DETROIT — A pinch-hit inside-the-park home run.
That's how the Detroit Tigers came away with a 2-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays in Friday's series opener at Comerica Park.
Desperate for a run, manager AJ Hinch called on Victor Reyes to hit for Zack Short — hitting .143 this season — to open the eighth inning against left-handed reliever Tim Mayza. Reyes worked a 1-1 count before drilling a slider into right-center field.
As the ball skipped underneath center fielder Josh Palacios' glove, Reyes increased his speed and the fans began to cheer. Third base coach Ramon Santiago, complying with Hinch's aggressive mindset, never hesitated in signaling Reyes home.
He scored safely to give the Tigers (62-67) their first lead of the night, which Gregory Soto protected with a perfect ninth inning for his 16th save.
Detroit is 53-43 since May 8 and 22-16 since the All-Star break.
Once rookie Matt Manning completed his six innings of one-run ball, the Tigers turned to their best relievers for dominant outings. Kyle Funkhouser pitched a perfect seventh, Jose Cisnero — making his team-high 60th appearance — worked around a two-out walk for a scoreless eighth.
New career-high
Facing a powerful lineup, Manning delivered the best performance of his MLB career in his 12th start. He allowed one run on six hits and one walk over six innings, also setting a career high with five strikeouts.
The right-hander previously struck out four batters twice: July 21 and July 26 against the Texas Rangers and Minnesota Twins, respectively. Manning's new high in the fifth inning came on a strikeout of Teoscar Hernandez swinging with a slider for the third out.
The 23-year-old threw 58 of 83 pitches for strikes.
Manning faced a test in the second inning, when Corey Dickerson and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. delivered back-to-back singles to open the frame. He used his secondary pitches to retire the next two batters. Palacios grounded out on a change-up down in the strike zone, and Kevin Smith popped out on a slider near the top of the zone.
The next batter, Reese McGuire, struck out looking at a fastball.
The Blue Jays scored their lone run off Manning in the third. Bo Bichette started with a double down the third-base line.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s ensuing one-out double gave the Blue Jays a 1-0 lead. The Tigers countered in the fourth inning. Miguel Cabrera hit Blue Jays starter Steven Matz's two-seam fastball for an RBI single up the middle, scoring Jeimer Candelario, who had doubled. (Matz gave Toronto six innings of one-run ball.)
Candelario recorded two doubles Friday, giving him an MLB-leading 36 this season. Cabrera now has 2,959 career hits in his chase for No. 3,000.
Manning picked up 10 swings and misses, generating five with his two-seamer, four with his slider and one with his four-seamer. His two-seam fastball maxed out at 97.8 mph, a product of a more aggressive throwing motion, and averaged 94.4 mph.
Another spectacular catch
In the fourth inning, Tigers center fielder Derek Hill added to his defensive resume.
Hill tracked a 413-foot fly ball from Smith with two outs. He traveled from center field to the deepest part of left-center before jumping at the wall. Hill put his glove over the wall and robbed Smith of a solo home run.
Smith's swing had a .690 expected batting average. It was yet another web gem for Hill against Smith; on Sunday in Toronto, Hill took a two-run double away from Smith with a diving catch in left-center.)
Considered the best outfielder in the organization's system, Hill has made a handful of electric catches over his 33 games in 2021. He also gives the Tigers superb routine plays by taking the best routes, reading the ball off the bat and knowing when to boost his speed.
Welcome home
Cabrera returned to Comerica Park for the first time since reaching 500 home runs.
He became the 28th player in MLB history to accomplish No. 500, doing so Sunday in Toronto. That swing came against Matz — the same lefty who started Friday at Comerica Park — in the sixth inning.
Before the bottom of the second inning Friday, Cabrera's wife and children stood behind the "Miggy Milestones" tracker in left field. The Tigers played the video of No. 500 and his family changed the milestone tracker from 499 to 500 as 17,259 fans roared in excitement. (He tagged his 501st home run Tuesday in St. Louis.)
Cabrera then took a curtain call, waving and bowing to the crowd.
