The Tigers did not need late drama. Colt Keith made sure of that. Keith hit three home runs and drove in six runs as Detroit rolled to a 9-3 victory over Houston at Daikin Park, with the outcome settled long before the final out.
Keith finished 3-for-4 with three runs scored. He connected for a two-run shot to right center in the third inning, a two-run homer to right in the seventh, and a solo blast to left in the ninth — accounting for the spine of Detroit's offense. Kevin McGonigle added a home run to right in the second and finished 2-for-3 with two walks, two runs scored, and one RBI. Spencer Torkelson also went deep, hitting a solo shot to left in the third. Dillon Dingler scored three times and went 2-for-4.
Detroit built its lead methodically. McGonigle scored in the first when Keith was hit by a pitch. McGonigle then homered in the second to push the lead to 2-0. The third inning was the turning point: Keith's two-run homer and Torkelson's solo shot gave the Tigers a 5-0 advantage before Houston answered. Isaac Paredes hit a two-run homer to left for the Astros, and Jose Altuve followed with a solo shot to left center, pulling Houston within 5-3. But that was as close as the Astros would get. Dingler scored on a passed ball by Vázquez in the fifth to make it 6-3, and Keith's seventh-inning homer extended the margin to 8-3.
Kai-Wei Teng absorbed the loss, allowing 5 runs on 6 hits over 3.1 innings, with 9 strikeouts and 2 walks. He fell to 3-6 with a 4.31 ERA. Kyle Finnegan earned the win for Detroit, pitching a scoreless inning in relief to improve to 2-0.
Houston dropped to 33-40 with the loss. Detroit, despite the victory, remained at 29-42 — the Tigers had dropped their previous two games before Monday's win.