Despite two momentous homers from David Hamilton and Kristian Campbell, the Boston Red Sox could not outlast the Detroit Tigers on May 13.
An unlikely hero has emerged in Detroit, and he did the Red Sox in by himself. With runners on the corners and no outs in the bottom of the 11th inning, the Tigers were already on the verge of a win. Javier Báez sealed it with his second three-run homer of the night.
"Báez drives one high and deep, you gotta be kidding," Red Sox radio announcer Will Flemming said as Báez watched his ball leave the yard with his arms in the air and the cheers of Detroit fans in his ears. The resurgent Tiger sealed a 10-9 win and the series for his squad before Boston got a look at Tarik Skubal.
The Red Sox scratched and clawed to stay in the game against the American League's hottest team. Hamilton, who's batting .204/.246/.333 over 21 games this year, lifted the game-tying homer in the eighth inning to keep the Sox alive when their usual sluggers failed to deliver. Three innings later, Campbell broke out of a 3-for-38 slump with a massive blast to right-center field to give Boston the lead.
Javier Báez carries Tigers to walk-off win over Red Sox as inconsistencies and questions mount for Boston
But Báez was there to respond, and the Red Sox were not. The shortstop-turned-center fielder had already cracked another three-run bomb in the sixth frame and he delivered again with Greg Weissert on the mound in extras.
While the 2024 Red Sox have failed to live up to expectations, Báez has done the opposite. His move to the outfield in the wake of multiple Tigers injuries has gone exceedingly well — he's logged two outs above average in center field and boasts a 94th-percentile range that includes appearances in the pastures, third base and shortstop.
His numbers at the plate also show a vast improvement from the start of his Tigers career three years ago. Báez is slashing .319/.357/.513 with a .870 OPS in 34 games after he batted .221/.262/.347 in his first three years in Detroit. He's been one of the biggest surprises in the Tigers' lineup of unexpected successes.
The Tigers, an unforeseen AL leader, took down the Red Sox, who were projected to be one of the top teams in the league, on the back of one of the unlikeliest rebound players in MLB. Little can be done to stop a player on a torrid streak, but Boston needs to address its issues as it stares down its first potential sweep this year.