Maton's walk-off lights up Comerica ... literally

DETROIT -- The Tigers announced their plans to install LED lighting at Comerica Park last December, about a month before they installed Nick Maton on their roster. Somehow, they seemed matched up for each other.

While the lights were primarily meant to give a better field view of Comerica Park for night games, the Tigers also wanted to use them for ballpark effects like home-run celebrations. They didn’t get much of an opportunity in last weekend’s home opening series with three day games and three losses to the Red Sox, but Friday night’s extra-inning battle against the Giants provided the optimal backdrop. The 3-0 fastball Maton saw in the 11th inning from Giants closer Camilo Doval provided the opportunity to show off the lights in a 7-5 win.

“I mean, [Doval is] a really good closer and a difficult at-bat,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “But when Maton gets in a hitters count, there’s no way you’re taking the bat away from him and not letting him swing. And Wolfie did his part.”

Maton was diplomatic, saying he waited first for confirmation of the green light from third-base coach Gary Jones. But he wasn’t going to pass up a fastball with the game on the line -- tying run on third, winning run on second, two outs.

“I knew I was going to get a heater, something good to hit,” he said. “And I was ready for it.”

According to OptaSTATS, it was the 495th time since at least 1988 that a Major Leaguer hit a walk-off homer with his team trailing, but the first such walk-off hit on a 3-0 pitch.

That assurance, that confidence, was one of the reasons the Tigers valued the former Phillies infielder in the Gregory Soto trade. Adding a left-handed bat to the infield didn’t hurt, either.

Maton got a 97 mph fastball at the top of the strike zone and hit the lights out, if only for a split second as they flickered to celebrate his first career walk-off homer, a 387-foot drive into the right-field seats. While teammates doused Maton with water and Gatorade at home plate and imitated his trademark bark, the light show went on.

“Kind of a blur,” Maton said.

For the Tigers, it was a second consecutive win and a just reward for a cleaner, crisper game following the message sent by the Javier Báez benching Thursday night in Toronto. The Tigers were aggressive Friday, but smart; pinch-runner Ryan Kreidler’s mad dash from second to third on Zach McKinstry’s ground ball paid off when he drew a throw from Giants second baseman David Villar.

Instead of one runner on and one out, the Tigers had runners at the corners and nobody out. They also assured Doval would have to face a left-handed hitter, who comprise seven of the nine home runs he has given up in his Major League career.

For Maton, it was his third homer and seventh RBI in four games this week following his 2-for-22, nine-strikeout skid in the previous eight games to start the season.

“You can look at the scoreboard and be deceived by so much with him,” Hinch said, “because the quality of at-bats has been really as good as anyone. His intensity, the vibe that he brings, he’s into it. He’s not been perfect, but the at-bat quality has been really good. He gets his A-swing off a lot, and he knows what he’s looking for. He’s trying to make adjustments to what the league is doing to him. But batting average is pretty deceiving, and he’s a real reason why.”

It wasn’t just traditional numbers. Maton’s expected metrics were also low based on his exit velocities and launch angle. But his hard-hit rate ranks in the 71st percentile of Major League hitters, according to Statcast.

Maton, for his part, said he never lost confidence. He nearly had an RBI blooper earlier Friday, pinch-hitting for Tyler Nevin against right-hander Jakob Junis, but third baseman J.D. Davis made an over-the-shoulder catch in shallow left field.

“I feel super comfortable up there,” Maton said. “I’ve seen a ton of pitches early on. My average isn’t where I want it to be, but it’ll be there. I’m putting up quality at-bats, hitting the ball hard, seeing a lot of pitches. I feel good about my swing right now.”

The Tigers need that confidence to be infectious. If it spreads, they could put those lights to more use this season.