Detroit Tigers Opening Day Observations From 6-3 Win Against White Sox

Detroit Tigers baseball is officially back. The Tigers kicked off the 2017 regular season with a win on the road against the division-rival Chicago White Sox. Here are some observations from the victory.

Detroit Tigers players returned to action on Tuesday for Opening Day. The contest was originally scheduled for Monday, but was rained out.

Regardless, the Tigers were able to grab a win thanks in large part to some early offense and a dominant outing from Justin Verlander.

Miguel Cabrera and friends had taken a 6-2 lead by the time the fourth inning ended, and hung on for what ended up being a 6-3 victory.

Five different Tigers registered hits, while eight different players reached base in general.

After Verlander exited following 6.1 innings, the bullpen quartet of Justin Wilson, Bruce Rondon, Shane Greene and Francisco Rodriguez gave up just two hits.

Here are some observations from the game.

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JaCoby Jones Makes an Early Impact

It is extremely early, but JaCoby Jones’ first game was very promising. The exciting rookie took Jose Quintana deep in his first plate appearance of the season after working a solid at-bat.

Jones would later reach base on a near-double play. He wasted little time in registering his first stolen base of the season, giving Jose Iglesias a potential RBI opportunity.

Justin Verlander Did Justin Verlander Things on the Mound

Detroit’s resident ace once again got the nod on Opening Day—and once again he dominated.

Verlander threw 6.1 innings, allowing just six hits, two walks and a pair of runs.

The Cy Young winner also missed plenty of bats, registering 10 strikeouts and looking like the pitcher who turned in a Cy Young-worthy season in 2016.

The Tigers Continued to Tee Off on Jose Quintana

Quintana came in with a 4.08 ERA against the Tigers, including a 4.26 number last season.

A number of Tigers, such as Miguel Cabrera (1.045 OPS), Victor Martinez (.436 batting average) and Justin Upton (.400 on-base percentage) all entered with strong numbers against Chicago’s starter.

In 5.1 innings against Quintana, the Tigers didn’t disappoint, with 6 runs, five hits, three home runs and three walks.

You Get a Home Run, You Get a Home Run and You Get a Home Run

Detroit’s batters left the park early and often against the White Sox.

Jones started things off with a three-run shot of Quintana in the second.

Nick Castellanos, hitting in the second spot in the lineup for the first time this season, added a two-run home run later in the inning to score Ian Kinsler.

Speaking of Kinsler, the second baseman also went yard.

The 34-year-old was excellent on Opening Day, registering said home run, a double, an RBI, two walks and a pair of runs scored in three at-bats.

The Detroit Tigers return to action on Wednesday afternoon as Jordan Zimmermann matches up with James Shields in the second game of the series in Chicago.

Next: Significance of a Jordan Zimmermann Bounce-Back Season

First pitch is scheduled for 2:10 p.m. Eastern time.

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