Detroit Tigers catcher Grayson Greiner had five hits in 40 at-bats this season entering his eighth-inning duel with Minnesota Twins reliever Sergio Romo. He worked a six-pitch battle, ending in a slider tagged for a 355-foot hit.
And it was just enough to clear the left-field wall for his third homer and, more importantly, the go-ahead run amid a four-game losing skid.
The Tigers trailed 6-2 at the conclusion of the fifth inning but stormed back with three runs in the sixth, two in the seventh and three more in the eighth en route to a 10-8 victory against the Twins (25-17) on Sunday at Target Field.
As of Sunday afternoon, the Tigers (18-20) are two games back of the New York Yankees for the AL's eighth and final spot in the expanded 16-team postseason. The Baltimore Orioles jumped to ninth place (and one game ahead of the Tigers) with a 5-1 win Sunday against the Yankees.
Detroit is slated to start right-hander Michael Fulmer in Monday's five-game series finale.
