McKinstry went 1-for-2 with a walk and an RBI in Friday's 12-3 loss to the Mariners. He also stole two bases.
McKinstry kept his strong July rolling along, as he's now batting .323 with a 1.030 OPS across 10 games this month. He also stole two bases in a contest for the second time this season, with the other coming just three days prior. For the year, the utility player has now swiped 15 bases in 18 attempts, and he's paired that with a .287 batting average and .831 OPS through 86 games, giving McKinstry some unexpected fantasy value at this point in the season.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Goes deep in lopsided loss
Rotowire
McKinstry went 1-for-3 with a walk and a two-run home run in Saturday's 15-7 loss to the Mariners.
A day after swiping two bases, McKinstry made his mark with his eighth home run of the season. It's one away from matching his career high, as the utility player hasn't generally been known for his power. McKinstry is also now sitting with an .842 OPS, which would easily be a new high-water mark and is well above his career .684 figure. McKinstry has been a sneaky fantasy performer in 2025 who can fill in at multiple positions across the field.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Doubles twice, drives in run
Rotowire
McKinstry went 2-for-4 with two doubles and an RBI in Wednesday's 7-3 loss to the Rays.
While Detroit's offense didn't really get rolling in this one, McKinstry managed to continue his strong July. The utility player is batting .310 this month with five extra-base hits in nine games. Overall, McKinstry is batting .286 with a robust .826 OPS, and he's been a pleasant surprise from an offensive standpoint for the surging Tigers. His efforts have also earned him his first career All-Star nod, as he was recently named as an injury replacement for Houston's Jeremy Pena (rib).
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Goes deep in win
Rotowire
McKinstry went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Monday's 5-1 win over the Rays.
McKinstry launched his seventh home run of the season in the seventh inning, which was one of three Detroit long balls on the night. The veteran utility player continued his strong recent play, as he's now batting .344 over his last 10 games with three home runs, four RBI and eight runs scored. Overall, McKinstry is sporting a .285 batting average and an .819 OPS, both of which are significantly above his career marks of .233 and .678, respectively.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Retreating to bench Sunday
Rotowire
McKinstry is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Guardians.
After starting each of the last seven games and going 9-for-26 with two home runs, three RBI and six runs, McKinstry will receive a breather. Javier Baez will slide over from his usual spot at shortstop to fill in for McKinstry at third base.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Knocks big homer
Rotowire
McKinstry went 1-for-4 with a solo home run during Friday's 2-1 win over the Guardians.
McKinstry has seen a more reliable, consistent role since the injury to Kerry Carpenter (hamstring), and he rewarded his team with what turned out to be the game-winning homer Friday. The 30-year-old McKinstry now has six home runs as part of a season in which he is slashing .289/.361/.462 with eight doubles and 26 RBI.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Could benefit sans Carpenter
Rotowire
McKinstry will start at third base and bat sixth in the first game of Wednesday's doubleheader versus the Nationals.
Though the Tigers had shown more of a willingness to use Colt Keith at third base of late, McKinstry could end up seeing the bulk of the playing time at the position for the duration of Detroit's first-half schedule. With Kerry Carpenter (hamstring) landing on the injured list Wednesday and likely to be held out through the All-Star break, the Tigers will have openings for Keith at first base or designated hitter, with Spencer Torkelson likely starting at the other spot. McKinstry should thus have a clear path to steady playing time at third base in the short term, though the utility player had already been included in the Detroit lineup in five of the previous six contests. McKinstry's production had been tailing off in the second half of May, but he sported a hot bat throughout June, finishing the month with a .321/.353/.538 slash line to go with two home runs and seven stolen bases in 24 games.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Big day against Minny
Rotowire
McKinstry went 3-for-4 with a home run, two runs scored and two RBI in Saturday's 10-5 win over the Twins.
Getting the start at shortstop and batting eighth, the utility player went deep in the sixth inning, launching the fourth of four homers off Bailey Ober on the afternoon. With Trey Sweeney optioned to Triple-A Toledo on Friday, McKinstry figures to see a lot more action at shortstop in a timeshare with Javier Baez -- a strict platoon would benefit McKinstry as the left-handed hitter of the duo, but Baez's defense could tip the scales in his favor. McKinstry is making a case with his bat to be the primary option, batting .400 (12-for-30) over his last 10 games with a double, a triple, two homers, three steals, five runs and six RBI.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Big effort in easy win
Rotowire
McKinstry went 3-for-4 with a double, a triple, a run scored and two RBI in Thursday's 8-0 win over the Athletics. He also stole a base, though he was caught stealing once as well.
McKinstry did a little bit of everything to help lead the Tigers to a comfortable win in the series finale. The utility player is having a nice season with a .277 batting average, .793 OPS and nine stolen bases across 73 games, though he has seen his playing time dip a bit recently with Colt Keith getting more run at third base. However, with the Athletics starting lefty Jeffrey Springs, the right-handed McKinstry got the nod over the left-handed Keith on Thursday. That could be the arrangement moving forward, at least until Matt Vierling (shoulder) is able to return from the injured list.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Losing work at hot corner
Rotowire
McKinstry is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rays, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.
For the second time in three games, McKinstry will hit the bench while the Tigers face a right-handed starting pitcher. With the team getting more comfortable using Colt Keith at third base, McKinstry's primary path to playing time appears to be closing. The 30-year-old is still capable of filling in at two other infield spots as well as both corner outfield spots, but his at-bats could become sporadic now that all of Detroit's key hitters are available, sans Matt Vierling (shoulder).
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Not starting Saturday
Rotowire
McKinstry isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Reds.
McKinstry has been on a tear since the start of June, slashing .325/.372/.525 with seven runs scored across 43 plate appearances. He'll get a chance to catch his breath Saturday, moving Javier Baez to third base while Trey Sweeney starts at shortstop.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Tallies two hits, steal in win
Rotowire
McKinstry went 2-for-4 with a run scored in Thursday's 4-1 win over the Orioles. He also stole a base.
After a surprisingly strong first two months of the season at the plate, McKinstry has kept rolling in June. The utility player is now batting .343 this month with three stolen bases and six runs scored through 11 games. Despite being a bench option for much of his career, McKinstry is forcing the Tigers to put him in the lineup most days due to his strong offensive output.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Swipes bag in loss
Rotowire
McKinstry went 2-for-4 with a run scored in Thursday's 3-2, extra-inning loss to the White Sox. He also stole a base.
McKinstry continues to produce for the Tigers with hits in four of his last five games and a .271 average for the season. The utility man is also up to four stolen bases, and after recording 16 steals each of the last two years, he could start running more moving forward. McKinstry isn't the most exciting player, but his versatility and steady production is getting him into the lineup most days.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Getting start at shortstop
Rotowire
McKinstry will start at shortstop and bat ninth in Sunday's game against the Royals.
Though he'll draw a start against southpaw Kris Bubic in the series finale, the left-handed-hitting McKinstry sat against righty MIchael Wacha on Saturday and could be moving into a part-time role with the Tigers getting closer to full health. McKinstry owns a career-best .768 OPS on the season, but he finished May with an unremarkable .200/.289/.338 slash line to go with two home runs and one stolen base in 24 games.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Scores lone run Sunday
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McKinstry went 1-for-3 with a triple and a run scored in Sunday's 1-0 win over the Royals.
McKinstry delivered his fourth triple of the season in the third inning, then came around to score the game's only run on a wild pitch. The veteran utility player continues to hit surprisingly well with a .267 batting average and .778 OPS through 53 games. McKinstry's career figures are .226 and .662, respectively, as he's mostly been known for his versatile defensive abilities.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Resting up Saturday
Rotowire
McKinstry isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Royals, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.
The Tigers will give McKinstry a day off Saturday after he went 0-for-4 with a walk and a strikeout during Friday's contest. His absence will allow Javier Baez to start at the hot corner while batting ninth.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Leads offense with blast
Rotowire
McKinstry went 1-for-3 with a walk and a two-run home run in Sunday's 5-0 win over the Guardians.
McKinstry had the key hit of the game, delivering his third home run of the season in the fourth inning with a runner on. The veteran utility player has been surprisingly productive at the plate so far this year with a .788 OPS through 49 games, which is up from the .614 OPS he posted during the 2024 regular season. For his career, McKinstry has a .662 OPS.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Idle Friday
Rotowire
McKinstry is out of the lineup for Friday's game against Cleveland.
McKinstry will give way to Andy Ibanez at third base Friday against Slade Cecconi and the Guardians. McKinstry is 14-for-66 (.212) with 12 runs scored in 19 games during May.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Hits second home run
Rotowire
McKinstry went 1-for-3 with a walk and a solo home run in Friday's 5-4 win over the Blue Jays.
McKinstry hit his second home run of the season in the fourth inning against Toronto starter Bowden Francis. The infielder now has half as many long balls as he did during the 2024 regular season, and while he's not a huge power threat, he's been effective with a .286 batting average and .803 OPS through 41 games in 2025. Both of those figures would be new career highs for McKinstry.
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Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Sitting down for Game 2
Rotowire
McKinstry isn't in the lineup for the second game of Thursday's doubleheader against Colorado.
McKinstry will get a breather Thursday evening after going 1-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored during a 10-2 win in Game 1. Riley Greene, Brewer Hicklen and Kerry Carpenter will start across the Tigers' outfield while McKinstry sits.
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