Tigers start second half with a late-inning comeback win
· Yahoo Sports
The Tigers avoided a shutout in their first game back after the break with a 2-1 win over the Angels, scoring both their runs in the ninth inning.
Visit truewildgame.com for more information.
Welcome back from the break, everyone! Hopefully the Tigers are feeling refreshed and rested after their downtime, because we’re starting the second half on the West Coast. Perhaps it’s us, the viewers, who need to be well-rested in that case, because we have some late games coming down the pipeline. In our first game back, the Tigers are taking on the Angels and as we have recently observed, they actually do worse against struggling teams, so this could be a rough weekend. To open the series, the Tigers had Troy Melton on the mound up against Reid Detmers for the Angels.
In the top of the first, Dillon Dingler got a two-out single, but the Tigers weren’t able to convert the baserunner. The bottom of the first was rough on Melton. Zach Neto opened the inning with a single, then with one out, Nolan Schanuel walked. Jorge Soler walked behind him. Melton was throwing with heat, but his command wasn’t where it needed to be. Josh Lowe grounded out with the bases loaded to score the first run of the game. Melton did get out of the jam, but he used 27 pitches to get through the first inning. That said, the results could have been much worse given the jam he pitched out of.
The Tigers went 1-2-3 in the top of the second. In the bottom of the inning, Vaughn Grissom took a leadoff walk. Then he finally got his first strikeout of the game, hopefully that might get his head back in the zone. Melton did indeed have better luck in this inning, getting the next three outs in order.
With two outs in the third, Matt Vierling singled, but the Tigers left him stranded. In the bottom half, Mike Trout got things going with a leadoff double. Schanuel walked. Melton once again pitched out of the jam, though, getting the next three outs in a row.
It was a case of deja vu in the fourth as Riley Greene hit a two-out double. But as with the previous instances of the Tigers getting a man on base, the team left him stranded. Grissom hit a leadoff single into left to start the home half. Logan O’Hoppe, with one out, grounded into a double play to end the inning.
Ben Malegeri got a one-out double in the fifth. But yet more RISPy business as the Tigers failed to capitalize on the baserunner. Neto kicked off the home half with a leadoff single that caused Zach McKinstry to literally slip on his butt stopping the ball, turning the fielding into a Buster Keaton routine that resulted in no outs. Mike Trout struck out, then Neto got caught in a rundown before getting tagged out.
The Tigers went out in order in the top of the sixth, but more importantly, Dan Petry got to put the glove he’s been keeping in the booth to use as he actually caught a wild foul. With two outs in the home half, Melton’s day was done, and Keider Montero came in to get the final out. Melton’s final line was 5.2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 9 K on 94 pitches. If not for the command issues and the walks, it would have been a really strong start. As it was, only giving up a single run was great. He’s got some work to do, but the raw potential is definitely there. He really turned things around in the later innings, so decidedly not worried about Melton.
Ryan Zeferjahn came in out of the Angels’ bullpen in the seventh, and he got the Tigers out in order. And, hey, Tigers, I don’t know if you considered it, but getting a single run at some point would be both cool and helpful. Montero got the Angels out in order in the bottom of the inning.
Sam Bachman was the new Angels pitcher for the eighth inning. Vierling got a two-out single. With McGonigle on a 3-2 count, Vierling stole second. The Angels challenged the safe call at second. By some miracle, the call actually stood (it looked very likely he was out, but not a certainty). It ended up not mattering because McGonigle struck out. Montero continued working in the bottom of the inning and just made the Red Sox look silly, going down in order. So good.
Kirby Yates came in for the ninth, and the Tigers were down to their last chance to make something happen. Dingler was hit by a pitch to start the inning. James Outman came in to pinch-run for Dingler. With one out, Outman stole second. Riley Greene walked. With two outs, Hao-Yu Lee came in to be the hero, hitting a double to score two runs.
HAO-YU LEE COMES THROUGH IN THE 9TH pic.twitter.com/zlxVxwQCx6
— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) July 18, 2026
Samy Natera Jr. came in and got the final out of the inning. In the home half, Montero was back on the mound, and hit Jorge Soler, putting the leadoff man aboard. Jose Siri singled after showing bunt multiple times. The second out of the inning led to a challenge, though it was a really great play between McGonigle and Torkelson. The call on the field was upheld for the second out. Montero kept it together despite the threat of two runners in scoring position and got the final out of the inning. The Tigers managed to sneak a win out of their first game back from the break.