The Detroit Tigers scored an 11-0 blowout victory against the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday night (box score), improving their record to 22-14 since the start of August. More importantly, the win helped the Tigers keep pace in the American League playoff picture: they entered Tuesday three games behind the Minnesota Twins for the final slot. (The Tigers were tied with the Boston Red Sox and Seattle Mariners.)
The Twins were, as of press time, well on their way to a victory against the Los Angeles Angels. Should that result hold, the Tigers will have to settle for remaining three games out. Under no circumstances can the Tigers lose ground to the Twins on Tuesday.
Right-hander Keider Montero recorded a shutout in what doubled as the best start of his nascent big-league career. He held the Rockies to three hits and no walks over the course of nine innings. He also struck out four batters on 96 pitches.
Montero, 24, entered Tuesday having compiled a 5.47 ERA (76 ERA+) and a 2.31 strikeout-to-walk ratio in his first 14 big-league appearances.
In support of Montero, the Tigers received multi-hit performances from four different players on Tuesday. That group included outfielders Parker Meadows and Riley Greene, who combined to drive in six of Detroit’s runs. Matt Vierling and Andy Ibáñez also drove in two runs apiece.
The Tigers do not have any head-to-head matchups with the Twins remaining on their schedule, suggesting they’ll need some help to close the gap over the ensuing few weeks. What they do have, however, is two more games against the Rockies and then a season-concluding three-game set against the Chicago White Sox — or, in so many words, prime opportunities to stack up wins against inferior opponents.
Detroit has not made the playoffs since the 2014 season.
