Athletics at Detroit Tigers

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
ATH	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	7	1
DET	1	2	0	0	3	0	0	0	—	6	7	1

The Tigers took the series opener from the A's on July 7, and they came right back for more on Wednesday. Detroit's Troy Melton (4-1, 1.82 ERA) gets the ball looking to keep his breakout rookie season rolling, while Oakland turns to Jeffrey Springs (3-8, 6.08 ERA), who's been fighting to find any traction all year.

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FINAL

Spread

ML

Total

Athletics(41-50)

LLLLW

1

+1.5-150+127o8.5-147

Tigers(41-50)

WWWLW

6

-1.5+147-130u8.5+144

Best BetTigers -162

Postgame

Hit — Tigers won outright 6-1 as Melton and the offense did exactly what the pick banked on.

Pregame

Detroit was the play at entry price around -154, and Melton's dominant season made this an easy lean even against Oakland's better bats. The Tigers have won 4 of 5 and just took the series opener off this same Springs matchup, while the A's are stuck in a 4-game skid with two key bats compromised. This price has since settled closer to -131, but the read hasn't changed.

Springs opened the season strong before things unraveled, and he's been homer-prone for weeks now. Detroit, meanwhile, is dealing with its own attrition — Gleyber Torres, Javier Baez and Trey Sweeney are all out, and Dillon Dingler left Wednesday's game with an apparent thumb injury. But the pitching staff has held up, and that's carried the club through a stretch where the offense hasn't always shown up.

Jeffrey Springs

(3-9)·5.96 ERA

Jun 30 vs Dodgers

L

5.1IP

6ER

2K

4BB

92P

07/08 Lineup

Troy Melton

(5-1)·1.80 ERA

Jul 1 @ Yankees

ND

6.1IP

0ER

7K

1BB

84P

07/08 Lineup

Oakland's lineup took a real hit when Brent Rooker went down for the season with a knee injury, and Nick Kurtz — the reigning AL Rookie of the Year having an All-Star follow-up — was pulled early Wednesday with illness. That's two of the middle-order bats compromised in the same week, which makes an already thin Oakland attack even shakier against a Detroit staff that's been stingy lately.

Athletics

(41-50)

Jul 7L@ Tigers2-6

Jul 5Lvs Marlins8-9

Jul 5Lvs Marlins2-7

Jul 4Lvs Marlins5-12

Jul 2Wvs Dodgers7-1

Detroit Tigers

(41-50)

Jul 7Wvs Athletics6-2

Jul 5W@ Rangers6-3

Jul 4W@ Rangers3-0

Jul 3L@ Rangers4-10

Jul 1W@ Yankees6-2

Both clubs sit at 41-50, but the trajectories couldn't look more different right now. Detroit's won 4 of its last 5, while Oakland's dropped 4 straight. It's a reminder that record on paper and record right now can tell two very different stories in the middle of July.

Athletics

(7)

• Day-To-DayNick Kurtz (1B) — Kurtz was removed in the second inning of Wednesday's game against the Tigers due to illness, per Martin Gallegos of MLB.com.07/08
• Day-To-DayJ.T. Ginn (SP) — Ginn (7-4) allowed one run on three hits and five walks while striking out four over six innings to earn the win over the Dodgers on Wednesday.07/08
• 10-Day-ILBrent Rooker (DH) — Rooker will undergo season-ending surgery to repair a cartilage tear in his left knee, Jason Burke of Roundtable.io reports.07/01
• 60-Day-ILDenzel Clarke (CF) — Clarke (hamstring) has started to play catch and has also begun a swinging progression, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.06/23
• 60-Day-ILLuis Severino (SP) — The Athletics transferred Severino (shoulder) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Sunday.06/21
• 60-Day-ILBrooks Kriske (RP) — Kriske (shoulder) began a throwing progression Thursday, MLB.com reports.06/16
• 60-Day-ILGunnar Hoglund (SP) — Hoglund (knee/back) will be sidelined for the rest of the 2026 season after undergoing surgery on his left hip Monday.05/20

Detroit Tigers

(13)

• Day-To-DayDillon Dingler (C) — Dingler was removed from Wednesday's game against the Athletics due to an apparent right thumb injury, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.07/08
• 10-Day-ILGleyber Torres (2B) — The Tigers announced Tuesday that Torres (oblique) is in the midst of a running progression, but the veteran second baseman hasn't yet resumed hitting since landing on the injured list June 17, MLB.com reports.07/05
• 15-Day-ILWill Vest (RP) — The Tigers placed Vest on the 15-day injured list Wednesday with posterior right elbow inflammation.07/01
• 60-Day-ILJackson Jobe (SP) — Jobe (elbow) struck out a batter and allowed one earned run on two hits and no walks over 1.1 innings in a rehab start Tuesday with Single-A Lakeland.07/08
• 60-Day-ILJustin Verlander (SP) — Verlander (hamstring/hip) announced Wednesday via social media that he will retire following the 2026 season.07/08
• 60-Day-ILWenceel Perez (RF) — Perez (orbital) played light catch on the field at Comerica Park on Tuesday, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.07/07
• 60-Day-ILParker Meadows (CF) — Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said Tuesday that Meadows (forearm) has yet to resume hitting and is without a timeline to return from the 60-day injured list, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.06/25
• 60-Day-ILBurch Smith (RP) — The Tigers transferred Smith (shoulder) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Tuesday.06/23
• 60-Day-ILJavier Baez (SS) — The Tigers transferred Baez (ankle) to the 60-day injured list Thursday, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.06/11
• 60-Day-ILTrey Sweeney (SS) — Sweeney will undergo season-ending shoulder surgery this week, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.06/05
• 60-Day-ILBrant Hurter (RP) — The Tigers placed Hurter on the 15-day injured list Sunday due to lumbar spine inflammation.05/29
• 60-Day-ILBailey Horn (RP) — Horn (elbow) began a throwing progression May 14, MLB.com reports.05/27
• 60-Day-ILReese Olson (SP) — The Tigers placed Olson on the 60-day injured list Tuesday after he underwent a right shoulder labral repair Feb. 2 that will result in him missing the 2026 season.05/08

The other headline out of Comerica Park had nothing to do with the final score. Justin Verlander announced Wednesday that he's retiring after this season, capping a career that included 3 Cy Youngs and 2 World Series titles. He wasn't even in uniform for this one, sidelined on the 60-day IL, but it cast a long shadow over the ballpark all night.

In the end it wasn't close. Detroit scored in bunches early and again in a 3-run fifth, and the pitching did the rest. For a Tigers team that's had to piece things together on the position-player side, wins like this — built on the arm and a couple of timely swings — are exactly the formula that's had them playing their best baseball of the summer.