Tigers' Riley Greene 1st MLB player to homer twice in 9th inning of a game

Mike Digiovanna · The Associated Press

· Posted: May 04, 2025 12:08 PM EDT | Last Updated: 19 minutes ago

Riley Greene didn't privation to dwell excessively overmuch connected becoming the archetypal subordinate successful large league past to homer doubly successful the ninth inning of a game.

The Detroit Tigers' slugger deed a leadoff changeable and past added a three-run thrust aboriginal successful the inning successful a 9-1 triumph implicit the hometown Los Angeles Angels connected Friday night.

"Yeah, I conscionable recovered that out, beauteous cool," Greene said from Anaheim, Calif., aft fuelling an eight-run, seven-hit outburst successful the ninth. "But the crippled is over. We got to amusement up time and effort to triumph different shot game."

The people was tied 1-1 erstwhile Greene, facing person Kenley Jansen, led disconnected the ninth with a 371-foot homer disconnected the apical of the right-field wall.

Colt Keith followed with a homer to left-centre for a 2-1 lead, Jace Jung singled with 1 out, and Javier Baez deed a two-out, two-run changeable to near for a 5-1 lead, giving Baez location runs successful 3 consecutive games.

Detroit, an American League-best 21-12, wasn't through. Kerry Carpenter singled, Zach McKinstry doubled, knocking Jansen retired of the game, and Carpenter scored connected a chaotic transportation to marque it 6-1.

Spencer Torkelson walked, giving Greene a changeable astatine history, and the cleanup antheral seized the moment, crushing a 409-foot homer to right-centre disconnected left-hander Jake Eder for a 9-1 lead.

Greene became the archetypal Tigers subordinate to deed 2 homers successful an inning since Magglio Ordonez against the Oakland Athletics connected Aug. 12, 2007. The lone different Tigers subordinate to homer doubly successful an inning was Hall-of-Famer Al Kaline, against the Kansas City A's connected April 17, 1955.

"He's made an all-star team, he's been a featured subordinate connected our team, helium hits successful the mediate of the order, helium gets each the toughest matchups, and helium asks for more," Detroit manager A.J. Hinch said of Greene, who is batting .276 with an .828 on-base-plus slugging percentage, 7 homers and 20 runs batted successful connected the season.

"You privation guys to beryllium rewarded erstwhile they enactment arsenic hard arsenic they do, and contiguous was a immense nighttime for him."

It was the 2nd consecutive nighttime successful which the Tigers landed a fewer late-inning haymakers successful Anaheim. Detroit scored 8 runs connected 7 hits successful the eighth and ninth innings of Thursday night's 10-4 triumph implicit the Angels, who person mislaid 7 consecutive and 15 of their past 19 games.

"There's nary discontinue successful our team," said ace Tarik Skubal, who gave up 1 tally and 4 hits and struck retired 8 successful six innings Friday night. "We grind retired at-bats, we don't springiness distant at-bats, and I deliberation our grounds shows that. They grind retired starters, relievers. I cognize I wouldn't privation to look a lineup similar that. Every at-bat, they're successful it."