Dismissed this winter, Spencer Torkelson is reintroducing himself to Detroit. He lifted the Tigers to a sweep in their first home series of the season with a walk-off double Sunday afternoon against the White Sox.
The day ended with a Gatorade shower for Torkelson after he ripped a fastball into the left field corner with the bases loaded and one out in the bottom of the ninth and the Tigers trailing 3-2.
"We feel like we’re never out of it," Torkelson said on the field after the game as he was doused by teammates Riley Greene and Trey Sweeney. "We feel like we’re always in the game, no matter what the score is. And as long as we put together good at-bats, keep the line moving, we think we got a chance. Love this team."
The Tigers weren't counting on Torkelson this season. They signaled as much when they signed second baseman Gleyber Torres, shifted Colt Keith to first base and told Torkelson that he needed to hit his way back onto the roster in the spring.
The former No. 1 pick got the message, made some adjustments at the plate and is starting to produce like the organization -- and its fans -- have always hoped.
Trailing 3-1 entering the ninth on Sunday, the Tigers mounted a rally with a single by Javy Baez and walks to Zach McKinstry, Greene and Andy Ibañez -- Mckinstry's on 10 pitches, Ibañez's on eight -- to cut the deficit to one.
That brought up Torkelson, who said that while watching his teammates load the bases, "You just want to get up to the plate as fast as possible. They’re dialed in. You want to win this game for the team."
"The pressure’s all on him (the pitcher). He had to make good pitches. Andy had an unbelievable at-bat, the four guys in front of him had unbelievable at-bats. It was just, get a good pitch to hit and put a good swing on it," Torkelson said.
He got a 96 mph heater at the knees, and did exactly that. The Tigers poured out of the dugout and mobbed Torkelson at second base. The hit pushed his average to .324 on the young season. The win pushed the Tigers to 5-4, the only winning team in the AL Central.
"I love how connected these guys are, and the celebration was really cool, led by everybody," said A.J. Hinch. "I know it’s a broken record with us, but you gotta play the whole game, and when you do you get rewarded."