The Detroit Tigers opened up their six-game homestand with a 5-4 loss to the Texas Rangers on Friday night. Jack Flaherty floundered once again and the offense simply fell short after clawing back from a 4-0 deficit.
On Saturday night, the two teams will do it again, with right-hander Keider Montero taking the mound for the Tigers while fellow righty Kumar Rocker climbs the hill for the Rangers.
Montero has struggled a bit of late when it comes to allowing the opposition to cross the plate, giving
up 10 runs for a 5.40 ERA over the last 16 2/3 innings, while putting up a tidy 13:3 strikeout to walk ratio over that stretch — which does help explain the massive ERA-FIP gap. The 25-year-old last faced off against Texas last summer in Arlington on July 19, when he allowed four runs on four hits (one home run) while walking three and striking out five over 4 1/3 frames to take the loss.
Rocker, a former first-round pick in the 2022 draft, appears to be finally finding his footing in his third season of big league ball, recording two quality starts over his last two outings despite his modest strikeout totals. The 26-year-old’s last matchup with the Tigers came last season on July 19, when he stymied his opponent with 6 1/3 innings of one-hit ball in which he walked three and struck out five at Comerica Park for his final win of 2025.
Take a look below at how things look heading into Saturday’s battle in the D.
Detroit Tigers (16-17) vs. Texas Rangers (16-16)
Time (ET): 7:15 p.m.
Place: Comerica Park, Detroit, Michigan
SB Nation Site: Lone Star Ball
Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network
Game 34: RHP Keider Montero (1-2, 4.00 ERA) vs. RHP Kumar Rocker (1-2, 3.38 ERA)
MONTERO
ROCKER
