Back-to-back home runs, back-to-back pitches.
The powerful swings of Spencer Torkelson and Kerry Carpenter in the sixth inning kept the Detroit Tigers within striking distance against the Chicago Cubs. In the eighth, the Tigers, thanks to more production from Torkelson and Carpenter, capitalized with a three-run inning to tie the game.
But the Tigers lost to the Cubs, 7-6, in Monday’s opener of a three-game series, and a 10-game homestand, at Comerica Park. Center fielder Parker Meadows, making his MLB debut, finished 1-for-5 with a single in the sixth inning.
Meadows flew out to right field with a runner on first base to end the game, after the Tigers answered two runs from the Cubs in the top of the ninth inning with just one run in the bottom of the frame.
“Unfortunate there,” Meadows said. “Things don’t go your way all the time. The guys are really good about picking me up and keeping me in the game. It was a great experience that I’ll never forget.”
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The Tigers (57-68) trail the first-place Minnesota Twins by eight games in the American League Central.
The back-to-back pull-side homers from Torkelson and Carpenter off Cubs right-hander Javier Assad in the sixth inning showcased another glimpse into the future of the franchise and made the final three innings interesting.
Torkelson, a right-handed hitter, turned on a second-pitch sinker — located middle-inside — for a 418-foot home run to left field; Carpenter, a left-handed hitter, got ahold of a first-pitch curveball — located down-and-away — for a 404-foot home run to right-center field.
“There was a lot of energy in the ballpark, and that put more energy into the ballpark,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “We made a nice little run at it. We played the full game, like we always do. I think that’s important. It started by not hanging our head when things offensively weren’t going well for us.”
Torkelson, 23, has 23 homers in 123 games, while Carpenter, 25, has 19 homers in 82 games. Torkelson, the 2020 No. 1 overall pick, is hitting .395 (17-for-43) with eight home runs, six walks and 11 strikeouts in his past 12 games.
With one out in the sixth, Meadows ripped a two-strike fastball into right field for the first hit of his MLB career. He hit the ball with a 108.5 mph exit velocity, and his single chased Assad from his start.
“It felt great,” Meadows said. “I felt like I was on top of the world. I looked at the big screen and saw my family and friends cheering. It was a pretty surreal moment.”
The Cubs replaced Assad with right-handed reliever Hayden Wesneski, who retired back-to-back batters — Javier Báez (strikeout) and Zach McKinstry (lineout) — to strand Meadows at first base.
Meadows struck out swinging, chasing a fastball below the strike zone, in the first plate appearance of his MLB career. The 23-year-old, who logged 2,103 plate appearances in the minor leagues, stepped to the plate in the big leagues for the first time in the second inning.
Catcher Carson Kelly, making his Tigers debut, was 0-for-4 with two strikeouts on offense. He was responsible for a costly mistake in the second inning, which contributed to the Cubs scoring three runs.
The rally
Torkelson, who went 4-for-5 and finished a triple shy of the cycle, was responsible for two errors at first base, including one in the second inning. But he hammered his 28th double of the season against right-handed reliever Michael Fulmer, an ex-Tiger, to open the eighth inning.
Carpenter put runners on the corners with a single, and Matt Vierling loaded the bases with a six-pitch walk. Meadows struck out looking on a 98 mph fastball outside of the strike zone, but Báez took advantage of the bases loaded by shooting a first-pitch sinker into right field for a two-run double.
Báez’s broken-bat shot cut the Tigers’ deficit to 5-4.
“First five innings didn’t go our way,” Torkelson said. “If I take care of the ball, we probably win that game in nine innings. But yeah, this team has a lot of fight. We keep saying it. We’re never out of it. We have a lot of faith in our pitching staff. Just got to take care of the ball and get timely hits.”
A bloop single from McKinstry tied the game, 5-5, and chased Fulmer from hist second appearance at Comerica Park since the Tigers traded him at the 2022 trade deadline. Right-handed reliever Daniel Palencia escaped further damage by striking out Kelly and getting Baddoo to pop out in foul territory.
The Tigers squandered the momentum (and the tie) in the top of the ninth inning, as right-handed reliever Beau Brieske gave up back-to-back doubles to Yan Gomes and Nick Madrigal to give the Cubs a 6-5 lead.
The Cubs increased their lead to 7-5 when Ian Happ grounded into a forceout.
The best three players in the Tigers’ batting order — Riley Greene, Torkelson and Carpenter — then clashed with right-handed reliever Mark Leiter Jr. in the bottom of the ninth inning. Greene grounded out, Torkelson hit an infield single, and Carpenter struck out swinging.
Vierling hit a two-out, two-strike single to score Torkelson, making it 7-6. The single put the result of the game in the hands of Meadows, who flew out to right field on a first-pitch cutter.
“It kind of got jammed,” Meadows said. “It was a good pitch. I just didn’t get the (bat) head out enough. Things happen, but at the end of the day, I’m very blessed to be out there with the guys.”
“The last pitch cut a little bit, or he might have had a different story,” Hinch said. “That was a good swing at the end.”
Faedo’s fight
The second inning wasn’t kind to the Tigers.
Right-hander Alex Faedo put himself in a bad spot with a four-pitch walk to Dansby Swanson with one out, followed by a single from Seiya Suzuki.
The next batter, ex-Tiger Jeimer Candelario, reached safely on a fielding error by Torkelson. The ball scooted under Torkelson’s glove and into right field. The error could have been an inning-ending double play, but instead, Swanson scored to put the Cubs ahead, 1-0.
“The first error, I just tried to be too quick,” Torkelson said. “The ball was hit hard, and I didn’t have to rush the double-play feed.”
A wild pitch by Faedo — which Kelly should have blocked — allowed Suzuki to score, making it 2-0. Gomes struck out, but with two outs, Madrigal dropped a double into left field for a 3-0 advantage.
“The second inning is what it is,” Faedo said. “Errors happen. I’ll never be mad at these guys. These guys save my ass all the time and play really hard each and every day. After that, it doesn’t matter anymore and we move forward. I tried to eat as many innings as I could.”
The Cubs tacked on another run for a 4-0 lead in the fourth inning. Suzuki crushed a 403-foot solo home run to left-center field off Faedo’s slider that hung over the heart of the plate.
Faedo allowed four runs (two earned runs) on three hits and two walks with four strikeouts, throwing 57 of 92 pitches for strikes. The 27-year-old used 46 four-seam fastballs (50%), 35 sliders (38%) and 11 changeups (12%).
He generated nine whiffs with four fastballs, four sliders and one changeup.
“I thought it was pretty gutsy because he didn’t have his best stuff,” Hinch said. “He threw a couple sliders that backed up on him, and he threw a couple fastballs in the middle. To get us through the innings that he did, I thought that was really important.”
Tack-on run
The Cubs took advantage of two-out hits from Happ (triple) and Cody Bellinger (single) in the eighth inning. The single from Bellinger, allowed by left-handed reliever Andrew Vasquez, pushed the Cubs’ lead to 5-2.
Right-handed reliever Will Vest replaced Vasquez, only for Swanson to single and Suzuki to reach safely on a missed catch error by Torkelson. The bases were loaded for Candelario, acquired by the Cubs (from the Washington Nationals) at the Aug. 1 trade deadline.
Candelario struck out swinging, and Vest stranded the bases loaded.
“I just thought it was going to be where it wasn’t,” Torkelson said of his second error.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanPetzold.