The Tigers were dead. So was Comerica Park. Out of the silence, a three-run rally in the fifth that tied the game and saved the season, followed by four in the sixth that turned a mausoleum into a madhouse. A brand new game became a brand new series, as the Tigers sent the ALDS back to Seattle for a winner-take-all Game 5 with their 9-3 win over the Mariners Wednesday at Comerica Park.
Tarik Skubal takes the mound next.
It looked, sounded and felt like the Mariners had the series on ice. They led 3-0 in the bottom of the fifth and the Tigers' bats had barely made a peep for the second game in a row. The crowd had been beaten into submission.
Then, a single by Spencer Torkelson and a double by Dillon Dingler knocked starter Bryce Miller out of the game, and Jahmai Jones welcomed reliever Gabe Speier with a pinch-hit double. Javy Baez laced a single up the middle to drive in Jones and tie the game, as the fans roared their approval.
The sixth brought more fireworks, including those that exploded above Comerica Park after Riley Greene led off the inning with a mammoth homer to right.
That sent Speier to the showers. It didn't matter. The Mariners turned to Eduard Bazardo, who yielded a double down the left field line to Torkelson, an RBI single to Zach McKinstry, a double down the right field line to Wenceel Perez and then the big blow, a two-run bomb by Baez into the seats in left
Suddenly, the Tigers led 7-3.
Gleyber Torres tacked on an insurance run with an opposite-field homer in the eigth, and Baez drove in his fourth run of the day in the ninth.
Game 5, with a spot in the ALCS on the line, is tentatively scheduled for 4:40 p.m. on Friday.