The Detroit Tigers are moving on to the ALDS after taking down the Cleveland Guardians in three games in the AL Wild Card series. Detroit will now face the AL West champion, Seattle Mariners, in a best-of-five series, which starts on Saturday night.
The Tigers will hope to set the tone in Game 1 against the Mariners, like they did in Game 1 against the Guardians. Detroit also hopes to have third baseman Colt Keith for the ALDS, who hasn’t played since Sept. 18 due to a right rib cage inflammation.
According to Evan Woodbery of the Detroit Free Press, the young third baseman was asked following Detroit’s series win if he’s ready to play, and responded with, “I’m close. We’ll see.” Woodbery reported ahead of Game 3 on Thursday that Keith was doing on-field pregame work again.
Colt Keith Leaves Door Open for Potential Return in ALDS
If you’re a Tigers fan, you would love to see Keith back on the field in the ALDS because you did not get much offense from Zach McKinstry at the hot corner.
The 30-year-old utilityman was 0-for-8 at the plate with an RBI, three walks, and four strikeouts in the series against the Guardians. Heading into the postseason, McKinstry was slugging .241 with five doubles, a triple, a home run, and six RBI in September.
That said, the All-Star utilityman is not the same player as Keith. This season, the 24-year-old infielder hit .256 with 13 home runs and 45 RBI, which is almost identical to what he did as a rookie in 2023 (.260 with 13 home runs and 60 RBI).
Before going down with a rib injury in mid-September, Keith was struggling at the plate with a just .238 batting average. That had a direct impact on his production as Keith only had a double, a home run, and four RBI with a .652 OPS to his name before suffering the injury, which is a far cry from his performance in August (.275 with four home runs, nine RBI, and a .817 OPS).
This season, Keith has had much better success against right-handed pitchers (.267 average and .785 OPS) than southpaws (.163 and .403 OPS). While he still needs to get the job done at the plate, that success against righties should work in his favor against the Mariners, as all of their top starting pitchers are right-handed.
Meanwhile, McKinstry, who is a left-handed hitter, has played better against southpaws, hitting .296, compared to .247 against right-handed pitchers. This is just another reason to be hopeful that Keith can make his return to the lineup for the ALDS.
Fans should have a clearer sense of Keith's status soon enough. The roster for the ALDS will confirm just how close he actually is to getting back onto the field and who will not be on the active roster when it's time for the first pitch of Game 1.