Healthy Gleyber Torres delivers key hits in Tigers' 6-5 loss vs Rockies

Mar 24, 2026 - 10:00

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Healthy Gleyber Torres delivers key hits in Tigers' 6-5 loss vs Rockies

SCOTTSDALE, AZ – The Detroit Tigers lost to the Colorado Rockies, 6-5, on Monday, March 23, at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick in spring training.

It was the first of two exhibition games in Arizona before Thursday's Opening Day.

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What happened

The Tigers scratched second baseman Gleyber Torres from Saturday's starting lineup in the Grapefruit League finale with lower back tightness, but he returned to the lineup for Monday's exhibition.

He is healthy.

Detroit Tigers second baseman Gleyber Torres (25) catches for a ground out against New York Yankees during the fourth inning at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Fla. on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026.

Torres also appears ready to get off to a fast start in the regular season. The 29-year-old drove in three of the first four runs for the Tigers, delivering a two-RBI single with two outs in the third inning and an RBI double with two outs in the fifth inning.

In the third, Torres ripped a two-strike slider from right-hander Ryan Feltner that hung around the top of the strike zone back up the middle and into center field for a single.

It put the Tigers ahead, 2-0.

In the fifth, Torres cranked a sinker from right-handed reliever Jaden Hill at the bottom of the zone down the right-field line for a ground-rule double and a game tied at 4.

In 2025, Torres hit .256 with 16 home runs, 85 walks and 101 strikeouts in 145 games, making the All-Star Game for the third time in his eight-year MLB career. As for 2026, the Tigers are counting on him to repeat his performance as a consistent on-base threat near the top of the everyday lineup.

Starting off

Right-hander Jack Flaherty allowed four runs on seven hits and one walk with six strikeouts across 4⅔ innings, surrendering two runs in the third and two runs in the fourth.

He threw 81 pitches.

Flaherty walked Kyle Karros on six pitches to open the third inning, then a misplay from center fielder Parker Meadows put two runners on, as he let a catchable fly ball drop in front of him. Flaherty should've been out of the inning when Hunter Goodman grounded into a double play, but the Meadows mistake came back to haunt the Tigers.

That's because Troy Johnston blasted a two-run home run on Flaherty's two-strike curveball, located on the bottom rail of the zone, tying the game, 2-2.

In the fourth, the Rockies secured a 4-2 lead on TJ Rumfield's solo home run and Karros' RBI triple, with Flaherty letting both hitters take advantage of middle-middle fastballs.

Flaherty generated 10 whiffs on 41 swings for a 24.4% whiff rate, though he racked up just one whiff on 22 swings against his fastball. The highlight of his final spring start came in the second inning, when he allowed a leadoff double but stranded the runner with three outs in a row.

At the plate

Jake Rogers cleared concussion protocol before Monday's game after a freak accident last week in which he was struck in the face by his own bat. He will be available as the backup catcher for the start of the season.

Rogers replaced Colt Keith as the designated hitter in the eighth inning, making an immediate impact.

He swung at the first pitch he saw, hitting a sinker from right-handed reliever Chase Dollander into right field for a single. He then scored on an ensuing double from Riley Greene, cutting the Tigers' deficit to 6-5.

The Tigers nearly tied the game in the eighth inning.

Top prospect Kevin McGonigle, a 21-year-old who started at third base, received a first-pitch sinker from Dollander, located over the heart of the plate. He smacked it into center field with a 108.2 mph exit velocity for a single, but on the play, pinch-runner Woody Hadeen was thrown out at home plate to end the inning.

McGonigle finished 1-for-4 with one strikeout.

Aside from Torres and Greene, both Dillon Dingler and Parker Meadows collected two hits – including an RBI double from Meadows when he pulled Feltner's middle-in slider down the right-field line with a 107.8 mph exit velocity.

On the mound

Right-hander Connor Seabold made his spring debut with the Tigers.

The 30-year-old signed a one-year, $800,000 contract before Monday's game. He also secured a spot on the Opening Day roster before ever putting on a Tigers uniform, grabbing one of eight spots in the bullpen.

Seabold stranded a runner in the seventh inning after replacing left-handed reliever Tyler Holton, inducing an inning-ending groundout with a slider at the bottom of the zone. He then gave up two hits with one out in the eighth, ending his outing on a negative.

Thankfully, left-hander Enmanuel De Jesus picked him up.

De Jesus used his sinker at the bottom of the zone to record an inning-ending double play against Edouard Julien.

He dominated for Team Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic, and in spring training with the Tigers, he tossed nine scoreless innings with one walk and 10 strikeouts.