Dillon

Dingler

Dingler only had one hit in this contest, but it was a big one. With the Tigers leading 2-0 in the seventh inning, Dingler lined an RBI double to left field that scored Kevin McGonigle. Dingler then came in to score on Eduardo Valencia’s pinch hit two-run double. He’s the fifth player this season to reach 80 RBI and the first catcher. Dingler is hitting .275 with an .870 OPS.

Dingler got the Tigers on the board in the top half of the first inning, clobbering a 2-1 cutter from Bryce Miller for a 401-foot (101.3-mph EV) two-run blast that gave the Tigers a lead they would never relinquish. He also added an RBI single in the third inning and another knock in the seventh. The 27-year-old backstop homered in all three games against the Mariners in Seattle. Dingler is quietly having an MVP-caliber season for the Tigers, slashing .278/.341/.536 with the aforementioned 26 long balls and 78 RBI while playing Gold Glove defense behind the plate.

He’s the first Tigers catcher to hit 25 homers since Mickey Tettleton did it three straight years from 1991-93. Dingler’s homer came after Gleyber Torres was intentionally plunked by Gabe Speier and gave the Tigers their only runs in a 4-2 loss. Dingler has three homers in his last five games and is batting .333/.407/.625 with six homers in the 18 games since the All-Star break.

Dingler broke the game open in the eighth inning, capping off a seven-run rally with a 411-foot (100.2-mph EV) grand slam off of Luis Morales. He also singled in the third inning. With his two-hit attack, the All-Star backstop is now slashing .269/.333/.520 with 23 homers and 72 RBI.

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.

Dingler’s homer off Aaron Civale in the ninth gave the Tigers’ their only runs in the 11-2 loss, but it wasn’t far off from being a two-homer game; his 362-foot shot to left in the second would have been a homer in 23 ballparks and likely would have gone out in Wrigley if the wind hadn’t been blowing in. Dingler has 22 homers and 65 RBI in 92 games on the season.

Dingler now has 21 home runs this season. He hit a solo shot off Jameson Taillon in the first inning and another solo shot off Tyler Ferguson in the eighth inning. Dingler had been 2-for-10 with no walks and three strikeouts in three games since the All-Star break entering Monday. He’s hitting .268 with an .856 OPS and 63 RBI.

Dingler is back at DH following a two-game absence due to right hand soreness. It’s an extremely encouraging development for the Tigers that he managed to avoid serious injury. All signs point to him being ready to play in next week’s All-Star Game in Philadelphia.

It wouldn’t be surprising if the Tigers took it easy on Dingler heading into the All-Star break, so we wouldn’t be stunned if he misses this weekend series. Jake Rogers is taking over at catcher and batting ninth against the Phillies tonight.

The good news is that the All-Star backstop is not dealing with any fractures after being struck on the hand by a foul tip during Wednesday’s game. The Tigers did add an extra catcher to the roster on Thursday to help add depth behind the plate, but Dingler wasn’t placed on the injured list which is very encouraging. He’s considered day-to-day.