Tigers' McGonigle has 4 hits in electric MLB debut

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Kevin McGonigle quickly proved that the Detroit Tigers' made the right call by putting him on their opening day roster.

The 21-year-old rookie hit the first big league pitch he saw for a bases-loaded, two-run double in the Tigers' four-run first inning against San Diego on Thursday. He kept on going, getting hits in his next two at-bats as well as scoring his first big league runs.

He added a fourth hit in the ninth inning and finished 4 for 5 with two RBIs and two runs scored in the Tigers' 8-2 win.

“I guess I've got to start not sleeping before every game. Last night, I got barely any sleep,” McGonigle said. “I'm just happy we won today and I'm looking forward to keep helping this team as much as I can this year.”

He said he got about four hours of sleep, “but woke up feeling great, ready to go.”

McGonigle was the youngest Tigers player named to an opening day roster since Omar Infante in 2003.

And then he became the youngest Tigers player with three hits in his debut since Shannon Penn on April 28, 1995.

McGonigle kept the line moving as the Tigers took advantage of Nick Pivetta's wildness in support of two-time AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal.

Batting sixth, he came up for the first time as a big leaguer after Pivetta threw four straight balls to Spencer Torkelson to bring in the Tigers' first run with one out on a sunny, 74-degree afternoon at Petco Park. He drove the first pitch he saw down the right field line to bring in Colt Keith and Riley Greene for a 3-0 lead.

“First pitch, cutter up and in. I knew he was going up with something firm and he threw it right in the spot I was looking at and I was happy to pull it down the line,” McGonigle said.

“I was nervous,” he added. “It's weird. I think right when I started my load to hit, it went away. I felt great out there, very confident. I'm looking to keep that going.”

McGonigle followed that with a fly ball off the top of the right field wall in the third and hustled into second for another double to move Spencer Torkelson to third base. They both scored on Parker Meadows' single to left field.

He beat out an infield single to shortstop in the fifth and was aboard for Dillon Dingler's homer that made it 8-0.

McGonigle, who started at third base, finally made an out in the seventh when he popped up to third baseman Manny Machado in shallow left.

Several family members were in attendance and McGonigle planned to give each of his parents a ball that was used in the game.

A first-round pick in the 2023 draft, McGonigle had a hot spring that allowed him to skip Triple-A after playing in just 46 games in AA last season.

“What a debut,” manager A.J. Hinch said.

“He can hit. He won't be as nervous as that at-bat, and if that's the nervous version of him, we're in for a fun year,” the manager added. “I like the fact he was aggressive on his pitch. Obviously a big hit to open up the game a little bit and give us some breathing room. That set the tone for a really good day for him and for us.”

Said Greene: “It looked like that was his, like, 700th game out there. It was pretty impressive to see. It's pretty cool to see.”

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