Spencer Torkelson's home run in top of ninth lifts Tigers to 2-1 win over White Sox

Tony Paul, The Detroit News on Aug 11, 2025

Published in Baseball

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CHICAGO — The Tigers took the lead, then they took cover.

And, finally, they took the game.

Spencer Torkelson hit a foul-pole-scraping home run in the top of the ninth inning to propel the Tigers to a 2-1 victory in the series opener against the White Sox on Monday night in a game that was delayed more than an hour just moments after Torkelson's go-ahead homer.

Heavy rains poured down at Rate Field following Torkelson's homer, hit so high it might've activated the heavens. When play resumed, the Tigers made short work of finishing off the lowly White Sox.

Torkelson's 26th home run of the season salvaged an otherwise forgettable night at the plate for the Tigers, who couldn't touch a trio of White Sox relievers and hadn't had an extra-base hit since the first inning until Torkelson, standing at home plate and giving the ball some body English, homered high off the foul pole in the ninth.

It was the second win in a row for the Tigers (69-51) — good for their first winning streak this month, and just their second winning streak over the last calendar month.

Their lead in the American League Central is 6.5 games over the Cleveland Guardians, idle Monday, with 42 regular-season games remaining.

Will Vest worked a 1-2-3 ninth for his 17th save, capping a night in which Tigers relievers threw 4 1/3 scoreless frames. Kyle Finnegan, the Tigers' big trade-deadline pickup, earned his first win with the team after pitching a perfect eighth inning. He came in with the leadoff runner on and got three quick outs, one on a strikeout.

The Tigers took the 1-0 lead off White Sox opener Elvis Puguero on Dillon Dingler's two-out RBI single in the second inning. That made up for Andy Ibanez getting caught stealing for the second out.

The White Sox tied it on rookie Colson Montgomery's 400-foot homer to right off Tigers starter Chris Paddack, a day after Montgomery hit a viral 452-foot blast. Montgomery already has 10 homers.

That was all the damage off Paddack, making his third start as a Tiger. He allowed some hard contact, but just three hits to go with a walk, while striking out four in 5 2/3 innings.

Manager AJ Hinch took him out despite throwing just 74 pitches, 52 for strikes. Hinch wanted lefty Tyler Holton against lefty Andrew Benintendi, and it worked, as Holton got him to fly out.

Before the Torkelson homer, the Tigers had managed just five hits, all singles, and just one after the fourth inning — Javy Baez's leadoff single in the eighth, only to be immediately erased on Gleyber Torres' double play. (Torres struck out in his other three at-bats, for his first three-strikeout game as a Tiger).

The Tigers did little against their former teammate, Tyler Alexander, who entered in relief of Puguero after he made his first major league start. Alxander gave up just two hits and a walk while striking out five.

The first two reached in the fourth off Alexander — Wenceel Perez and Torkelson on singles — but Riley Greene popped up in a failed left-on-left matchup and Ibanez struck out. Alexander didn't want any part of Dingler, walking him without much to swing at, preferring to go after Zach McKinstry, who struck out with little resistance.

Relievers Steven Wilson and Grant Taylor put up zeroes against the White Sox, who, at 43-76, have by far the worst record in the AL.

Brandon Eisert (4-2) gave up the homer to Torkelson and then a double to Jahmai Jones. Cam Booser came on after the delay and stranded two by throwing a single pitch, getting credit for a strikeout of McKinstry.