dingler's home run in the next at-bat fell 12 feet shorter than Greene's hit, it would've cleared the walls in all 30 parks per Statcast.

Clark added the fifth run in the sixth inning with his legs, reaching first base on a hit by pitch, stealing second base, and then advancing to third and home on two wild pitches. Greene's RBI double in the eighth inning scored first baseman Spencer Torkelson from first base and gave the Tigers their sixth and final run of the game.

MORE: Detroit Tigers' aggressive baserunning could become new identity

On the mound: Framber Valdez with more quality

Valdez allowed an infield single to Rockies left fielder Jake McCarthy to lead off the game after appearing not to run at full speed while covering first base. Three batters later, however, Valdez escaped the scoreless inning by inducing a double play off the bat of catcher Hunter Goodman to third baseman Kevin McGonigle. 

Valdez later made up for his defensive lapse with a run-saving play in the fifth inning. With no one out and designated hitter Troy Johnston at third base, shortstop Ezequiel Tovar dropped down a safety squeeze in front of Valdez. And with Johnston racing home, Valdez picked up the ball and shoveled it to Dingler, who tagged Johnston out at home for the first out of the inning.

The Tigers got the next out at the plate, as well. A McCarthy single to right field (the third single Valdez gave up in the fifth) had Rockies right fielder Jordan Beck attempting to score from second base. But Tigers right fielder Zach McKinstry corralled the ball before Beck touched third base, threw on a line to home plate and watched Dingler tag out his second baserunner of the inning.

It was McKinstry’s eighth outfield assist of the season, which leads all Tigers outfielders.

But with Valdez inducing a ground ball to third base from center fielder Cole Carigg that looked to end the inning, the ball booted off McGonigle’s glove, with Carigg reaching on the late throw. Tovar scored, marking the only run in an inning where the Rockies had three hits and put six runners on base.

Valdez had 90 pitches through six innings and might have been asked to pitch a seventh before the Tigers turned a 1-1 game into a 5-1 lead in the bottom of the inning. Reliever Jacob Waguespack then pitched a clean seventh inning and a scoreless eighth inning before lefty Brant Hurter and closer Kenley Jansen finished the game in the ninth.

Jansen entered with two outs and two on in a four-run game, earning save No. 19 on the year and No. 495 for his career, leaving him five away from becoming the third pitcher in MLB history with 500.

Next up: More Rockies

The Tigers play the Rockies in the second of their three-game series at Comerica Park on Saturday (1:10 p.m. Detroit SportsNet). Rockies right-hander Tanner Gordon (1-4, 5.40 ERA) is scheduled to face a Tigers starter yet to be announced, though with the roster news surrounding pitcher Keider Montero's baby watch, it's likely the Tigers will call up rokie lefty Andrew Sears and use him in at least a bulk role, if not as the starter, for Saturday's game.

Need to catch up on the news during your lunch break? Sign up for our Sports Briefing newsletter to get daily summaries of Detroit sports! 

You can reach Christian at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Riley Greene, Dillon Dingler, Max Clark slug Tigers over Rockies

Read full story at source