DETROIT — There’s a lake in the Pacific Northwest in Zach McKinstry’s plans for the All-Star break. He would gladly change course and head to Atlanta if the American League All-Star team needs his bat … or his arm.
“There’s hope. We’ll see,” McKinstry said. “If not, that’s OK, I’m going to go and have a great second half and prove that I should have been there. Just going to take the four days and relax a little bit if I don’t [get the call]. And if I do, I get to go play some more baseball.”
That’s out of his hands at this point. The All-Star rosters announced Sunday included four Tigers but did not include McKinstry, who was on the fan ballot at third base in the American League but finished third. Boston’s Alex Bregman, currently on the injured list with a right quad strain, earned a spot as a reserve on the player vote, backing up Cleveland’s José Ramírez. The Red Sox reportedly hope to get Bregman back at some point this week, but Bregman told reporters Monday he doesn’t anticipate playing in the All-Star Game presented by Mastercard.
If that’s the case, Tigers manager A.J. Hinch is willing to stump for McKinstry.
“Let’s get him to Atlanta,” Hinch said with a wry smile after Monday night’s 5-1 win over the Rays at Comerica Park.
On Monday, his contribution came with an entirely different skill set.
As Rays catcher Danny Jansen turned past second base and headed to third on Jonathan Aranda’s two-out single in the third inning, he wasn’t expecting to see a throw from right field soaring over his shoulder. McKinstry hadn’t had an assist from right field since 2023, though he had one from left earlier this season. But McKinstry had shown a strong arm two pitches earlier on a Yandy Díaz flyout, firing to second on a line to hold Taylor Walls.
“Every throw’s a little different,” McKinstry said, “but definitely kind of ranged it in a little bit. It definitely got me ready to let one eat a little bit.”
Aranda’s single forced him to range towards the line to get the ball, then spin and take a hop step. But the resulting throw not only reached third baseman Javier Báez on the fly, it allowed Báez to deke Jansen a bit.
“I’m not sure how many natural outfielders can routinely make that play,” Hinch said. “That’s an athlete playing a position and using his skill set.”
Just as big as the throw was the situation it came in. Junior Caminero was left on deck, denied a chance to add on to his Rays-leading 57 RBIs.
“I didn’t even see the throw,” Jansen said, “but any time you make the third out at third base, not good baserunning. Probably should have held on at second base. Obviously, hindsight’s 20/20. It was a great throw.”
Spared a high-pressure at-bat, Detroit starter Keider Montero — called up from Triple-A Toledo earlier in the day to get the assignment — retired nine of his final 10 batters from there to finish with six innings of four-hit, one-run ball, leaving with a 3-1 lead. The Tigers added on with homers in the seventh from McKinstry and Colt Keith.
McKinstry entered Monday at 2.4 Wins Above Replacement, according to Baseball-Reference, and 2.6 WAR, according to FanGraphs. Only All-Stars Tarik Skubal and Riley Greene rated higher among Tigers. McKinstry has assembled those numbers while playing everywhere in the field but center field and catcher.
“Because he’s playing somewhere different every day, you can get lost a little bit,” Hinch said. “What does he bring to the table? Everything. And I’m proud of him for how he’s methodically gone through this — in and out of the lineup, and then in the lineup a lot — and maintained his discipline at the plate.
“He’s taking care of himself. He’s opportunistic on the bases. Contribute to a win every day, and he’s going to get the recognition that he deserves. I do know that I get asked about him a lot from the other side, which is the biggest praise you can get internally, inside the game.”
McKinstry isn’t sweating it.
“At the end of the day, just trying to help the team win,” McKinstry said.