The News’ Tony Paul gives his quick takes on the Tigers‘ 7-3 victory over the Yankees on Monday:
One thing I loved
It should’ve happened weeks ago, but, you know, May. Then it should’ve happened Saturday against his old team, Houston Astros. But it didn’t. Then it should’ve happened Sunday, also against the Astros. But, again, no-go. And, so, AJ Hinch’s milestone moment was delayed, but with Monday night’s clobbering of the Yankees, he finally became the 68th manager in major-league history to reach 1,000 career wins.
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Hinch, 52, became the fifth manager to get win No. 1,000 while wearing a Tigers uniform. The other four:
In case you were curious, Jim Leyland got his 1,000th win shortly before arriving in Detroit, during that one forgettable 1999 season with the Colorado Rockies — probably his only highlight that season.
Hinch is one of just two active managers with 1,000 wins, joining Cincinnati’s Terry Francona (2,072). Hinch is 1,000-917 in the regular season: 89-123 with Arizona, 481-329 with Houston and 430-465 with Detroit.
One thing I didn’t
For as much as the narrative about the Tigers’ struggles has been tied to the day ace Tarik Skubal went down with the elbow injury in early May, the reality is the starting pitching has mostly held up, including during his absence. And Casey Mize was absolutely brilliant Monday, allowing just one hit while striking out a career-high 10. He didn’t walk a batter, and he also made it 33 consecutive starts that Tigers starters have allowed four runs or fewer.
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Granted, that streak does include a few “openers,” but it’s the longest streak by the Tigers since they also went 33 straight in 2022. It’s the longest active streak in the majors, by nearly a 2-1 margin (Milwaukee, 17).
And, yet, the Tigers are just 16-17 in those 33 games. Tigers pitchers came into Monday’s game with a 3.20 ERA in June, best in the majors. For the season, Tigers starters now have an ERA of 3.66, fifth in the majors. But even with Monday’s win, they’re still just 36-49, and buried in the American League Central and wild-card standings.
Oh, what could’ve — and should’ve — been for the 2026 Tigers.
Three stars
(Season total in parentheses)
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▶ Hao-Yu Lee (9) — The Tigers came into Monday night’s game with a team OPS of .656 with the bases loaded and .487 after falling behind 0-2 in the count, but Lee came through in the clutch on both counts with a huge two-run single to make it 5-0 in the second inning. Lee also added a double.
▶ Dillon Dingler (24) — Another extra-base hit (37) and another RBI (59) for a game who may not be starting the All-Star Game for the American League (SAD!), but certainly will be suiting up in Philadelphia on July 14.
▶ Kevin McGonigle (23)
Player of the game
(Season total in parentheses)
▶ Casey Mize (6) — Twas the third 10-strikeout game of his major-league career (one each in 2025 and 2024). Mize struck out four Yankees twice each, including last week’s Tiger killer, Paul Goldschmidt.
Tigers’ ABS tracker
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Hitter challenges: 44-for-85
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Catcher/pitcher challenges: 54-for-78 (Dillon Dingler was 3-for-3 in Monday’s win)
Next Tigers game
▶ Game 86: Tigers at Yankees, 7:05 Tuesday, Detroit SportsNet, 97.1
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ICYMI: Yesterday’s Tigers recap
tpaul@detroitnews.com
@tonypaul1984
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Detroit Tigers, Game 85: One thing I loved, one thing I didn’t
