Tigers overcome tightrope 9th, Tarik Skubal injury scare to top Astros in Game 1

Eight innings through Game 1 of the Tigers-Astros Wild Card series, Detroit was enjoying a nice three-run lead thanks to a massive second inning. Wenceel Pérez and Parker Meadows were on the corners with two outs, then Jake Rogers capitalized on the momentum with an RBI single for the first run of the day. Trey Sweeney followed to drive in another, and then Matt Vierling capped it with the Tigers' third RBI single in a row before Justyn-Henry Malloy went down on strikes to go to the bottom of the inning.

Meanwhile, Tarik Skubal was absolutely dealing. He handled the bottom of the first with just five pitches, and despite taking a liner to the wrist in the second, he stayed in and sat the Astros in order. The only hits Houston got on Skubal's watch were four singles in another absolute masterclass start for the Tigers' Triple Crown winner.

The Tigers only kept him in through six innings, but he battled through that comebacker and another injury delay in the sixth, when the always classy Astros fans at Minute Maid Park had the gall to boo him.

Will Vest held things down in the seventh and eighth, taking the Astros down 1-2-3 in both innings. But Jason Foley came in to close it out, and that's when things got hairy.

The Astros threatened an absolutely maddening comeback win with three outs between the Tigers and their first postseason win. Yordan Alvarez — the only Astro aside from Alex Bregman who stood a chance against Skubal — doubled, and then Bregman singled to put runners on first and third. Yainer Diaz scored the Astros' first run with a weak grounder through the right side. With two men on in a 3-1 game, no outs, the Astros had a chance to walk it off. Uh oh.

Tigers take Wild Card Game 1 from Astros thanks to Tarik Skubal greatness and second-inning rally

Jeremy Peña (annoyingly) sac bunted to move runners in scoring position, and AJ Hinch had seen enough of Foley after that. Beau Brieske, who started 12 games for the Tigers in the regular season — 10 in August and September alone — and didn't make the Opening Day roster, replaced him in the highest-leverage moment of his season. He promptly got Victor Caratini to line out to put (hopefully) just one more batter between the Tigers and victory.

After an eight-pitch battle with Chas McCormick, during which time everything slowed down to a creep as McCormick took a timeout and then Brieske took a timeout, the batter walked on a sinker in the dirt to load the bases. Jason Heyward was the Astros' next (and hopefully) last man up. The at-bat went back and forth: a ball in the dirt, a foul, a ball, a swinging strike, 2-2 count. One strike away.

On a changeup that probably didn't end up where Brieske wanted it (just a couple inches off of center-center), Heyward swung and connected, but he hit it straight to Spencer Torkelson, who snatched it over his head. Crisis averted. The Tigers win, giving them the upper hand in Wednesday's matchup as they look to knock the Astros out in the first round.

Astros fans at Minute Maid Park were buzzing and (literally) praying for a storybook ending: a walk-off grand slam, or even a bases-clearing double. The Tigers shut the door on them completely, and that's what Houston fans get for booing a pitcher during an injury delay. The Gritty Tigs aren't going down easy.