Tigers Notes: One Special Moment Made Gage Workman's First Homer Unforgettable
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The Detroit Tigers finally ended the losing skid at five games, collecting a much-needed 6-3 victory over their AL Central division rivals, the Kansas City Royals. Detroit has been hit aggressively by the injury bug, as it claimed another name before the Sunday Night Baseball showdown.
Kerry Carpenter was placed on the 10-day IL after running his shoulder into the outfield wall, resulting in the ball getting past him, and for Bobby Witt Jr to hit an inside-the-park home run. Gage Workman, a former fourth-round pick from the 2020 MLB Draft, made his Tigers debut later that night, recalled from Triple-A when Carpenter went to the IL.
Workman would get his first at-bat as a Tiger in his career after making brief appearances with both the Chicago Cubs and White Sox in 2025, and make himself a name that fans will remember going into Monday morning.
Workman hit a home run, putting the Tigers up 5-3. The coolest part, right up there with hitting your first Major League home run, happened right after he touched home plate.
Workman 1st Home Run Embrace is with Spencer Torkelson
For those who may not know, both Workman and Tigers first baseman Spencer Torkelson were teammates in college while at Arizona State University. Torkelson was drafted as the first overall pick in the 2020 Draft; fast forward three rounds later, his teammate Workman gets drafted by Detroit as well.
In his postgame interview on the Peacock postgame broadcast, Workman acknowledged that embracing Torkelson at home was cool, having seen Torkelson hit so many home runs while with the ASU Sun Devils, stating that it was nice to get to have Torkelson watch one of his for once.
FIRST @MLB HOME RUN FOR GAGE WORKMAN! pic.twitter.com/g0t80Uuvtk
— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) May 11, 2026
At the end of the day, this Tigers team is still coming into its own with several young players. While it might seem like a small moment to the average viewer, that Workman home run, followed by the embrace from the player he feels most comfortable with in the dugout, could be that spark everyone has been saying that Detroit has needed.
So long as Workman and the rest of the Tigers' offensive contributors can continue this attack at the plate, clawing back into the AL Central standings might not be as tall a task as it feels. If Workman doesn't perform, on the other hand, when Carpenter is ready to go, he's likely the one to be sent down.
Here’s all the latest Tigers news and stories (click the headline for the full article)
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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.