ST. PETERSBURG -- The Tigers’ struggles on the road over the last couple months had become all too familiar. But as they slugged baseballs around Tropicana Field the last couple nights, they looked like the team everyone came to know last year, starting with the guy at the top.
Gleyber Torres said before his return from the injured list Tuesday that he can’t hit a five-run home run to spark the Tigers’ struggling offense. But as he worked a 3-1 count against Rays left-hander Steven Matz, then crushed a sinker a Statcast-projected 433 feet to left-center for a leadoff home run, the injury-plagued Tigers felt closer to whole again.
“That's what we were talking about,” Torres said postgame. “I don't want to be a hero. I just want to play the right way.”
This is what the Tigers have been missing, in name as well as results. And as they rolled to an 8-0 win Tuesday night, they looked more like the dangerous team so many envisioned going into the season.
“Everybody’s playing for each other,” said Jack Flaherty (1-7), who tossed five scoreless innings with six strikeouts for his first win since last September. “Just keep turning the page, good or bad.”
The Tigers hadn’t won back-to-back games since May 2-3 against the Rangers at Comerica Park -- also the last time they won a series. They just clinched their first road series win since they won their first two games of the season in San Diego in late March. And they did it against a Rays team that entered the series with the best record in the American League by dominating at Tropicana Field, where the home team had gone 21-7.
The last two nights looked like a statement from a team that has written so much of its story with missing keys.
“It's encouraging for sure,” Spencer Torkelson said. “We believe we can beat every team no matter what. We believe our best beats everyone's best. They are a really good team, but so are we. We didn't show that in May, but we're going to continue to show it moving forward.”
Torres’ return after a month sidelined with a left oblique strain provided an immediate lift for a Tigers lineup that struggled through May with a .204 team batting average and .597 OPS for the month before breaking out for 10 runs on Monday. He seamlessly slotted back into Detroit’s lineup in the leadoff spot Tuesday night.
Torres was slashing .259/.389/.328 for a 104 OPS+ at the time of his injury. What was originally hoped to be a mild strain and a potentially minimal IL stint turned out to be more persistent, requiring a more deliberate progression. He made a couple starts on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Toledo over the weekend before joining the Tigers at Tropicana Field to work out on Monday.
“My swing is there,” Torres said pregame. “Hopefully power and consistency come back after that type of rest.”
He appeared quite ready Tuesday, working the count in his favor before slugging his fifth career leadoff homer.
“It looked like he was going to walk to lead the game off, which would not have surprised anyone,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “And then he takes a good swing and hits a homer. Good bat speed, good velo, everything was synced up for him.
“It’s nice to have him back, and just his presence alone was a big difference maker for us.”
Said Matz: “I had to throw him a fastball. Don't want to walk the first hitter of the game, so I was just going to go right after him -- and he hurt me. And that kind of set the tone for the rest of the game.”
The Tigers picked up on his lead, pummeling Matz -- previously known to Tigers fans for giving up Miguel Cabrera’s 500th career home run five years ago in Toronto -- for as many runs (five) as outs recorded. Matt Vierling followed Torres’ homer with a triple and scored on Dillon Dingler’s sacrifice fly, one of three on the night for Detroit.
“This is a good offensive team when we get locked in on a game plan and go out and execute,” Hinch said.
Wenceel Pérez’s two-run home run -- his third homer in six days -- powered a three-run second inning that chased Matz. Vierling doubled home Zack Short for a 5-0 lead that put Detroit in command.
Riley Greene’s seventh-inning solo homer just inside the foul pole pushed the Tigers to 18 runs over two games at Tropicana Field. They’ve posted their two highest run totals since April, and seemingly put their May struggles to bed.
“There's still a lot of baseball,” Torres said. “It's not how you start. It's how you finish. We have a really good opportunity to do something.”