Evans' three-year contract expired after the 1986 season, and the Tigers decided not to offer him a contract to avoid triggering Evans' arbitration rights. No other teams made offers to Evans, and in late February 1987, he signed a one-year contract with the Tigers; the contract cut his salary by $200,000 to between $500,000 and $550,000. During the 1987 season, Evans appeared in 150 games for the Tigers, including 105 at first base and 44 as the designated hitter. He drew 100 walks in 1987, fourth most in the American League, pumping his on-base percentage to .379, his highest since 1974. He also hit 34 home runs, had 99 RBIs (second most in his career), and finished 12th in the voting for the American League Most Valuable Player Award. In the 1987 American League Championship Series, he compiled a .294 batting average and .455 on-base percentage. However, he was also picked off at third base in the fourth game of the ALCS, "hammering the final nail" into the Tigers' defeat.