Tigers vs Blue Jays; May 16-18

The Den
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On deck: Toronto Blue Jays

:arrow_forward: Series: Three games at Rogers Centre, Toronto

:arrow_forward: First pitch: Friday — 7:07 p.m.; Saturday — 3:07 p.m.; Sunday — 1:37 p.m.

:arrow_forward: TV/radio: All three games on FanDuel Sports/97.1 FM

:arrow_forward: Probables: Friday — RHP Jack Flaherty (1-5, 4.61) vs. RHP Bowden Francis (2-5, 5.40); Saturday — RHP Reese Olson (4-3, 3.38) vs. RHP Jose Urena (0-0, 4.26 with Blue Jays); Sunday — RHP Jackson Jobe (3-0, 4.32) vs. TBD.

Scouting report

:arrow_forward: Flaherty, Tigers: He’s grinding through a rough patch. In his last three starts, he’s been tagged with 13 earned runs in 13.2 innings, allowing six homers and a.667 opponent slugging percentage. Most of the damage has come off his fastball (.309 average, .618 slug) but that is at least partly due to some persistent command issues. He’s having to throw too many fastballs in hitter-friendly counts. There is always a price to pay for that.

:arrow_forward: Francis, Blue Jays: He is coming off a quality start in a win at Seattle, but he’s been hit hard this season. His 12 homers allowed (five in one game) are most in the American League. Opponents are slugging .538 against him with a 50% hard-hit rate. He throws splitters and curveballs off a 92-93 mph four-seam fastball.

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Vierling getting closer to returning, from the News:

“We’re just going day by day, series by series,” said manager AJ Hinch, who celebrated his 51st birthday Thursday. “He’s not going to be in Toronto. That doesn’t mean he’s going to be in St. Louis. We have a lot of time between now and Sunday before we have to make any determination.”

Vierling, who strained his right rotator cuff early in spring training, was expected to play in his eighth rehab assignment game with Triple-A Toledo Thursday night in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

In the first seven games, he’s played right field twice and been the designated hitter five times. He’s yet to play center field or third base.

“The most important thing we have to do is develop confidence with the various throws,” Hinch said. “And you can’t prescribe that in a game. You can’t say, ‘Hey, do you mind hitting it to center so this guy can make a throw to third?’

“We’ve got to be patient with our evaluation. He has to be tested before he can come back.”

He had 26 plate appearances before Thursday and his four hits were extra-base hits — two doubles and two homers.

“The at-bats are starting to pile up in a positive way, similar to a spring training build-up,” Hinch said. “But the plays in the field are what we are really zeroing in on.”

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From the Freep

# Detroit Tigers’ Dillon Dingler doesn’t take walks. He’s still one of best catchers in MLB
full article at link.

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As of May 15, Dingler is third among American League catchers in FanGraphs WAR, mostly due to his defensive greatness and partly due to his offensive success.

…So, where is Dingler’s value coming from? His elite defense tells much of the story.

According to Statcast, Dingler is the best catcher in baseball when it comes to blocking (100th percentile) and one of the best in framing (95th percentile). He’s calmly managed a young pitching staff in just his second big league year. And then there’s his cannon arm, which is easier to show than it is to explain:

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He’s unquestionably one of the best defensive catchers in baseball in 2025. According to Statcast’s fielding run value, which measures the totality of a player’s defensive contributions, Dingler ranks in the 97th percentile of all MLB defenders.

He sits behind only San Francisco Giants catcher Patrick Bailey and Toronto Blue Jays backstop Alejandro Kirk as the best defensive catcher in baseball.

But his contributions to the Tigers extend to his bat, as well. He has a .730 OPS at the plate, which when adjusted for ballpark and position factors, is 5% better than the league average. His .437 slugging percentage is ahead of players like Zach McKinstry (.409) and Colt Keith (.361), who were both considered bigger power threats entering the year than Dingler. Few would consider him a middle-of-the-order threat, but for someone who entered the season having played only 27 career games, Dingler looks as comfortable as a seasoned veteran when up to bat.

There’s one exception to his offensive breakout, however: His ability to walk. Or rather, his inability to walk

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and one more from the Freep

# What makes Detroit Tigers special? Any hitter can play hero, including Justyn-Henry Malloy

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What separates the Tigers from the rest of baseball isn’t just their record — it’s how they use their roster. And not just the 26-man roster, but also the 40-man roster.

“We, as an organization, have committed to bringing up guys,” Hinch said. “If they can help us win one game, then we’re going to use our roster. We’re going to use our players. We’re going to put guys in a position to win that day’s game.”

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Because everyone is ready to play hero.

Let Malloy explain: "You come into the ballpark, and you’re just ready to win. There’s a feeling of momentum. There’s a feeling of wanting to contribute. And you know you have a role. I think the amount of buy-in with that role creates a really selfless atmosphere where guys are ready to jump in the game. It really is just the selfless act of trying to play the game. I think our group is doing an incredible job of doing so.

… Malloy, a right-handed hitter, follows a specific routine as a pinch-hitter for left-handed pitchers.

It’s a routine shaped by a legend.

This past spring training, Miguel Cabrera spent a week coaching at TigerTown and helped Malloy develop his approach, teaching him the importance of watching the game closely and anticipating when he might be called upon.

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Most importantly, the players are fully bought into team-first strategies employed by Hinch.

“It’s harder than it looks,” said Kerry Carpenter, a slugger who never starts against left-handers but typically pinch-hits as soon as a righty reliever enters the game.

Pinch-hitters across MLB are batting .214.
The Tigers?

They’re batting .238 in those situations.
Every player on the bench knows his role — and stays ready.

“It’s not surprising how much success they have doing that,” Carpenter said. "I was the designated hitter today, so I’ll go down to the cage.

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I may be biased, but I think we found our catcher moving forward.

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Biased or not, I believe you are correct and I also think more power will come as he improves at the plate.

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I can’t help but think of a young Lance Parrish.

The Tigers have had some great catchers in my lifetime. I think Dingler is next in that line.

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Holy shit twins have won 11 in a row.

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And are still 4th in the division LOL!

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Yeah but 11 in row is really impressive

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True, but not sustainable. Buxton and Correa ran into each other yesterday and both are under concussion protocol. That team is an injury magnet, especially those two players. They make Mike Trout look like an Iron Man.

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Could be a dong fest… Both giving up a ton of homers.

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If the playoffs started today everyone in the AL Central, except the white sox, would be in.

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Thats pretty crazy. Almost like how lions go no help as well. Oh well. Just got to beat them

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Maybe some Canadian beer to celebrate the occasion?

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I’m not buying it @Bols moonshine from WV is very dangerous, drinks from Canada are kind of soft?

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Well my FanDuel account has lapsed for the summer, supposed to save money and get outside. The tigers are so good though, maybe I should re-up?

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I have been having nothing but trouble with fanduel. To the point that the games are unwatchable.

I contacted them, and if its not fixed by tonight they can shove it. Ill listen to the game on the radio.

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They 100% suck, but have you tried them as an add on to Amazon Prime? Same price, same service, but for whatever reason works way better. At least in my experience

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