Reese Olson was excellent again in this one. The Tigers’ offense blasted four home runs to support him, taking down the Reds despite a bit of a Jason Foley meltdown by a score of 5-4 on Friday night.
The Tigers made a move prior to Friday’s series opener by recalling center fielder Parker Meadows from Triple-A Toledo, optioning a scuffling Akil Baddoo in his place. As Scott Harris, A.J. Hinch, and pretty much anyone who watches Tigers’ baseball has opined over the last few years, having a great defensive outfield is crucial for team success. They can live with a less than stellar infield defensively if they’d just hit, but it’s the outfield where extra base hits are robbed or given up.