Keith (thumb) returns to lineup on Wednesday

Keith takes a seat for the second consecutive game after being scratched from Monday’s lineup with left thumb soreness. It’ll be Hao-Yu Lee taking over at the hot corner once again in his absence.

Hao-Yu Lee takes over at second base with Keith heading to the bench. It’s a bit unclear how much of a concern the issue is at the moment. An update on his status should be available postgame.

It was Keith’s first homer since Aug. 16, and it gave him his first multi-RBI game since Aug. 6. Keith hasn’t really been able to get much going this year, partly because he isn’t really allowed to. His bat speed is up a little, and Statcast thinks he’s been somewhat unlucky in hitting a league-average .257/.319/.404. Still, it can’t help that not only does he always sit against lefties, but he’s pulled from his starts every time he’s due to face one. He’s started and finished a game only once this month and just 46 times on the season.

Tokelson has been a fixture at first base for the Tigers this season, but he’ll get a breather with right-hander Tyler Glasnow on the hill for the Dodgers on Sunday afternoon. Colt Keith will start in his place and will bat second for the Tigers.

Torkelson grabs a seat on the bench with Colt Keith handling the cold corner against Pittsburgh starter Carmen Mlodzinski. The 26-year-old first baseman has hit a robust .291 (30-for-103) with four homers and 20 RBI in 28 games since last month’s All-Star break.

Keith hit a 354-foot shot off Sean Burke in the third inning to give the Tigers a 4-1 lead; a lead that Detroit would not be able to hold. He also singled and upped his average to .269 with a .744 OPS, nine homers and 32 RBI.

Keith smacked an RBI double in the opening inning that increased the Tigers’ lead to 3-0. He then tacked on an RBI single in the seventh to extend the Tigers’ advantage to 8-0 and picked up a single against Victor Robles then came around to score in the ninth inning. His bat has been heating up in recent weeks, slashing .345/.391/.571 with three homers and 13 RBI in his last 84 at-bats.

Keith knocked a base hit in the second inning and stole second for his fifth steal of the season. He then drove in two runs on a single in the third before collecting his third hit with a double in the fifth. The 24-year-old infielder is hitting .273/.319/.424 with eight homers, 41 runs scored, and 29 RBI across 320 plate appearances.

Keith’s triple barely eluded a diving Colton Cowser to drive in two in the first inning. He is 4-for-6 the last two days and is hitting .321/.381/.571 in 21 games this month.

Torkelson has homered three times in eight games since the All-Star break, but he’s hitting just .167 (5-for-30) with 11 strikeouts during that span. He’ll get a mental break after going 0-for-7 with five strikeouts in the first two games of this current series. It’ll be Colt Keith taking over at the cold corner to face Royals veteran Michael Wacha on Saturday afternoon.