Jacob Stallings’ key double in the ninth inning helped the Colorado Rockies secure a 4-2 win over the Detroit Tigers on Thursday.
Stallings remarked, “This is the end of an 11-day road trip, with all nine games against playoff teams or those fighting for wild-card spots. We held our own. Today, we faced the likely AL Cy Young winner, but I felt confident.”
The Tigers started the game three games behind the Minnesota Twins for the third American League wild-card spot, with ace Tarik Skubal on the mound.
In the ninth inning, with the score tied at 2, Brendan Rodgers led off with a single against Jason Foley (3-6) and advanced to second on a passed ball. Stallings then hit a blooper to right field that got past Matt Vierling, allowing him to reach second base.
Pinch-runner Nolan Jones advanced to third on a groundout, and Jake Cave added a run with a deep sacrifice fly to make it 4-2.
Tyler Kinley closed out the game in the ninth, getting Zach McKinstry out with runners on the corners for his 12th save.
Rockies manager Bud Black said, “That’s a really good win on the road against a team that’s been hot since August. Skubal is expected to win the American League Cy Young Award, but we had some solid at-bats against him.”
Skubal pitched six innings, allowing one run on four hits and striking out six, but the Tigers’ offense struggled.
Tigers manager A.J. Hinch commented, “We didn’t get going, partly because Ryan Feltner pitched really well. We didn’t hit him hard.”
The Tigers were concerned when Skubal was struck on the right (non-pitching) hand by a line drive from Brenton Doyle in the sixth inning. Skubal caught the ball with his pitching hand and required a brief check from the training staff before continuing. He made a play on the next hitter, Ryan McMahon, but left the game after the inning.
