The Tigers continue to lose at the worst possible time, dropping the first game of their series against the Rays 4-1.
Let’s throw our memories back a ways, to the last time the Tigers squared off against the Rays. Detroit was down and out, and the Rays were red hot. That series defied all expectations as the Tigers triumphed and went on to continue winning for almost a month. The Tigers once again find themselves struggling, while the Rays are having an incredible season. Perhaps magic could strike twice, as the Tigers hoped to bust out of their present slump, and do it against a team that helped turn things around for them once this season already. To do it, they’d have Framber Valdez on the mound for the first game of the series, up against one of the hottest pitchers in the Rays’ rotation, Drew Rasmussen.
The Rays got things going with some early contact. Yandy Diaz singled. Ryan Vilade then singled, and thanks to a fielding error from Brett Callahan, both runners advanced into scoring position. A Junior Caminero groundout allowed the first run of the game to score. Jonny DeLuca then singled, bumping Vilade to third. A Jonathan Aranda groundout scored another run for the Rays. Jorge Mateo drew a walk before Valdez finally got the last out of the inning. In the home half, the Tigers went 1-2-3.
Valdez turned things around in the second, getting the side out in order, a much-needed adjustment. The final out of the inning was in thanks to an incredible throw from Kevin McGonigle.
KEVIN. McGONIGLE. 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/ulV5C2F50h
— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) August 24, 2026Unfortunately, the Tigers also went 1-2-3 again in the home half.
With one out in the third, Junior Caminero drew a walk. A Jonny DeLuca double then appeared to score Caminero, but the Tigers challenged the safe call at home, and after a review the call on the field was overturned. Depending on the view it didn’t even look like he touched the plate, but it definitely confirmed Dillon Dingler tagged him before he reached the plate. A groundout then ended the inning. With two outs in the bottom of the inning, Javier Baez singled, but that was followed by a Colt Keith strikeout to end the inning.
Jorge Mateo opened the fourth with a leadoff double. Then a Nick Fortes sac bunt advanced Mateo to third. Chandler Simpson then singled, scoring the third Rays’ run of the night. Two outs followed, but the Tigers had more work ahead of them if they were going to stage a comeback. In the home half, McGonigle got a one-out double. Dingler then singled, pushing McGonigle to third. Callahan then made up for his earlier error with a sac fly to bring McGonigle home and put the Tigers on the board at last.
Caminero got a one-out single in the fifth, but DeLuca then hit into a double play to end the inning. The Tigers went 1-2-3 in the home half.
Aranda opened the sixth with a solo home run. Three outs followed, but the Rays had boosted their lead to 4-1. The Tigers went three-up, three-down again in the home half.
Valdez was done after six, with a final line of 6.0 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 0 K, 1 HR on 84 pitches. We haven’t seen a ton of consistency from Valdez in his recent starts, but him getting through six innings really helped the Tigers’ bullpen. He was replaced by Tanner Rainey. Rainey got the first strikeout of the game for the Tigers, then walked Yandy Diaz. Two outs followed, though, leaving the runner stranded. Garrett Cleavinger replaced Rasmussen in the bottom of the inning. The Tigers once again went down in order in the bottom of the inning.
In the eighth, Mateo drew a walk with two outs. He then stole second, but was caught stealing (after narrowly avoiding a tagout at first right beforehand). While Mateo did indicate he wanted a review, the Rays didn’t challenge the call. Manuel Rodríguez was the new Rays’ reliever in the bottom of the inning. Spencer Torkelson got a leadoff double. Two outs later, Keith walked. The Tigers were not able to take advantage of their baserunners, though, and a final out ended the inning.
Tyler Holton came in for the top of the ninth. He gave up a one-out single to Simpson, but the Rays weren’t able to capitalize on the baserunner or add to their lead. Bryan Baker was the final Rays’ reliever for the bottom of the inning. With one out, Dingler was hit by a pitch, then Ben Malgeri singled, sending Dingler to third. The Tigers were not able to take advantage of a perfect scoring opportunity and dropped the first game of the series to the Rays.
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