DETROIT — Jordy Mercer capped a six-run comeback with a game-winning single off Chance Adams in the ninth inning, as the Detroit Tigers overcame another onslaught by the Yankees in a 12-11 victory on Tuesday night.
Brett Gardner and Didi Gregorius each homered twice, and Gleyber Torres and Edwin Encarnación also went deep for the Yankees, whose 276 homers tied Minnesota for the major league lead.
New York (95-51) led Detroit (43-100) 6-0 in the second inning. But the Tigers tied the score with six in the third, aided by an error by the second baseman Torres, who dropped a throw from Gregorius on what appeared to be an inning-ending double play. Christin Stewart followed with a sacrifice fly, Travis Demeritte added an R.B.I. single and Grayson Greiner hit a two-run single.
Greiner doubled with one out in the ninth off Adams (1-1) and Mercer’s single to right-center scored pinch-runner Willi Castro.
New York built the lead off Edwin Jackson as Gardner had a solo homer in the first and hit a two-run drive to cap a five-run second that included Mike Ford’s R.B.I. single and Tyler Wade’s two-run triple.
Solo homers by Torres in the fourth and Gregorius in the fifth off Tyler Alexander put the Yankees ahead, 8-6, but the Tigers burst to a 10-8 lead when Stewart hit a solo homer off Cessa in the fifth, then Miguel Cabrera had a sacrifice fly against Cory Gearrin in the sixth and Jeimer Candelario followed with a two-run single.
Encarnacion tied the score in the seventh off John Schreiber, and Gregorius homered off Daniel Stumpf for an 11-10 lead.
Mercer walked against Adam Ottavino in the bottom half, advanced on Gary Sánchez’s seventh passed ball this season and scored on Harold Castro’s single.