TORONTO -- Add another banger to a growing rookie reel.

Justyn-Henry Malloy got one more first out of the way on Sunday afternoon, crushing a grand slam in the Tigers’ 5-4 loss to the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre.

The 24-year-old Malloy didn’t have the smoothest start to his big league career, but one look at that fifth-inning swing should tell you plenty about his increasing comfort level in a Tigers uniform.

“It’s always cool to get the first one out of the way,” Malloy said. “I feel good. I just want to continue stacking up good at-bats, keep plugging along and just [keep playing] good baseball -- because we have. That was actually a very resilient [game]. I know we lost, but that’s kind of a positive right there.”

Of course, it’s easier to find those positives when things are going well.

Malloy struggled out of the gate after his callup on June 3, but he kept plugging along -- letting some of the chaos around him settle, as manager A.J. Hinch put it on Friday -- and it became evident that the results would soon show up.

“His confidence is growing,” Hinch said after Sunday’s game. “ … He's a smart hitter. He's been smart from the first day here. I think the confidence is coming with his game plan. It’s getting better and better, and it’s one of the reasons we love him.”

What’s not to love right now?

Since the start of July, Malloy has handed in a .289 average with a .979 OPS in 12 games. The sample might be small, but it indicates a lot of what the Tigers have seen in his game over his years in the Minors.

Malloy’s knowledge of the strike zone is what sets him apart, but he’s also been intentional with the goal of doing more damage. That’s achieved through some added aggression early in the count and ensuring he’s in a good position to handle different pitches. From that point on, it’s all about swing decisions -- a major strength of Malloy’s.

“It's encouraging,” said Hinch. “I put him in the middle of the order to see how he responds and he comes up with the biggest swing of the day for us.”

It was a clutch swing, too.

Batting third on Sunday, Malloy walked up for his third at-bat against Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman with the bases loaded and two out, as the Tigers worked to climb back from a three-run deficit and some early frustrations on the offensive side.

Having the contact-oriented Malloy at the plate with nowhere for the Blue Jays to put him seemed like the ideal scenario. But Malloy gave the Tigers way more than just good contact.

“I knew the situation,” said Malloy. “I knew we were down by a few runs. I just really wanted to pass it on to the next guy and just get a good pitch to hit.”

Malloy watched a middle-away four-seamer land in the zone for strike one. The next heater ran in on him, and he didn’t miss it, hitting it a Statcast-projected 404 feet to left-center field to put the Tigers ahead.

Not one to take anything for granted, Malloy busted out of the box. He was trotting by the time he reached home plate, though, joining Zach McKinstry, Wenceel Pérez and Colt Keith in a celebratory hug. Each of those players’ at-bats was crucial in that spot. In the case of Pérez and Keith, it also pointed to the maturation process of the Tigers’ youth movement.

“It's always nice to contribute,” said Malloy. “To be a young player and to just contribute in small ways is always a plus. That's all that I've been trying to do. And it's so cool to see my boys doing the same.”

Malloy let out a smile as he said that last part.

He and his boys still have a long way to go in this league, but it’s been encouraging to see how each of them has found a place in the Tigers’ clubhouse.

“I've seen it with virtually every young player that's come up to the big leagues,” said Hinch. “They need a little bit of time. It doesn't matter whether you get off to a 10-for-20 start or whether you get off to a 2-for-20 start. Time is your friend when it comes to breaking into the big leagues. … There's no magic pill other than to play and learn and grow.”