Bounce-back Boyd guides Tigers’ 1st shutout

DETROIT -- The Tigers will spend the stretch run trying to figure out what they have from their young players, from Willi Castro at shortstop to Isaac Paredes at third to Daz Cameron in right field. They also have something to find out about Matthew Boyd.

Tuesday's 6-0 win marked Boyd's 21st start against the Royals. If he stays on turn to start Sunday’s home finale against Cleveland, it'll be his 13th meeting with the Indians. If he faces the Twins next weekend at Target Field, it'll be his 22nd meeting with Minnesota and his third in four weeks.

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All of them know Boyd's fastball and slider. They've seen him work in other parts of his arsenal with mixed results. His 5 2/3 scoreless innings Tuesday showed some of his best variety all season, and helped him bounce back from his roughest start of the year. Now he’ll try to carry that forward.

“I think we know it's effective,” Boyd said. “It just comes down to execution.”

Six days after the Brewers tagged Boyd for seven runs in three innings in a 19-0 Tigers loss, the lefty helped Detroit rebound from last weekend’s three-game sweep to the White Sox. He did so against a Kansas City lineup that has hurt him over the years, despite his 2-2 record against the club last season.

Even when Boyd worked in his changeup to beat the Royals last September in Kansas City, they made him work for it, churning out 10 hits over 6 1/3 innings. They had nine hits over five innings of four-run ball against him on July 29 of this season at Comerica Park. Tuesday was different, with just two hits and four walks allowed.

Boyd entered the outing tied for the American League lead in earned runs and home runs allowed, along with the AL lead in losses.

“When you're talking about this season as a whole, I've done things this season, mostly because of what happened earlier in the year,” Boyd said. “My eyes were opened, and I've grown from that -- using all my pitches, commanding my fastball in different spots. I've done things that I didn't do in the years prior that I feel have made me a complete pitcher.”

Whit Merrifield hit Boyd’s second pitch of the night off the right-field wall for a leadoff double, his 10th time reaching safely in a stretch of 11 plate appearances against Boyd. Two pitches later, Merrifield stole third base to intensify the danger. But Boyd not only induced a ground ball from fellow nemesis Salvador Perez, he got an out at the plate when Merrifield tested rookie shortstop Castro.

The Tigers pulled ahead with three runs in the bottom of the first off Jakob Junis -- two on a single from ex-Royal Jorge Bonifacio -- and tacked on two more in the third with help from Miguel Cabrera’s opposite-field solo homer. Boyd (2-6) followed both rallies with shutdown innings, retiring the Royals in order in the second and fourth. He retired nine in a row after Perez barreled a 110 mph double in the third inning, including Maikel Franco after a 3-0 count to end that threat without loading the bases for Hunter Dozier.

Though Boyd still went with a heavy dose of fastballs, he mixed changeups with sliders, building on his recent approach. He also added in 10 curveballs.

“He was using all of his pitches,” manager Ron Gardenhire said. “He didn’t get into a routine. He changed it up, mixed it up. He used his fastball better, got it up in the zone, above the bat, and got chases. He had a decent breaking ball and changeup. He did what you hoped he would do to get us to the second half of the game with a lead.”

Boyd tried hard to add one more shutdown inning after the Tigers missed a chance to pull away with a bases-loaded, no-out opportunity in the fifth. Twice, Boyd came within a 3-2 pitch of completing the sixth inning, becoming the first Detroit starter this season to cross the 100-pitch mark in the process.

Both full counts resulted in walks, ending Boyd’s outing with Franco and Dozier on base, but José Cisnero extinguished the threat with a groundout. Never in 20 previous appearances had Boyd held the Royals scoreless in an outing. His four walks tied his season high from last start, but his two hits marked his stingiest performance since August 2019.

“Shoot, five yards before I got to the mound, he was already telling me, ‘I’m good. I got this. I’ll get this guy,’” Gardenhire said. “I said, ‘No, give me the ball.’ And that was about it. He had done his thing.”