Detroit Tigers Show Power Surge, Move Up HR Rankings After First Home Stand
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The Detroit Tigers' 2026 campaign has gotten off to a much different start than their 2025 campaign did. After their first time playing in front of fans at Comerica Park, Detroit holds a 4-5 record and hits the road once again, this time to take on the Minnesota Twins.
These Tigers have earned the nickname "gritty" after what they've been able to accomplish since 2024. Easily the AL Central division favorites, the Tigers must start taking steps forward to take the first-place position, currently held down by their biggest rivals, the Cleveland Guardians.
Steps have been taken in the right direction, especially when it comes to swinging with power at the plate.
Tigers Gradually Climb MLB HR Ranks After Three-Game Home Stand
Going into the home stand, the Tigers had but one home run from catcher Dillon Dingler that came on opening day against the San Diego Padres. They would then fall into a dry spell, not hitting a home run for five games.
The electricity in Detroit for opening day surely helped the Tigers to their 4-0 victory against the Cardinals, but it was Dingler again who sent a ball into the stands for the team's second homer of the campaign.
That all changed in game two, where Detroit hit four home runs off the bats of Kerry Carpenter, Zach McKinstry, Gleyber Torres, and Matt Vierling. Carpenter went deep on Easter Sunday as well, bringing the Tigers' home run total to seven for the campaign.
Going into the tenth game of the season, the Tigers sit 27th in Major League Baseball in team home runs. While not ideal, this is a huge step in the right direction for an offense that had been relying on small ball to get games to the finish line.
ZERO DOUBT 🚀 pic.twitter.com/KQbq0TS2Qh
— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) April 4, 2026
Last season, Detroit ranked 10th in team home runs, sending 198 out of the ballpark. It also marked the first time two Tigers hitters hit 30 or more home runs in a season since Miguel Cabrera (38) and Justin Upton (31) did so in 2016.
Both Riley Greene and Spencer Torkelson, who led the Tigers in home runs last season, have yet to hit their first home runs of the 2026 campaign. For the two who led the team in power statistics last season (as well as Carpenter), not having home runs yet should make fans optimistic that they are on the horizon.
The season is still very young, and if the Tigers can replicate what they did on their home stand throughout the next few series, they will be in the middle of the pack for team home runs in no time.
Dominic Minchella is a 2024 Eastern Michigan University graduate with a BA in Communications, Media, and Theatre Arts and a Journalism minor. He covers Major League Baseball for On SI and spends his free time watching games and sharing his insights.