The Detroit Tigers improved to 6-2 on the season with a 5-3 victory over the Minnesota Twins today at Comerica Park, and overtook the Twins for first in the divison.
The game’s highlight came from Tigers utility man Andrew Romine, who blasted his first career grand-slam in the bottom of the 4th inning. The milestone hit gave the Tigers a 5-3 lead after having they had been trailing 3-1.
In addition to the adoration from his teammates and the fans in the stands at Comerica Park, Romine received a more unusual reward following the game — he was informed that he’d been randomly selected to undergo a drug test.
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“Immediately when I walked in, it was, ‘You got a drug test,’” Romine said while speaking to the media after the test concluded.
The timing of the drug testing certainly is coincidental. In addition to his first career grand-slam, Romine is currently playing some of the best baseball of his career. He’s 6-for-11 (.545 AVG) on the young campaign. However, MLB drug testing is completely random, and every player is tested multiple times.
Entering Wednesday afternoon’s game, Romine had hit six career home runs in 390 career MLB games, with his career high in a season being two.
Photo Credit: Bryan Green/FlickrIn addition to the random drug testing, Romine also met with the fan who caught the milestone ball. It’s a souvenir that Romine wanted back, and he plans to display it in his bedroom as a daily reminder of what he accomplished. Of course, Romine made sure the fan didn’t leave empty handed.
“The guy was nice enough to come down, we took some pictures,” Romine said. “I gave him a bat and a ball, talked to him and hung out for a little bit.”
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The meeting with the fan also took priority for Romine over the drug test, which he did immediately afterward.
“I went and talked to the guy first before I headed in there to do the drug test,” Romine said.
It was a monster shot, and exactly what the Tigers need. Congrats on the grand slam, Andrew!
