The Tigers' broadcast called baseball like it was golf with tremendous results
The Tigers' broadcast called baseball like it was golf with tremendous results
During Saturday's Detroit Tigers game in Minnesota against the Twins, Tigers broadcasters Jason Benetti and Andy Dirks turned a pretty ho-hum April baseball game into a pretty fun Masters riff.
April baseball can be a bit, shall we say, boring, so Benetti and Dirks decided to turn their broadcast call into what you might hear during this weekend's Masters Tournament in Augusta, Georgia.
Hearing two baseball announcers call the game like they're working a golf match is pretty fun, and it's a heck of a lot more interesting than a normal call for an April baseball game.
The Tigers got the 4-0 win, so Detroit fans got a little something extra on the broadcast to go along with the victory.
Good on Benetti and Dirks for having some fun with things for Masters weekend!
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Fox News
28 minutes ago
- Fox News
Scottie Scheffler 'forming himself into' becoming the next Tiger Woods, former World No 1 says
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Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Inside the rise of Tommy Kahnle, the Detroit Tigers reliever with an elite changeup
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He is throwing his changeup a career-high 84% of the time. Advertisement "Speaking of unicorns, it's a pitch where everyone in baseball knows how he pitches," manager A.J. Hinch said, "and yet he finds a way to get soft contact and miss bats and continue to pound the zone. Fun player because he can be utilized at any point of the game, and he doesn't change." MILESTONE: Tigers' Tommy Kahnle reflects on 10 years of MLB service time: 'It's an honor' Detroit Tigers pitcher Tommy Kahnle (43) throws against New York Yankees during the ninth inning at Comerica Park in Detroit on Monday, April 7, 2025. Kahnle is a changeup artist. But the 35-year-old wouldn't be who he is without a lesson from pitching coach Carlos Chantres more than 13 years ago. A career-changing adjustment occurred in 2011, when Kahnle pitched for the Charleston RiverDogs, the Low-A affiliate of the Yankees. Advertisement He didn't make his MLB debut until 2014. "It's been a while," Chantres said. 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He also mixed in a sinker, slider, cutter and curveball at various points in his career, but the fastball remained his primary weapon, followed by the changeup as his second-most-used pitch. Advertisement His fastball velocity began to dip in 2019. That's when the changeup took over as his go-to pitch. "I always had a great changeup," Kahnle said. "We just didn't utilize it a lot because I had an elite fastball at the time. Eventually, we made the switch. Every year since then, the usage has just gotten higher and higher." In 2019, Kahnle threw 51.9% changeups, 44.2% four-seam fastballs and 3.9% sliders. From there, his changeup usage surged — all the way to 84% in 2025. Since 2019, only Devin Williams (2,541) and Trevor Richards (2,201) have thrown more changeups than Kahnle's 2,088 among MLB relievers. Advertisement Hitters still haven't solved it: They're batting just .155 off Kahnle's changeup since 2019 — and only .148 in 2025. By 2022, fellow pitchers had picked up on Kahnle's changeup usage, though hitters had been aware of it for a few years. That season, he pitched for the Dodgers. His changeup became a running joke in the clubhouse. "A lot of guys with L.A. were chirping about it: You could throw this pitch 100 times, they know it's coming, and they still can't hit it," Kahnle said. "It gave me a good laugh." [ NEW TIGERS NEWSLETTER! Sign up for The Purr-fect Game, a weekly dose of Tigers news, numbers and analysis for Freep subscribers, here. ] Advertisement Sometimes, Kahnle second-guesses the extreme changeup usage, which has been north of 70% in four straight seasons. He entered 2025 with the Tigers hoping to scale it back, but the data — and the results — keep reinforcing the changeup. So do his teammates. "You know it's coming, and you still really can't hit it," said Texas Rangers catcher Kyle Higashioka, who caught Kahnle for years in the Yankees' organization, dating to their time in Low-A Charleston in 2011 — the year Kahnle learned the four-seam changeup grip. "It's definitely something special." The person behind the pitcher Detroit Tigers pitcher Tommy Kahnle works out during spring training at TigerTown in Lakeland, Fla. on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. Kahnle and Higashioka met for the first time in 2011. Advertisement They had just turned 21. "We were all pretty wild back then," Higashioka said. Every day, Kahnle refused to tie his shoes while running in warmups and shagging fly balls during batting practice, but he eventually laced them up for the game. "Tommy, you're going to twist your ankle," said Chantres, the pitching coach who taught Kahnle the changeup grip. "You got to tie your shoes." "No, Carlos, I've got the strongest ankles in America," Kahnle said. He's goofy like that. "Tommy still is wild," Higashioka said. For example, Kahnle shaves his entire body as a personal punishment when he allows a run — a tradition he started in the minor leagues and still follows today. He is the loudest player in the Tigers' clubhouse, collects Philadelphia Eagles jerseys, wears a Notre Dame football helmet and keeps a video game console with a monitor in his locker. He's also known for his caffeine addiction, having graduated from five Red Bulls a day to two C4 Energy drinks and two large cups of coffee. Advertisement How does Kahnle describe his personality? "High-energy, carefree, just having fun," he said. Detroit Tigers pitcher Tommy Kahnle (43) high-fives teammates after the win over the Baltimore Orioles during Game 2 of a doubleheader at Comerica Park in Detroit on Saturday, April 26, 2025. It's impossible not to love him. "He keeps everyone loose," Higashioka said. Kahnle and Higashioka worked together for a few years in the minors with the Yankees, then again in the big leagues after Kahnle returned to the Yankees in 2017, following stints with the Colorado Rockies and Chicago White Sox. Higashioka had a part in the evolution of Kahnle's changeup usage. "When he came back to us, he was throwing more fastballs," Higashioka said. "Over time, the data was showing that his changeup was unhittable, so the coaches kept pushing us to throw more and more changeups. Apparently, it doesn't matter if people know it's coming. It's that good." 'Big statement for him' The personality, the contract, the changeup — it has all led Kahnle to becoming a key piece of the Tigers' bullpen in the 2025 season. In Detroit, he has stepped into a closer role for the first time in his 11-year MLB career. Advertisement His journey traces back to that grip change in 2011. And Kahnle still credits Chantres. A TEAM PLAYER: Tigers reliever Tommy Kahnle not picky about role with A.J. Hinch, Chris Fetter Detroit Tigers relief pitcher Tommy Kahnle reacts after the Tigers defeated the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. "That's a good feeling as a coach," said Chantres, now 49 and working as the Chicago Cubs' Latin American pitching coordinator. "I've been in this game for many years. A lot of guys that I've taught got to the big leagues, but when people remember stuff like that, it's a good feeling." In 2025, Kahnle owns a career-best 1.24 ERA with eight walks and 26 strikeouts across 29 innings in 28 games, notching eight saves in 11 opportunities. He generates whiffs, limits walks and induces ground-ball contact. Advertisement The Tigers have deployed a two-closer system this season, with Kahnle and fellow right-handed reliever Will Vest combining for 19 saves: 11 from Vest, eight from Kahnle. Kahnle is happy to pitch in any role. But the Tigers want him — and his changeup — in the biggest moments. "Every good team needs a good closer — somebody you can rely on to keep the score where it's at and win games," Higashioka said. "The fact that he's closing, and the Tigers have the best record in the American League, that's a big statement for him." Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@ or follow him @EvanPetzold. Advertisement Listen to our weekly Tigers show "Days of Roar" every Monday afternoon on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. And catch all of our podcasts and daily voice briefing at Order your copy of 'Roar of 125: The Epic History of the Detroit Tigers!' by the Free Press at This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Tommy Kahnle and elite changeup fueling Detroit Tigers bullpen
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
How Tigers' fallen star, late-blooming No. 1 picks got Detroit roaring atop AL
How Tigers' fallen star, late-blooming No. 1 picks got Detroit roaring atop AL Show Caption Hide Caption Watch baseball player's emotional reaction to surprise MLB promotion During a minor league baseball game in Tacoma, Washington, Cole Young was pulled aside and informed he'd been called up to play in the big leagues. BALTIMORE – They have been machinelike for nearly 120 games, spanning two seasons, and now sport the best record in the American League. Yet peel back a layer from the Detroit Tigers, and the players responsible for that excellence aren't far removed from the pitfalls of the sport. Perhaps it was the extra baggage No. 1 overall picks carry, a weight Spencer Torkelson admits delayed his eventual rise to feared slugger. Or the isolation one can feel as a flailing superstar with a $140 million contract on a struggling team, like Javy Baez endured for most of three seasons. Not even the greatest Tiger of all, peerless left-hander Tarik Skubal, is immune, undergoing Tommy John surgery at his no-name college, climbing to the big leagues only to suffer a flexor tendon injury that wiped out nearly a full season of his prime. Yet look at them now. The Tigers are 44-25, a start so dominant that the last Detroit club to break so strongly reached the 2006 World Series. They are a curious mix of largely twentysomething talent, versatile and fungible youngsters and the occasional veteran like World Series champion Báez – all willing to play anywhere or bat in whatever position, so long as everything they have is for the team. 'All things that it takes to have a lot of sustained success is definitely shining,' Torkelson, their first baseman possibly headed to his first All-Star Game, tells USA TODAY Sports, 'and having guys that have been at the bottom, been at the top, like Javy, it's such a cool perspective. 'That's baseball. That's sports. It's not going to be amazing every single day, every single year. You're going to battle through it. 'For me, that's what's so rewarding about it. You've seen the worst and when you do have success, it makes it that much sweeter.' The franchise itself can relate. A 114-loss 2019 was the nadir during seven consecutive losing seasons, a stretch of futility that netted it the top overall pick in two drafts. It wasn't until this spring that those two No. 1 overall picks, Torkelson and right-hander Casey Mize, found concurrent success. 'This is definitely a game of failure,' says Riley Greene, the Tigers' All-Star outfielder. 'They worked on the things they needed to work on and they're crushing now. Some people don't get it right away and others do; but that's the ups and downs of baseball. 'They had stuff to work on, and they took it and ran with it. And now look at 'em.' 'I wanted to make everyone happy' For Torkelson, the unkindest cut of all came when he least expected it. After spending all of 2023 in Detroit, the Tigers shipped him to Class AAA Toledo on June 3, 2024. He was toting a .201/.266/.330 slash line, with just four homers and 56 strikeouts in 230 plate appearances. It would have been humbling for any player who fancied himself a big league regular. But carrying that first overall pick designation – a tag no one ever forgets – only added to the weight. So Torkelson, still just 25 even as he's five years removed from the Tigers taking him No. 1 out of Arizona State, learned to leave all that behind. 'A lot of it was eliminating expectations. As a people pleaser, I wanted to make everyone happy,' says Torkelson. 'As a No. 1 pick, you want to live up to what everyone's writing about you rather than take a step back and be like, 'Wait, what got me selected No. 1?' My God-given ability and work ethic got me selected. So why not trust that – which is a lot easier said than done. 'Really going back to the basics and doing it not for anyone else but my own pleasure.' The mindset paid off. Torkelson earned an August recall to Detroit and produced a .781 OPS over the final two months, compared to .597 before his demotion. He's continued the trend this season, his 16 home runs tops among AL first basemen. He also leads the majors with 10 two-strike home runs, possibly a testament to his adjusted mindset. 'Baseball or golf, it's like, staying out of your own way is probably the biggest key to success for guys,' says Torkelson. 'The goal is to stay as present as possible. As a baseball player, your mind is always looking forward. You get a hit, now you're 3 for 4. You get another home run, now you've got 17. Your mind is always trying to look into the future, which it is supposed to do. 'But that's not how you maintain in a sport. It's taking a step back and seeing how you attack this pitch. Sometimes you catch yourself and you get yourself back to present.' Says manager A.J. Hinch: 'The way he bounces back from tough at-bats – he's pretty resilient.' A star embraces versatility Torkelson's recall, combined with a trade-deadline makeover and Hinch unleashing the Tigers' 'pitching chaos' plan awakened a franchise. The Tigers finished 33-16, snagged a wild-card spot and upset the Houston Astros in the wild-card round before losing a wild five-game AL Division Series to Cleveland. And Báez wasn't around for almost all of it. He and the Tigers decided he'd undergo season-ending hip surgery after an August series at Wrigley Field, sight of Báez's greatest triumphs as a member of the 2016 World Series champion Chicago Cubs. With the Tigers, he'd been more a liability, producing a .221 OBP and 71 adjusted OPS in his first three seasons. Repairing his hip might have been the unkindest cut at the time, but now he and the Tigers are reaping the rewards. Báez returned healthy and with a new identity – the do-anything super utilityman. Báez hadn't played center field since winter ball in 2015 until Hinch tossed him out there as a late-game defensive replacement. He ended up playing 23 consecutive games in center, robbing home runs, chasing balls into the gap and, in that span, slugging six home runs with an .898 OPS. With center fielder Parker Meadows' return, Báez is more often back at his natural shortstop. Either way, he has been remarkably valuable, producing four outs above average and 1.3 WAR, putting him on pace for his finest season as a Tiger. 'A guy like Javy, who's been the center part of a lot of teams he's been on, can just be one of the guys,' Hinch says of Báez, who made two All-Star teams and won a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger as a Cub. 'He doesn't have to carry us; we have a true team and a lot of guys who can do it. But when he adds something to the mix, we usually win. 'He's a big part of what we're doing and I think he's one of the best, versatile players in the league.' Báez's production fused with the young core was the outcome he envisioned when he signed with the Tigers, the last major transaction of former GM Al Avila's tenure. 'Everything is getting better as a team, as an organization. The only difference for me is being healthy,' says Báez, whose deal runs through 2027. 'I'm playing better for myself and playing better for the team. 'That was one of the reasons I came here: I saw the other prospects coming here and would make a good team in the future. The future is now – we're doing it right now.' Báez might have been envisioned as a franchise hub, but he's probably serving as a better avatar for the young players in his current role – versatile, willing to trot out to any position, starter or reserve, always ready. 'He's unbelievable. He's one of the best athletes, baseball players, that I've got to see live,' says Torkelson. 'You stick him in center field, he'd probably win a Gold Glove out there. He's such a great athlete and special to see every day. 'He's willing to do whatever. And he's so comfortable in whatever situation he's in – he's never sped up. He's always cool, calm and collected, something we aspire to do every game.' 'A complete team' As the season unfolds, the Tigers will have to accept their new lot in life – that of division favorites. They hold a seven-game lead in the AL Central, and with the rampant inconsistency in the AL West, would be a fair bet to earn a first-round bye should they hold onto the division. Promising right-hander Jackson Jobe has been lost to Tommy John surgery, a big blow for his development, yet one the Tigers can weather given their depth with Skubal, Jack Flaherty and Mize out front of the rotation. Mize, the No. 1 overall pick in 2018, already weathered that storm undergoing Tommy John and also back surgery, a double whammy that wiped out his 2023 season. 'We have Tarik leading us at the top. He's the best pitcher in the league,' says Mize, who has a 2.95 ERA in 11 starts. 'And we have some depth we really like and bullpen guys we really like. 'A complete team.' One that's on the verge of what could be an unforgettable summer, the promise of greatness tempered by the humility that helped them reach this threshold. 'What got us to this point is taking it day by day, being there for each other and enjoying the ride,' says Torkelson. 'It's not going to be perfect. But it's going to be a lot of fun.'
