Tigers name surprise starter for ALDS Game 3 in hopes of taking upper hand

Since making his major league debut back on May 29, Keider Montero has been a bit of a roller coaster. His home splits (batting average against .246, .415 SLG, 4.09 ERA) have been better than on the road (BA against .295, .534 SLG 5.89 ERA), but he has been in some of the biggest games of the season, which could explain why Tigers Manager AJ Hinch gave him the nod in Game 3 of the ALDS.

“For much of his time up here, he has learned a lot, and he's developed and grown and has been able to make adjustments," Tigers Manager AJ Hinch said on Montero. "The work he did while he was inactive in the Wild Card series was really important, we wanted to get his body moving and be able to execute all of his pitches and not be a two-pitch pitcher. “

The rookie from Venezuela has continued to develop well for Detroit. After last season in which he led the minor league system in strikeouts after moving up three levels in 2023, Montero is the only Tigers pitcher this season to throw a complete game, and that was a memorable one. He became the first rookie since 1988 to throw a "Maddux" — throwing a shutout in fewer than 100 pitches. He was the first Tigers pitcher to pull it off since David Price in 2015.

Similar to the Tigers, who found themselves in the postseason against all odds, Montero was originally filling in, as injuries to both Casey Mize and Reese Olson slotted him into the starting rotation towards the end of June.

One of his first quality starts was against Cleveland at home back on July 8 in which he went 6 1/3 shutout innings, allowing just three hits and striking out four. Most recently, Cleveland faced him in the Tigers' Game 1 loss, where he allowed just one hit in two innings of work while striking out four.

If Montero pitches the way he is capable, he could give the Tigers fans another starter to go deep in games. Tarik Skubal could use a sidekick, after all. During an 11-start stretch starting in July, Montero went five or more innings and allowed three runs or fewer in five of those games.

Tigers fans hope that his recent success against Cleveland continues in the Tigers first postseason home game since 2014.