DETROIT -- The Detroit Tigers executed a squeeze play in the bottom of the 10th inning to beat the Houston Astros 2-1 Sunday afternoon at Comerica Park.
With Akil Baddoo on third base and one out, Robbie Grossman laid down a bunt just to left of the pitcher’s mound. Astros reliever Blake Taylor fielded it cleanly, but not in time to get Baddoo at the plate.
It was a “safety squeeze” rather than a “suicide squeeze” in that Baddoo was dashing home on contact rather than on the pitch.
“We actually talked to Robbie about bunting before the inning,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “As long as long as Akil got to third base, it gave Robbie a chance. Robbie put down a good enough bunt, and speed never slumps. It was a nice win.”
The Tigers (34-44) split the four-game series with the Astros (48-30), who entered the series on a 10-game win streak.
Tigers starter Tarik Skubal allowed just one run on one hit in a career-high seven innings. He struck out nine, walked three and hit a batter. The Astros swung and missed a whopping 21 times, or about 20 percent of Skubal’s pitches.
In his last 10 starts, Skubal has a 3.23 ERA with 76 strikeouts in 55 2/3 innings.
“I like to compete and I like to compete against the best in the game,” Skubal said. “I don’t know if it’s rising to the occasion or anything like that. I go out there and give it my all and I was excited about going up against the Astros in this start.”
The Tigers tied the game in the seventh inning by drawing a couple of walks against Astros reliever Cristian Javier. Houston manager Dusty Baker turned to lefty Brooks Raley to face the left-handed hitting Baddoo, who was just 3-for-27 against southpaws on the season.
Baddoo blooped a single to left, scoring Willi Castro from second base, to get the Tigers on the board for the first time.
The Tigers had close calls in the eighth and ninth innings.
Daz Cameron hit a 417-foot rocket shot to center with two on in the eighth. It would have been a home run in 23 of 30 parks, according to Statcast. Instead it was a flyout.
Baddoo ended the ninth inning with a 398-foot, well-struck flyout to center. It had an 86-percent hit probability, per Statcast.
Tigers reliever Gregory Soto got big outs in the ninth and 10th innings to earn the win.
After a loss on May 7, the Tigers were 9-24 and had lost 18 of 21 games. Since then, they’ve gone 25-20.
“It’s easy to wash away April, given how bad it was,” Hinch said. “I don’t ever want to revisit that...I feel good with where we’re at.”
Up next: The Tigers open a three-game series against the Cleveland Indians (41-33) at Progressive Field on Monday at 7:10 p.m. Tigers rookie right-hander Matt Manning (1-1, 3.38 ERA) will make his third career start against Indians right-hander Eli Morgan (0-2, 10.32).
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Tigers score on 10th inning squeeze play to beat Astros, 2-1 - MLive.com
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