Elmer Rodríguez iffy in Triple-A start

The Tigers couldn’t get anything going against Royals’ starter Randy Dobnak in this one and entered the home half of the seventh inning trailing 2-0. Dillon Dingler and Kerry Carpenter started the inning with singles, putting runners at the corners with nobody out. They remained there with two outs when Outman stepped up and hammered a 2-2 fastball from John Schreiber for a 364-foot (100.1-mph EV) three-run shot that turned the game around. Outman has been pretty pitiful overall this season — slashing just .159/.218/.297 with four homers and 16 RBI — but he has now had several big moments that have willed his team to victory.

Dingler strolled to the dish with a man on second base and two outs in the eighth inning with the score knotted up at three runs apiece. The All-Star backstop fell behind 1-2 against Steven Cruz before lining a slider into the left field corner to plate Hao-Yu Lee with the go-ahead run. Dingler also singled, drew a walk and scored in the ballgame, finishing the night 2-for-3. He’s having an exceptional season at the dish, slashing .274/.339/.537 with 22 homers and 66 RBI in 391 plate appearances.

Finnegan was called upon to bail out Drew Sommers with two men on and one out with the Tigers clinging to a one-run lead in the ninth inning. He then induced a weak ground ball from Salvador Perez that the Tigers turned into a game-ending double play. The 34-year-old hurler has done a nice job overall for the Tigers this season, compiling a 2.36 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and a 35/25 K/BB ratio over 45 2/3 innings of work while converting two saves.

Melton punched out five opposing hitters in the contest while issuing four free passes. He kept the Royals off the board until the sixth inning when Michael Massey smacked a leadoff single and Isaac Collins followed with a two-run blast. The 25-year-old righty got 10 whiffs on 90 pitches on the evening, posting a CSW of 29 percent. He’ll try to get back in the win column as he carries a stellar 1.95 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and a 55/19 K/BB ratio (60 innings) into Tuesday’s showdown against the Orioles.

Collins opened the scoring in the ballgame as he tagged Troy Melton for a 390-foot (101.7-mph EV) two-run shot in the sixth inning. That would be his only hit in the ballgame. For the season, the 29-year-old outfielder is now slashing .245/.346/.372 with six long balls, 34 RBI and six stolen bases (in 11 attempts) over 340 plate appearances in his first season with the Royals.

The 31-year-old right-hander struck out three batters on the night while allowing one base on balls. He exited the game with the Royals leading 2-0 and in line for a victory, but his bullpen was unable to hang on for him. Dobnak generated 10 swings and misses on 76 pitches on the night, registering a CSW of 34 percent. He’ll carry an impressive 1.42 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and a 10/9 K/BB ratio (19 innings) into Wednesday’s matchup against the Twins in Minneapolis.

Arias passed every test in three months in Double-A, hitting .319/.407/.581 with 18 homers and just 46 strikeouts in 327 plate appearances. There still isn’t much reason to think he’ll reach the majors this year, but he’s not too far away from taking over as Boston’s shortstop. Trevor Story and Marcelo Mayer might wind up battling it out for second base next year.

Holmes’ velocity was pretty close to normal in his first start back from a fractured fibula, but he walked two and gave up five hard-hit balls to Yankees prospects while throwing 51 pitches and getting seven outs. He’ll almost definitely make at least one more rehab start. Whether he’ll still be a Met when he’s ready to return in early August is currently up in the air.

Even with Nolan Arenado resting, Locklear wasn’t going to start this one until Ketel Marte was scratched. At that point, the D-backs moved Tim Tawa from first to third and Ildemaro Vargas from third to second to make room for him. Locklear was on a terrific hot streak in Triple-A before getting called up last week and is 5-for-12 with a five RBI and just one strikeout since being recalled. However, if not for the Marte injury, he would have been on the bench today for the fifth time in seven games. It’s hard to say if he’ll play Friday; he’s supposed to start against lefties, but the Nationals only have Carson Palmquist going as an opener and will follow with righty Zack Littell.

Pfaadt struck out just one and allowed 10 hard-hit balls, but he made it work in earning a fifth straight victory. He’s allowed eight runs and posted a 14/3 K/BB over 27 innings during the streak. Pfaadt has certainly improved as a groundball pitcher, but not to the point that it currently makes sense to bet on him while he’s missing so few bats. He’ll pitch in Pittsburgh next week.