Detroit, MI
Casey Mize bounces back, Justyn-Henry Malloy slugs in Detroit Tigers’ 7-2 win vs. Nats
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The Detroit Tigers might not have won without Casey Mize’s grit.
Mize, a right-hander seeking solutions to his struggles — namely, an 8.22 ERA in his previous four starts — in his return from elbow surgery and back surgery, delivered a bounce-back performance Thursday against the Washington Nationals.
It was a good performance the 27-year-old needed desperately.
The Tigers beat the Nationals, 7-2, to avoid a sweep of the three-game series at Comerica Park, thanks to Mize’s six innings of one-run ball. Mize allowed just four hits and one walk with four strikeouts across six innings, throwing 84 pitches before departing with a 2-1 lead. He has a 4.43 ERA in 13 starts this season.
Likewise, the Tigers’ offense solved some struggles of its own, scoring five runs on five hits and one walk in the bottom of the seventh inning.
SKUB AND ROG: Tarik Skubal and Jake Rogers: Friends, crossword puzzle enthusiasts, batterymates
Facing right-handed reliever Derek Law, the Tigers (33-35) strung together three hits in a row with Ryan Kreidler’s bloop single, Matt Vierling’s bloop single and Andy Ibáñez’s RBI double (on a two-strike slider) to take a 3-2 advantage.
Mark Canha put the Tigers ahead, 4-2, with a sacrifice fly. The Nationals swapped Law for left-handed reliever Robert Garcia for a matchup with left-handed hitter Riley Greene.
He stepped to the plate with a .167 batting average and a .550 OPS against left-handed pitchers in 65 plate appearances this season, but Greene won the left-on-left matchup against Garcia with an RBI single for a 5-2 lead.
The Tigers made it 7-2 when Justyn-Henry Malloy — playing in his ninth MLB game — hammered a 95.2 mph fastball into the left-field corner for a two-run double.
Malloy also hit a solo home run in the sixth inning.
Mize competes
Facing the Nationals, Mize generated just three whiffs on 33 swings for an underwhelming 9.1% whiff rate — following one whiff on 36 swings in his last start — but he generated soft contact to grind through six innings.
It was his first six-inning start since mid-May.
The Nationals scored their only run against Mize in the fourth inning on a sacrifice fly from Ildemaro Vargas. After the sacrifice fly, the inning ended when catcher Jake Rogers threw out Luis García Jr. trying to steal second base. (The Nationals scored their second and final run off right-handed reliever Shelby Miller in the seventh inning.)
Mize pitched out of trouble in the second and third innings.
Vargas, a left-handed hitter, grounded out on a down-and-away splitter in the second to leave a runner on third base; Jesse Winker, another lefty, grounded out on a down-and-away slider in the third to strand leave runners on the corners.
Mize then retired the final seven batters he faced.
He generated his three whiffs with two sliders and one splitter. The combination of his four-seam fastball and two-seam fastball didn’t miss any bats for the second start in a row, spanning 97 fastballs/sinkers thrown.
JHM goes deep
Before the double, Malloy crushed a middle-up slider from Law for a 407-foot solo home run to left field. He punished the ball with a 107.9 mph exit velocity.
It was the second homer of Malloy’s career, and the first at Comerica Park.
Malloy, hitting .217 in nine games, finished 2-for-3 with three RBIs and one strikeout. He was hit by a pitch in the second inning and struck out swinging to leave the bases loaded in the third inning.
The Tigers grabbed a 1-0 lead on Canha’s RBI single in the third inning against left-hander Patrick Corbin.
Corbin, a star in the Nats’ 2019 World Series victory who entered Thursday’s game with a 5.80 ERA in his previous 107 starts, performed well against the Tigers. He allowed one run on four hits and two walks with four strikeouts across 5⅓ innings, throwing 94 pitches.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
Listen to our weekly Tigers show “Days of Roar” every Monday afternoon on demand at freep.com, Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. And catch all of our podcasts and daily voice briefing at freep.com/podcasts.
Detroit, MI
Detroit Lions rule out All-Pro safety, list 7 others as questionable vs. Rams
ALLEN PARK — The Detroit Lions will be without safety Kerby Joseph again this weekend, while listing seven other players as questionable.
Joseph and fellow safety Brian Branch were the only players ruled out ahead of Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Rams. Branch is out for the season due to an Achilles injury, but has not been placed on injured reserve yet. And Joseph, who will now miss his eighth straight game, suffered a setback and could be a candidate for injured reserve, per Dan Campbell.
The Lions listed tight end Shane Zylstra (knee), running back Sione Vaki (thumb), wide receiver Kalif Raymond (ankle), guard Christian Mahogany (fibula), safety Thomas Harper (concussion protocol), left tackle Taylor Decker (shoulder/rest) and guard Kayode Awosika (foot) as questionable.
Decker has not practiced this week. But he’s been dealing with a shoulder injury all season and is coming off playing three games in less than two weeks. Awosika missed last week’s game against the Dallas Cowboys due to his foot injury. The veteran guard has practiced in a limited capacity all week long.
Trystan Colon and Miles Frazier split duties at left guard last week for Awosika. The Lions will have a decision to make there between those three options, but perhaps for only another weekend.
Mahogany returned to practice this week. He seems like a longshot to play this weekend based on his injury. But the Lions are listing him as questionable after logging three limited practices in his first action back on the field.
Zylstra has been back at practice for two weeks in his return from injured reserve. Heading into the weekend, the Lions have only one tight end on their 53-man roster (Anthony Firkser) and hope to get Zylstra back.
Campbell said Harper has a chance to play against the Rams despite spending the week in concussion protocol. The Lions could sure use Harper, with Branch and Joseph both out, to hold things down at safety with Avonte Maddox against the high-powered Rams.
“Harper will be out there at practice today, so feel pretty good about him, but we’ll see,” Campbell said on Friday morning. “There again, I can’t give you definitives right now, but that’s kind of where we’re at.
“So, we’ll be good. Look, (Erick) Hallett’s been taking reps, (Daniel Thomas) DT’s been taking reps, Maddox has been taking reps. We’ve got plenty of guys. They’re getting valuable reps, so we’re good.”
Raymond has missed two consecutive games due to an ankle injury suffered against the New York Giants. He has a shot to return after working back into practice, and should reclaim his role returning punts.
Vaki has continued to play through his thumb injury. He hasn’t returned kickoffs since suffering the injury, with Tom Kennedy and Jacob Saylors taking over.
Detroit, MI
Oilers turn in smart, defensive game and Hyman hat trick for 4-1 win over Detroit: Cult of Hockey Player Grades
CONNOR McDAVID. 9. In a quiet first minutes of this one McDavid had the most dangerous shot for, glancing off Talbot’s shoulder and out. Terrific patience on the doorstep before dishing to Hyman for the 1-0. Nearly outwaited Talbot again later in the frame. Dished the disk back to Ekholm on the 2-0. Pranced in and rifled a backhand off Talbot. Hi-lite reel assist on the 3-1, where he knocks down a puck then puts a backhand through his own legs to a waiting Hyman alone in the slot. An assist on the 4-1, for his forty-third four-point game. 63% on faceoffs. Second Star.
Detroit, MI
SAY Detroit unveils plans for new play center on city’s west side
Detroit Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown on ankle injury recovery
Amon-Ra St. Brown said he started feeling better two days before the Detroit Lions’ game against the Cowboys, after injuring his ankle Thanksgiving.
SAY Detroit had a surprise in store during its 14th annual fundraiser.
The charity founded by Detroit Free Press columnist Mitch Albom announced plans for a new SAY Detroit Play Center on the city’s west side during its annual radiothon, taking place on Thursday, Dec. 11. The after-school educational center will be built on the campus of St. Cecilia’s church, which includes the historic St. Cecilia gym, also known as the Mecca of Detroit basketball.
The new facility will be called the SAY Detroit Play Center at St. Cecilia.
This will be the organization’s second play center, with the first opening in 2015 along Van Dyke Avenue on the city’s east side. The center provides educational and recreational opportunities for kids from 8-18 at Lipke Park.
The announcement was made during the foundation’s 15-hour radiothon, which raises money for SAY Detroit and other affiliated charities. Last year’s radiothon raised a record $2.23 million, with the fundraiser bringing in over $16.5 million in total since it was launched in 2012.
SAY Detroit was founded in 2006 by Albom and operates the play center and free family health clinic, along with providing a housing program for Detroit families and other direct efforts with the community.
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You can reach Christian at cromo@freepress.com.
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