(Reuters) — The Detroit Tigers jumped out to a six-run lead early but had to stave off a late rally by the Tampa Bay Rays to pull out a 10-9 victory Monday in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Detroit used a season-high five homers to snap a four-game losing streak. Dillon Dingler went 4-for-5 and enjoyed the first two-homer game of his career. He also doubled as he tied his career- best of four runs batted in and scored a personal-best four times.
Riley Greene went 3-for-4 with a homer and a double and drove in three. Kerry Carpenter had a 3-for-5 night with a homer and double and drove in a pair.
Yandy Diaz went 3-for-5 and was the lone Ray to record multiple hits. Junior Caminero was 1-for-3 with two walks, three runs scored and two driven in.
Dingler hit his first homer of the game in the third, a long two-run shot to center. Carpenter and Greene followed with solo home runs to give the Tigers a 6-0 lead. It was the first time three Detroit batters went deep consecutively since Aug. 8, 2020.
All of that damage came off Rays starter Griffin Jax (1-4), who gave up six runs on seven hits and a walk over four innings. He struck out five.
That’s when the Rays started their comeback. Caminero hit a two-run shot in the fourth and Ryan Vilade connected on a three-run homer in the sixth. But in between those Rays’ responses, Dingler hit his second homer in the fifth, and Hao-Yu Lee hit a solo shot in the sixth.
RBI doubles by Dingler and Carpenter increased the Tigers’ lead to 10-5 in the eighth, and that was needed because the Rays scored four in their half.
The Rays got a two-run double from Nick Fortes and a two-run single by Ben Williamson in the eighth to cut the deficit to a run. They had the go-ahead run on base with one out, but Will Vest got Jonathan Aranda on a groundout and Richie Palacios on a flyout to end the threat.
Tyler Holton (1-4), one of seven pitchers used by the Tigers, pitched 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief in the fourth and fifth to get the win. Tigers’ pitchers allowed just eight hits but also gave up eight walks.
Vest came on for Beau Briske, who walked three of the four batters he faced to start the eighth, and retired the side in order in the ninth to preserve the win and get his first save of the season.
