Tigers' Krizan states case with authority
Jason Krizan could have walked away from the Tigers after the 2017 season. An eighth-round pick in 2011 from Dallas Baptist, he had reached Triple-A the past three seasons, only to get passed over for promotion.But Krizan doesn't seem ready to go without a fight. To that end, the designated
But Krizan doesn't seem ready to go without a fight. To that end, the designated hitter homered twice, doubled twice and drove in six runs as Triple-A Toledo routed Indianapolis, 13-3, on Monday at Victory Field.
In doing so, Krizan became the first Mud Hens player to plate at least six runs since
Krizan could always hit. He set an NCAA Division I record in 2011 with 37 doubles and set a DBU mark with a 39-game hit streak. But two homers, six RBIs? Nope.
"Not in pro ball," he said. "After I hit the second double off the wall, I talked to [manager] Doug [Mientkiewicz] and he said, "Good hit." I said, 'I want another homer,' because I had never done that in professional ball. He laughed and said, 'Well, you know what Manny [Ramirez] says. Everybody can hit one.'"
Krizan is not known for his power -- nine homers in 2016 stand as his career high -- and he was just going with his normal approach Monday.
"I wasn't trying to hit home runs tonight or anything like that," he said. "I've always been a gap-to-gap guy. I was just trying to hit a ball up the middle and they just flew out. I hit the home runs to the short part of right field."
Gameday box score
The left-handed hitter went yard off Indians right-hander
Espinal, who hit .323 for Indianapolis in 2017, collected three singles and drove in three runs to back 25-year-old right-hander
It was the worst loss for the Indians in the history of the series between the clubs.
Krizan, who will turn 29 on June 28, became a free agent after the season, only to return on a Minor League deal. He looked around, but ultimately decided to return to the only organization he knows.
"At the end of the day, the Tigers were really the only team I felt comfortable coming back to," he said. "The bonus was with the coaching staff and a new manager at Triple-A. It was like coming to a new team."
He clearly isn't ready to say goodbye to the Tigers or baseball.
"Getting to the big leagues is always the No. 1 goal," the native of Austin, Texas said. "I've always been huge on getting to the big leagues. That's the ultimate goal in baseball. I think an opportunity's going to arise."
Vince Lara-Cinisomo is a contributor to MiLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @vincelara.