Detroit — With four All-Star Game selections and the best record in baseball, life for the Detroit Tigers entering the final week before the break is pretty good. But it could be better.
And for a team that’s a tad bitter about not getting any reserves into the game as of Sunday’s announced rosters, Monday’s 5-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rays was a good case as to why Detroit might deserve more All-Star recognition.
Along with strong performances from the likes of Javier Báez and Riley Greene — already selected as two of Detroit’s four All-Stars — super utility man Zach McKinstry delivered a solo home run and one of the best defensive plays of the game as he vies to be a possible injury replacement in Atlanta.
Keider Montero made the start, called up from Toledo, and delivered six sterling innings, giving up one run on four hits while striking out four. The Tigers’ bullpen put together a clean final three innings to polish off the win.
And McKinstry put his mark on the game with an early defensive play to keep the Tigers ahead.
Fielding a single into right field, McKinstry knew he didn’t have a chance to cut down Taylor Walls going from second to home for the Rays’ first run. But the slower catcher, Danny Jansen, was a prime target trying to go from first to third base with two outs.
“I’m not sure how many natural outfielders can routinely make that play,” Tigers manager AJ Hinch said. “… Even the decision making to not try to do too much on the base hit and get the ball to third base. I mean, that is feel for the game. That doesn’t happen with every outfielder, either.”
McKinstry raced to the ball near the right-field line, scooped it, spun and fired a 234-foot laser to Báez at third, who wrangled the throw and made an impressive lay-out tag to get Jansen and end the inning with Detroit leading, 2-1, going into the bottom of the third.
“He definitely did a great job of just kind of letting it get there,” McKinstry said of Báez catching and tagging. “Not panicking too much and doing what Javy does. He’s always putting great tags on guys. I mean, that’s why we call him El Mago, right?”
Greene helped pad the lead, when, in the fifth inning, he flipped a two-out, two-strike single into right field, scoring Colt Keith from second base and giving Detroit a bit of breathing room.
Greene added his own defensive gem, too, laying out on the run, forward and to his right as he robbed Josh Lowe of an extra-base hit on a screaming line drive to left field in the top of the fourth inning.
McKinstry wasn’t done with his day, though, and made his mark on offense, too, blasting a solo home run in the seventh inning, one of two the Tigers hit in that frame, to make it a 5-1 lead.
McKinstry, who is 12th in the American League in Wins Above Replacement (WAR) among position players — several spots ahead of slated AL All Star third base starter Alex Bregman, who might miss the game with injury — entered Monday’s game hitting .285 on the year with six home runs and 26 RBI while serving as a plug-and-play defensive whiz for Hinch all over the diamond.
“Let’s get him to Atlanta,” Hinch said.
While it wasn’t his best offensive showing of the season — he didn’t record a hit — Gleyber Torres walked in the first inning to make it 20 straight games in which he’s reached base. His ability to be patient at the plate, with more walks than strikeouts in 2025, plus his rock steady defense, are a big reason why Torres will start at second base in the All Star Game.
“We come out and we systematically have a nice win,” Hinch said of the all-around effort, as the defense, pitching and offense all played key roles.
The last time Detroit and Tampa Bay squared off for a three-game series, the Tigers went to Florida and didn’t hold a lead until the third game, in the 20th inning between the teams.
There was no such hold up for the Detroit offense this time, as Báez hit his 10th home run of the year in the bottom of the second inning, continuing his best season as a Tiger, one that earned him All-Star honors. Stepping into the box after both Parker Meadows and Trey Sweeney struck out with Dillon Dingler on second base, Báez looked like he was headed for the same fate, falling behind 0-2.
But when Rays starter Shane Baz missed with a knuckle curve over the heart of the plate, Báez didn’t hesitate to turn on it, sending it 391 feet into the left-center stands, as Detroit took a lead five outs into the series.
“It was throughout the order,” Hinch said, praising the offense. “You know, the two-out hitting, Javy with the homer. Riley fights off the cutter and then the big swings at the end to separate.”
And that lead held for the remainder of Monday’s series opener, as Detroit showed the All-Star pedigree that has propelled the Tigers to the best record in baseball.
Andrew Graham is a freelance writer.
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