detroit – Jack McKinstry was still pumping his fists triumphantly in the clubhouse after the Tigers’ most incredible, most incredible 11-9, 10-inning walk-off win over the NL West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday at Comerica Park.
How impossible? The Dodgers were 47–0 after eight innings this season and went into the ninth with a 9–4 lead.
“Huh,” McKinstry said. “It’s great. Now they’re 47-1.”
Most of the 40,196 people who stuck around were Dodgers fans, it’s true.
“Amazing,” said Gio Urshela, who delivered the winning home run in the bottom of the 10th off reliever Yohan Ramirez. “We battled the whole game today. To go from being down by five to down in the ninth – amazing. The whole team did something to win this game.”
Let’s work backwards here. After a five-run outburst in the bottom of the ninth capped by rookie Colt Keith’s dramatic two-run homer, the Tigers were back in the soup in the top of the 10th. The Dodgers loaded the bases against reliever Will West with one out and the always dangerous Freddy Freeman was at the plate.
Box Score: Tigers 11, Dodgers 9, 10 innings
mlb standings
“Right off the bat, Zach said, if it gets hit on him, I have to get to the bag (at second),” said second baseman Keith. “I told him I would.”
Freeman hit a ball up the middle, toward the shortstop at second base. McKinstry placed it on his knees and gave the bag a deft turn. Keith made a textbook variation and struck out Urshela at first base to complete an inning-ending double-play.
“I was just trying not to let it get to me,” McKinstry said. “I just put my body on the line there and made a good flip and we turned it over. That was an amazing play.”
The energy and spirit of the Tigers players was palpable, infectious.
“That was one of the best moments I had,” said Keith, who played a game full of big moments on Saturday.
Tigers manager AJ Hinch said, “Colt is in a very good place mentally and physically and most importantly emotionally.” “I know from the beginning he felt like he belonged. But you still have to prove it to the guys and you have to prove it to the fans and you have to prove it to yourself sometimes.”
He checked every box, especially in the ninth and 10th innings.
When the Tigers came to bat in the bottom of the ninth they looked dead in the water. Lost by five runs and two of their stalwarts were already out of the game. Mark Canha complained of wrist pain after batting once in the second innings. Shortstop Javier Báez again strained his back and was removed in the fifth inning.
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Both were expected to stand trial Saturday night.
“We’re a bad team,” Keith said. “We’ve had a lot of wins in the ninth inning this year (19 come-from-behind wins). We’ll come back and at least give ourselves a chance. That’s what we did. We never gave up. Down 9-4, I It appeared as if there were no changes in the dugout.
Matt Vierling hit a two-run double off reliever Ricky Vanasco to make the score 9-6. This forced Dodgers manager Dave Roberts to use closer Evan Phillips for the second consecutive day.
Carson Kelly, who produced 804 disappointing field fly balls to center field early in the game, blasted an RBI single to left field – 9–7.
Then with two outs, Keith, who had doubled in two runs in the second inning, ambushed a first-pitch cutter who was in and out of the plate, and singled it to right field. His ninth home run of the year tied the score.
“We said he was a first-pitch cutter 70 percent of the time,” Keith said. “So I told (hitting coach) Michael Brodar if he threw me one I’d pull it. He threw me a ball inside and I was able to get it in the air.”
The ball flew 364 feet and landed in the bushes on the right, just above the wall.
Hinch said, “I don’t know how to properly comment on this game except that it’s an amazing feeling to see people happy inside the clubhouse.” “What a comeback.”
More:Tigers’ Jake Rogers’ rare glimpse of anger tests the limits of the umpire-catcher relationship
By the end of the game, Hinch had used every player on his bench, as well as five relievers. Ryan Vilade ended up playing three positions, right field, first base, and left field. For Urshela this was considered a day off.
Hinch said, “I’m sure glad I didn’t give him one.”
Keith is hitting .410 with a double, two triples, five home runs and 13 RBI in his last 11 games.
“It’s really good to see,” Urshela said. “Everyone knows how the first two months of the season were for him. He’s been working really hard and I’m very happy to see all his results. I feel good for him.”
For Keith, it was less about his day and more about what the team achieved. He was still pinching himself afterward.
“Honestly, that was one of the best moments I’ve ever had,” he said. “Playing with the Dodgers. Obviously they got a billion-dollar player and they could beat them with the guys here. It was fun.”
Keith, a left-handed hitter, finished the day with three hits, a walk and four RBI. Two hits came against left-handed pitchers. His two-run double in the second inning was on a cutter off Dodgers lefty starter Justin Wrobleski. He stuck to it and lofted it to the left-centre gap – further evidence of his growth and comfort in the batsman’s box.
“Each of these experiences is going to make him more organized,” Hinch said. “And he’s never satisfied. This guy can go out and do what he did today and he’ll talk about the batting he didn’t like. He’s a perfectionist by nature and he’s a grinder by nature. is also.
“It’s a great quality.”
There was one last feel-good moment on Saturday. Villade, just 25, has played 696 games in the minor leagues. He reached the big leagues in 2021 for three games with Colorado and was playing his sixth game with the Tigers. And in his 22nd plate appearance in those four years, he finally hit his first big league homer in the fifth.
“It’s special,” he said. “Just a great moment. Unforgettable. But this game, though. Down five in the ninth, tie it, Colts, live the big homer. Just a special day.”
Wenzel Pérez followed with his fourth homer of the season.
“I didn’t really feel it,” Vilade said of the ball coming off his bat. “It was a once-in-a-lifetime swing. I can’t really explain it. I’ve been waiting for that moment for a long time.”
Hinch was asked where this win ranks among his big moments with the Tigers.
“I don’t remember much,” he said, laughing. “There have been some really fun wins, but this is going to be on top of that. You can never go crazy after a win, but you can get a little extra excited after a win like today.”
Chris.McCosky@detroitnews.com
@cmccoskie
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