The Tigers may not be chasing a postseason spot at the moment, but Riley Greene keeps giving Detroit a clear answer on who needs to be part of whatever comes next.
After a road trip that swung from one extreme to the other, Detroit returned home needing a clean start Monday against the Minnesota Twins. The Tigers had been swept by the Cleveland Guardians in three of the four games in the series this weekend, and the pressure on a young roster that still has plenty to prove was hanging over the night.
Greene made the case in the loudest possible way.
Since coming back from the injured list, he’s looked like the kind of hitter Detroit can build around. Over his last three games, Greene is 9-for-13 with six extra-base hits, three home runs in three games, eight RBIs and four runs scored. His 19th homer of the season came on a drive into the right field seats and pushed the Tigers ahead 5-2 against the Twins.
That kind of production is exactly what Detroit lost when Greene got hurt. At the time, the Tigers were still within striking distance in the American League Wild-Card race. Without him, the momentum disappeared and the club slipped back outside the picture.
What’s been especially encouraging for Detroit is how locked in Greene has looked at the plate. He said that timing has been the focus.
"A lot of things happen when you're not on time, and when you're on time, good things happen," Greene said in his postgame. "So, I'm trying to make sure I'm on time all the time."
The Tigers still had to sweat out the finish, but they held on for a 5-4 win over Minnesota. The result helps the record, even if it doesn’t change where Detroit sits in the standings.
And that’s why Greene matters so much. He’s not just one of the few obvious building blocks on the roster; he’s the player who makes the rest of the young offense look different when he’s rolling, especially when he’s in left field and completing the outfield picture.
For a front office facing a busy offseason, the message is hard to miss: Riley Greene belongs in Detroit for the long haul.
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