San Diego – You wondered if or when it was going to catch up to the Padres. It had to, right?
Going into the eighth inning Friday, their pitchers walked four and hit another. And still they clung to a 2-1 lead.
Then in the eighth, reliever Jeremiah Estrada walked the bases loaded with one out. An infield hit by Riley Greene, who earlier hit into two double-plays, scored the tying run.
“We were putting up some good at-bats,” manager AJ Hinch said. “But you need somebody to finish the connected at-bats.”
Meet rookie Kevin McGonigle, the finisher.
In an incredible 10-pitch fight with veteran lefty Wandy Peralta, he lashed a two-run single to right field and Dillon Dingler followed with another RBI single and the Tigers grinded out a 5-2 win at Petco Park.
“Kevin obviously had the big at-bat but we need a lot of good things to happen to put up a big number like that in the eighth inning against a good bullpen,” Hinch said. “You have to deliver a blow at some point. That’s why we’re feeling good.”
McGonigle, who had a home run stolen by centerfielder Jackson Merrill in the second inning, fouled off five pitches; four were inside and a fifth was a slider away. After taking a changeup in the dirt for ball three, he put the barrel on a sinker that was up and over the plate.
“I saw (Peralta) yesterday and I knew he was going to come inside on me,” McGonigle said. “Seeing him yesterday helped me out. I know he likes to throw left-on-left changeups quite a bit. But I went up there and I knew I needed to put a good at-bat together to help the team. Thankfully, I did.”
BOX SCORE: Tigers 5, Padres 2
If he’s struggled with anything thus far, it’s been off-speed pitches. But he’s made subtle adjustments, setting his sights on trying to hit fastballs more up the middle which helps him stay on the off-speed stuff longer.
He took a change up to get ahead 2-1. Then Peralta attacked him with a 96.8-mph sinker up and in, a 90-mph changeup down and two more 96-mph sinkers up and in. He fouled off all those pitches, even after a brief delay when umpire Lance Barrett got jarred by a foul ball to the mask.
“That didn’t affect me too much,” he said. “I was still locked in and committed to my plan. Just go up and go to war. That was my mindset that whole at-bat.”
The eighth pitch was a 92-mph slider away and off the plate. Somehow McGonigle fought that pitch off, as well.
“I don’t know,” he said, when asked how he was able to do that. “When I’m in that kind of mode, I just get on my front side a try to foul every tough pitch off, just get the bat on it. Luckily I fouled them off.”
The ninth pitch was a tantalizing changeup below the zone and McGonigle calmly took it to run the count full.
“When I watch him being able to stay in the at-bat, timing is everything,” Hinch said. “His pitch recognition is really good. There were some takes in there that get overlooked because they’re just part of the at-bat. But knowledge of the strike zone and the ability to spoil a few pitches and fight off some balls inside, it’s why we love him.”
When the count went full, McGonigle went from spoiling pitches to attacking them. He turned on a 96-mph sinker and lined it to right field.
“Yeah, full count, bases loaded, I knew it was going to be in the zone somewhere,” McGonigle said. “I don’t know, I kind of blacked out for a minute. Big spot and I was able to get the job done. Just wanted to celebrate with the guys.”
This is a 21-year-old in his second big-league game and he’s been on base six times in nine plate appearances in two Tigers wins.
“I’m proud of him because he’s stays in the moment,” Hinch said. “The moment is not too big. I’ve said that for six weeks now. He’s continuing to compete. For him it’s the same game but for all of us watching him, we’re super impressed by him.”
The Tigers’ rebuilt bullpen locked it down from there. Enmanuel De Jesus and Kyle Finnegan each struck out two in scoreless innings. For De Jesus, one of the stars of Team Venezuela’s WBC championship run, he earned his first big-league win.
“It’s just unbelievable,” he said. “Having the chance to represent my country, getting on the 40-man roster, making the team on Opening Day and now getting my first win. Unbelievable. Everything happened real quick.”
The ninth inning belonged to the game’s active saves leader Kenley Jansen. In his Tigers’ debut, he struck out the side on 11 pitches to earn his 477th career save.
“That’s not an easy thing to do,” Hinch said. “But I don’t think he’s going to panic when the ninth inning comes around. It’s fun to have that presence at the back end, whether it’s the last three outs or any outs before that.”
It was also the Tigers debut of lefty starter Framber Valdez. He allowed two runs, one earned, in six innings. And he arguably got the most important outs of the game in a crazy fourth inning.
“I told him that was as much of a key as any of our at-bats or the walks or Kevin’s hit,” Hinch said. “It’s a completely different game if he allows it to get away from us there.”
The game was scoreless when Manny Machado led off the fourth inning with a two-strike double into the left-field corner.
Merrill followed with an infield single, a ground ball to the left and off the glove of third baseman McGonigle. Inches from being a double-play ball.
“I should’ve had that, one-hundred percent,” McGonigle said.
Miguel Andujar followed with a ground ball over the bag at first. Spencer Torkelson made a diving stop on it but Andujar beat Valdez to first base. Machado scored on the play and the Padres still had runners at the corners and one out.
Crisis point. But Valdez shut it down.
Javier Báez made a strong play on a high chopper to throw out Merrill at home plate and Valdez struck out Jake Cronenworth on three pitches.
“I loved the way he stayed in the game,” Hinch said. “We don’t win this game without him collecting himself in that long inning.”
Afterward, McGonigle was asked about the home run Merrill stole from him. He’d hit the ball 403 feet, heading over the 396-foot marker in center field. Merrill timed his leap perfectly, went way over the wall and brought it back.
“Oh man,” McGonigle said. “We were joking about it. He looked over and said, ‘My bad, my bad.’ I was like, come on, at least let the first one go out. That was a unbelievable catch. He’s a great player.”
Takes one to know one, huh.
“My main thing my whole professional career, even in high school, was to do anything I can to help any team I’m on win,” McGonigle said. “I look forward to keeping that same mindset and doing whatever I can all season.”
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