Detroit Tigers vs Pittsburgh Pirates — Pirates win 4-1, Aug 18, 2026

atTigers at Pirates

Final

Cruz's Fifth-Inning Homer Lifts Pirates Past Tigers

Cruz broke it open with a fifth-inning homer to center, and Pittsburgh made it hold up for a 4-1 win over Detroit. Cruz finished 1-for-3 with the homer and 2 RBI, and the Pirates outhit the Tigers 6-5. Pittsburgh climbs to 61-66 while Detroit slips to 61-64, and the season series is tied at 1-1. The two sides meet again Wednesday, with the Tigers heading to Pittsburgh for the rematch.

Cruz turned it around in the fifth, sending one 422 feet to center to score Valdez and put Pittsburgh ahead for good.

Cruz did the damage all by himself, going 1-for-3 with the homer and driving in 2 as the Pirates held the edge in hits over the Tigers 6-5.

The win pushes Pittsburgh to 61-66 and drops Detroit to 61-64, squaring the season series at 1-1 heading into Wednesday's rematch.

The Pirates sit 4th in the NL Central, 18 games back, coming off a loss, 5-5 over their last 10. The Tigers sit 4th in the AL Central, 8 games back, coming off a loss, 2-8 over their last 10.

The Pirates are up next at Cardinals (Aug 28-30). The Tigers are up next home vs Dodgers (Aug 28-30).

Win probabilityPIT win %

Cruz homered to center (422 feet), Valdez scored.PIT +25%
Callahan homered to right (393 feet).DET +16%
Valencia grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, Keith out at second.PIT +10%

Highlights

We ranked every clip from this game by how much it swung the win probability, kept the biggest, and play them back in the order they happened. Pick any play to jump straight to it.

4 plays · 1m 25s

Who decided it

Ranked by win probability added: how far each player's plays moved this game's odds, not how their box-score line reads. A single with the bases loaded in the ninth outranks a home run in a blowout, because that is what actually decided it.

Braxton Ashcraft
PIT · 8.0 IP, 4 K, 1 ER
+34%win prob
Oneil Cruz
PIT · 1-3, 1 HR, 2 RBI
+21%win prob
Brett Callahan
DET · 2-3, 1 HR, 1 RBI
+19%win prob

How the calls held upOur call hit

Our call

Pirates to winHit

The market

PIT -1.5 · 59%Held

The total

8Under

Our model gives Pittsburgh a narrow lean, 5-4, with the line sitting at PIT -136 and a total of 8. It's a low-confidence read, which means neither side should be treated as a clear favorite.

Detroit brings the better arm matchup on paper, with Keider Montero's 3.22 ERA and 0.99 WHIP topping Braxton Ashcraft's 3.88 ERA and 1.11 WHIP. If Montero pitches to that number, he could keep the Tigers in a low-scoring frame regardless of what the total suggests.

Detroit has won 2 of its last 5 while Pittsburgh has won 3 of its last 5, a mild edge in recent form for the Pirates. Neither trend is dramatic, but it lines up with the slight lean toward Pittsburgh tonight.

The Tigers have already taken the first game of this series. That puts some pressure on Pittsburgh to respond at home to avoid falling behind in the set.

Dingler leads Detroit with 26 home runs and Lowe leads Pittsburgh with 26 home runs, an even power matchup at the top of each lineup. Both offenses can lean on that pop if the starters falter early.

Pittsburgh holds a wide edge on the bases, with 107 stolen bases as a team compared to Detroit's 36. That gives the Pirates another way to manufacture runs beyond the power numbers, and it means Detroit's catcher and infield defense will be tested on the move.

Graded against the closing line across 6 books.

Pirates to win · Hit

Line score and box score

Runs by inning across the top, then every batter and pitcher underneath. The pills switch clubs; the totals column is each side’s own line, not a comparison.

Inn	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
DETDetroit Tigers	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	5	0
PITPittsburgh Pirates	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	1		4	6	1

Hitting

Player	H-AB	AB	R	H	RBI	HR	K	#P	AVG	OBP	SLG
Gleyber Torres	1-4	4	0	1	0	0	0	7	.270	.380	.402
Kevin McGonigle	1-4	4	0	1	0	0	0	9	.281	.385	.422
Colt Keith	1-3	3	0	1	0	0	0	12	.270	.323	.421
Dillon Dingler	0-1	1	0	0	0	0	1	5	.257	.322	.494
Eduardo Valencia	0-4	4	0	0	0	0	2	12	.362	.383	.776
Zach McKinstry	0-3	3	0	0	0	0	1	11	.221	.304	.327
Hao-Yu Lee	0-1	1	0	0	0	0	0	4	.274	.311	.423
Spencer Torkelson	0-3	3	0	0	0	0	2	12	.226	.316	.415
Brett Callahan	2-3	3	1	2	1	1	0	6	.444	.444	1.000
Max Clark	0-3	3	0	0	0	0	0	6	.258	.310	.394
Javier Baez	0-3	3	0	0	0	0	0	11	.255	.285	.350

Pitching

Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR	PC-ST	ERA	PC
Keider Montero	5.0	4	3	3	1	3	1	78-53	3.30	78
Ty Madden	2.0	1	1	1	0	2	0	27-20	2.72	27
Enmanuel De Jesus	1.0	1	0	0	0	0	0	13-9	3.86	13

Play by play breakdown

Every plate appearance as it happened, newest first, with the scoring plays called out. Baseball Savant gamefeed.

Inn	Win probability	Swing
T9	PIT 100.0	1.3
T9	PIT 98.8	2.5
T9	PIT 96.3	3.8
T9	PIT 92.5	4.1
B8	PIT 96.6	0.3
B8	PIT 96.9	3.3
B8	PIT 93.6	2.4
B8	PIT 96.0	1.2

Win probability after each plate appearance, with the side in front named. Swing is how far that plate appearance moved it. Plays that scored a run are set in bold. Baseball Savant gamefeed.

League standings

The full ladder, with both clubs marked.

AL East

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Tampa Bay Rays79-54.594W1

2New York Yankees75-57.568W1

3Boston Red Sox73-60.549L1

4Toronto Blue Jays65-69.485W1

5Baltimore Orioles65-69.485L1

AL Central

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Chicago White Sox70-63.526W2

2Cleveland Guardians68-66.507W7

3Minnesota Twins64-70.478L2

4Detroit Tigers62-71.466L1

5Kansas City Royals59-75.440L1

AL West

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Houston Astros66-67.496L1

2Texas Rangers66-68.493L2

3Seattle Mariners64-70.478L1

4Oakland Athletics53-81.396W2

5Los Angeles Angels52-82.388L4

NL East

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Atlanta Braves78-55.586W3

2Philadelphia Phillies74-60.552W1

3Miami Marlins68-66.507W1

4Washington Nationals63-73.463W1

5New York Mets60-73.451L1

NL Central

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Milwaukee Brewers82-51.617W1

2Chicago Cubs76-58.567L2

3St. Louis Cardinals67-68.496W1

4Pittsburgh Pirates65-70.481L1

5Cincinnati Reds63-71.470W1

NL West

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Los Angeles Dodgers80-53.602L2

2San Diego Padres72-62.537W1

3Arizona Diamondbacks71-63.530W2

4San Francisco Giants54-79.406L1

5Colorado Rockies52-82.388L1

Tigers at Pirates

Detroit

Tigers

Pittsburgh

Pirates

Post Game SummaryStat Savant

atTigers at Pirates

Final

Cruz's Fifth-Inning Homer Lifts Pirates Past Tigers

Cruz turned it around in the fifth, sending one 422 feet to center to score Valdez and put Pittsburgh ahead for good.

Cruz did the damage all by himself, going 1-for-3 with the homer and driving in 2 as the Pirates held the edge in hits over the Tigers 6-5.

The win pushes Pittsburgh to 61-66 and drops Detroit to 61-64, squaring the season series at 1-1 heading into Wednesday's rematch.

The Pirates sit 4th in the NL Central, 18 games back, coming off a loss, 5-5 over their last 10. The Tigers sit 4th in the AL Central, 8 games back, coming off a loss, 2-8 over their last 10.

The Pirates are up next at Cardinals (Aug 28-30). The Tigers are up next home vs Dodgers (Aug 28-30).

Win probabilityPIT win %

Cruz homered to center (422 feet), Valdez scored.PIT +25%
Callahan homered to right (393 feet).DET +16%
Valencia grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, Keith out at second.PIT +10%

Highlights

We ranked every clip from this game by how much it swung the win probability, kept the biggest, and play them back in the order they happened. Pick any play to jump straight to it.

4 plays · 1m 25s

Who decided it

Braxton Ashcraft
PIT · 8.0 IP, 4 K, 1 ER
+34%win prob
Oneil Cruz
PIT · 1-3, 1 HR, 2 RBI
+21%win prob
Brett Callahan
DET · 2-3, 1 HR, 1 RBI
+19%win prob

How the calls held upOur call hit

Our call

Pirates to winHit

The market

PIT -1.5 · 59%Held

The total

8Under

Our model gives Pittsburgh a narrow lean, 5-4, with the line sitting at PIT -136 and a total of 8. It's a low-confidence read, which means neither side should be treated as a clear favorite.

The Tigers have already taken the first game of this series. That puts some pressure on Pittsburgh to respond at home to avoid falling behind in the set.

Dingler leads Detroit with 26 home runs and Lowe leads Pittsburgh with 26 home runs, an even power matchup at the top of each lineup. Both offenses can lean on that pop if the starters falter early.

Graded against the closing line across 6 books.

Pirates to win · Hit

Line score and box score

Runs by inning across the top, then every batter and pitcher underneath. The pills switch clubs; the totals column is each side’s own line, not a comparison.

Inn	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
DETDetroit Tigers	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	5	0
PITPittsburgh Pirates	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	1		4	6	1

Hitting

Player	H-AB	AB	R	H	RBI	HR	K	#P	AVG	OBP	SLG
Gleyber Torres	1-4	4	0	1	0	0	0	7	.270	.380	.402
Kevin McGonigle	1-4	4	0	1	0	0	0	9	.281	.385	.422
Colt Keith	1-3	3	0	1	0	0	0	12	.270	.323	.421
Dillon Dingler	0-1	1	0	0	0	0	1	5	.257	.322	.494
Eduardo Valencia	0-4	4	0	0	0	0	2	12	.362	.383	.776
Zach McKinstry	0-3	3	0	0	0	0	1	11	.221	.304	.327
Hao-Yu Lee	0-1	1	0	0	0	0	0	4	.274	.311	.423
Spencer Torkelson	0-3	3	0	0	0	0	2	12	.226	.316	.415
Brett Callahan	2-3	3	1	2	1	1	0	6	.444	.444	1.000
Max Clark	0-3	3	0	0	0	0	0	6	.258	.310	.394
Javier Baez	0-3	3	0	0	0	0	0	11	.255	.285	.350

Pitching

Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR	PC-ST	ERA	PC
Keider Montero	5.0	4	3	3	1	3	1	78-53	3.30	78
Ty Madden	2.0	1	1	1	0	2	0	27-20	2.72	27
Enmanuel De Jesus	1.0	1	0	0	0	0	0	13-9	3.86	13

Play by play breakdown

Every plate appearance as it happened, newest first, with the scoring plays called out. Baseball Savant gamefeed.

Inn	Win probability	Swing
T9	PIT 100.0	1.3
T9	PIT 98.8	2.5
T9	PIT 96.3	3.8
T9	PIT 92.5	4.1
B8	PIT 96.6	0.3
B8	PIT 96.9	3.3
B8	PIT 93.6	2.4
B8	PIT 96.0	1.2

Win probability after each plate appearance, with the side in front named. Swing is how far that plate appearance moved it. Plays that scored a run are set in bold. Baseball Savant gamefeed.

League standings

The full ladder, with both clubs marked.

AL East

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Tampa Bay Rays79-54.594W1

2New York Yankees75-57.568W1

3Boston Red Sox73-60.549L1

4Toronto Blue Jays65-69.485W1

5Baltimore Orioles65-69.485L1

AL Central

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Chicago White Sox70-63.526W2

2Cleveland Guardians68-66.507W7

3Minnesota Twins64-70.478L2

4Detroit Tigers62-71.466L1

5Kansas City Royals59-75.440L1

AL West

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Houston Astros66-67.496L1

2Texas Rangers66-68.493L2

3Seattle Mariners64-70.478L1

4Oakland Athletics53-81.396W2

5Los Angeles Angels52-82.388L4

NL East

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Atlanta Braves78-55.586W3

2Philadelphia Phillies74-60.552W1

3Miami Marlins68-66.507W1

4Washington Nationals63-73.463W1

5New York Mets60-73.451L1

NL Central

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Milwaukee Brewers82-51.617W1

2Chicago Cubs76-58.567L2

3St. Louis Cardinals67-68.496W1

4Pittsburgh Pirates65-70.481L1

5Cincinnati Reds63-71.470W1

NL West

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Los Angeles Dodgers80-53.602L2

2San Diego Padres72-62.537W1

3Arizona Diamondbacks71-63.530W2

4San Francisco Giants54-79.406L1

5Colorado Rockies52-82.388L1