Aug. 9, 2025: Detroit Tigers edge Los Angeles Angels 6-5 as Matt Vierling’s first homer flips the eighth; Tarik Skubal scatters damage, Reid Detmers allows HR.
StatPro MLB Beat Reporter
Sometimes one swing resets a homestand. Down 5-3 in the eighth and staring at a three-game skid, Matt Vierling unloaded on a Reid Detmers offering for his first homer of the season, a three-run blast that turned Comerica Park into a party and a deficit into a 6-5 Tigers win over the Angels. Detroit moves to 67-50, snapping a two-game slide and keeping a six-game cushion atop the AL Central.
“Matt Vierling’s first homer of the season turned a 5-3 deficit into a 6-5 win—and kept the Tigers six games clear in the Central.”
Vierling’s lone at-bat was the loudest of the night: a three-run shot to left in the eighth off Reid Detmers that flipped a 5-3 hole into a 6-5 lead. It wasn’t just cathartic—Detroit had been grinding for big hits in leverage spots this week—it was timely, rescuing an uneven night and rewarding a crowd that felt the tension of a tight divisional race. Vierling finished 1-for-1 with 3 RBI, and that swing might earn him a few more high-leverage looks as the lineup searches for consistent right-handed thump.
Tarik Skubal entered Saturday as Detroit’s tone-setter, but the Angels made him work and, for the first time this season, tagged him for back-to-back homers (Gustavo Campero and Zach Neto). Skubal’s line—4.2 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 6 K—won’t sparkle, yet the broader takeaway is the same as it’s been all year: even when the ace isn’t his sharpest, the Tigers can still win if they catch the ball and get a big swing. Detroit didn’t let one crooked inning snowball into a series-defining slump, and that’s the sign of a club built to absorb an off night and keep marching.
With the club designating Luke Jackson for assignment and recalling Codi Heuer from Triple-A Toledo on Friday, the bullpen picture shifted. On Saturday, it held firm. Rookie righty Troy Melton calmed the game with 2.1 innings of one-hit, scoreless relief to earn the win, bridging the gap to new closer Kyle Finnegan, who logged a clean ninth for his 23rd save. That’s the blueprint: length from the middle, power at the end, and enough swing-and-miss to erase traffic. Heuer gives Detroit another option to navigate matchups as roles settle for the stretch run.
On a night when every out mattered, Riley Greene added a loud defensive moment in center, a momentum-stopping grab that kept the Angels from adding on. It won’t show up like Vierling’s fireworks, but in one-run games these plays stack up—and they’re part of why Detroit’s pitching staff has been able to survive the occasional big fly and still exit with a handshake line.
The Tigers’ social feeds leaned all the way into the eighth-inning chaos, posting multiple angles of Vierling’s go-ahead homer and Greene’s highlight catch. Teammates and fans jumped in with the kind of mid-August energy you want to feel in a pennant race—equal parts relief and swagger. It’s not nothing: you can feel a clubhouse exhale after that swing, and the city follows.
The W pushes Detroit to 67-50 and keeps the Tigers six games ahead of Cleveland in the AL Central. After a two-game skid, flipping a late deficit matters as much psychologically as mathematically. In a race that will be decided by how often you win the toss-up nights, banking this one at home steadies the ship and underscores how crucial the bullpen and defense are when the frontline starter is human.
Top prospect Kevin McGonigle (No. 3) remains in daily rehab following hamate surgery, which came after he injured his wrist fouling off a pitch at High-A West Michigan. Before the setback, the 19-year-old was carving up his first full season with a .309/.401/.452 line, 25 extra-base hits, and 22 steals. Hamate recoveries often require patience, especially as hitters rebuild feel and power. No timetable has been announced, but his pre-injury production is a reminder of what’s on the way when he’s fully cleared.
Series momentum flips fast in August, and the Tigers just wrestled it back. Detroit finishes the weekend against the Angels with a chance to stack wins and keep pressure on the rest of the Central. Watch for how A.J. Hinch deploys the reshaped bullpen, whether Vierling’s big swing leads to more late-inning reps, and how quickly Skubal recalibrates in his next turn. Bank the one-run wins now; they pay off in September.
