DETROIT TIGERS (69-78) vs. KANSAS CITY ROYALS (86-62)
RHP Alfredo Simon (12-9, 4.94) vs. RHP Kris Medlen (3-1, 4.58)
Sunday, September 20, 2015 at 1:08 p.m.
Comerica Park, Detroit, MI
RECENT RESULTS: The Tigers extended their winning streak to four games with a 6-5 win in 11 innings over the Royals on Saturday night at Comerica Park. With the game tied at five in the bottom of the 11th, Ian Kinsler hit a walkoff solo homer to give the Tigers the win. Kinsler finished the game with a pair of hits, recording his major league leading 58th multi-hit game of the season. Victor Martinez hit his 10th home run of the season and went 2×2 with three RBI, while Miguel Cabrera had two hits, scored twice and drove in two runs. Tom Gorzelanny pitched 2.0 scoreless innings with one hit allowed and two strikeouts to notch his second win of the season. The Tigers and Royals conclude their three-game series this afternoon. Following today’s game, the 10-game homestand continues with four games vs. the Chicago White Sox (September 21-23) and three games against the Minnesota Twins (September 25- 27).
KINSLER WALKS IT OFF: Ian Kinsler provided the walkoff winner in last night’s game with a solo home run in the bottom of the 11th inning. The walkoff win was the ninth for the Tigers this season. Kinsler’s homer was the third walkoff home run of his major league career and his second this season (last, August 6, 2015 vs. Kansas City). It also marked his seventh career walkoff hit and his fourth this season. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Kinsler is the seventh player this season to hit multiple walkoff homers, but he’s the only one to hit at least two against the same opponent. He also became the third Tigers player to hit two walkoff homers against one team in a single season. Steve Souchock hit a pair of walkoff home runs for Detroit against the Yankees in 1952, and Gates Brown beat the Red Sox twice with walkoff homers in 1968.
GOSE EXTENDS ON BASE STREAK TO 15: Anthony Gose went 1×6 with a run scored in last night’s game to extend his streak of reaching base safely to a career-high 15 straight games. Over the last 15 games, Gose is hitting .322 (19×59) with 12 runs scored, four doubles, one triple, one home run and three RBI.
VMART NEARING 200 CAREER HOME RUNS: Victor Martinez enters this afternoon’s game just one home run shy of 200 in his major league career. Martinez is looking to become the sixth Venezuelan-born player to reach the 200 home run mark.
J.D. CONTINUES TO MASH: J.D. Martinez stretched his hitting streak to eight games last night, going 1×5 with a double. During his current eight-game hitting streak, Martinez is batting .371 (13×35) with six runs scored, four doubles, one home run and five RBI.
TODAY’S TIDBITS
- JEWISH HERITAGE CEREMONY: Join the Detroit Tigers and local community organizations to celebrate the club’s Jewish Heritage, including Tigers legend Hank Greenberg, the first Jewish player elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, on the 81st Anniversary of Greenberg leading the Tigers to the 1934 American League pennant.
- All kids 14-and-under will receive a Detroit Tigers Back-to-School Lunch Cooler, sponsored by Kroger.
- The ceremonial first pitches will be thrown by Lorrie Pethick, representing FOX Sports Detroit and Connie Karchon, representing Garden Fresh.
- The national anthem will be performed by the Royal Oak Middle School Band.
- God Bless America will be performed by 14-year-old Melody Balos from the Michigan Opera Theatre during the seventh inning stretch.
- All Sunday home games are Kids Days at Comerica Park. All kids 14-and-under will receive a free promotional item as part of “Every Kid, Every Sunday” giveaway guarantee, enjoy free rides courtesy of Kroger on the Comerica Bank Carousel or the Fly Ball Ferris Wheel, take part in the free face painting, have the chance to win a bicycle and are invited down to the field for Kids Run the Bases courtesy of Aquafina and Meijer following the game, weather permitting.
TIGERS AT A GLANCE
Record: 69-78 / Streak: W4
Game #148 / Home #74
Home: 35-38 / Road 34-40
TIGERS VS. ROYALS
2015 Record: 9-9
2015 at Home: 5-3
2015 at Kansas City: 4-6
All-Time Record: 324-320
All-Time at Home: 171-152
All-Time at Comerica Park: 79-65
All-Time at Kansas City: 153-168
2015 GAME LOG
| Date | Site | Result | Winner/Loser/Save |
| 4/30 | KC | L, 8-1 | Duffy/Simon |
| 5/1 | KC | L, 4-1 | Young/Lobstein/Davis |
| 5/2 | KC | W, 2-1 | PRICE/Volquez |
| 5/3 | KC | W, 6-4 | Sanchez/Guthrie/Soria |
| 5/8 | DET | W, 6-5 | Soria/Pino |
| 5/9 | DET | L, 6-2 | Guthrie/Sanchez |
| 5/10 | DET | L, 2-1 (10) | Fraser/Nesbitt/Holland |
| 8/4 | DET | L, 5-1 | Duffy/Verlander |
| 8/5 | DET | W, 2-1 | Boyd/Cueto/Wilson |
| 8/6 | DET | W, 8-6 | Wilson/Madson |
| 8/10 | KC | L, 4-0 | CUETO/Boyd |
| 8/11 | KC | L, 6-1 | Ventura/Sanchez/Hochevar |
| 8/12 | KC | W, 7-4 | Feliz/Volquez/Rondon |
| 9/1 | KC | W, 6-5 | Verlander/Cueto/Rondon |
| 9/2 | KC | L, 12-1 | Ventura/Wolf |
| 9/3 | KC | L. 15-7 | Young/Ryan |
| 9/18 | DET | W, 5-4 (12) | VerHagen/Holland |
| 9/19 | DET | W, 6-5 (11) | Gorzelanny/Almonte |
| 9/20 | DET |
STREAKS
Last five games: 4-1
Last 10 games: 6-4
Last 15 games: 8-7
Last 20 games: 9-11
This content was originally published on September 20, 2015. It was delivered electronically to specific media contacts and the entire Detroit Tigers front office staff, as well as being available to media in the press box and distributed to fans at program stands around Comerica Park.
