Keider Montero’s Six-Run Collapse Undid a Month of Tigers Trust
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Keider Montero spent August giving the Detroit Tigers reasons to believe they had found a dependable member of their future rotation. It took one disastrous inning on Friday to reopen many of the questions he appeared to have answered.
The Tigers gave Montero a five-run advantage through three innings against the Cleveland Guardians. Instead of protecting it, the right-hander surrendered five runs in the fourth before Detroit eventually suffered a 7-6 walk-off loss at Progressive Field, the first game of a doubleheader.
Montero allowed six earned runs on eight hits and one walk over four innings. He struck out four, threw 51 of his 82 pitches for strikes, and watched his ERA rise from 3.24 to 3.52, according to the final box score.
One Inning Erased Detroit’s Five-Run Lead
Detroit’s offense gave Montero considerably more support than it had provided during most of its recent slide. Ben Malgeri and Max Clark each delivered two-run singles in the first inning, while Hao-Yu Lee’s double-play grounder brought home another run in the second. Spencer Torkelson’s solo homer extended the advantage to 6-1 in the third.
Montero allowed Cleveland’s first run on Jo Adell’s sacrifice fly in the opening frame, but he avoided further damage during his first three innings. Everything unraveled after he struck out Adell to begin the fourth.
Nathaniel Lowe singled and Angel Genao doubled before Travis Bazzana cut the deficit to four with an RBI single. Montero then walked Patrick Bailey on four pitches, loading the bases for Brayan Rocchio.
Rocchio drove Montero’s second pitch over the right-field wall for a game-tying grand slam. The complete play-by-play showed that Montero allowed five hits, one walk, and five runs during the inning.
Brayan Rocchio ties the game with a GRAND SLAM ‼️ pic.twitter.com/BLojiTdcLG
— MLB (@MLB) September 4, 2026
The Tigers’ bullpen temporarily prevented the collapse from becoming a loss. Tyler Holton, Tyler Kinley and Drew Sommers combined to keep Cleveland scoreless from the fifth through the eighth. Detroit’s offense, however, failed to score after Torkelson’s third-inning homer.
Rocchio completed the comeback by opening the ninth with a 405-foot walk-off homer against Sommers. Montero did not receive the losing decision, but the five-run inning created the situation that allowed one swing to end the game.
Montero Had Earned Detroit’s Confidence in August
Friday’s result stood out because Montero had made significant progress during the previous month. He posted a 2.83 ERA across five August starts, allowing nine earned runs over 28 2/3 innings.
The uneven stretch still included one poor start against the San Francisco Giants, who scored five runs against him over six innings. Montero responded by throwing 6.1 scoreless innings against Cleveland on Aug. 13. He later held the Los Angeles Dodgers to one run over 5.1 innings in Detroit’s 2-1 victory on Aug. 29.
That performance led to questions about whether Montero had become a starter the organization could finally trust. A previous Tigers On SI analysis highlighted his improved pitch mix, reduced home-run rate and growing efficiency.
Friday did not erase every positive development. Montero still carried a 9-8 record, 3.52 ERA and 1.03 WHIP across 143 innings. He had already established career highs in innings and strikeouts while moving between the rotation and bullpen.
One start also should not determine whether Montero belonged in Detroit’s 2027 rotation. The concern was how quickly he lost control after the Tigers handed him a commanding advantage.
Montero entered Friday with credibility against several dangerous lineups. He left with that trust damaged, giving the remainder of September greater importance than Detroit had anticipated only one week earlier.
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