NEW YORK (AP) — Aaron Judge hit two home runs to tie Hall of Fame outfielder Joe DiMaggio for fourth place in Yankees history as New York beat the Detroit Tigers 9-3 on Thursday night to avert a three-game sweep.

On the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, President Donald Trump attended the game and watched from a suite on the third base side.

Judge homered off Tyler Holton (5-5) in the first inning and matched DiMaggio by launching his 361st career homer with a 434-foot drive to the back of the Detroit bullpen off Sawyer Gipson-Long in the third.

Judge had his sixth multihomer game this season and pulled even with DiMaggio two nights after passing Hall of Fame catcher Yogi Berra for fifth on the franchise list.

The two-time AL MVP had three hits and ended the night with a major league-best .322 batting average, three points ahead of Athletics rookie shortstop Jacob Wilson.

Giancarlo Stanton followed Judge’s second solo shot with his 449th homer, tying Hall of Famers Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Jeff Bagwell for 41st on the career list.

Including the postseason, it was the 56th time Judge and Stanton homered in the same game and fifth time this season.

Ben Rice hit an RBI double and José Caballero, Austin Slater, Cody Bellinger and Jazz Chisholm Jr. had run-scoring singles as the Yankees moved a half-game ahead of Boston for the top American League wild card heading into a three-game series at Fenway Park this weekend.

New York rookie Cam Schlittler (3-3) bounced back from his worst start and allowed one run on three hits in six innings.

Dillon Dingler homered and hit an RBI single, but the Tigers were unable to complete their first sweep of the Yankees in New York since 2008.

Key moment

After allowing Dingler’s tying single, Schlittler ended a 26-pitch second inning by striking out Parker Meadows and retiring Javier Báez on a groundout.

Key stat

The Yankees are 49-7 when Judge and Stanton homer in the same game.

— By LARRY FLEISHER, Associated Press

NEW YORK — The Detroit Tigers on Wednesday responded to an investigative article in The Athletic that detailed alleged incidents of sexual misconduct toward female employees and portrayed the organization as being a “boys club” where some women felt unsafe.

In a statement released through Ilitch Sports and Entertainment CEO Ryan Gustafson, the Tigers didn’t dispute the seven reported incidents against former employees. They took accountability for it, saying each was investigated promptly and each employee was terminated.

But the general culture of the organization, the club felt, was mischaracterized.

“We are committed to a culture of respect, safety, and inclusion,” the statement read. “We do not tolerate discrimination or harassment, and when concerns are raised, we investigate promptly and take decisive action, which has included terminating employees for misconduct, regardless of seniority or tenure.

“We are committed to accountability and to upholding the standards essential to our workplace.”

As the article mentioned, the seven employees cited for misconduct have either resigned, were fired or did not have their contracts renewed.

• Sam Menzin, former assistant general manager, cited for sending lewd photos to a female co-worker.

• Michael Lienert, former vice president of premium sales, accused of a number of things, including undisclosed dating of employees, bullying female employees, including an allegation of pushing a female down a flight of stairs.

• Josh Bullock, former vice president of business in Lakeland, cited for verbal and vulgar verbal attacks on men and women.

• Rob Gehring, former video content producer, cited for inappropriate conduct toward women.

• Peter Soto, former vice president of game presentation, accused of making inappropriate comments toward women.

• Also, former players and analysts Cameron Maybin and Craig Monroe were not brought back because of allegations of sexual misconduct.

More: Craig Monroe taken off Tigers’ TV minutes after sex-abuse claims came to light

“We are grateful to the employees who have spoken up here,” the statement read. “And to the more than 3,000 full- and part-time colleagues who contribute every day to ensuring a safe work environment.”

The Tigers contested one of the charges in the article, which claimed that Ben Fidelman, who is the vice president of communications and broadcasting, yelled at an employee and called her “stupid.”

The Tigers, like they did all the others, investigated the charges against Fidelman and found them unfounded.

“It is inaccurate and unfair to group Mr. Fidelman within a story about accusations of sexual harassment or related misconduct,” the statement read. “A concern unrelated to either was raised, and consistent with our process, it was investigated thoroughly, and no wrong doing was found.”

Ilitch Sports and Entertainment employs more than 3,000 people. The statement reiterated that each incident was taken seriously, investigated thoroughly and dealt with.

“We work hard every day to improve our workplace culture,” the statement read. “We encourage open dialogue and feedback, celebrate the contributions of our colleagues, and continue to invest in programs that support growth, well-being, and inclusion.

“Our colleagues have multiple channels to share input, supported by a strong human resources team that responds quickly to concerns. We also provide ongoing, company-wide training and education to prevent and address inappropriate behavior.”

The article also said Detroit is one of three MLB franchises that doesn’t offer maternity leave to pregnant employees. The Tigers were putting a 12-week maternity leave benefit in place before the article came out.

It is expected to be available before the end of the year.

DETROIT — He’s not ready to use the R word just yet.

But on Saturday, 37-year-old right-hander Alex Cobb notified the Tigers that he was going to shut it down for the remainder of the year and prepare to have a surgical procedure to alleviate the pain in his right hip.

“I’ve talked to some family about it and I can’t quite utter those words quite yet,” Cobb said of announcing his retirement. “Obviously, I realize that’s a big possibility.”

Cobb, who has valiantly tried to fight his way back from inflammation and pain in both his right and left hip all season, said he had his moment of clarity walking off the field Tuesday in Lehigh Valley, Pa.

After being shut down for seven days, he was scheduled to pitch two innings for the Toledo Mud Hens, his fourth Triple-A rehab outing. He made it through one.

“After the seven days I had off, I had a clear answer walking off the mound that it wasn’t going to work,” Cobb said. “I’d done everything I could and that was the best it was ever going to get and it wasn’t an acceptable product to put on the field or something where I could look to AJ (Hinch) or Scott (Harris) and tell them, ‘You can count on me.’”

Cobb talked to the media via zoom from his home in Arizona Saturday, his voice choking with emotion throughout. He was asked if he could take solace in the fact that he did everything humanly possible to get back — including getting multiple injections, platelet-based and steroidal.

“At some point I will,” he said. “I don’t have that right now. I’m disappointed. I knew with my mind the uphill battle I was going to have this year once I had (the inflammation) early in spring. But in my heart, I have envisioned being on the that mound pitching in the postseason and I just didn’t do it.

“It’s just been more of a gut punch not being able to do it and coming to that realization and knowing what comes next in my career and life.”

The next step, Cobb said, is to have a procedure called hip resurfacing. He had a more traditional surgery on his left hip in 2024.

“Guys who I’ve talked to who have had it, their eyes light up and they get a smile on their face,” Cobb said. “They say it’s the best thing you can ever do when you are in that type of pain and your hip isn’t working and you just want not to be in that pain and there is a solution.

“It’s very exciting to know that is going to be available to me.”

Cobb, who pitched 13 seasons in the big leagues and was an All Star in 2023, signed a one-year, $15 million contract with the Tigers in the offseason and went through his normal offseason training regimen without even a hint of an injury.

“Working out, throwing, I had zero pain,” he said. “I signed with the Tigers, passed the physical, everything looked great. Three or four weeks later, I was ramping up (for spring training), I was getting off the mound, full-go.

“Then I literally woke up one day and couldn’t walk.”

The surgeon who worked on his left hip had forewarned him that he would likely have similar issues with his right hip.

“When I sent him the images (of his right hip), I could hear it in his voice,” Cobb said. “He just said, flat-out, he told me, ‘I’m so sorry, the pain you are in.’ I told him I was fine but you could tell he knew I wasn’t going to be fine.”

Cobb said, unbeknownst to him, he had arthritis in the right hip all along. It wasn’t debilitating at first but the cartilage eventually collapsed and he was left with the ball joint scraping on bone.

“I can handle the pain, easily,” he said. “But it’s when the pain and stuff aren’t matched up and you are unable to overcome the pain and have quality outings. For me to be in a position to earn the right to be on this team, I would need to be reliable and I’d need to be effective. And I wasn’t.

“I wasn’t ever going to get to that point. But I wasn’t going to give up.”

He thanked the Tigers’ medical staff and the trainers for all the efforts they put in on his behalf.

“We didn’t leave any stone unturned,” he said. “We did a lot. We did some stuff that isn’t the norm of the baseball world and they went out on a limb and took care of me and tried to make it happen. It got me to a point where I was pitching again.”

Cobb said he plans to be back in Detroit before the end of the season to line things up for the surgery.

“It’s an exciting time to be in that organization and to be a fan of that organization,” Cobb said. “What they’ve done is such a short period of time, it’s why I wanted to sign there. I believe in Scott and I believe in AJ and what they’re creating

“The hardest part is not being able to put that uniform on and go out on that field be a part of what I’ve been watching for the last five months.”

DETROIT ― Parker Meadows could be getting close to returning to the Tigers. Matt Vierling, well, time will tell.

Meadows was in the Tigers’ clubhouse before Monday’s game against the New York Mets, continuing his rehab work while the Toledo Mud Hens had a day off. Meadows, out with a right quad strain, played consecutive games in center field on his rehab assignment for Toledo on Saturday and Sunday, a positive sign in his progress toward rejoining the Tigers, manager AJ Hinch said Monday.

Meadows was hitless with three strikeouts Sunday, but just getting through a second game in a row on defense was what the Tigers wanted to see.

“Parker’s been pretty good. He said this is the best his body’s felt,” Hinch said before the opener of a three-game series with the New York Mets at Comerica Park. Meadows, arguably the biggest key to the Tigers’ magical run to the playoffs a year ago, has been out since late July. “He’s played back-to-back days. He got up to eight innings (Sunday). We’ve got to get his timing back.

“We’re going series by series, but he’s playing with freedom. I talked to Gabe Alvarez (Toledo manager) this morning, and he says he’s getting after it on defense, which is really the telltale (sign) that he’s feeling good.”

Meadows, who’s had two stints on the injured list this season, will play for Toledo on Tuesday and Wednesday, and the Tigers have an off-day Thursday. There’s at least a chance he could return to the Tigers for this weekend’s series at home against the Chicago White Sox.

On his latest rehab assignment, Meadows, 25, is 3-for-16 with a triple and an RBI, but also eight strikeouts. He did draw a walk Sunday against a left-handed pitcher.

As for Vierling, who’s out with a left oblique strain, Hinch described his progress Monday as “slow but surely.” He was continuing to work out in Detroit on Monday, and he’s been taking swings on the indoor batting cage. The Tigers are using a very cautious approach with his rehab work.

“Given the time of year and the nature of the injury, where a setback would likely end his season, we have to be very careful,” Hinch said of Vierling, who’s been out since Aug. 10, just two days after he hit a late-game home run (his only homer of the season) to lead the Tigers to a key comeback win over the Los Angeles Angels. “He’s just not full-go yet.”

The Tigers on Monday recalled Justyn-Henry Malloy, who gives them some more depth, at least in the corner outfield spots, while Meadows and Vierling continue to work their way back.

Also in the clubhouse Monday was veteran starter Jose Urquidy, whose rehab with Toledo has been extended as he continues to work his way back from Tommy John surgery. Hinch said Urquidy, a right-hander who pitched for him in Houston, is flashing some good stuff with Toledo, but that the command is a little off, as he’s allowed seven earned runs in his last 8.2 innings with Toledo.

Hinch also said veteran reliever Paul Sewald (right shoulder strain), acquired from the Cleveland Guardians at the trade deadline and eligible to come off the IL next week, has been throwing live batting practice in Lakeland, a positive sign that he could pitch for the team before the postseason.

Right-hander Sawyer Gipson-Long also was in Detroit on Monday, and will be activated to start Tuesday’s game. Fellow right-hander Chase Lee was promoted before Monday’s game, giving the Tigers extra help in the bullpen for the series opener, which saw Detroit use five pitchers (but not Lee) in a 10-8 loss.

“A lot of moving parts,” Hinch said.

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Luis Morales pitched seven sparkling innings, Zack Gelof homered, doubled and drove in four runs, and the Athletics beat the Detroit Tigers 7-0 on Wednesday night to sweep their three-game series.

Making his fourth career start, Morales (2-0) allowed two hits with two walks and seven strikeouts. The 22-year-old rookie from Cuba lowered his ERA to 1.19 in five major league appearances.

The AL Central-leading Tigers lost their fourth in a row and fell a half-game behind AL East-leading Toronto for the best record in the American League.

Brett Harris and Nick Kurtz each had two hits and scored two runs.

Harris doubled off Detroit starter Casey Mize leading off the fourth and scored when a throwing error by Mize allowed Gelof to reach safely, making it 5-0.

Mize (12-5) permitted five runs and seven hits in 3 1/3 innings.

Kurtz singled leading off the first, moved to second when Shea Langeliers walked and scored on a single by Tyler Soderstrom.

Spencer Torkelson tripled in the second and Dillon Dingler singled in the fifth for Detroit’s only hits.

Key moment

Harris reached on an infield single in the second and Gelof hit the next pitch over the left-center wall. Kurtz followed with a single, advanced to third on Langeliers’ double and then scored on Brent Rooker’s sacrifice fly to make it 4-0.

Key stats

Gelof entered batting .063 (2 for 32) with one RBI this season. … Harris had his fourth career multihit game and first since July 13, 2024.

Up next

Detroit’s Chris Paddack (5-11, 4.98 ERA) is scheduled to pitch Friday against Kansas City’s Seth Lugo (8-6, 3.99) in the opener of a three-game series.

The Athletics hadn’t announced their starter for Friday, the first of three games against Texas. Jack Leiter (8-7, 3.81 ERA) is set to pitch for the Rangers.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Shea Langeliers hit his second career grand slam and Colby Thomas added a solo homer — all in a five-run seventh inning — as the Athletics rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-3 on Monday night.

Langeliers was 0 for 8 with the bases loaded this season before his 450-foot shot over the left-field wall. It was the first grand slam allowed in Detroit ace Tarik Skubal’s career.

Skubal was in full control through six innings before running into trouble in the seventh. Thomas opened the inning with a homer and the Athletics had two straight hits and then an error, loading the bases. Skubal got back-to-back strikeouts before Langeliers’ blast gave the A’s a 6-3 lead.

Rookie Nick Kurtz added his 27th home run of the season in the eighth — the first of his career as a pinch hitter.

The Athletics have won six straight games against left-handed starters.

Skubal (11-4) allowed six runs, one earned, in 6 2/3 innings. He struck out 12 in his 10th game this season with double-digit strikeouts, moving within one of tying the club’s single-season record held by Mickey Lolich (11) since 1971.

Detroit, coming off a 5-1 homestand, lost for just the fifth time in 17 games dating to Aug. 8.

The Tigers opened the scoring with three runs in the sixth. Gleyber Torres hit a solo home run and Wenceel Perez found the gap in right-center field to drive home two for a 3-0 lead.

Key moment

Athletics reliever Michael Kelly (4-2) got Perez to pop out with the bases loaded to end the top of the seventh. Then Thomas led off the bottom half with a solo home run to get the A’s within 3-2.

Key stat

Detroit entered 55-15 when scoring first.

DETROIT (AP) — Spencer Torkelson homered to help the Detroit Tigers win their fifth straight game, 4-2 over the Kansas City Royals on Saturday night.

The teams entered the game with the best records in the American League in August. Detroit has won nine of its last 10 games.

Chris Paddack (5-11) picked up his second win as a Tiger, allowing one run in five innings.

Michael Wacha (8-10) had his four-start winning streak snapped, giving up three runs on eight hits in six innings.

The Tigers took the lead on Jake Rogers’ RBI double in the third, but Vinnie Pasquatino doubled home Bobby Witt Jr. in the fourth.

Torkelson hit his 27th homer to make it 2-1 in the fourth, and Rogers gave Detroit a two-run lead with an RBI single in the fifth.

Witt, though, homered off Tigers reliever Troy Melton in the sixth to pull the Royals to 3-2.

Witt singled with one out in the eighth, took second on Riley Greene’s error and moved to third on Pasquatino’s grounder back to the mound. A.J. Hinch brought in Will Vest, who struck out Maikel Garcia to end the inning.

Andy Ibáñez made it 4-2 with a pinch-hit homer in the eighth. Vest finished for his 19th save.

Key moment

The Royals had runners on first and second with one out in the seventh, but Tyler Holton came out of the bullpen and got pinch-hitter Nick Loftin to ground into a 5-4-3 double play.

Key stat

Pasquatino entered the game with homers in five straight games, matching the franchise record set by Mike Sweeney in 2002 and tied by Salvador Perez in 2024. He went 1 for 4 with the RBI double in the fourth inning.

DETROIT — For most of the season, it’s felt like the Tigers’ race in the American League Central was with the Cleveland Guardians.

Don’t look now, but here come the Kansas City Royals. After their win over Texas on Thursday night, they had won eight of 10 while the Guardians lost seven of 10.

And when the Royals came into town for three games this weekend, they will be the Tigers’ closest challenger in the division.

Not that it matters much to the players.

“We still have 30-some games left,” outfielder Riley Greene said. “Anything can happen. We’ll just stay focused on playing our brand of baseball and trying to win every day. We’re not focused on what the Guardians are doing or what the Royals are doing. We’re focused on what we need to do every day to win the game.

“We just don’t care what anybody else is doing. We care about what we’re doing. That’s what we can control.”

After sweeping the AL West-leading Astros and going 10-3 in a stretch of 13 games in 13 days, the Tigers went into the weekend where they’ve been most of the season — owners of the best record in the American League (76-53).

It’s where they’ve been since last August.

“We’re a good baseball team,” catcher Jake Rogers said, with a shrug. “We’ve been good all year. Obviously, we had a little stretch, but it’s crazy how baseball happens. The game is just so hard. But we did a good job of bouncing back.”

That little stretch. They lost 12 of 13 and their double-digit lead in the division shrunk to five games. Maybe there wasn’t full-blown panic in Tiger Town, but the angst among the fan base was real and loudly expressed on social media and talk radio.

Manager AJ Hinch understood the fans’ pain.

“I think we should just thank them for being passionate enough to care,” Hinch said. “I love the emotions that come with sports and I respect them for loving us. I don’t fault people for caring or being super passionate. That’s the kind of city we want.

“But don’t forget to love on us a little bit when things are bad.”

The love was loudly expressed this week. The Tigers drew 86,994 people to Comerica Park for the Astros’ series Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. They are expected to surpass the 2-million mark in attendance next month.

“This team responds to the environment we had this month,” Hinch said. “Comerica Park was a legitimate home-field advantage for us.”

With the lead in the division back up to 10 games, Hinch was asked Wednesday if he felt this recent surge put his team in a good place to finish strong.

“Yeah, so, I felt like we were in a good place to finish strong back then,” he said. “It didn’t take this stretch for me to believe in this team. Or for this team to believe in itself. I think you have to play the schedule. I don’t know how many times in a row I have to say it.

“It’s what I believe. It’s what my experience tells you. It’s only going to get more exciting. It’s only going to get more intense. It doesn’t matter what our lead is. If we keep stacking wins and playing good baseball, we’re going to be a problem for somebody.”

But with 38 days and 33 games left in the regular season, this isn’t the time to be counting chickens or calculating magic numbers.

“We have to earn it,” Hinch said. “We still haven’t been declared anything yet.”

DETROIT (AP) — Jack Flaherty struck out nine batters in seven scoreless innings and the Detroit Tigers went on to beat the Houston Astros 10-0 on Monday night.

Wenceel Pérez, Riley Greene, Trey Sweeney and Colt Keith homered for the Tigers, who were coming off a 5-2 road trip.

Flaherty (7-12) allowed three hits and a walk to win for the second time in 12 starts. Former closer Alex Lange, who underwent lat surgery last season, pitched the ninth — his first MLB appearance since May 22, 2024.

Spencer Arrighetti (1-4) gave up five runs on seven hits and four walks in five innings.

Houston loaded the bases on two hits and a walk in the first inning, but Victor Caratini lined out to end the inning. Flaherty only allowed two more runners — a hit batter and a single.

The Tigers took a 1-0 lead in the fourth on Pérez’s 10th homer of the season, and they added four runs in the fifth.

Trey Sweeney tripled in the sixth and scored on Keith’s sacrifice fly to make it 6-0. Sweeney hit a three-run homer in the seventh and Keith homered two batters later.

Outfielder Chas McCormick pitched a scoreless eighth for Houston.

Key moment

The Tigers missed an opportunity for a big inning in the second. With runners on first and second and no one out, Dillon Dingler hit a high fly to left that bounced off the fence. Appearing to think the ball had gone for a home run, the runners ended up advancing one base.

Arrighetti then struck out Sweeney before Javier Báez hit into an inning-ending double play.

Key stat

Gleyber Torres played in his 1,000th major league game. He entered the game with a .265 batting average, 151 homers, 499 RBIs and 57 stolen bases.

Up next

The teams played the second of three games on Tuesday night, with Tigers ace LHP Tarik Skubal (11-3, 2.42 ERA) scheduled to face St. Clair Shores native RHP Hunter Brown (10-5, 2.45).

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DETROIT (AP) — Luke Keaschall drove in three runs for the second straight game and the Minnesota Twins beat the Detroit Tigers 9-4 on Wednesday.

Keaschell is hitting .393 in his nine-game major league career, which was interrupted in April by a broken arm. He returned on Tuesday and has four hits and six RBIs in his first two games back.

The Twins lost 11 players at the trade deadline.

Thomas Hatch (1-0) picked up the win with 4 1/3 scoreless innings of relief. He was claimed off waivers on Monday from the Kansas City Royals.

Jack Flaherty (6-11) took the loss, giving up six runs in 4 2/3 innings.

The Twins took a 2-0 lead in the first. Alan Roden and Matt Wallner started the game with singles, and Keaschall drove them in with a two-out double. Keaschall had three RBIs in Tuesday’s 6-3 win, including his first career homer.

Minnesota made it 3-0 in the second when Brooks Lee scored on a wild pitch, but Spencer Torkelson’s 24th homer narrowed the game to two runs in the bottom of the inning.

Zach McKinstry pulled the Tigers within one with a leadoff homer in the third and Kerry Carpenter’s two-run shot put Detroit ahead 4-3 later in the inning.

Lee homered in the fourth and the Twins took a 6-4 lead on RBI doubles by Ryan Jeffers and Keaschall in the fifth. Austin Martin and Roden homered off Tyler Holton in the sixth.

Key moment

The Tigers had runners on first and third with one out in the eighth and their 3-4-5 hitters due up. A.J. Hinch sent Jahmai Jones in to hit for Carpenter and Kody Funderburke got him to ground into an inning-ending double play.

Key stat

Keaschall has reached base in his first nine career games, the second-longest streak in Twins history. Glenn Williams reached in his first 13 games in 2005.

Up next

Each team is off on Thursday before starting weekend home series on Friday. Twins ace RHP Joe Ryan (10-5, 2.83) is scheduled to start against the Kansas City Royals, while Tigers All-Star LHP Tarik Skubal (11-3, 2.18) will face the Los Angeles Angels.

DETROIT — If you didn’t know this before Thursday, you should know this now, unequivocally.

Tigers’ president Scott Harris isn’t trying to win press releases. He isn’t trying to win the trade deadline. He’s trying to build winning and championship baseball teams for now and for years to come.

And if his plan, his methods, don’t generate big headlines or sweeping approval throughout the fan base, he can live with that.

“It’s important that we continue to build through development and continue to build for the growth we can access from within,” he said Thursday after trading for five relievers and two starting pitchers at the trade deadline. “It’s one of the reasons why this organization is so healthy and we have a nine-game lead and a farm system that’s winning a ton.

“I have to balance that. That’s the job. And if that subjects me to criticism, like, I totally understand it. But I’m never going make moves to avoid criticism if they are not in the best interest of the organization.”

You should also know now, unequivocally, that his faith in the talented young group of players both at the big-league level and coming up through the system is unshakable. Which is at least partly why the Tigers didn’t land any of the marquee names that were available — like third baseman Eugenio Suarez, who is now a Mariner.

There was an outside assumption the Tigers needed to acquire another right-handed bat, preferably one with power. And Harris, by all accounts, stayed in the conversation for Suarez right up until the deal was made with Seattle.

“I’m not sure our body of work over the first half suggested that we needed to add a right-handed bat,” Harris said.

Certainly not enough to warrant parting with any of the club’s top-tier prospects for a short-term boost, which was the cost.

“The central question we asked ourselves over and over again, is the player available better than the player we have? Do we believe in the player available more than we believe in the player we have now?”

He’s not just talking about Zach McKinstry, who has been the primary third baseman. Or righty hitters like Andy Ibáñez  or Jahmai Jones or even Justyn-Henry Malloy. He’s also talking about the prospects such a trade would cost — Max Clark, Kevin McGonigle, Bryce Rainer, Thayron Liranzo, Josue Briceño and others.

“Every decision or non-decision is a bet,” Harris said. “If you decide to trade for a player, you are betting on that player. If you make a non-decision, which is a decision in itself, you are betting on the player you have. We’re betting on the player we would have had to give up to acquire that player.

“I think these guys have earned (that trust). We did what we did because we believe in these players. They are still getting into their prime years and they will continue to get better.”

Harris didn’t buy into all the outside noise about “seizing the moment,” nor is he swayed by any illusionary window of opportunity. To him, that’s a far too restrictive and narrow approach.

“We have a real opportunity in the American League this year, but I kind of hope we have a real opportunity every year,” he said. “If we run out the best version of us, we can beat a lot of teams and I think we’ve demonstrated that over the last year.”

They were the winningest team in baseball from the All-Star break last year through the All-Star break this year. They have a nine-game lead in the division. They have one of the highest-rated farm systems in the game. Seize the moment or build on the momentum?

“We want to be good every year, really, really good every year,” Harris said. “I don’t think we thought about this deadline as different from future years. I always want to sit in front of you and say we’ve got a real good baseball team and we’ve got a lot of chances to get better.

“I think I can credibly say, we have a really good baseball team by our competitive standing right now. I think I can also credibly say we got better (at the deadline). And I can credibly say that we have some players coming in our farm system, both for this year and for future years, that are going to help us get even better.”

The Tigers didn’t land Suarez. They didn’t land the marquee relievers like Jhoan Duran, David Bednar, Ryan Helsley or Camilo Doval. They didn’t land many players the casual fan would recognize, let alone celebrate.

But maybe, by incrementally strengthening both the rotation and bullpen — building a deeper and diverse pitching staff that manager AJ Hinch and pitching coach Chris Fetter can maneuver around different types of lineups — they got better nevertheless.

“My job is to make the best decisions for this organization,” Harris said. “I understand everybody wants to go grab the flashiest name and not give up any good players. But that’s not an option. We can’t do that.

“If we’re going to grab those players, we’re going to give up some really talented players and I didn’t think that was in the best interest of our organization.”

Harris pointed to the emergence of rookie Troy Melton, who the Tigers believe will be a swing-and-miss weapon in the bullpen down the stretch and into the playoffs. He pointed to Dillon Dingler, who scuffled mightily last September but has emerged as the team’s primary catcher. He mentioned Wenceel Perez, in the organization since he was 16, who is just now impacting the lineup in multiple ways.

Those are examples of players who at one time were sought after by teams either over the winter or in past trade deadlines.

“It comes with a real cost that is sometimes invisible to the casual observer,” Harris said. “If you move players you really believe in, sometimes it makes you worse. Sometimes if you go grab the flashiest player, you have to trade a better player to get that player. I’m hyper-conscious of that.

“I am not averse to doing those deals, but the specific asks were for players we think might actually be better than the player we would be acquiring — obviously on different timelines.”

You don’t have to love his methods. But you would be hard-pressed to dispute the results up to this point.

“In my tenure here, I have made some really unpopular moves in drafts, free agency and trades,” Harris said. “But I think one of the reasons we’re here (in first place) is that a lot of the non-moves or non-decisions actually set us up better for the future than they would have in the press release that comes right after the deadline.

“We’ll see if I got it right.”

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DETROIT (AP) — Bo Bichette’s two-run single broke a scoreless tie in the eighth inning and the Toronto Blue Jays defeated the slumping Detroit Tigers 6-1 on Saturday night.

Nathan Lukes, George Springer and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. homered in a four-run ninth as the Blue Jays won their fourth in a row and increased their AL East lead to 6 1/2 games over the New York Yankees.

The Tigers have lost six straight and 12 of 13, but still hold a comfortable lead in the AL Central. They’ve scored only 33 runs during that stretch (2.5 per game) and were held to a pair of Jake Rogers singles on Saturday.

Four Toronto pitchers combined for 13 strikeouts and one walk. The Blue Jays are 8-1 since the All-Star break and have won 21 of 26 overall.

Riley Greene’s ninth-inning groundout plated Detroit’s only run.

Tarik Skubal allowed five hits in six scoreless innings for the Tigers. He walked three and struck out seven.

Toronto starter Kevin Gausman permitted one hit and one walk in six shutout innings, striking out 10.

Braydon Fisher (4-0) pitched a perfect seventh for the win.

Detroit threw out a runner at the plate on an unusual play in the sixth. With the bases loaded and one out, Tyler Heineman hit a soft flare into center field that Matt Vierling grabbed on a short hop. Springer had to hold up at third to see if the ball would be caught on a fly, and Vierling’s throw home was in time to get him.

Key moment

Pinch-hitter Joey Loperfido and Springer started the eighth with singles and moved up on a wild pitch by Will Vest (5-2). Guerrero grounded out before Bichette hit a two-run single past diving second baseman Gleyber Torres.

Key stat

Detroit has been outscored 89-33 over the last 13 games.

Up next

RHP Max Scherzer (1-0, 5.14 ERA) faces one of his former teams Sunday when Toronto tries for a four-game sweep. RHP Jack Flaherty (5-10, 4.77) pitches for the Tigers.

DETROIT — Round and round it goes. The Tigers’ bullpen carousel continues to spin through veteran right-handed relievers.

Carlos Hernandez and Geoff Hartlieb have come and gone. Next up, 33-year-old Luke Jackson.

“There’s no question we’ve been cycling through some arms,” manager AJ Hinch said before the game Saturday. “And I feel for some of the arms that are now gone. But Luke is going to get an opportunity here. He’s a veteran guy who I think has some upside to recapture some of the usage he’s had in the past.”

The Tigers designated Hartlieb for assignment and signed Jackson, who had been released by the Texas Rangers on Friday. The Rangers will pay the remainder of his $1.5 million contract for this year. The Tigers will pay him the prorated MLB minimum.

Jackson, who has 15 games of postseason experience and was part of the Atlanta Braves’ 2021 World Series championship run, features an elite slider, which he throws off a 94-mph four-seam fastball.

In 2019, he posted a 36.7% whiff rate. In 2023, it was still at 30%. This year, it’d fallen to 22.4%. In 39 games with the Rangers this year, he had a 4.11 ERA with a team-high nine saves.

But his strikeout rate (15.8%) and walk rate (12.5%) were both well off his career norms.

“The swing-and-miss hasn’t been there this year, but we’re hoping to get more out of that,” Hinch said. “The breaking ball is real. He’s a guy who has been there and done that a little bit.”

He got five outs against the Tigers on Sunday.

“We try to give opportunity when it’s there and to the guys we feel can help us win,” Hinch said. “On the front end, I don’t know how long the opportunity is going to be for some of these guys.”

The Tigers gave Hernandez 11 games. Hartlieb got two.

“This one could be anywhere,” Hinch said of Jackson’s potential run. “Luke has been through the league and has run the gauntlet. He’s pitched in the back end of games this year. But performance matters and certainly we expect Luke to make a better impact.

“But the message is, when opportunity opens up, however big or small, try to come in, take it and run with it. We clearly are searching for the right combination of bullpen arms to stay here.”

Important to note, the signing of Jackson does not preclude the Tigers from pursuing other bullpen arms this week prior to the trade deadline.

Montero optioned

The Tigers optioned right-hander Keider Montero back to Triple-A Toledo after the game Friday to clear a roster spot for Tarik Skubal’s return from the paternity list.

“Keider has been on the shuttle between Toledo and the big leagues,” Hinch said. “Some of it has been where the health of our team has been. Some of it has been an execution issue.”

After getting tagged for six runs (five earned) and nine hits in four innings Friday, Montero’s ERA ballooned to 4.66 with a 1.432 WHIP.

“It’s about execution and he’s going to work his tail off,” Hinch said. “He really takes to a plan that’s laid out in front of him. You see it when he’s good. He’s got two types of spin, two types of fastballs and the occasional changeup. But when he’s not, it’s long at-bats and big counts and he’s spraying the ball and getting himself in harm’s way.

“The ebbs and flows of a young pitcher can be sometimes hard to navigate. But he’s going to put the work in and that’s why we sent him down — to work.”

Hinch said Montero would continue to start at Toledo, but did not rule out the possibility of him being a bullpen piece in the final two months.

“We’ve proven we’re willing to do anything,” he said. “We’ll use our players accordingly. We’re not pursuing that right now but I don’t think we’d turn our backs on an idea like that.”

The move also clears the way for rookie right-hander Troy Melton to take the fifth spot in the rotation.

The emergence of Troy is part of this conversation when you make a move like this,” Hinch said. “Troy was at a really good place at a really good time. He needed the challenge of being up in the big leagues.”

Around the horn

The Tigers traded outfielder Brewer Hicklen, who was designated for assignment Wednesday, to the Phillies for cash considerations.

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PITTSBURGH (AP) — Spencer Horwitz hit his first career grand slam and Bailey Falter matched a career-high with eight strikeouts to lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 6-1 win and sweep of the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday.

Horwitz drove a two-out cutter from Troy Melton (0-1) 416 feet to centerfield to make it 5-0.

Andrew McCutchen opened the scoring in the first with his ninth homer of the season.

Bryan Reynolds led off with a double and scored on a sacrifice fly from Oneil Cruz in the third inning.

Falter (7-5) gave up one run on four hits without issuing a walk in seven innings, going more than 5 1/3 for the first time since May 31.

Lasting five innings in his major league debut, Melton allowed six runs and seven hits with seven strikeouts and two walks.

Matt Vierling provided Detroit’s lone run with a single in the seventh that scored Spencer Torkelson.

Key moment

After walking Joey Bart to load the bases with one out in the second, Melton had a way out of the jam when he struck out Isiah Kiner-Falefa on three pitches ahead of Horwitz. He started with a cutter in the dirt before coming back with another that Horwitz took deep.

Key stat

The Tigers have lost nine of their last 10 games since July 9.

Up next

Tigers: RHP Reese Olson (4-3, 2.71 ERA) will start Thursday to open a four-game home series against Toronto. LHP Eric Lauer (5-2, 2.80 ERA) will go for the Blue Jays.

Pirates: RHP Mike Burrows (1-3, 4.70 ERA) will take the mound Friday as Pittsburgh stays home for three games against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

— By WES CROSBY, Associated Press

PITTSBURGH — Tommy Kahnle was a ball of energy bouncing through the clubhouse before the game Tuesday. After a brief chat with two reporters, he broke off a nifty cartwheel through the clubhouse. To see a sturdy, 235-pound 35-year-old with tree-trunk legs pull that off and stick the dismount — quite a sight.

Amazing the healing power of a scoreless, two punch-out inning on a man’s body and soul.

“Yesterday felt a lot better,” he said.

Kahnle has been going through it this month, including a three-outing stretch where allowed nine runs, seven in two ninth innings without recording an out. But Monday, he pitched a clean, 13-pitch, nine-strike eighth inning, striking out Ke’Bryan Hayes looking at a fastball and Henry Davis chasing a changeup.

“That was a positive outing for Tommy,” manager AJ Hinch said. “I was hoping to get a lower leverage situation where he could come in and work on a few things and have a bit of breathing room. Ideally, we’d be up 5-0 where it could have been a positive for him and a win.

“But he came in mixing a couple of fastballs, his changeup was a little better and he was able to walk off the field with a positive feeling – that’s a step in the right direction.”

Kahnle said he’s been searching for some consistency with his release point, especially on the changeup.

“I got into a pattern of not throwing (between outings),” he said. “I told myself, post-break I was going back out there and start throwing pre-game more, just to refine the arm slot. It was a lot better yesterday.”

He said the changeup is still not quite right. He feels like he’s executing one out of every three.

“It’s something release-wise,” he said. “I feel like I’m cutting it a lot and not getting the traditional fade and drop. I’m still trying to find that. When you cut them and they come back over the plate, you saw the damage.”

In the meantime, he feels like he might be on to something with the fastball.

“That was nice to see,” he said. “I think the fastball can be a game-changer going forward.”

He only threw three four-seamers (92 mph) Monday, but he got one whiff and the called-third from Hayes.

Farewell B-White

Right-hander Brendan White, who debuted with the Tigers in 2023 and has been battling nerve issues in his elbow the last two years, has been released.

The move was made Tuesday to facilitate the promotion of 6-8 right-hander RJ Petit from Double-A Erie to Triple-A Toledo.

White, 26, will forever be known for helping Reese Olson develop more spin on his slider.

“He helped me a lot,” Olson said Tuesday. “Just learning about the analytical stuff and with my slider for sure. He’s actually going to be in my wedding this offseason.”

Olson and White were roommates in Double-A in 2022. At the time, Olson was mostly a fastball-changeup guy. White was getting nearly 3,000 rpms of spin on his slider and Olson wanted some of that.

The two talked about grip changes and which side of the mound stand on. And very quickly, Olson added a big league-ready slider to his mix.

Which made for a special night at Comerica Park on June 24, 2023. White was in the bullpen watching Olson, in his fourth career start earn his first big-league win beating the Twins with a lethal dose of 3,000-rpm sliders. He posted nine strikeouts in 5.1 innings, with 11 whiffs on 15 swings with the slider.

He made sure to give a hat-tip to White afterward.

“I talked to him the other day,” Olson said. “He’s fine. He’s pretty confident. He’s obviously got the stuff. I’m sure he will land somewhere.”

In 2023, White pitched in 33 games and had a stretch of 21 games where he allowed just nine earned runs with 25 strikeouts, posting whiff rates of 35% on his four-seamer and 35.8% with his slider.

Injuries, though, prevented him from building on that first year.

Around the horn

… Kerry Carpenter (hamstring) began his rehab assignment with Triple-A Toledo in Indianapolis Tuesday, and went 1-for-4. “It’s the first step in what is going to be a multiple-game step toward getting back,” Hinch said.

… Right-hander Sawyer Gipson-Long (neck) has been pulled off his rehab assignment. He came out of his last still feeling discomfort in his neck and general fatigue. The expectation is that he will be shut down for a week and then resume his throwing program. His 30-day rehab clock will reset in seven days but Hinch said he doesn’t expect to need the full 30 days.

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Spencer Horwitz, Bryan Reynolds and Tommy Pham each had three hits and two RBIs, and the Pittsburgh Pirates hit eight doubles in an 8-5 victory over the Detroit Tigers on Tuesday night.

Horwitz hit a two-run double in the second inning to open the scoring. The Pirates, who had lost 11 of their previous 12 games, have taken the first two games of the series from the AL Central leaders. Reynolds had RBI singles in the third and sixth and Pham doubled in a run in the sixth as the Pirates increased their lead to 8-3.

The Tigers have lost eight of their last nine games.

Mitch Keller (4-10) allowed three runs and six hits in six innings to win what could be his final start with the Pirates. The right-hander has been heavily rumored to be traded by the July 31 deadline.

David Bednar, another potential trade target, pitched a scoreless ninth for his 15th save in as many opportunities.

Casey Mize (9-4) was tagged for five runs (four earned) and 10 hits in four innings. Mize was pitching for the first time since making his first career All-Star Game appearance a week earlier.

Jake Rogers hit a three-run home run, his second of the season, in the fifth inning. Jahmai Jones added a two-run shot as a pinch-hitter in the eighth.

Tigers All-Star shortstop Javier Báez returned and was 1 for 4 after missing Monday night’s game with left shoulder soreness.

Key moment

The Tigers put runners on first and second with one out in the ninth before Bednar escaped the jam by striking out Wenceel Pérez and Riley Greene.

Key stat

Horwitz, Pham and Oneil Cruz became the first Pirates trio to have two doubles in a game since 2002.

Up next

The series concludes Wednesday with the Tigers planning to call up RHP Troy Melton from Triple-A Toledo for his major league debut, facing LHP Bailey Falter (6-5, 4.00 ERA).

— By JOHN PERROTTO, Associated Press