Detroit Tigers, Game 79: One thing I loved, one thing I didn't

Freelance writer Andrew Graham gives his quick takes on the Tigers' 4-3 loss to the Yankees on Tuesday:

One thing I loved

Let's be romantic about baseball and love Ben Malgeri getting his first MLB hit in his debut after getting called up earlier on Tuesday.

And Malgeri didn't waste any time to do it. The outfielder came up for his first at bat in the bottom of the third inning with Zach McKinstry standing on first base and hit the first pitch he saw, a fastball on the outside edge that Malgeri sliced into right field. McKinstry moved to third and scored on a wild pitch, giving the Tigers a 1-0 lead.

So, on top of getting his first major league hit right away, Malgeri got the Tigers' offense in scoring position to pounce on an error. He ended up scoring a run later in the inning, too.

Detroit needs any jolt it can get, and it's a great moment for Malgeri and his family in the stands, to boot. See, how can you not be romantic about baseball?

Malgeri gets his first MLB hit on the first pitch he sees! pic.twitter.com/6MFuEByq1i

, Detroit Tigers (@tigers) June 23, 2026

One thing I didn't

The bottom of the sixth inning unfolded into a prime chance for Detroit to punish the Yankees and retake a lead that had been coughed up in the top of the frame. Dillon Dingler hit a leadoff double to the left-center gap and Matt Vierling legged out a double to score him on a hit to the left field corner as Cody Bellinger didn't play it cleanly.

Instead, the heart of the Tigers' order and two pinch hitters struck out, struck out, walked, and then grounded out to first.

First was Riley Greene, who got behind 1-2 and struck out swinging on a 2-2 slider. Then the Yankees changed pitchers and Spencer Torkelson faced right Fernando Cruz. Torkelson got out to a 3-1 count, then struck out swinging on a splitter after Cruz dotted the bottom rail with a fastball for strike two.

Then AJ Hinch opted to pinch hit a pair of lefties, Kerry Carpenter for Jahmai Jones and Colt Keith for Hao-Yu Lee. Carpenter walked, as Cruz seemingly wanted nothing to do with the lefty, putting runners on first and second.

With no place to put Keith, Cruz had to pitch to him, going down 3-0 before coming back with two strikes to fill the count. Keith fouled off one pitch then pulled a ground ball to first base for an easy out as Detroit clawed back a run but couldn't score another with a runner on second and no outs.

The inability to get the breakthrough hit, or really the parade of hits that follow, has plagued this offense for much of this year, and that sixth inning was a textbook example. To boot, Detroit got doubled off from the outfield on the base paths in the seventh inning.

Got the Double Play 🙌 pic.twitter.com/PyPMCPZTzJ

, New York Yankees (@Yankees) June 24, 2026

Three stars

(Season total in parentheses)

▶ Dillon Dingler (22), raking, and continues to be good at ABS

▶ Matt Vierling (8)

▶ Kyle Finnegan

Player of the game

(Season total in parentheses)

▶ Jazz Chisholm, hit a dinger, enjoys a blow pop

Next Tigers game

▶ Game 80: Yankees at Tigers, 6:40 Wednesday, Detroit SportsNet, 97.1

ICYMI: Yesterday's Tigers recap

Andrew Graham is a freelance writer.

This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Detroit Tigers recap, Game 79: One thing I loved, one thing I didn't