DETROIT TIGERS NOTES:
TIGERS SWEPT BY RAYS: The Tigers were unable to avoid the sweep against the Rays, losing 5-1 on Sunday afternoon. Joey Wentz started and threw 5.1 innings, allowing three runs on four hits with a walk and three strikeouts. Alex Lange pitched a scoreless inning in relief with one hit.
At the plate, Jake Rogers hit a solo home run, while Riley Greene went 1×4. JAKE RAKES: Jake Rogers made his return to the Tigers starting lineup yesterday for the series finale against the Rays and made an impact. Starting for the first time since July 18, 2021, Rogers went 1×3, including hitting a solo home run in the ninth inning, his first big league homer since July 11, 2021. Rogers missed the second half of the 2021 season and all of 2022 while rehabbing from Tommy John surgery.
TIGERS ANNOUNCE “¡GRACIAS MIGGY! THE FINAL SEASON” CAMPAIGN: With Miguel
Cabrera announcing that the 2023 season will be his final as a player, the Tigers will host a season-long celebration providing fans various opportunities to honor the career of the greatest player of a generation. “¡Gracias, Miggy! The Final Season” will feature key dates throughout the season that allows fans across baseball to revel in Miggy’s greatest moments, past and present. Everything is centered around the things that matter most to Miguel: his family, his heritage, his teammates and winning. Below are a list of key dates throughout the season.
• April 29 – First 15,000 fans will receive a Miguel Cabrera Graphic T-Shirt, presented by Meijer
• June 10 – First 15,000 fans will receive a Miggy Milestones Bobblehead, presented by Bally Sports Detroit
• July 24 – Keeping Kids in the Game, a Tigers Foundation tradition and a Miguel Cabrera favorite event
• August 5 – 18th annual ¡Fiesta Tigres! game, presented by Miller Lite
• September 29-October 1 – Miggy Celebration Weekend
NOTES ON THE SEASON OPENING ROSTER:
Information about Detroit’s 26-man, season-opening roster: – The roster consists of 13 pitchers (Tyler Alexander, Matthew Boyd, José Cisnero, Mason Englert, Jason Foley, Garrett Hill, Alex Lange, Matt Manning, Eduardo Rodriguez, Chasen Shreve, Spencer Turnbull, Joey Wentz, Trey Wingenter and 13 position players (Javier Báez, Miguel Cabrera, Kerry Carpenter, Riley Greene, Eric Haase, Ryan Kreidler, Nick Maton, Zach McKinstry, Austin Meadows, Jake Rogers, Jonathan Schoop, Spencer Torkelson, Matt Vierling)
- 8 are on an Opening Day roster at the Major League level for the first time (Carpenter, Englert, Greene, Hill, Kreidler, Maton, Rogers, Wentz)
- 9 were not active with the team in 2022 (Boyd, Englert, Maton, McKinstry, Rogers, Shreve, Turnbull, Vierling, Wingenter)
- 15 have less than three years of Major League service (Carpenter, Englert, Foley, Greene, Haase, Hill, Kreidler, Lange, Manning, Maton,
McKinstry, Rogers, Torkelson, Vierling, Wentz - 6 have five-or-more years of Major League service (Báez, Boyd, Cabrera, Cisnero, Rodriguez, Schoop
- 4 have been selected All-Stars (Báez, Cabrera, Meadows, Schoop)
TIGERS AND ASTROS: The Tigers and Astros begin their six-game season series tonight. Along with this week’s three-game set in Houston, the two teams will also meet in Detroit for three games from August 25-27. The Astros won all seven meetings from the Tigers last season, including sweeping a four-game set at Minute Maid Park.
INJURY REHAB UPDATE: Tyler Nevin continued an injury rehab assignment with Triple A Toledo yesterday, starting in left field and going 2×3 with a double. In three games with the Mud Hens, Nevin has gone 6×9 with a double, a triple, a home run and two RBI. Nevin is currently on the
injured list with a left oblique strain.
TIGERS ON THE IL:
• RHP Beau Brieske (right upper arm discomfort, 15-day IL on March 30, retroactive to March 27)
• RHP Michael Lorenzen (left groin strain, 15- day IL on March 30, retroactive to March 27) • RHP Casey Mize (right elbow sprain, 60-day IL
on February 17)
• INF Tyler Nevin (left oblique strain, 10-day IL on March 30, retroactive to March 27)
• RHP Freddy Pacheco (right elbow sprain, 60- day IL on March 27)
• LHP Tarik Skubal (left elbow strain, 60-day IL on March 14)
UPCOMING MATCHUPS:
• Tuesday, April 4 at HOU – 8:10 p.m. (BSDET/97.1) RHP Matt Manning (No Record) vs. LHP Framber Valdez (0-0, 0.00)
• Wednesday, April 5 at HOU – 2:10 p.m. (BSDET/97.1) LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (0-1, 5.06) vs. RHP Cristian Javier (0-0, 5.40)
TONIGHT’S STARTING PITCHER – Matthew Boyd • 0-0, 0.00 ERA (0IP/0ER)
• Boyd will make his first start of the season tonight in the series opener at Houston.
• Started four games during Spring Training and had a 2-1 record with a 3.46 ERA (13.0IP/5ER) and 21 strikeouts.
• Has made five starts in his career against the Astros, posting a 3-1 record with a 4.82 ERA (28.0IP/15ER) and 21 strikeouts…in two career starts at Minute Maid Park, is 1-0 with a 4.63 ERA (11.2IP/6ER) and eight strikeouts.
• Missed most of the 2022 season while rehabbing from an injury, but returned in September to pitch in 10 games and help Seattle to the playoffs…went 2-0 with a 1.35 ERA (13.1IP/2ER) and 13 strikeouts in his 10 outings with the Mariners.
• Is beginning his second stint with the Tigers…was with the organization from 2015-21, appearing in 147 games, including 143 starts, and compiling a 37-60 record with a 4.87 ERA (777.2IP/421ER) and 752 strikeouts.
HOUSTON ASTROS NOTES:
TONIGHT’S GAME: The Houston Astros, the reigning World Series champions, will open a three-game series with the Tigers tonight behind Detroit native RHP Hunter Brown, who’s making just his third career MLB start…he’ll be opposed by LHP Matthew Boyd, who re-signed with the Tigers this offseason after splitting his 2022 campaign between the Giants and M’s.
DETROIT RAISED: Rookie RHP Hunter Brown is facing the Tigers for the second time in his young career, with the first coming on Sept. 13, 2022 at DET, a start in which he tossed 6.0 innings of two-run ball en route to the win…Brown grew up a Tigers fan and is a native of Detroit, where he was born and raised and went to grade school (Isaac Jogues Catholic School), high school (Lakeview HS) and college (Wayne State University).
CLEAN SWEEP: The Astros swept the Tigers in 2022, winning all seven of their games, including four games in Houston…the Tigers were one of three teams the Astros swept the season series from in 2022, also the Twins (6-0) and Mets (4-0).
WELCOME BACK!: This series, the Astros are welcoming back Tigers manager A.J. Hinch, who managed the Astros to their 2017 World Series championship…Hinch went 481-329 in his five seasons (2015-19) managing the Astros, with those 481 wins ranking as the second-most in franchise history (Bill Virdon ranks first with 544 wins)…Hinch’s .594 winning percentage as the Astros manager also ranks second in club
history, trailing only Dusty Baker (.598, 232-156).
CONGRATS MIGGY!: The Astros will celebrate the Hall of Fame career of Tigers DH Miguel Cabrera in a pregame ceremony later in the series…Cabrera, who has announced his retirement at season’s end, has 3,090 career hits and 507 career home runs, including 15 career homers against the Astros franchise.
SPACE CITY MONDAY: The Astros will celebrate Space City Monday by wearing their Nike City Connect Space City uniforms for every home game date on Mondays throughout the 2023 season…the jerseys, which are available for purchase at the Astros Team Store at Minute Maid Park, pay tribute to Houston’s rich history in space travel.
ABOUT THE SCHEDULE: The Astros are the only team in the Majors scheduled to begin the season with eight straight game days prior to their first off day on Friday…following this week, the Astros upcoming schedule includes seven straight off days on Thursdays thru the end of May.
GODSPEED, RICH: Former Astros first base coach Rich Dauer, who served in that role in Houston for three seasons (2015-17), is currently rehabbing in Jacksonville after suffering a stroke in 2022…the Dauer family is kindly asking for donations to secure Rich with the necessary medical attention that he requires… donations can be made at https://gofund.me/4631fd03 TODAY’S ROSTER MOVES: OF Bligh Madris and IF J.J. Matijevic have both cleared waivers and have been outrighted to Triple A Sugar Land…both players were designated for assignment when the Astros set their Opening Day roster on Thursday.
AIR YORDAN: LF Yordan Alvarez is off to a characteristically strong start into the young season, as he’s hitting .455 (5×11) with a double, homer, five RBI and a .538 OBP…Alvarez has driven in a run in all three of his games this season, which is three games shy of the Astros record to open a season, set by RF Kyle Tucker (6g) in 2021.
99 AND COUNTING: LF Yordan Alvarez connected for a solo home run on Opening Day, giving him 99 career home runs, the same total Astros television broadcaster Geoff Blum hit in his illustrious career…with one more homer for Alvarez, he’ll become the 19th player in franchise history to reach the 100-homer mark.
BROTHER VS. BROTHER: RHP Phil Maton and his brother IF Nick Maton will be active against each other for the second regular season series of their careers…Nick, who played for the Phillies in 2022, was active against the Astros in both the regular season and the World Series last season…meanwhile Phil was active during the regular season, but not the World Series due to injury…the two have faced each other once in the Majors, on Oct. 5, 2022 in Houston, with Nick connecting for a single off of Phil.
THE SUNDAY SPLITS: The Astros dropped a 6-3 game on Sunday to the White Sox, giving them a split of their four-game series to open the season…1B José Abreu continued his hot start, going 2×4 with an RBI, but the offense was mostly stymied until a two-run, 9th-inning rally
that fell just short… RHP Luis Garcia (3ER/5IP) started for Houston, while RHP Phil Maton tossed 2.0 scoreless innings in relief.
AT THE HELM: Astros skipper Dusty Baker celebrated his 26th career Opening Day as a manager on Thursday and his fourth at the helm in Houston…Baker, who ranks ninth all-time in managerial wins with 2,095 wins, has an outside shot of moving up to sixth all time by seasons end…en route, he’d have to surpass Joe McCarthy (8th, 2,125), Bucky Harris (7th, 2,158) and Sparky Anderson (6th 2,194).
RUN OF SUCCESS: In addition to capturing the 2022 World Championship, Houston has played in three of the last four and four of the last six World Series, earning two championships along the way (2017, 2022)…the Astros have also advanced to the ALCS an MLB-record six consecutive seasons (2017-22).
TODAY’S ASTROS STARTER: RHP HUNTER BROWN
LAST REGULAR-SEASON START – 9/13 AT DET: a native of suburban Detroit, Brown made his second and final start of his MLB debut season at Comerica Park, striking out six batters and allowing a pair of runs on 5 hits through 6IP…the 6 strikeouts still stand as a career high and the 6IP matched his career high from his Major League debut on 9/5 vs. TEX
SPRING TRAINING: made four Spring Training appearances, totaling 9 IP through his four outings (all starts)…allowed just 1 run and did not surrender a walk through his final 2 appearances (7 IP)
ABOUT BROWN: rookie right-hander enters the season as the top prospect in the Astros system and one of the top pitching prospects in baseball…was ranked as the No. 28 prospect in baseball in Baseball America’s preseason top 100 rankings…rated as the No. 8 RHP prospect in MLB.com preseason positional prospect rankings.
• selected by the Astros in the 4th round of the 2019 MLB First-Year Player Draft from Wayne State University.
• was a fast-riser through Astros minor league system, reaching Triple A in his first full minor league season following the cancellation of the 2020 minor league season…owns a career 3.40 ERA (87ER/230.0IP) through 59 career minor league appearances (39 starts)…averaged 11.7 strikeouts-per-nine-innings throughout his minor league career… ranked 9th of all minor league pitchers between the ‘21-22 seasons with 11.56 strikeouts-per-nine-innings
BROWN IN 2022: Had one of the best seasons from a Pacific Coast League pitcher in recent years while with Triple A Sugar Land, resulting in a September callup and placement on all three Astros postseason rosters on their run to the World Series.
• Went 9-4 with a 2.55 ERA (30 ER/106.0IP) in 23 games (14 starts) with Triple A Sugar Land…was named the Astros Minor League Pitcher of the Year, Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Year and Baseball America’s Triple A Pitcher of the Year…led Pacific Coast League pitchers (min. 100 IP) in ERA and strikeouts-per-nine innings (11.4).
• was selected – alongside teammate Yainer Diaz – to play in the 2022 MLB Futures Game at Dodger Stadium…was the 2nd pitcher to enter the game for the AL team… tossed 0.2 IP and struck out 1 batter.
• had his contract selected by the Astros on 9/1/22 and made his MLB debut on 9/5/22 with a start vs. Texas…pitched 6 scoreless innings and struck out 5 batters while allowing 3 hits in his MLB debut…became the 3rd starter in Astros history to toss 6.0 scoreless innings in their debut…struck out Texas infielders Marcus Semien and Corey Seager to begin his MLB career.
• finished the year in the Astros bullpen after back-to-back starts and did not allow a run through his 5 relief appearances (8.1 IP)…was terrific at Minute Maid Park, not allowing a run and striking out 12 batters through his 10.1 innings there…held opponent’s to a .143 batting average at Minute Maid Park.
2022 POSTSEASON: appeared on all 3 Astros postseason rosters, making 3 scoreless relief appearances (3.2 IP).
• pitched in Games 1 and 3 of the ALDS vs. Seattle and Game 3 of the ALCS vs. the Yankees…became the 27th rookie in Astros history to appear in a postseason game. SLIDE PIECE: averaged 93.2 mph with his slider, which was the fastest of any pitcher in MLB (min. 250 pitches), directly ahead of RHP Jacob deGrom (92.6 mph).
VS. THE TIGERS: will be making his second career start against the Tigers and is set to face the Tigers in his second consecutive start dating back to the ‘22 season.
• picked up the second win of his career on 9/13/22 at Detroit after tossing 6.0 IP and striking out six batters while allowing 2 runs on 5 hits.
