DETROIT TIGERS NOTES:
TIGERS SUFFER FIFTH STRAIGHT LOSS: The Tigers dropped the series opener to the Blue Jays, 9-3, on Tuesday night. Nick Maton hit a three-run homer, his first in a Tigers uniform, while Spencer Torkelson had a pair of hits, including a double. Matt Manning started for Detroit and took the loss, allowing four runs on six hits with a walk and three strikeouts in 6.0 innings.
ROSTER MOVES: The Tigers have made the following roster moves:
*Placed RHP Matt Manning on the 15-day injured list with a right foot fracture.
*Recalled INF Tyler Nevin from Triple A Toledo
FULLY TORKED: Spencer Torkelson went 2×4 with a double in last night’s game, recording his second straight multi-hit game and his third of
the season. Torkelson has hit safely in five of his last seven games, slashing .333/.345/.519 with two doubles, a home run and six RBI.
HUNGRY LIKE THE WOLF: Nick Maton hit his first home run of the season last night against the Blue Jays, hitting a three-run shot in the
second inning. Maton has had some of the best performances of his young career against Toronto has three of his eight career homers have come against the Blue Jays, including his only career multi-homer game on May 16, 2021.
EXTRA, EXTRA: Miguel Cabrera hit a double in the ninth inning of Sunday’s game against the Red Sox. The two-bagger was the 609th of his career and his 1,133rd career extra-base hit. Cabrera is now one extra-base hit away from tying Tris Speaker for 16th on the MLB all-time list.
MLB All-Time Extra-Base Hits List
Rank Player XBH
- Carl Yastrzemski 1,157
- Adrian Beltre 1,151
- Ty Cobb 1,138
- Tris Speaker 1,134
- Miguel Cabrera 1,133
TIGERS AND BLUE JAYS: The Tigers and Blue Jays continue their six-game season series tonight at Rogers Centre. Along with the three games this
week in Toronto, the two teams will also face off in a three-game series at Comerica Park from July 7-9. Detroit went 2-5 against the Blue Jays last season, including dropping three-of-four games in Toronto.
ON THE ROAD: The Tigers are 0-1 on their current three-game road trip. Detroit has a 2-5 record on the road so far this season, The Tigers went 30-50 on the road last season, their fifth straight 162-game season with a losing record away from Detroit.
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 Matt Manning (right foot fracture, 10-day IL on April 8, retroactive to April 7)
• OF Austin Meadows (anxiety, 15-day IL on April 12)
• RHP Casey Mize (right elbow sprain, 60-day IL on February 17)
• RHP Freddy Pacheco (right elbow sprain, 60-day IL on March 27)
• LHP Tarik Skubal (left elbow strain, 60-day IL on March 14)
TONIGHT’S TIGERS STARTING PITCHER – Eduardo Rodriguez • 0-2, 6.30 ERA (10.0IP/7ER)
• Rodriguez will make his third start of the season tonight at Toronto.
• Last pitched on Wednesday in the series finale at Houston and took the loss after giving up four runs on six hits with two walks and a strikeout in 4.2 innings. • Made his second consecutive Opening Day start on Thursday at Tampa Bay and took the loss, allowing three runs on three hits with two walks and five strikeouts in 5.1 innings.
• Has faced the Blue Jays 17 times in his career, including 16 as a starter, posting a 5-6 record with a 5.20 ERA (90.0IP/52ER) and 88 strikeouts…in five career appearances, including four starts, at Rogers Centre, Rodriguez is 2-2 with a 4.38 ERA (24.2IP/12ER) and 19 strikeouts.
• Started 17 games for the Tigers last season and had a 5-5 record with a 4.05 ERA (91.0IP/41ER) and 72 strikeouts.
• Since 2018, he has a .658 winning percentage, which ranks eighth among all active Major League pitchers over that span (min. 100 starts).
TORONTO BLUE JAYS NOTES:
THE LATEST: The Blue Jays trailed by three runs early but surged their way to a 9-3 win over the Tigers…Moved to 29-18 all-time in Home Openers (18-14 at Rogers Centre)… Cranked a season-high five home runs, which was their most ever in a Home Opener. Toronto has won six of its last seven contests…Has now come from behind in five of its seven wins this season.
CHAP’S STICK: Matt Chapman connected for his 3rd home run of the season last night, a solo shot in the 4th inning…Has homered in three consecutive games for the 5th time in his career (last: Aug. 14-16, 2021). The third baseman also singled and scored in the 8th for his AL-leading 7th multi-hit game of the season…Is now batting .477 (21-for-44) with seven doubles, three home runs, four walks, and 15 RBI for a 1.362 OPS…Currently leads the AL in hits (2nd in MLB), doubles, and total bases (37) while tied for 1st in extra-base hits (10), 2nd in OBP (.521), 2nd in SLG (.841), 2nd in OPS, 3rd in RBI…Has an average exit velocity of 99.3 MPH, the highest in MLB (2nd: J.D. Martinez – 97.9).
OUTLAW UNLEASHED: Kevin Kiermaier took back a home run as he went over the center-field wall for a catch in the 2nd inning… Later led off the bottom of the 5th frame with his 1st home run as a Blue Jay. The outfielder is now 13-for-34 (.382) while recording hits in each of his eight games with an at-bat to start his Blue Jays career…His 13 hits while batting 9th are the most in the Majors (2nd: Arcia/Tovar – 9).
BYE GEORGE: George Springer followed Kiermaier’s blast with one of his own in the 5th, his 2nd longball of the year… Marked Toronto’s 1st set of back-to-back homers of 2023…Extended his hitting streak to five games, going 6-for-22 (.273) with two home runs and three RBI.
PUTTING A BO ON IT: Bo Bichette launched his 4th home run of the year to lead off the bottom of the 8th inning…Was his 3rd dinger in the last four contests…Has hits in all but one of the 11 games so far, going 18-for-51 (.353) with two doubles, four homers, nine RBI, and 10 runs scored (T-6th in the AL)…The 18 hits are tied for 2nd most in the AL (T-4th in MLB) while his 32 total bases are tied for 4th and his .353 AVG ranks 7th.
A FEW NOTCHES ON THE BELT: Brandon Belt singled twice, doubled, and drove in a run as he finished 3-for-4 last night…Marked his 1st multi-hit game as a Blue Jay.
KEVIN’S SEVENS: Kevin Gausman will make his 3rd start of the season this evening…Has yet to allow an earned run in his 12.0 innings of work so far, 2.0 innings shy of tying a club record to begin a campaign…Has struck out exactly seven batters in each start, allowing a total of
12 hits and three walks for a .250 AVG and a 1.25 WHIP…His 219 strikeouts since the start of last season are 4th most among AL pitchers.
HOME SWEET DOME: The Blue Jays are playing their 1st home action of the 2023 campaign…Have the fewest home games played among the 30 MLB clubs…Their .580 win% (47-34) at home last season ranked 4th in the AL… After this three-game set with the Tigers, will face the
Rays (11-0) for three more over the weekend. Toronto batters finished 2nd in the AL in 2022 in home AVG (.261), 4th in home OBP (.326), 4th in home SLG (.434), and 4th in home OPS (.760)…The pitching staff posted a 4.04 ERA during home contests (10th in the AL) with a .248 opponents’ AVG (11th) and a 1.23 WHIP (8th).
CANADIAN POP SENSATION: Zach Pop took the win last night as he shut down the Tigers’ offence for 1.2 frames, retiring all five batters faced while recording two strikeouts…Became the 1st Canadian-born pitcher to win a Blue Jays Home Opener.
THE CAPTAIN BLASTS OFF: Alejandro Kirk blasted a three-run bomb in the bottom of the 8th inning, his 1st homer of the season…Also opened the scoring with an RBI single in the 2nd, going 2-for-4 on the night with four RBI…Has reached base safely in all eight of his games played this season, now 6-for-27 (.222) with that homer, six RBI, and a 5BB/5K ratio (.344 OBP).
HITTING IT: The Blue Jays are leading the AL with a team batting average of .289 (2nd in MLB)…Have notched 116 hits so far, trailing only the White Sox (117 in 12 games) for the most in MLB…Currently rank 2nd in the AL in OBP (.351) and OPS (.801) while sitting 4th in SLG (.450)…Have homered in each of the last eight games after going homerless in their first three.
MORE THAN YOUR AVERAGE TEAM: The Blue Jays led the Majors in 2022 with a .264 team batting average and 1,464 hits…Also led the AL in OBP (.329), SLG (.431), and OPS (.760) while ranked T-1st in extra-base hits (519), 2nd in runs (775), 2nd in doubles (307), and 3rd in home runs
(200)…Topped the AL in AVG, OBP, SLG, and OPS for the 1st time in team history. Blue Jay batters combined for a hard-hit (95+ MPH) percentage of 44.3 in 2022, the top rate in MLB (2nd: ATL – 43.5) while their average exit velocity of 90.2 MPH was also highest in the Majors (2nd: ATL – 89.9).
VS. THE TIGERS: All-Time: 242-205
2023: 1-0 Home: 131-96
Home: 1-0 Rogers Centre: 94-56
The Blue Jays went 5-2 vs. the Tigers last season while outscoring them, 33-15…Took three of the four games here at Rogers Centre last July…Are undefeated in season series vs. Detroit since 2019 (now 13-8). Vladimir Guerrero Jr. recorded hits in all seven games vs. the Tigers last season, going 9-for-26 (.346) with three doubles, a home run, and four RBI…In 17 career meetings, is now batting .313 (21-for-67) with four doubles, three home runs, and 11 RBI (.894 OPS). Matt Chapman played in five games against Detroit in 2022 and managed to connect for four home runs and six RBI (1.063 SLG)…Is a lifetime 23-for-98 (.235) with a pair of doubles, two triples, 12 homers, and 20
RBI (1.005 OPS) over 26 contests. Whit Merrifield leads all current Blue Jays with 101 games played vs. the Tigers…Has batted .333 (138- for-414) against his former division rival, including 35 doubles, seven triples, 11 home runs, and 50 RBI (.903 OPS).
STARTING PITCHER – Kevin Gausman, RHP #34
TODAY’S GAME:
Making his 3rd start of the season and his 1st at Rogers Centre…Picked up the win his last time out on 4/6 at KC, throwing 6.0 shutout frames with 4 hits, 2 walks, and 7 strikeouts…Hasn’t allowed an earned run over 12.0 combined innings this season. Owns a 2.80 FIP since the start of the 2020 season, the 2nd-best mark among qualified hurlers (1st: Corbin Burnes – 2.55).
2023 HIGHLIGHTS:
Took the loss in his season debut on 4/1 at STL, giving up 3 runs (all unearned) on 8 hits and a walk over 6.0 innings with 7 strikeouts.
2022 HIGHLIGHTS:
His career-best 2.32 FIP ranked 2nd among all MLB hurlers (Carlos Rodón – 2.31)…Was 5th in the AL with 205 strikeouts and finished 11th in
ERA (3.35). Picked up his 2nd win on 5/1 vs. HOU, tossing 7.0 innings of two-run ball, giving up 6 hits with no walks and a season-high 10 strikeouts…Became the 1st Blue Jay pitcher in 2022 with a double-digit strikeout game… Joined Cy Young as the only pitchers since 1903 to begin a season with five straight starts with no walks and no home runs allowed (min. 20 IP)… His 41 punchouts without any walks are the 2nd-most thru the first five games of a season in MLB history (Corbin Burnes – 49K in 2021). Twirled 6.1 innings of one-run ball in Game 1 of a doubleheader on 5/7 at CLE, giving up 6 hits with 5 strikeouts while walking his 1st batter of the season (Franmil Reyes with 2 out in the 4th)…Faced 136 consecutive batters to the begin the year without issuing a walk, the longest streak in franchise history (Paul Quantrill – 90 in 2001), and the 3rdlongest streak across the Majors since 1974 (Mark Eichhorn – 146 in 1991, Dan Quisenberry – 146 in 1982).
Earned the win on 8/2 at TB, throwing 8.0 shutout innings with a hit, a walk, and 10 strikeouts…Became the first Blue Jays pitcher to go 8+
scoreless since Alex Manoah on 9/13/21 vs. TB, and the first to do so on the road since Ryan Borucki on 9/17/18 at BAL…Recorded double-digit
strikeouts for the 4th time this season and 3rd time in his last 6 starts.
Named AL Player of the Week for 8/1-8/7, going 1-0 with 14.0 scoreless innings pitched (7H, BB, 15K)…Was his 1st PotW nod…Was the 9th Blue
Jays pitcher to take Player of the Week honours…Became the 2nd pitcher in team history to tally at least 15 K’s without more than 1 BB across 2 consecutive scoreless outings, joining Brandon Morrow (4/28- 5/3/12).
Picked up his 9th win on 8/19 at NYY…Scattered 4 hits and a walk over 7.0 scoreless innings with 7 strikeouts… Marked his 6th scoreless outing of the season and the 3rd in his last 4 starts.
Landed a no-decision on 9/21 at PHI as he tossed 6.0 scoreless innings 5H, 2BB, 8K)…Was his 6th outing of 6+ scoreless IP.
Took a no-decision on 9/26 vs. NYY, giving up 2 runs on 6 hits and a walk over 6.1 innings with 7 punchouts…Became the 2nd pitcher in team
history to record 200 K’s in his 1st season as a Blue Jay (Roger Clemens – 292 in 1997).
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS:
Set career-best marks in 2021 innings pitched (192.0), wins (14), quality starts (20), ERA (2.81), strikeouts (227), opponents’ AVG (.210), and WHIP (1.04).
Named an All-Star for the 1st time in his career in 2021 and finished 6th in NL Cy Young voting…Signed a 5-year deal with Toronto on 12/1/21.
Selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the 1st round (4th overall) of the 2012 First-Year Player Draft.
VS. THE TIGERS:
Facing the Tigers for the 10th time in his career and the 2nd time as a Blue Jay…Took the loss last season on 6/11 at Comerica Park, giving up 2R/1ER over 6.0 innings with 6 hits, 3 walks, and 4 strikeouts…Has surrendered a total of 5 earned runs over his last 4 meetings with Detroit, posting a 1.82 ERA (5 ER/24.2 IP) with 7 walks and 20 punchouts.
