DETROIT (AP) — Tarik Skubal gave up five hits and two runs in seven strong innings in his last start before the trade deadline and the Detroit Tigers rallied to beat the Minnesota Twins 7-2 on Saturday night.
Javier Báez homered for the third straight game and Colt Keith had a home run and a triple for three RBIs. Báez had only homered once this season before his current streak and three of his four home runs this year have come against the Twins.
Skubal (12-3) allowed three hits, including a two-run homer, in the first inning, but held the Twins to two singles over the next six. He struck out eight and walked two.
“It was a bloop and a blast, and that happens in this game,” he said. “My command was really bad for the first 2-3 innings, but I kept attacking guys, knowing I would eventually find it. That’s what happened.”
Skubal received a standing ovation from the crowd of 35,138 after the seventh.
“The atmosphere is so much fun right now,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “The weather is incredible, we’re playing a good team, Tarik Skubal is on the mound and the team is playing so much better.”
Hinch isn’t surprised his ace is showing up in trade rumors, although he’s hoping Skubal stays in Detroit.
“If I was on a different team, I would want him, too,” he said. “Who wouldn’t want him? He increases the odds of winning for every single team — 30 out of 30.”
Twins starter Joe Ryan (6-7) allowed three runs on four hits in six innings. He walked one and struck out eight.
“My back was a little tight, but we had a good plan to deal with it,” he said. “Things just don’t always shake out the way you need.”
The Twins took a 2-0 lead on Royce Lewis’ 11th homer in 26 games this season, but Mark Canha’s RBI single made it 2-1 in the bottom of the inning.
Ryan and Skubal then held hitters to 1 for 25 with three walks and 12 strikeouts from the second through fifth innings.
“Joe was competitive, but we couldn’t add any runs,” Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. “This was a textbook Tarik Skubal game.”
Matt Vierling led off the sixth with a single — Detroit’s first hit since Canha’s base hit — and Keith tied the game with a triple on the next pitch. Canha made it 3-2 with a sacrifice fly.
Báez moved the lead to three runs with a two-run homer off Brock Stewart in the seventh. Keith put the Tigers up 7-2 with a 419-foot home run off Steven Okert later in the inning.
TRAINER’S ROOM
The Twins activated 3B Jose Miranda, who had missed the last nine games with a back strain. Miranda came into the game hitting a major league-best .415 in 27 games since June 9. INF Eduoard Julien was optioned to Triple-A St. Paul.
UP NEXT
The teams finish their season series on Sunday, with Minnesota RHP Bailey Ober (9-5, 4.04) facing Tigers opener Alex Faedo (5-1, 3.47). With the Tigers rotation down to three healthy starters, Hinch will need nine innings from his bullpen for the third time in six games.
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