Riley Greene stayed hot at the plate in the Detroit Tigers' series finale against the Colorado Rockies on Sunday, Sept. 13.
The Tigers All-Star left fielder hit an opposite-field home run and drove in another run with a single in the Tigers' 8-1 win, securing the three-game sweep over the visiting Rockies. Right-handed starter Jackson Jobe had the longest outing of his Major League career, throwing 6⅓ innings, and set a new career high with eight strikeouts.
Jobe gave up a home run in the game's second at-bat to Colorado second baseman Adael Amador, but settled in from there. Jobe allowed one run on three hits with one walk and one hit-by-pitch.
Following the 11-run, 18-hit performance by the offense on Saturday, the Tigers (70-79) came back with
eight hits and seven walks for eight runs in Sunday's win. Greene and Spencer Torkelson hit home runs, while Kevin McGonigle, Hao-Yu Lee and John Peck also drove in runs.
The Tigers' sweep over the Rockies (55-94) is their first since taking three straight against the Athletics July 31-Aug. 2.
At the plate: Tigers tee off
In a 3-2 count, Greene sent a hanging curveball from Rockies starter Gabriel Hughes the opposite way for a two-run home run, putting the Tigers ahead in the first. It was Greene's 20th home run of 2026, making it three straight seasons the Tigers left fielder has been a member of the 20-homer club.
Rookie designated hitter Kevin McGonigle narrowly missed his 18th home run of the season and a long ball on consecutive days in the second inning. McGonigle hit one 397 feet into Comerica Park's deep alley in right-center field. The ball bounced off the yellow padding on the top of the wall and came back, turning what would have been a three-run home run into a two-run triple. McGonigle remained stranded at third, but the Tigers built a solid cushion with the three-run second.
In the fourth inning, the Tigers loaded the bases with no outs by drawing three straight walks. Lee drove in one run with a sacrifice fly and Greene plated another with a single to right field.
Since coming off the injured list on Sept. 1, Greene is 17-for-48 (.354 average) with four home runs and 17 RBIs in 11 games.
Torkelson joined the home run parade with a 389-foot solo home run off Colorado reliever Nick Frasso in the fifth inning. It was Torkelson's 23rd home run of 2026.
On the mound: Jobe sets career marks
Jobe set career highs in strikeouts and innings pitched on Sunday. His previous bests were two six-inning starts in 2025 and two games with seven strikeouts.
Jobe opened the game with a strikeout before giving up the home run to Amador. From there, he did not allow more than one runner in an inning and no one reached scoring position.
He threw 87 pitches, including 56 for strikes. He threw 22 four-seam fastballs, 22 sliders, 19 sinkers, 15 curveballs, seven changeups and two cutters. Jobe induced 16 whiffs on 42 swings by Rockies' hitters.
His slider was the most effective pitch, picking up seven swings and misses on 11 attempts. In his eight strikeouts, four of the payoff pitches were sliders, three were curveballs and the final one was a sinker.
Brant Hurter and Yilber Díaz combined to pitch 2⅔ scoreless innings of relief.
Up next
The Tigers embark on the final road stand of the 2026 season in a seven-game trip spanning two cities. The road trip starts with a three-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays, followed by four games against the Chicago White Sox. The first game is scheduled for 7:07 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 14 (Detroit SportsNet/WXYT 97.1 FM). Troy Melton (8-4, 2.42 ERA) and Toronto's José Soriano (12-7, 3.48 ERA) are the probable starting pitchers.
ContactJared Ramsey at jramsey@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Riley Greene stays hot, Jackson Jobe sets career marks in Tigers sweep
