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3 years ago

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Oct 20, 2022

  • ESPN staff

The Week 8 schedule ahead is the perfect time to check in on two Power 5 conferences that haven’t gotten a lot of love this season.

The Big 12 and Pac-12 have been rocked by realignment plans the past two offseasons, but the conferences currently have two of the most intriguing championship races in the country.

Following a double-overtime win against Oklahoma State, TCU has taken the reins of the Big 12. It doesn’t get any easier for the Horned Frogs, however, as they welcome a ranked Kansas State team to Fort Worth on Saturday.

UCLA announced its plans to leave the Pac-12 this offseason, but it appears the Bruins have their eyes on a conference crown before jumping ship. Standing in their way is a top-10 Oregon team that has bounced back from an opening week blowout loss to Georgia. The top-10 matchup in Eugene will go a long way in deciding which of these teams will be making a Pac-12 championship game appearance — if not both.

Of course, the SEC and ACC also have ranked matchups this week that will define the teams’ seasons. Clemson meets upstart Syracuse, while both Mississippi State and Alabama are looking to bounce back after losses. Oh, and Ole Miss travels to LSU in an age-old rivalry.

Plenty to keep track of this week; here are the top storylines from the best games.

No. 9 UCLA Bruins at No. 10 Oregon Ducks (Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET, Fox)

The script that’s been written for this matchup has all the makings of a good one before the first snap is even taken: two top-10 teams each coming off bye weeks. UCLA coach Chip Kelly returning to Oregon, where he was head coach for four seasons. UCLA quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson and Bo Nix going head-to-head. GameDay on site. The winner gaining the inside track to the Pac-12 championship.

“We know it’s going to be electric here, and that’s something we can count on to our advantage,” Oregon safety Bennett Williams said.

“We live for games like this,” Thompson-Robinson said.

While Kelly has gone above and beyond to eliminate the emotion from this matchup, it’s safe to say every Oregon coach since Kelly left for the NFL has had to work in the shadow of what Kelly did in green. Dan Lanning is the latest, and he knows he’s going up against an offense that is starting to show shades of those Ducks teams under Kelly, especially when it comes to the quarterback.

“We really haven’t played anybody quite like him, in my opinion,” Lanning said this week. “He’s a dynamic player. Any time he touches the ball, it can turn into an explosive play. So that’s showing up for them.”

Lanning said he’s seen similarities between DTR and the Ducks’ Nix in terms of how they’re executing each offense’s vision from game to game. The stats bear out some similarities as well. Both have thrown for over 1,500 yards so far this season; Thompson-Robinson has 15 touchdowns and two interceptions to Nix’s 12 touchdowns and three interceptions, while Nix has run the ball for 330 yards and eight touchdowns and Thompson-Robinson has 231 rushing yards and four touchdowns.

The quarterback duel is, of course, only part of the fun. Both teams lead the conference in rushing defense and are going to be facing tough matchups in UCLA’s Zach Charbonnet and Oregon’s Bucky Irving (who transferred from Minnesota) — both lead the top two rushing attacks in the conference, too.

Between Charbonnet, Thompson-Robinson and players like offensive lineman Jon Gaines II, among others, Kelly finds himself with a veteran team that’s finally turning his process into results. It’s allowed the Bruins to be in this position as the surprise team in the conference. But after beating Washington and Utah in consecutive weeks and announcing themselves as a legitimate contender, they won’t be surprising anyone anymore — especially the Ducks. — Paolo Uggetti

No. 14 Syracuse Orange at No. 5 Clemson Tigers (Saturday, noon ET, ABC/ESPN app)

After Clemson’s season-opening win against Georgia Tech, DJ Uiagalelei was mad. He’d actually played well, a sneak peek at what would be a remarkable turnaround in 2022, but there was one area of his game that hadn’t measured up. Clemson dialed up 10 designed runs for Uiagalelei and he mustered just 38 yards. It could’ve been so much more.

“If I’d just gotten my knees up, I could’ve gotten a lot more yards,” he said.

Call it prophetic. In the six games since, those yards have come.

Uiagalelei’s ability to run was one of Clemson’s big talking points this offseason as the QB shed more than 30 pounds in a quest to be more athletic on the field. He’s also gotten healthy, after dealing with a bum knee for most of last season.

The results speak for themselves.

Through seven games, Uiagalelei already has more yards (319) on designed runs in 2022 than he had in 13 games last season (312). Discounting sacks, Uiagalelei has rushed for 60 yards or more in four of his past five games, something he hadn’t managed in any of his prior 17 starts. He’s had at least eight designed runs against every FBS team he’s played this season. He hit that mark just four times last year.

“I love running the ball,” Uiagalelei said. “For me, it’s fun. It’s another dimension the defense has to play. The quarterback run is another thing they have to worry about, and it opens up the running lanes for the running backs as well.”

And yes, the weight loss has helped considerably. Last season, Uiagalelei was responsible for just 12 missed tackles all year, according to Pro Football Focus. This year, he’s already made 25 defenders look silly.

“I don’t believe in sliding,” Uiagalelei joked this week.

No one will mistake Uiagalelei for an elite runner — like this week’s opposing QB, Garrett Shrader — but the mere threat is enough to force defenses to reconsider how they want to attack the Tigers. That’s been a boon for the entire offense in 2022.

“Any time you have that extra hat to run the ball, it creates tougher situations for the defense,” offensive coordinator Brandon Streeter said. “Whether it influences one way and you go the other or you just load up and gain an extra blocker. There’s a lot of ways to manipulate the defense when you have a guy that’s willing to run and healthy enough to run. And that’s what DJ has been able to do this year.” — David M. Hale

No. 24 Mississippi State Bulldogs at No. 6 Alabama Crimson Tide (Saturday, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN/ESPN app)

Expect the penalty flags to fly Saturday in Bryant-Denny Stadium. Alabama’s 66 accepted penalties are the most of any team in the FBS this season, while Mississippi State is tied for 26th most with 48.

And while we’re on the subject of driving coaches wild, look for plenty of drops, too. Alabama is tied for the most dropped passes in the FBS with 21, while Mississippi State is 30th with 14.

So whoever shoots themselves in the foot least wins, right?

It’s obviously more complicated than that.

The outcome could be decided in large part by which defense is most effective getting to the quarterback. Because Mississippi State’s Will Rogers and Alabama’s Bryce Young are two of the best QBs in the country this season. Rogers has thrown for the third-most passing yards in the FBS (2,324). Young, meanwhile, ranks eighth nationally in QBR (86.1).

Both defenses have shown they have the ability to get into the backfield. With star edge rushers Will Anderson Jr. and Dallas Turner, Alabama has the highest rate of sacks per pass attempt in the SEC at 8.2%.

Mississippi State, on the other hand, is in the top five of the SEC in pressure percentage, affecting 28.1% of dropbacks.

“Their defense is very aggressive, creates a lot of turnovers, do a lot of pressuring the quarterback,” Alabama coach Nick Saban said.

And the Bulldogs can throw a lot at you. Nathaniel Watson and Tyrus Wheat are both in the top 10 in the SEC in sacks. Randy Charlton, Collin Duncan and Nathan Pickering have two sacks apiece as well. — Alex Scarborough

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1:10

Paul Finebaum calls out Nick Saban and the Alabama coaches for the team’s struggles.

No. 7 Ole Miss Rebels at LSU Tigers (Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET, CBS)

Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin, ever the Twitter troll, has been known to poke fun at his old boss Nick Saban at any mention of rat poison, and Kiffin has his own string of Twitter emojis symbolizing rat poison saved for whenever something gets out there on social media that might rise to that level.

Well, here’s an obvious one: With a win Saturday over LSU, Ole Miss can start 8-0 in a season for the first time since the 1962 SEC championship team (national champions by a few non-NCAA recognized outlets) finished 10-0. It remains the only unbeaten and untied team in school history.

Now, nobody is suggesting that Ole Miss is bearing down on its first national championship in six decades, especially with the Rebels about to hit the teeth of their schedule. Three of their last five games are on the road, and the home games are against Alabama and Mississippi State. But it’s an Ole Miss team that does a lot of things it takes to be in title contention.

The Rebels run the ball as well as anybody. They’re third nationally in rushing offense with an average of 271.4 yards per game. Quinshon Judkins (720) and Zach Evans (605) are the only pair of teammates in the country with more than 600 rushing yards each.

The Rebels make big plays on offense and don’t give up many on defense. They’re one of three teams nationally along with Alabama and Florida State with 50 or more plays from scrimmage of 20 yards or longer and 25 or fewer plays allowed of 20 yards or longer.

The Rebels also force turnovers and are tied for 13th nationally with 13 turnovers gained.

Yes, all of this is rat poison.

The Rebels also have a coach in Kiffin who’s not going to be afraid to go for it on fourth down and has a track record of making sure his players play loose and instinctively as the games get bigger.

Kiffin, whose Ole Miss team has won 11 straight regular-season games dating back to last season, said this week that LSU was the “most talented opponent by far” the Rebels have faced this season.

The Tigers (5-2) have flashed that talent at different points, but they’ve also been wildly inconsistent. They were exposed in the offensive line (among other places) in their 40-13 beatdown by Tennessee two weeks ago. They had to rally from a 17-0 deficit at Auburn three weeks ago to win 21-17.

But through some of the hiccups, Brian Kelly has been able to hold it together enough that LSU has won five of its past six games after the season-opening loss to Florida State. The latest was a 45-35 win at Florida last week, the Tigers’ highest-scoring output against an FBS team this season with quarterback Jayden Daniels accounting for six touchdowns and 349 passing yards. LSU is hopeful that running back Armoni Goodwin (hamstring) can return to the lineup this week along with receiver Jack Bech.

Kelly knew it would take time for Daniels to feel completely comfortable in a new system, especially in the passing game. It was Daniels’ assertiveness in the Florida game that jumped out most to Kelly, who’s eager to see if LSU can build on the Florida win after getting embarrassed at home two weeks ago by Tennessee.

“We want to be able to put together good performances back to back, and we haven’t been able to do that yet,” Kelly said. “It’s been kind of grinding out a game.” — Chris Low

No. 17 Kansas State Wildcats at No. 8 TCU Horned Frogs (Saturday, 8 p.m. ET, FS1)

TCU and Kansas State are atop the Big 12 because of a redemption season for each of their quarterbacks under new offensive coordinators.

Wildcats QB Adrian Martinez, a four-year starter at Nebraska, threw 45 touchdowns to 30 interceptions for the Huskers before transferring to K-State this offseason, where he has thrown for 900 yards with four TDs and zero interceptions this season. Kansas State coach Chris Klieman said new offensive coordinator Collin Klein deserves a lot of credit for his transformation.

“Part of it is his maturity, the fact that he’s played so much football and I think coach Klein is putting them in some really good situations and calls to be successful and us trying to stay ahead of the chains and not being in a bunch of third-and-eight-plus, where you might typically force the ball, and being in a lot more third and shorts,” Klieman said. “It opens up the playbook a little bit more and he’s making good decisions.”

TCU’s Max Duggan, who threw 41 touchdowns to 20 interceptions in his first three seasons in Fort Worth, has thrown for 1,591 yards with 16 touchdowns and one interception under offensive coordinator Garrett Riley.

“I think it’s a credit to where Duggan is at and how he’s playing because he’s making them go,” Klieman said.

Horned Frogs coach Sonny Dykes said Duggan will have to continue to be efficient because Kansas State controls the time of possession and TCU won’t have that many opportunities. The Wildcats have called designed run plays on 57% of their snaps.

“We still have too many three-and-outs,” Dykes said, despite TCU scoring a touchdown on 46% of its offensive drives, the fifth-highest rate in FBS. “We’re not going to get many opportunities, so we have to be able to take advantage.”

To his point, Kansas State has allowed a TD on just 13% of its opponents drives, eighth best in the FBS.

The winner will be in the driver’s seat down the stretch in the Big 12 race, with one of these two teams suffering its first conference loss Saturday. — Dave Wilson

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Infant son of NASCAR’s Reddick has chest tumor

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October 5, 2025

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Infant son of NASCAR's Reddick has chest tumor

  • Associated Press

Oct 5, 2025, 01:19 PM ET

CONCORD, N.C. — Tyler Reddick raced Sunday with his championship hopes on the line at the same time his infant son has been diagnosed with a tumor in his chest that is affecting his heart.

Rookie Reddick, the second of Tyler and Alexa Reddick’s two boys, was born in May, and Alexa said last week that he has been dealing with serious health complications. The couple provided an update ahead of Sunday’s race at The Roval at Charlotte Motor Speedway, where Reddick was starting from the pole, needing a victory to remain in contention for the Cup Series title.

Alexa Reddick posted a social media update on Rookie’s condition after Reddick’s pole-winning run, saying he has a “tumor that’s ‘choking’ the renal vein & renal artery. Telling the heart ‘Hey I’m not getting enough blood … pump harder.'”

She said it has caused an enlarged heart, and the four-month-old will need a kidney removed because doctors determined it is no longer functioning.

“He will undergo open surgery to remove his right kidney. We’re just not sure when,” she wrote. “Waiting is ok right now to give his heart a break while he’s on BP medication. They expect his heart to fully recover because it was just an innocent bystander. We have answers but a journey ahead to bring our little Cookie home.”

She added that her son was happy spending time blowing bubbles, playing and “interacting with every nurse & doctor that comes in his room.”

Reddick had kept his son’s health situation private until his wife went public before last week’s race at Kansas Speedway when she announced that Rookie was at Atrium Health Levine Children’s Hospital in Charlotte showing signs of heart failure.

Reddick finally addressed Rookie’s health at Charlotte.

“Healthier is probably not the right word, but I’ve never seen him happier. His color looks good. He’s gained weight. A lot of things are going well,” Reddick said. “All that being said, some of the the tougher moments are definitely ahead. We’re definitely not in the clear. There are some things we need to get through first.

“So, on one hand, I’m really happy and it makes me feel great that he’s doing much better right now, but certainly we have some hurdles we have to get through first before we’re even thinking about leaving the hospital or thinking about what comes next.”

Reddick, who made it to the championship-deciding finale, enters Sunday’s race below the cutline of drivers who will be trimmed from 12 to eight after the race. The bottom four — Reddick, his 23XI Racing teammate Bubba Wallace, Ross Chastain and Austin Cindric — all likely need a victory Sunday to avoid elimination.

“For me, this weekend where we’re at in points, it just is what it is,” Reddick said. “I’m going to go out there and give it my best effort while I’m here certainly. For me, this week, the elimination, everything that is happening in the racing world is taking a back seat as it should.”

Denny Hamlin, co-owner of Reddick’s car, said 23XI Racing has been supportive and involved in getting Rookie the best care.

“We’ve tried to do everything we could as a company to tap into all the resources that we possibly can, to get him second, third opinions, all the things, get him in contact with specialists,” Hamlin said. “We feel not a relief, but it is a little relief that they kind of understand now what the path is forward, versus, kind of not knowing.

“I could not imagine being in their places. He’s got enough to think about. I’m sure he’s probably breathing a little sigh relief that he still goes there to do his job at a high level, given everything that’s going on off the track.”

Reddick will start alongside Shane van Gisbergen, who has won four races this year on road and street courses. The New Zealander is the heavy favorite, and any driver hoping to avoid playoff elimination will have to beat van Gisbergen.

Reddick, meanwhile, was grateful for the support he and his family have received and reflected on the emotional impact this has had on his family.

“Just countless individuals have helped out,” Reddick said. “Countless individuals have reached out, provided support whatever it might be. It’s been really eye-opening. I agree with my wife this is the hardest thing that I’ve had to go through. … Certainly being away (last week) wasn’t ideal.

“That was a decision me and her came to a conclusion on when I was in Kansas. He was going in the right direction. Yes, like I said, big things ahead that we have to fix, but for that past weekend he was stable and going in the right direction. It was difficult to stay and race [at Kansas], but we were on the same page about it. I just wanted to get off that plane so bad on Sunday night and get back to the hospital.”

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MLB division series Day 1: Takeaways and top moments from four-game Saturday

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4 hours ago

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October 5, 2025

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MLB division series Day 1: Takeaways and top moments from four-game Saturday

Oct 5, 2025, 12:05 AM ET

The 2025 MLB division series started with a bang on a four-game Saturday.

The Milwaukee Brewers rode a six-run first inning to a dominant win over the Chicago Cubs in the first game of the day. A second pair of division rivalries faced off as the Toronto Blue Jays slugged their way to an almost double-digit thumping of the New York Yankees. Then, in a highly anticipated NLDS showdown, Shohei Ohtani started his first career postseason game as the Los Angeles Dodgers took a late lead to secure a win over the Philadelphia Phillies.

In the final matchup of the night, the Detroit Tigers took the lead in the 11th inning to secure a thrilling Game 1 victory against the Seattle Mariners.

We’ve got you covered with all the action from Day 1, from the top moments to postgame takeaways from every matchup.

Key links: Mega-preview | Series outlooks | Bracket | Schedule

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Takeaways | Top Moments

Takeaways

Detroit leads series 1-0

The Tigers nearly collapsed at the end of the end of regular season, barely hung on to a playoff spot and then took two of three in Cleveland. Now, they’ve won Game 1 of the ALDS against Seattle — on the night before their ace, Tarik Skubal, takes the mound. On Saturday, Troy Melton, the rookie right-hander coming off a brutal showing in the wild-card round, provided four quality innings. Kerry Carpenter came up with a big two-run homer against an electric George Kirby. Zach McKinstry provided a two-out, run-scoring single in the 11th inning. And, in the end, Keider Montero retired the top of the Mariners’ order to secure the victory, continuing a dominant effort from basically the entire Detroit bullpen. Keep counting out the Tigers all you want; they keep finding a way. — Alden Gonzalez

Los Angeles leads series 1-0

The Dodgers were reeling. Down 3-0, facing Cristopher Sanchez, at the house of horrors that is Citizens Bank Park, they were at risk of dropping Game 1 against Philadelphia. Then, Enrique Hernández whacked a two-run double that helped chase Sanchez. And Teoscar Hernandez followed with a three-run, opposite-field home run off reliever Matt Strahm. And with Tyler Glasnow, Alex Vesia and Roki Sasaki throwing three scoreless innings, the Dodgers took Game 1 on the strength of their depth more than their stars showing out. Los Angeles showed last October that its depth is as much a hallmark as its stars. As this series continues with the Dodgers having home-field advantage after securing a win on the road, the Phillies know the challenge ahead: There is no such thing as a safe lead against Los Angeles. — Jeff Passan

Toronto leads series 1-0

Add Saturday’s sixth inning to the vault of Aaron Judge‘s October troubles. Toronto’s Kevin Gausman cruised through five scoreless innings, needing just 50 pitches to secure 15 outs, before finding trouble. Anthony Volpe drove a leadoff double, Austin Wells smacked a single, and Trent Grisham walked to load the bases for Judge. The Yankees’ superstar had singled off Gausman in the first inning for his fifth hit (all singles until that point) of this postseason, and Judge has more career home runs off Gausman than any other pitcher in his career. It was a prime opportunity to supply his first major moment in these playoffs. But Judge fell short, striking out on a 3-2 slider down and away that would’ve been ball four. Cody Bellinger followed with a walk to score a run, but that’s all the Yankees scored in the frame — and in the game — after Ben Rice popped out and Giancarlo Stanton struck out.

The Blue Jays, meanwhile, didn’t waste their opportunities. They went 5-for-10 with runners in scoring position as they chased Luis Gil in the third inning and forced the Yankees to use five relievers. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. homered. Alejandro Kirk homered twice. Rogers Centre, hosting its first postseason game since 2016, roared with each of the 10 runs scored. — Jorge Castillo

Milwaukee leads series 1-0

The decision to start Matthew Boyd on three days’ rest backfired on the Cubs so quickly that it’s impossible not to point to that choice as the turning point in Game 1.

Boyd wasn’t sharp down the stretch of the regular season, and after throwing 58 pitches on Tuesday, there were questions around whehter he could return to the mound so quickly and be effective. It was a head-scratching decision considering the team had a more-than-capable starter in Javier Assad ready to pitch after he was left off the wild-card roster. But Assad didn’t make the NLDS roster either — Cubs manager Craig Counsell called that a tough call — making the whole situation confusing. The Cubs blew this game long before Boyd lasted just two-thirds of an inning in Saturday’s opener. — Jesse Rogers

Top moments from Day 1

Tigers at Mariners

Detroit breaks 2-2 tie in the 11th to take the lead and win Game 1

“Julio” chants are loud in Seattle as J-Rod RBI ties the game

One swing flips the game — and Tigers take the lead

J-Rod gives Seattle crowd its first home playoff home run in 24 years

What a special moment at T-Mobile Park

Dodgers at Phillies

Roki Sasaki earns his first MLB save in Dodgers win

Teoscar Hernandez hits three-run blast to give L.A. its first lead

Dodgers get on the board thanks to a double from Enrique Hernandez

J.T. Realmuto triples to give the Phillies an early lead

Cristopher Sanchez strikes out the side to begin Game 1 — starting with Shohei Ohtani

Yankees at Blue Jays

Jays players hyped after Game 1 win

Toronto piles on with four-run inning

Jays get out of zero-out, bases-loaded jam with just one run given up

Alejandro Kirk joins in on the HR fun

Jays bust out new postseason home run jacket

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. gives the Jays an early lead against Yankees

Cubs at Brewers

Milwaukee finishes off a dominant Game 1

Brewers bat around, put up six runs in first inning

Brewers answer in a hurry

Cubs come out swinging in Milwaukee

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With Skubal up next, Tigers notch ‘huge’ G1 win

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October 5, 2025

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With Skubal up next, Tigers notch 'huge' G1 win

  • Alden GonzalezOct 5, 2025, 12:30 AM ET

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      ESPN baseball reporter. Covered the L.A. Rams for ESPN from 2016 to 2018 and the L.A. Angels for MLB.com from 2012 to 2016.

SEATTLE — Zach McKinstry came to bat against Seattle Mariners right-hander Carlos Vargas with two outs, the score tied and the winning run on second base in Saturday’s 11th inning. A right-handed hitter, the free-swinging Javier Baez, loomed on deck, a much better matchup for Vargas than the left-handed-hitting McKinstry. The Mariners could have elected to intentionally walk him with first base open.

“We talked about it,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. “Obviously, Vargy gets the ball on the ground, and that’s what he does best, righty or lefty and, you know, he got the ball on the ground.”

That grounder bounced four times before finding the outfield grass at T-Mobile Park, hit just hard enough to evade a diving J.P. Crawford, plate Spencer Torkelson and send the Detroit Tigers — marked for dead with their season unraveling in epic fashion near the end of September — to a 3-2, extra-inning victory. After winning two of three in Cleveland to overcome the wild-card round, a Tigers team that has spent the last two weeks on the road has taken a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five American League Division Series.

A.J. Hinch, the fifth-year-manager, called these Tigers the “sum-of-the-parts team,” and it showed once again.

It began with Troy Melton, a rookie right-hander used mostly in relief this season, providing four quality innings. Seven relievers — including Keider Montero, a starting pitcher who was called on for a save — followed by holding the Mariners to one run in seven innings. In between, Kerry Carpenter hit a two-run homer and McKinstry provided the clutch single. Now, with ace Tarik Skubal lined up for Game 2, the Tigers have a chance to take a commanding lead in a series few saw them winning.

“It’s huge,” Carpenter said. “To get a win before the best pitcher in the world pitches is pretty special, and I feel like Skubal is made for these moments.”

The last time Melton took the ball, he recorded one out and was charged with four earned runs in the eighth inning of the second wild-card game on Wednesday. Hinch informed him via text on the plane ride to Seattle on Thursday night that he would start Game 1. He described the decision as a reflection of Melton’s stuff and poise, but really, with Skubal, Casey Mize and Jack Flaherty already used this week, Hinch had few other options.

Melton responded with four innings of one-run ball in what amounted to his fifth major league start all year, allowing only a Julio Rodriguez solo homer.

“It was kind of normal for me,” Melton, 24, said. “My parents were here. I got dinner with them last night, breakfast with them today. It was like the same routine as when I pitched in college. That kind of made it a little bit more normal. Obviously this environment is a little bit different, and it means a little bit more than my college games did, but I tried to make it as normal as possible. Once I got out there, it was just about executing pitches.”

Mariners starter George Kirby didn’t just execute early; he dialed up his fastball, using the adrenaline of a home playoff start to throw his fastball consistently in the upper 90s early on, roughly two ticks faster than his season average. Kirby navigated some trouble but kept the Tigers scoreless through the first four innings while striking out eight.

In the fifth, he allowed a one-out single to Parker Meadows and got Gleyber Torres to ground out, bring up Meadows, the left-handed-hitting outfielder who was 4-for-10 with four home runs lifetime against him. Wilson had lefty Gabe Speier warming up in the bullpen, a move that would have prompted Hinch to pinch-hit with the right-handed-hitting Jahmai Jones. But Wilson decided to let Kirby face Carpenter a third time.

“It’s a tough one,” Wilson said, “and you do the best you can and try to take the information that you have and what you’re seeing. And we thought George continued to throw the ball pretty well there and still had pretty good stuff and a lot left in the tank.”

Kirby just missed inside with an 0-2 sinker. He then went to the sinker for a third straight time, but it traveled middle-up, about chest high, and Carpenter sent it 409 feet to give the Tigers a lead.

“I was seeing him well tonight, especially after that first at-bat,” Carpenter said. “I feel like I got my timing back a little bit. And I just wanted to make sure to get a good pitch to hit that at-bat, because they had a base open, and I didn’t know how they were going to pitch me. And so I felt like I was on time and had a good approach there.”

Rodriguez tied the game with an opposite-field single in the sixth, but the Mariners couldn’t do further damage in a half-inning that saw each of their first three hitters reach. Tyler Holton relieved a struggling Rafael Montero and recorded three quick outs. Tommy Kahnle, Kyle Finnegan and Will Vest followed by allowing one baserunner in four innings, setting up the game-winning sequence in the top of the 11th.

Spencer Torkelson drew a leadoff walk against Vargas, a lanky right-hander who can reach triple-digits. Wenceel Perez and Dillon Dingler struck out, but McKinstry turned on a first-pitch, 99.6-mph sinker near the middle of the zone and came up with a base-hit up the middle, deflating a sold-out crowd that has waited 24 years for the Mariners to win a home playoff game.

In the bottom half, Montero faced the top of the Mariners’ lineup and navigated it without much issue, allowing a two-out single to Rodriguez and then coming back to strike out Josh Naylor to record the first save of his pro career.

It was the realization of a dream.

“When I was in little league, they would use me like that,” Montero, a 25-year-old from Venezuela, said in Spanish, “and I always told my teammates in the minor leagues that my dream was to close out a game.”

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