Javier Báez had a breakthrough game, ending his long struggle this season by driving in five runs. Tarik Skubal pitched six strong innings as the Detroit Tigers cruised to a 13-0 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night.
After shutting out Florida in their previous two games, the Tigers got off to a strong start against Rhyne Nelson (2-3), scoring three runs in the third inning and adding six more in the fifth, which led to Nelson’s early exit.
Detroit had scored 11 runs by the fifth inning and ended the game with a season-best 17 hits, including seven extra-base hits, although they didn’t hit any home runs.
“We’ve been waiting for a night like this, and it couldn’t have come at a better time,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “We’ve shown this capability before, and tonight was a great display of our potential. The way each batter contributed was fantastic. It’s infectious.”
Hinch had faith in Báez despite his struggles, and Báez proved him right with a stellar 3-for-4 performance, including two two-run doubles and a single that drove in another run.
It wasn’t just Báez shining in the Tigers’ hitting spree. Kerry Carpenter contributed with four RBIs, while Colt Keith had a 4-for-5 night with two RBIs. Wenceel Pérez and Riley Greene also drove in runs.
“We did well at hitting the ball where it was pitched,” Hinch commented. “We didn’t aim to hit home runs.” That was plenty for Skubal (6-0), who performed excellently despite feeling some early jitters with many friends and family watching.
The southpaw, who played high school baseball in Kingman, Arizona, kept a perfect game going until the fifth inning and gave up just one hit while striking out six batters in a combined three-hit game.
Skubal didn’t allow a runner on base until Randal Grichuk hit a double off the wall with one out in the fifth inning, and he left the game with the Tigers leading 13-0.
“I was probably a bit too excited, a bit nervous, but it’s all good,” Skubal remarked. But things weren’t so good for Arizona. The reigning NL champions seemed to be on the right path, winning seven of their last 10 games.
