At the end of the 1919 season, the Bronchos sold Hale to the Detroit Tigers. Prior to reporting to spring practice with the Tigers in Macon, Georgia, Hale "had never been outside the Lone Star State before." Hale made his major league debut on April 20, 1920, and appeared in 76 games for the 1920 Tigers, mostly as a pinch-hitter but also in 16 games at third base and five games in center field. He compiled a .293 batting average, and he led the American League in 1920 in both pinch hits and at bats as a pinch hitter, tallying 17 hits in 52 pinch-hit at bats.