McKinstry is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Astros.
Unless he's used off the bench, McKinstry will put an eight-game hitting streak on hold while he takes a seat after starting each of the last four games. McKinstry has been an unsung hero in the Tigers' 18-10 start to the season, slashing .321/.426/.476 with one home run and two stolen bases while making starts at second base, third base, right field and left field. Though McKinstry may not have a permanent home at any one position, the Tigers should continue to make regular room for him in the lineup against right-handed pitching while he's wielding a hot bat.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Absent from Detroit lineup
Rotowire
McKinstry is not in the lineup for Tuesday's contest against the Padres.
It's a routine day off for McKinstry, who had started 12 of the previous 13 games for the Tigers. He'll yield to Justyn-Henry Malloy in left field Tuesday.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Cracks three hits again
Rotowire
McKinstry went 3-for-4 with a triple, a double and one run scored and RBI apiece in Monday's 6-4 victory over San Diego.
The 29-year-old drew his sixth consecutive start and produced his second consecutive three-hit performance, falling a homer shy of the cycle. Thanks to the three-bagger he laced in the first inning, McKinstry is now tied for the MLB lead in triples with Mickey Moniak at three. The Detroit utility man is now slashing .314/.424/.471 with a homer, a steal and 12 RBI and runs scored apiece across 86 plate appearances.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Tallies three hits in loss
Rotowire
McKinstry went 3-for-5 with two RBI in Sunday's 4-3, 10-inning loss to the Royals.
McKinstry has moved up to third in Detroit's batting order recently due to a hot start to the season, and he kept on rolling Sunday. The utility player is now batting .288 with an .809 OPS, both of which would be new career highs. McKinstry has also tallied 11 runs scored and 11 RBI across 21 games played.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Batting third again Saturday
Rotowire
McKinstry is starting in right field and batting third in Saturday's game against the Royals.
After mostly batting lower in the order earlier in the season, McKinstry is now starting and batting third for the second time in the last three games. The versatile 29-year-old has appeared in all 20 of Detroit's games to date, and he's performed well with a .765 OPS. McKinstry may see a reduction in playing time once the likes of Matt Vierling (shoulder), Wenceel Perez (back) and Parker Meadows (arm) are able to return from injury.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Not starting versus lefty
Rotowire
McKinstry is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's contest in Milwaukee, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.
The lefty-swinging McKinstry will grab a seat as left-hander Jose Quintana toes the slab for the Brewers. McKinstry has been seeing most of his playing time in right field lately, but that spot will be covered by Justyn-Henry Malloy in Wednesday's series finale.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Goes deep in win
Rotowire
McKinstry went 2-for-3 with a solo homer and two RBI in Tuesday's win over the Yankees.
McKinstry plated the game's first run on a sacrifice fly in the second. He then took part in a three-homer fourth inning for the Tigers with a solo blast to right center field for his first long ball of the year. McKinstry has had a fast start at the dish so far, hitting safely in each of his last six games while owing a .355 average and .447 on-base percentage for the year.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Not in Detroit lineup
Rotowire
McKinstry is not in the lineup for Monday's game against the Yankees.
The left-handed hitting McKinstry started Sunday's contest versus the White Sox against a lefty, but he'll begin this one on the bench as the Yankees turn to southpaw Carlos Rodon. Andy Ibanez is at third base and Manuel Margot will patrol right field for the Tigers.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Reaches three times in win
Rotowire
McKinstry went 2-for-3 with a walk, an RBI and a run scored in Friday's 7-4 win over the White Sox.
It was a productive evening for McKinstry and it continued his impressive start to the season. The utility player is slashing .280/.379/.360 through seven contests, and he's seen time at five different positions already. McKinstry's .739 OPS would be a new career high, but it remains to be seen if the 29-year-old can sustain this level of production over the course of the year.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Productive from leadoff spot
Rotowire
McKinstry went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored in Saturday's 7-3 loss to the Dodgers.
McKinstry paced Detroit's offense from the leadoff spot, collecting a third of the team's hits and runs. The 30-year-old has seen action in all three of the Tigers' games so far, with starts in the last two, and he's already seen action at second base, third base and shortstop. McKinstry doesn't figure to play much when southpaws are on the hill, but he appears to have a regular lineup spot secured against righties and can play a number of defensive positions when he's called upon.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Taking seat against lefty
Rotowire
McKinstry isn't in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Dodgers.
Left-hander Blake Snell will draw the start for Los Angeles on Thursday, so the lefty-hitting McKinstry will begin Opening Day on the bench. Andy Ibanez will draw the start at third base instead and bat leadoff.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Set for strong-side platoon at 3B
Rotowire
McKinstry is expected to open the season in the long side of a platoon at third base with Andy Ibanez, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.
The Tigers optioned Jace Jung to Triple-A Toledo on Monday, a transaction which cinches a McKinstry/Ibanez platoon at the hot corner while Matt Vierling (shoulder) is out. McKinstry slashed only .215/.277/.337 with four homers across 118 regular-season contests for the Tigers last season. He did steal 16 bases without being caught, and that, along with his multi-position eligibility, gives McKinstry some utility in very deep leagues.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Platoon possibility at short?
Rotowire
McKinstry is a candidate to serve in a platoon along with Javier Baez at shortstop to begin the regular season, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.
In this scenario, the left-hand hitting McKinstry would be on the strong side of the platoon, with Baez deployed against southpaws and Trey Sweeney beginning the year at Triple-A Toledo. In the long run, the 24-year-old Sweeney seems likely to seize the job at short, which would relegate McKinstry to more of a utility role like the one he's filled in recent seasons. McKinstry may see a short-term spike in value if he does in fact see regular time at short, though he remains a limited offensive player who probably won't make a huge fantasy splash.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Tallies three hits in loss
Rotowire
McKinstry went 3-for-4 with a double in Thursday's 3-0 loss to the Angels.
McKinstry was the only Detroit player with multiple hits, and the lack of production around him prevented him from accumulating any counting stats. While the utility player can pop on occasion, McKinstry is generally not much of an offensive threat, and his lack of consistent playing time limits his fantasy ceiling.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Smacks fourth home run
Rotowire
McKinstry went 2-for-5 with a two-run homer in Saturday's 13-4 win against the White Sox.
McKinstry went deep off John Brebbia in the ninth inning, his first home run since July 7. McKinstry in the middle of a five-game hitting streak with five RBI and two stolen bases in that stretch. The 29-year-old utility man sees sporadic playing time and carries a paltry .603 OPS through 90 games this season.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Provides spark Saturday
Rotowire
McKinstry went 2-for-3 with a double, an RBI and a run scored in Saturday's 4-0 win over the Yankees.
McKinstry batted ninth and provided an unexpected lift, as he came into the contest batting just .188 for the season. The utility man is now a career .215 hitter across 355 MLB games, so he's pretty much settled in as a low-impact offensive player who offers value to his team through his defensive versatility. That keeps McKinstry's fantasy appeal fairly limited.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Retreating to bench
Rotowire
McKinstry is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Mariners.
McKinstry will hit the bench for the series finale after he had started in each of Detroit's last three games while going 3-for-12 with two doubles, one walk and two runs across those contests. Though McKinstry's bat has warmed up in August, the Tigers still seem to view him mostly as a utility player. His playing time is likely to take a hit once Detroit gets Riley Greene (hamstring) back from the injured list, perhaps as soon as this weekend or early next week.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Playing time trending up
Rotowire
McKinstry will start at shortstop and bat seventh in Sunday's game against the Giants.
McKinstry will be filling in for a resting Javier Baez on Sunday, but the 29-year-old McKinstry could begin to gain more traction in a regular role in the outfield after Wenceel Perez (oblique) joined Riley Greene (hamstring) on the injured list Saturday. The utility man is included in the lineup Sunday for the sixth time in seven games and has picked up starts at shortstop, second base, third base and in left field during that stretch. He's getting on base at a .348 clip since the beginning of August.
... See More... See Less
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Reaches three times in win
Rotowire
McKinstry went 2-for-4 with a stolen base in Wednesday's win over Seattle.
McKinstry walked in his first trip to the plate and later added an infield single in the top of the eighth before stealing his ninth base of the campaign. The second baseman reached three times on the night while posting his first multi-hit performance since July 13 against the Dodgers. McKinstry has now hit safely in each of his last four games and is batting .313 (5-for-16) to open the month of August.
McKinstry will start at third base and bat sixth in Thursday's game against the Guardians, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.
Even with Javier Baez (back) returning from the injured list Monday, McKinstry has been able to retain a near-everyday role in the Detroit infield, at least against right-handed pitching. McKinstry will draw his fifth consecutive start Thursday, with the 29-year-old having picked up three starts at third base and two at shortstop during that span. Third base could end up being the primary home for McKinstry if he hits well enough to retain a regular spot in the lineup, as Matt Vierling is capable of filling in as an outfielder while Parker Meadows (hamstring) is on the shelf.
