Trey Sweeney had three hits, including an RBI double in a two-run 10th inning, and the Detroit Tigers beat the Colorado Rockies 8-6 in Denver on Wednesday night.
Javier Baez had two hits and four RBIs and Colt Keith contributed two hits and an RBI for Detroit, which has won five of its last six and sits atop the American League standings.
Tigers reliever Will Vest (2-0) pitched the final two innings for the win.
Detroit’s Riley Greene started the 10th on second base and scored on Spencer Torkelson’s double off Zach Agnos (0-1). Two outs later, Sweeney reached on an error by left fielder Jordan Beck, allowing Torkelson to score an insurance run.
The loss spoiled a four-hit night from Colorado’s Ryan McMahon, who homered, doubled twice and drove in two. Michael Toglia also went deep, doubled twice and drove in a pair, while Beck had two hits, an RBI and a run. The Rockies, last in the National League, have dropped four straight.
Both teams started the game swinging hot bats. Colorado went ahead on McMahon’s two-run homer in the first, his fourth of the season, and then manufactured a run in the second.
Mickey Moniak led off with a walk, stole second, went to third on a groundout and scored on Brenton Doyle’s infield single to make it 3-0.
The Tigers rallied to tie it in the third off starter Chase Dollander. Dillon Dingler led off with a walk, Sweeney doubled and both scored on Baez’s single. Baez went to third on Kerry Carpenter’s single and scored on Gleyber Torres’ sacrifice fly.
Toglia put the Rockies back in front in the bottom of the third with a two-run homer that went off the right field foul pole, his fourth of the season, but Detroit rallied in the fourth.
Dollander loaded the bases with no outs and Baez drove in two with another single. Jake Bird retired his first two batters after relieving Dollander but gave up an RBI single to Keith to give the Tigers a 6-5 lead.
Dollander allowed six runs on five hits and three walks over three-plus innings.
Beck tied it in the bottom of the fourth with a run-scoring single that chased starter Jackson Jobe, who gave up six runs on eight hits in 3-2/3 innings.
