The fans at Comerica Park stood on their feet numerous times.
They kept cheering for Miguel Cabrera.
He deserved the ovations.
The Detroit Tigers (44-51) swung their way to a 14-0 victory over the Texas Rangers in Monday’s series opener at Comerica Park — behind Cabrera’s three-run double in the fifth inning and two-run single in the sixth inning. The 38-year-old finished 2-for-4 with five RBIs.
“These are big moments for Miggy, our team, our organization and our fans,” manager AJ Hinch said. “He has given so much to this franchise. Miggy is in with the elite. You can go your whole career and not see things like this, so you’ve got to soak it up as a team.”
The Tigers, 35-27 since May 8, are on a four-game winning streak.
They scored their 14 runs on 19 hits and six walks. Every player in the starting lineup recorded a hit, with multi-hit performances from seven players: Cabrera, Akil Baddoo (2-for-5, four RBIs), Jonathan Schoop (2-for-5, two RBIs), Robbie Grossman (2-for-4), Harold Castro (2-for-3), Isaac Paredes (3-for-3) and Victor Reyes (4-for-5).
“This team is more connected with each other,” said Reyes, who returned to the starting lineup for the first time since June 1 after being promoted from Triple-A Toledo. “Every player is trying to help, and there’s harmony within the clubhouse.”
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Rookie Casey Mize pitched four innings and allowed one hit without a walk. He struck out two, throwing 34 of 54 pitches for strikes as he remains under strict innings limits.
“We’re a good team,” Mize said. “I think that’s what we’re learning. I think a lot of people are learning that, that we are a good team.”
Relievers Joe Jimenez, Daniel Norris and Buck Farmer each tossed one scoreless inning. Ian Krol logged scoreless eighth and ninth innings. The Rangers recorded just four hits — without a walk — and struck out 10 times.
Rangers starter and All-Star Kyle Gibson was chased without recording an out in the sixth inning. He allowed eight runs on 10 hits and two walks, generating just two strikeouts. He departed with two runners on base, and the Tigers didn’t slow down against reliever Brett Martin.
Seven-run sixth inning
Facing Martin with the bases loaded, Baddoo singled up the middle. He plated two runs — charged to Gibson — for an 8-0 lead. Schoop followed with an RBI single up the middle, and Grossman tacked on a single into left field to load the bases.
Cabrera chased Martin with his single to left field. His second hit with the bases loaded scored two more runs for an 11-0 lead. The Rangers replaced Martin, who didn’t record an out, with Scott Barlow.
“We just did a lot of things to put pressure on them,” Hinch said. “We kept taking whatever the game gave us and continued to pile on. I’ve been on both sides of it, and this side of it is a lot more fun. But we just kept having quality plate appearances.”
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Barlow walked the first two batters he faced.
Jeimer Candelario’s free pass loaded the bases, and Eric Haase’s walk scored a run. At this point, all nine players in the lineup had stepped into the batter’s box and reached safely in the sixth, doing so with three walks and six singles. The last time the Tigers accomplished this feat was in the ninth inning Aug. 8, 2001, at Texas.
The first out made by the Rangers came on a sacrifice fly from Castro. His fly ball into left field scored Cabrera from third base, giving the Tigers a 13-0 lead. Zack Short — who entered as a pinch-runner for Paredes — grounded into an inning-ending double play.
The Tigers scored their 14th and final run on Candelario’s bases-loaded walk in the seventh.
Baddoo homers
The scoring started in the third inning, when Baddoo drove a curveball into the right field seats for a two-run home run. His seventh blast of the season traveled 352 feet.
“Anytime you can pile on a couple runs against a quality pitcher like Gibson, it’s just going to relax the entire dugout and make you feel like you’re in control of the game,” Hinch said. “Combine that with the way Casey set the tone and the way our relievers came in, it was a good night.”
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Baddoo drew a seven-pitch walk in the fifth inning, putting runners at the corners with one out. He fell behind 0-2 in the count after three pitches but worked four consecutive balls. Paredes, after doubling earlier in the inning, scored on Schoop’s single to right field for a 3-0 lead.
The 22-year-old Baddoo is hitting .278 in 74 games.
Cabrera shows wheels
The strong at-bats from Paredes, Baddoo and Schoop were just the beginning of Gibson’s troubles in the fifth inning. Grossman forced bases-loaded pressure with a hit by pitch, setting the table for Cabrera to attack.
Cabrera lined a changeup into the left-field corner for a double, scoring three runs for a 6-0 lead. As the Rangers relayed the ball to home plate, Cabrera turned on his speed. He raced toward third base but was called out on the throw from catcher Jonah Heim.
But a replay review deemed Cabrera safe at third base. The play was ruled a double, with Cabrera advancing to third base on the throw home. (For reference, Cabrera has 17 triples in his 19-year career, and he hasn’t picked up a three-bagger since 2016.)
“I think his double-slash-triple was a big swing against one of the better pitchers in the American League, and we got to widen our gap,” Hinch said. “We put some pressure on them and had good, disciplined at-bats early, and then we took advantage of a few base hits here and there.”
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Cabrera’s two-hit performance moved him into sole possession of 38th place on the all-time hits leaderboard, passing Jake Beckley and Rogers Hornsby, with 2,931 hits in his 19-year MLB career. He also picked up his 405th double as a Tiger, which tied him with Sam Crawford for seventh-most in franchise history.
He remains six home runs away from No. 500.
“It makes us very happy,” Reyes said about Cabrera’s milestones. “Every time he goes to home plate, he makes us very proud. All of those numbers and people he’s left behind, watching him play makes us feel very, very proud.”
Evan Petzold is a sports reporter at the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @EvanPetzold. Read more on the Detroit Tigers and sign up for our Tigers newsletter.
