2010 DETROIT TIGER SCHEDULE AND RESULTS

Scherzer bears down on Jays for victory
Right-hander fans eight; Peralta, Laird go yard in six-run fourth

By James Hall / MLB.com

08/26/10 11:58 PM ET

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TORONTO -- When you're working with half your arsenal, you're going to be half the pitcher.

According to Tigers manager Jim Leyland, that's exactly what starting pitcher Max Scherzer was coping with earlier this season. He was showing up to duel without his pistol fully loaded.

Thankfully for both Scherzer and the Tigers, the right-hander has since curbed this trend, and after being recalled from Triple-A Toledo at the end of May, he has shown complete dominance over his fastball, changeup and slider. To boot, he's mastered pitching inside with conviction.

Using eight outstanding innings from the new-and-improved Scherzer -- and a big six-run fourth inning, which included home runs from Jhonny Peralta and Gerald Laird -- the Tigers were able to glide past the Blue Jays, 7-1, on Thursday night at Rogers Centre.

Entering Thursday riding consecutive wins, Scherzer picked right up where he left off. The St. Louis native cruised through his first six innings, allowing just four hits and one walk, while mowing down five Jays.

His one and only blemish of the night came in the seventh, when Major League home run leader Jose Bautista rung a solo blast off the foul pole in left -- his 41st of the season.

"I think I threw the ball pretty well tonight," Scherzer said. "I can live with a solo bomb."

All in all, the righty went eight innings, surrendering six hits and the lone run to Bautista. He tossed in eight punchouts and pushed his season record over the .500 threshold (10-9) for the first time all year.

Since June 15, Scherzer has posted a 1.85 ERA with an 8-3 mark -- an improvement Leyland doesn't need stats to see.

"I think he has an air about him now," Leyland said. "I think it was a little bit strange for him coming over from a different league. I think he wasn't sure what to expect. I think he figured something out.

"The key for Scherzer has been -- he's pitching with three pitches now. He was pitching with 1 1/2 pitches early in the season ... he's pitching with three pitches now. He's also got the ability to have a little extra in the tank when he needs it."

Leyland said that Scherzer had the fastball and a half-decent changeup. With his evolution has blossomed a plus fastball (which hit upwards of 95 mph in the eighth), a solid changeup and a put-away slider.

"I needed all my pitches all night," Scherzer said. "Didn't throw my slider as well as I am able to, [but] made up with a couple of good changeups tonight. Obviously, pitching everywhere with the fastball and throwing a good changeup allowed me to have success tonight."

Scherzer, who admittedly tends to "dial it up" when his team piles on the run support, was able to turn his dial up after the Tigers' red-hot offense -- 50 runs over their past seven games -- broke out for a six-run fourth off Ricky Romero.

After a leadoff single to Ramon Santiago, Johnny Damon walked to put runners on first and second. Miguel Cabrera then flew out to center field, advancing Santiago to third on the play. In what should have been the second out of the inning, Ryan Raburn hit a soft ground ball to third, but Edwin Encarnacion was unable to catch Damon sliding into second, throwing the ball into right field and allowing Santiago to trot home.

With one out still in the inning and runners on third and first, Peralta -- who also added an RBI walk in the seventh -- launched a three-run shot deep to left field -- his 13th of the season.

The offensive assault did not stop there. With two outs, Casper Wells, playing in just his seventh career game, walked to keep the inning alive. Laird, taking advantage of a laboring Romero, took a 2-0 offering into the left-field seats.

"I'm tickled for him," Leyland said of Laird. "Tough situation yesterday [hitting into a game-ending double play in extra innings], but he bounced back tonight and hit a big home run for us. It's nice to see things happen to people who work hard and try hard. I think he's been pressing all year for the most part, so it's nice to see him get some rewards here. It was a big home run for us. I was thrilled for Gerald."

With the game virtually out of reach in the ninth, Cabrera had a special moment of his own. The slugger hit his 40th double of the season, making him only the fourth Tiger to have at least 40 doubles and 30 home runs in a season. The others to have accomplished the feat are: Hank Greenberg (1935, '37, '39 and '40), Rudy York ('40) and Bobby Higginson ('00).

Despite Cabrera's milestone, and a solid performance from the Tigers' offense and defense, the night belonged to Scherzer -- and his effort to keep Detroit's playoff hopes on life support.

"It's good whenever you have a guy that's going to toe the rubber and take it to the other team," Laird said of Scherzer. "Win or lose, he's going to still be confident and go out there as best he can.

"It's just fun having a guy that you know is going to be a bulldog out there."

James Hall is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Rally, chances wasted in loss to Jays
Tigers send game into extras, strand 16 runners on base

By James Hall / MLB.com

08/28/10 1:20 AM ET

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TORONTO -- One hit, one pitch, one inch -- that's all the Tigers needed Friday night at Rogers Centre.

Amidst the squandered scoring opportunities, the lack of execution, and the one dart that continued to haunt starting pitcher Justin Verlander 30 minutes after the game ended, all the Tigers needed was one thing to go their way.

But you can't always get what you want.

The Tigers staged a ninth-inning rally to force extra innings, but could not overcome a series of early miscues, as they wasted a solid pitching performance from Verlander, falling to the Blue Jays, 3-2, in 11 innings.

After retiring Adam Lind to start what proved to be the final frame, reliever Phil Coke allowed John Buck and Fred Lewis to reach base. Aaron Hill, played hero for the Jays and what remained of the 20,298 in attendance, hitting a soft single into right-center for the game's decisive run.

That's how the curtains closed for the Tigers, but the stage was set long before.

The Tigers' offense, entering the contest with 50 runs over its past seven games, could not clutch-up all night. The club ended the first, second, fifth, sixth, seventh, ninth, and 10th innings with at least two runners on base -- finishing the night 1-for-16 with runners in scoring position.

"Holy crap," Tigers outfielder Johnny Damon said, briefly covering his face after the statistic sunk in.

Manager Jim Leyland, sharing Damon's opinion, conveyed his disappointment with a tad more elegance.

"We've been doing a good job recently, we just didn't do it tonight," he said. "We were looking for a big hit, but couldn't get it. We're going to look back at this game at all the missed opportunities -- a big hit here or there. Good ballgame. Very good ballgame."

Down a run entering the ninth, things looked like they were turning around for the Tigers. Outfielder Austin Jackson led off the inning with a triple to left-center off closer Kevin Gregg. After retiring Ryan Raburn on six pitches, Gregg allowed Damon's 3-2 hit through the infield to tie the game. Still with one out, Miguel Cabrera singled on a ground ball to left-field to put runners on first and second.

But Gregg averted this threat, getting Ramon Santiago to line out and Jhonny Peralta to hit into a force at third.

The Tigers mustered another late push in the 10th. Capitalizing on a Yunel Escobar fielding error, Detroit loaded the bases with two outs -- once again looking for Damon to come through.

The hope was all for naught. Damon, following a pitch he ripped just inches foul down the right-field line, flied out to ice another rally.

"About a baseball width," Damon said of how close he was to putting his team ahead. "I had a decent pitch to hit on the next one and I was thinking changeup away or something away and he threw a slider that jammed me just a little bit. That's the tough thing about this game sometimes."

Building off an outstanding outing against the Indians on Sunday, Verlander looked sharp for the Tigers. The right-hander's only two blemishes were a pair of solo home runs to Jose Bautista in the fourth -- his Major League-leading 42nd of the year -- and Lind in the seventh. Verlander had only given up two long balls in a game twice this season heading into Friday, the last time coming June 16.

In a performance Leyland said was "one of the better game's he's pitched all year," Verlander went eight innings, allowing two runs on five hits, while striking out eight Blue Jays. But he remained fixated on the fastball to Lind.

"Both mistakes, especially the one to Lind," Verlander said. "Bautista: I was trying to go down and away there, it came back to the middle and I'm all right with that. The one to Lind, 2-0: I can't really make a mistake up in the zone. Obviously, this is a team that hits home runs. A fastball in a fastball count that's up in the zone -- a team like this team has a chance to do some damage with it and he did."

Apart from the ninth-inning rally, the Tigers' only other run came courtesy of the long ball. Cabrera hit his 32nd home run of the year, a solo shot in the sixth, off Blue Jays starter Shaun Marcum.

With the Tigers treading water in the American League Central, Verlander had a difficult time savoring his strong showing.

"How good can you feel? Our team lost," Verlander said. "That's what it comes down to. You have to win baseball games."

James Hall is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Team RISP: 1-for-16.
Team LOB: 16.

How the do you expect to win with this poor stat!!!

Tigers' bats come to life too late

By James Hall / MLB.com

08/28/10 7:15 PM ET

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TORONTO -- It is the little things in baseball that make the game so great. But it is those same small details that can haunt managers hours after a game's ended.

Aside from the lack of early production, a rough first frame from rookie starter Alfredo Figaro, and a squandered ninth-inning push from the Tigers offense -- all of which helped to bury the Tigers, 5-4, on Saturday afternoon at Rogers Centre -- there was one play that manager Jim Leyland described as "unacceptable," -- a play, unlike everything else that went wrong, that he just couldn't wrap his head around.

With fans still trickling into the ballpark in the top of the first inning, the series of unfortunate events began on a high note. Leadoff hitter Will Rhymes worked a 3-2 count against Blue Jays starter Brandon Morrow, lacing a double just inside the third-base line -- a good omen, right?

Ramon Santiago, the next batter, immediately nixed the momentum, frustrating Leyland.

Attempting to lay down a routine sacrifice to advance Rhymes, Santiago squared up to bunt the first Morrow offering he saw. Unfortunately for the Tigers, Santiago put the barrel of his bat well above his eyes, popping up the ball just in front of the pitcher's mound.

Hesitant as to whether Morrow would catch the baseball, Rymes found himself caught between second and third. Morrow, scooping the ball off the turf, instinctively fired to third base where a rundown ensued. Not only did the Jays catch Rhymes, but they also tagged Santiago trying to reach second, an unconventional double play.

"It all started by bunting a ball that was over [his] head," an exasperated Leyland said. "You can't make those mistakes. That's just poor concentration. That's all it is.

"That didn't look like much of a play for eight innings, but in the ninth inning, that's a big play."

As it did on Friday night, the Tigers' dormant offense awoke in the final frame.

Trailing by four runs and facing left-handed reliever Scott Downs, pinch-hitter Austin Jackson started the inning by taking an 0-2 fastball off his inner thigh. Ryan Raburn followed with a ground-rule double to put both runners in scoring position.

After Brandon Inge whiffed, Leyand used Jhonny Peralta in lieu of left-handed hitter Don Kelly. Pitching tentatively to Peralta, Downs walked the pinch-hitter to load the bases.

Alex Avila grounded out to drive in one run, prompting Jays manager Cito Gaston to put closer Kevin Gregg in the game. The change didn't matter to Casper Wells, who doubled to drive in two more runs and cut the lead to 1.

Despite the momentum swinging in their favor, the last-ditch effort proved to be all smoke and no fire, as Gregg struck out Santiago to put the game in the books.

Making his first big league start of the season in place of the injured Jeremy Bonderman, Figaro struggled out of the gate. The right-hander allowed the first three Blue Jays he saw to reach base, resulting in a devastating three-run opening frame. The Jays added two more runs, both attributed to Figaro, in the third and sixth innings.

"He's got to get the ball down better," Leyland said of the youngster. "A lot of what they hit was up. Throwing over the middle of the plate, those are bad pitches; [he] can't do that. He's got to improve his breaking ball. He threw a couple good changeups, [and] he certainly didn't embarrass himself."

Like sharks, the Jays could smell fresh blood.

"We came out of the gates against a guy who doesn't have a lot of experience, so you want to jump on somebody like that," Morrow said. "We got three early, and I was able to hold them off."

Morrow was electric for the Jays all afternoon. The right-hander, who has carried a 2.08 ERA through his last 12 starts at Rogers Centre, went six innings, allowing four hits while fanning nine Tigers. His only blemish was a second-deck solo blast from Miguel Cabrera in the second.

"He has almost like a rising, riding fastball," Inge said. "The way he turns, he hides it well, so it looks a lot harder than it is. Then he's got a slider that looks exactly like his fastball, so it's good deception. It makes him very tough. I've faced No. 1 starters on certain teams that weren't as good as him. He's got great stuff."

With Morrow not showing much daylight, Leyland could only sit back and stew on what could have been, especially in regard to the first inning.

"We bunted a ball a foot over our head; that's just poor concentration," Leyland said. "That's just not acceptable. I'm sorry, that's unacceptable."

James Hall is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Tigers notch confidence-building win

By James Hall / MLB.com

08/29/10 6:24 PM ET

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TORONTO -- It was a familiar scene and an all-too-familiar message.

Tigers manager Jim Leyland leaned back in his office chair, paused for a moment to acknowledge the room and delivered the words, "Confidence goes hand-in-hand with success."

While the age-old adage could have come across as just another cliche, the context in which it was offered could not have been more appropriate.

Behind outstanding performances from Tigers starter Rick Porcello and outfielder Ryan Raburn -- two players only beginning to establish themselves at the Major League level -- the Tigers cruised past the Blue Jays, 10-4, on Sunday afternoon at Rogers Centre, splitting their four-game series against Toronto.

Returning to the site where he made his big league debut on April 9, 2009, Porcello turned in nothing short of an impressive sequel. In his first go-around, the Blue Jays tagged the young right-hander for four runs on nine hits, chasing him from the game after just five innings.

Having gained more than a full year of experience and coming off a seven-inning shutout vs. the Royals, the 21-year old looked like a pitcher poised beyond his years on Sunday. Porcello retired the first 11 batters he faced before Jose Bautista singled in the fourth to dissolve the early no-hit bid.

"It crossed my mind," said Leyland, referring to the possibility of a no-no on a day when the Jays were commemorating Dave Steib's no-hitter in 1990.

Porcello, unfazed after the hit, cruised through the fifth before allowing a solo shot to John McDonald with one out in the next frame, his only blemish on the afternoon.

All in all, the 21-year-old, who has allowed a grand total of five hits over his last two starts, went seven innings, recording four strikeouts for his seventh win of the season -- not bad for a guy whose name was misspelled atop his locker.

The victory also marked the first time all year Porcello has earned back-to-back wins.

"I just think he's got his confidence more," Leyland said. "I think he had a bit of an air about him when he took the mound today. I thought he had a real good presence about him.

"When you have a good look about you and a good demeanor, and it's a sincere demeanor, then normally you're pretty good. When you're trying to fool yourself or someone else, that usually doesn't work, and you can usually tell the difference."

The Tigers' starter attributed his slider, along with getting ahead in the count, as his recipe for success.

"I was able to find my slider pretty early, and I think that was the biggest thing," Porcello said. "They are such a good fastball-hitting team, I knew going in I had to have a good offspeed pitch, whether it was my changeup or my slider."

The Tigers' offense, which struggled in the first three games of the series to get on the board in the early innings, pounced on Blue Jays starter Marc Rzepczynski, who was celebrating his 25th birthday, in the first frame. Miguel Cabrera laced a two-out double, plating Will Rhymes for the game's first tally.

The Tigers capitalized on an Aaron Hill fielding error in the fourth, as Casper Wells singled to score Jhonny Peralta. The offense continued to provide Porcello with run support thereafter, putting up two in the sixth on Wells' two-run double, and three in the seventh, on a solo shot from Raburn and Brandon Inge's two-run homer.

Raburn added another home run, a three-run shot, in the eighth to put the game out of reach.

"[Raburn's] starting to understand that he belongs up here," Leyland said. "Like I've said many times, if he thought as much of himself as we thought of him, he'd be a real good player."

Raburn, who is currently just one at-bat shy of his 2009 total, has hit a fantastic .323 with eight home runs and 21 RBIs in August. Playing on a near-daily basis has made a big difference.

"When you're in there pretty regularly, you can kind of put at-bats behind you, knowing you're going to be out there the next day," Raburn said. "Not having to worry ... [about] not knowing when you're going to get your next opportunity -- that helps a lot. It's just a comfort thing. I'm relaxed. I'm not worried about what's going to happen; [I'm] just going out there and trying to get good pitches to hit. Right now, they're just finding holes."

The Jays staged a ninth-inning rally, with Adam Lind tagging a three-run shot off Jose Valverde. That's as close as they came, however, as Valverde retired Hill to end the game.

"It was good to see us come out and kind of jump out there early today," Inge said. "That's something we've kind of needed to do, get early runs. Get some confidence and let our pitchers just kind of do their thing. After we got a few runs, that's what Porcello did -- an unbelievable job."

James Hall is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

In big spot, Tigers' bullpen slips up
Coke, Perry falter in seventh as Detroit's playoff hopes dwindle

By Jason Beck / MLB.com

09/01/10 1:56 AM ET

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MINNEAPOLIS -- The Tigers don't get ideal situations here against the Twins very often. Tuesday night was about as close as they could hope for -- a three-run lead after two innings, a one-run advantage after six with their bullpen set up the way manager Jim Leyland wanted it.

The 4-3 loss they suffered at game's end left them feeling about as frustrated as ever here. They gave up the tying run without the Twins putting a ball in play. They gave up the winning run with one more hit.

"See, that's not baseball," said reliever Phil Coke, who hit back-to-back batters with two outs to load the bases in the seventh. "That was just me stinking."

They were beaten for the sixth time in seven tries at Target Field, and they were beating themselves up for it afterwards.

"It's tough to lose this kind of game," Leyland said. "If they get hits and that, that's just part of it. But two of our outstanding relievers just didn't get the job done tonight. That's disappointing."

Or as Leyland put it seconds later, "That can't happen. It happened. That just can't happen."

The fact that it did happen typifies the way the Tigers have to feel their second half has unfolded. Just as they wrapped up their best offensive month of the season, something else goes astray on a given night.

They could've added on runs after scoring three times in the first two innings, all unearned thanks to Twins errors, but Brian Duensing thwarted a chance in the fourth before Matt Guerrier stranded runners at the corners in the seventh. But the way Armando Galarraga pitched for five-plus innings, it seemed like three runs would be enough.

When a bounce over the fence on Danny Valencia's two-out double prevented the tying run from scoring in the sixth, it seemed like maybe it was supposed to be enough. When Coke floated a nasty breaking ball past Orlando Hudson for the second out of the seventh after a leadoff walk to J.J. Hardy, he had retired the right-handed hitter he needed to set up the showdown he wanted, him against left-handed hitter Joe Mauer.

Coke pounded Mauer inside to keep him honest, put him in a 1-2 count, then used the fastball to set up the changeup he wanted to throw. It was a good pitch in a bad location.

"It actually just squirted out of my hand," Coke said. "As soon as it started coming out of my hand before I wanted it to, I knew that it wasn't going where it should. I think that, especially since he's never seen one off of me, I had him frozen if I put it where I wanted it to go. But it didn't work out that way."

He still had another left-handed hitter to face in Jason Kubel. And after a first-pitch ball, he had the chance to jam him on a fastball. Again, he just missed, nearly hitting the bat but instead only getting Kubel's left hand.

Coke (7-4) is used to being booed at opposing ballparks, actually relishes it sometimes. This wasn't one of them, because the boos weren't for his outs.

"I hate hitting batters," Coke said. "I would've rather given up a homer right there than hit somebody, because it makes me feel like it shows that I have no control. And I don't feel like that's the case, as far as not having control. I know I have control. Those particular pitches, I didn't, and it irks me beyond belief that I hit both of those guys, let alone that I walked Hardy."

Coke left in favor of Ryan Perry, who had gotten his share of key outs in August and was looking for the same on Michael Cuddyer. Instead, he could not find the strike zone, missing high for a four-pitch walk.

"Today, I felt good in the bullpen," Perry said. "Everything looked good in the bullpen. I just wasn't able to come in and execute. I don't know if I was too excited and started working too fast, but everything started elevating."

Perry hit the strike zone on his second pitch to Delmon Young, who grounded his next pitch through the right side to score Mauer. A strong throw from Casper Wells easily retired Kubel at home to keep the Twins' lead at a run, but it was enough for Minnesota's revamped bullpen to protect.

It was a familiar feeling for the Tigers here, not giving up much, but just enough. What was shaping up as a last-ditch effort by the Tigers to whittle their American League Central deficit back to single digits got off to a rocky start. Detroit fell 11 games behind Minnesota with two more games to play in the series.

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Scherzer's gem for naught as Twins walk off
Starter goes career-best nine innings but Perry loses it in 10th

By Jason Beck / MLB.com

09/02/10 1:28 AM ET

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MINNEAPOLIS -- The learning process for Max Scherzer is yielding big results. The learning process for other young Tigers this season will soon pay off, the team hopes.

Three months after Scherzer came back from Triple-A Toledo, he's performing like one of the toughest pitchers in the league. After nine innings of one-run ball Wednesday night, the Twins might be believers. But Scherzer can't produce offense for Detroit, which denied him a chance at a victory.

Once the Twins got Scherzer out of the game in the 10th inning, it denied the Tigers a chance, too. As Detroit lamented its second one-run loss to Minnesota in as many nights, this one a 2-1 decision on Danny Valencia's RBI single, they have to look at the learning process and hope it yields better times down the road.

"We're playing a lot of young players," said manager Jim Leyland, "and in big situations, they don't give in and the pitcher doesn't give in, and it's tough for young players in those situations. They press a little bit. We've got them throughout the lineup, and that's going to happen. But we just have to keep grinding. They'll learn. At some point in their careers, they'll learn how to knock in runs. But it takes time."

They have Jhonny Peralta providing clutch hits, but he's only one of nine. As he agreed, it takes time.

"People learn," Peralta said. "I know sometimes for young guys, it's hard to be in that situation. You need time to learn how to be patient at the plate."

Since Scherzer returned from the Minor Leagues at the end of May, his 2.20 ERA entering the night ranked second among American League starters. His 1.85 ERA since the All-Star break ranked fifth in the Majors. Both of those took another tick lower.

"I think he's the best pitcher in the American League, right now, hands down," said catcher Gerald Laird. "I mean, I don't think anybody can name anybody better since the All-Star break, since even being called up from Triple-A."

His two-start stint with the Mud Hens allowed him to make the mechanical tweak he needed to regain control of his pitches. Start by start since then, he has made improvements to gain both better movement and more consistency.

When he returned to the big leagues May 30 with 14 strikeouts against Oakland, he had nasty stuf but struggled to finish off hitters, resulting in 113 pitches over 5 2/3 innings. When he took a no-hit bid into the sixth inning at Tampa Bay just over a month ago, he was similarly stingy but battled command, walking four batters and giving up a Matt Joyce grand slam.

Not only did Scherzer hold the Twins hitless until Delmon Young's double led off the fifth, he struck out six of Minnesota's first 10 hitters. He fanned four consecutive batters in the second and third innings, then rebounded from a Brennan Boesch dropped fly ball to fan Denard Span.

The lone run he allowed came on a rare sacrifice fly double play in the fifth, and he scattered two singles and a walk from there. He didn't throw his 100th pitch until Jim Thome came up to pinch-hit with two outs in the ninth.

"He was a lot different from the first couple times we faced him this year," said Michael Cuddyer, who watched a third strike from him in the seventh with a runner on first. "His stuff was the same -- he always had great stuff -- but he was locating, keeping the ball down."

Scherzer has three out pitches going, and he isn't afraid to use them. When he gets into 0-2 counts, he doesn't throw away pitches. He wants to be aggressive, he said, but he wants to be aggressive with the right pitch.

His pitches lately give him a few choices.

"His changeup is really good, his slider is really good and his fastball was popping," said Twins manager Ron Gardenhire.

All that he lacked was a lead to protect. It wasn't for a lack of trying.

Through 4 1/2 innings, the Tigers had seven baserunners off Francisco Liriano to the Twins' one off Scherzer. Neither team had a run, thanks in part to a pair of Tigers doubled off first base.

A hit-by-pitch to Ramon Santiago and Boesch's single gave Detroit runners on second and third with one out in the third, but Liriano caught Austin Jackson looking at a third strike before overpowering Will Rhymes on a groundout to short. Another scoring chance, this one with runners at first and second and one out in the fourth, was thwarted when Liriano fanned Brandon Inge and induced a Santiago groundout.

Boesch was doubled off on a Laird lineout in the fifth, one pitch before Jackson doubled into the gap in left-center field. Liriano stranded Jackson by shattering Rhymes' bat on a groundout to first, starting him on a string of six consecutive batters retired.

The Tigers' lone run came from someone who's showing as many clutch at-bats as anyone. With Jackson on second following a leadoff single and Ryan Raburn having struck out against lefty Randy Flores, Matt Guerrier gave up a two-out walk to Miguel Cabrera that extended the inning for Peralta.

Peralta got a pitch over the plate, and provided a simple line drive to left to plate Jackson and give the Tigers new life.

"With a guy in scoring position late in the game, I know how I need to approach," Peralta said. "To me, it's natural. I try to patient at home plate and try to look for one pitch. I try to look for contact. In that situation, you don't swing too hard. Try for contract. That's my key right there."

Scherzer escaped the ninth with a Mauer flyout. He was at 106 pitches, and said he had enough left in him for the 10th, but Leyland didn't like the idea of having to lift him in trouble.

One night after Perry walked in the tying run and gave up the go-ahead hit, Cuddyer's leadoff single set Minnesota's offense in motion. Perry struck out Young after a 3-0 count, but Cuddyer swiped second on the play, setting up Valencia for the game-winning single once he ran the count full.

"It was one of the best games I've thrown in the big leagues, and it doesn't feel right," Scherzer said. "We didn't win. I'm so tied to how this team does and my teammates. When we don't come away with wins, it doesn't feel right. That's what kind of stinks about it. Even though I threw the ball well, we didn't win."

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Laird's 13th-inning blast gives Tigers win
Late homer caps furious comeback vs. Twins in finale

By Jason Beck / MLB.com

09/03/10 3:07 AM ET

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MINNEAPOLIS -- Somewhere along the course of Thursday night, as the Tigers and Twins traded runs and swapped opportunities, the memory of Game 163 last year had to creep into some minds. It wasn't about what they were playing for Thursday, but who were playing and how they were playing them.

"Those are two of the toughest battles I've had in baseball," an exhausted Brandon Inge said, "and they've both been against this team at their home stadium."

Unlike last year's American League Central tiebreaker, the fact that the Tigers pulled out this 13-inning affair in a 10-9 saga doesn't change where the Tigers are going. They just arrived in Kansas City a little later than scheduled Friday morning and conducted their fantasy football draft on the plane. And at 11 games out in the AL Central, the postseason ramifications aren't nearly as great -- not for the Tigers, anyway, though the Twins have some issues heading into a critical weekend series with the Rangers.

This doesn't send the Tigers anywhere, but they hope it says something about where they're headed beyond this year.

"I think if anybody saw the way our club battled tonight, energy is not a problem," manager Jim Leyland said. "Anybody that thinks we've packed it in, they're crazy. I mean, we don't have ourselves in a very good position, but we're going to play the game hard the rest of the way out, no matter who we play. And I think that would question energy and effort on this team is crazy. I think you saw that tonight.

"I'm awful proud of them. I don't like the results all the time. Sometimes we're just not good enough. But that was pretty impressive tonight."

Detroit was four outs away from being swept out of the Twin Cities when rookie Will Rhymes' two-out, two-run single completed a four-run comeback in the eighth inning. They were three outs away from that fate again in the ninth when Casper Wells' first Major League home run sent them into extra innings.

After trading runs in the 11th, Minnesota's tally coming after two double-play balls turned into an Inge error and a single out from Rhymes, it took a 13th-inning homer from Gerald Laird -- who had entered as a pinch-hitter to lay down a sacrifice bunt in the 11th -- and a third inning of relief from closer Jose Valverde to put Detroit up for good.

The Tigers have a far greater concern coming out of the series with slugger Miguel Cabrera, who left the game with biceps tendinitis in his left shoulder. Yet they somehow mounted their comeback after he was gone. They ended the game with Jhonny Peralta playing first base for the first time in his life, with 14-year Minor League veteran Max St. Pierre as their last remaining bench player and with Friday's scheduled starting pitcher, Jeremy Bonderman, prepared to warm up if the game went any longer.

But hey, Minnesota's scheduled starter for Friday, Nick Blackburn, took the loss Thursday.

"That's a heck of a win," Leyland said. "It wasn't the prettiest of games, obviously."

The numbers were astounding -- 34 combined hits, 25 runners left on base, 15 pitches used, four errors, a few other ground balls mishandled,and 4 hours, 47 minutes of baseball.

All 15 Twins hits were singles. All five home runs came from the Tigers, the first team to do that at Target Field. The last of them came from Laird, his fifth homer of the season and his second at the ballpark, which gives him more homers at Target Field than All-Star Joe Mauer.

"It was a real funny game tonight," Laird said. "You've got [Ryan] Raburn coming off the bench and gets three hits. You've got Wells coming off the bench to get a couple hits and a homer. It was just a weird night. It's just one of those games where everybody contributed and we used a lot of pitchers. It was just an all-out team effort. It was a nice win."

Laird entered the game as a pinch-hitter to lay down a sacrifice bunt after Raburn's 11th-inning single gave Detroit its first lead since the second inning. He had a longer night than planned once a Jose Valverde leadoff walk, an Alexi Casilla single, Inge's error and a Rhymes bobble helped Minnesota tie it again in the bottom half and hand a blown save to Valverde.

"They missed double play chances, we missed double play chances," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "A lot of crazy things happened in the game after that and that's why you end up having to figure out some crazy things here and using all kinds of pitchers. "

Not only did Valverde stay in for the 12th, he actually pitched better as the game went on. He was helped by an impressive grab by Peralta at first.

"It's kind of similar [to third base]," Peralta said, "but I think it's a little bit busy."

Laird came back up in the 13th against Blackburn (8-9) and sent a drive deep to left.

"I knew I hit it good," Laird said, "but I know in this ballpark the ball doesn't necessarily carry that way at night. I was just running and blowing, trying to see if I could get it over."

Had Detroit not taken the lead that inning, Leyland said, Valverde would've been out, Daniel Schlereth would've been in, and Bonderman would've been warming up. Instead, Valverde (2-3) retired the side in the bottom half to finish off his third inning of work.

With all those pitchers, perhaps it was fitting that the one perfect inning of relief came from Tigers rookie Robbie Weinhardt, whose mother Diana works at the Minnesota Zoo. Among the areas under her direction, fittingly, is the tiger exhibit. Two of the tigers were reportedly born at the Detroit Zoo.

She was in the stands Thursday to watch her son star in a game that had to feel like a zoo.

Or as Wells put it, "It was like a ping-pong match."

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Rhymes main reason as Tigers win in 11
Two-run triple highlights four-run frame to best Royals

By Robert Falkoff / Special to MLB.com

09/04/10 1:55 AM ET

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KANSAS CITY -- The Tigers are 11 games back in the American League Central, but they're refusing to go gently into these September nights.

The resiliency they showed on Thursday in Minnesota carried over to Friday in Kansas City, when the Tigers broke a tie on Will Rhymes' two-run triple in the 11th inning en route to a 9-5 victory.

Never mind that Miguel Cabrera didn't play, Austin Jackson didn't start and relievers Jose Valverde and Phil Coke weren't available. The Tigers just kept scrapping and found a way, even though they had to dig out of an early 4-0 hole against Royals ace Zack Greinke.

"We were concerned in the fourth inning about a no-hitter," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "That's how good we thought [Greinke] was throwing. I don't know if he got tired. It didn't look like it, because he was throwing great. But we were fortunate to find some holes and get back into it."

The Tigers put together a four-run rally while knocking out Greinke in the seventh. Ryan Raburn and Alex Gordon hit solo homers in the eighth and then Rhymes delivered the definitive blow in the 11th off reliever Jesse Chavez.

"We needed a big hit," Rhymes said. "We didn't need to go any further in that game."

Not after 24 innings of baseball in a two-night span, with a late-night airplane trip spliced in for good measure.

The Tigers got something going in the 11th when Alex Avila had a one-out single and Casper Wells reached on an error by third baseman Josh Fields. That miscue by Fields was the kind of break Detroit needed.

Fields was just activated on Wednesday after being sidelined since Spring Training because of hip surgery.

"I definitely played it into a lot harder ball than it should have been," Fields said.

Rhymes made the Royals pay in a big way. His drive to the alley in right-center came after going hitless in his first four at-bats.

"It has been a long couple of days, but we found a way to come out on top and it was worth it," Rhymes said. "It was worth all those innings."

The Tigers padded their lead thanks to Raburn's RBI single and a perfectly executed suicide-squeeze by Jackson. Reliever Ryan Perry closed it out with two perfect innings.

"Hopefully this will give him a little confidence," Leyland said. "I had the coaches talk to him a little bit. He got on top [of the ball] a little better tonight."

The way his players have picked each other up recently gives Leyland good vibes about the Tigers' future.

"You talk about 'team' and that's what we are," Leyland said. "You've got to use everybody and everybody has to contribute."

In the early going, with Greinke not allowing a hit until the fifth and Detroit starter Jeremy Bonderman struggling to find a groove, it seemed as though it wasn't going to be Detroit's night. But Bonderman steadied himself after allowing four runs in the second inning. The right-hander shrugged off the tough beginning and delivered 5 1/3 scoreless innings before he was lifted in the eighth.

"I was fighting myself until the third inning," Bonderman said. "I was having a hard time finding a rhythm and finding location. But I was finally able to do it."

Coming off a 13-inning game, Bonderman was intent on saving the bullpen early. But he walked the first two Royals hitters and allowed five hits in the second.

"It was frustrating," Bonderman said. "I was pretty much livid."

Whereas Bonderman got stronger as the game went on, Greinke eventually began to waver. A two-run single by Brandon Inge in the seventh and a run-scoring single by Avila made it 4-3 and brought Kansas City's bullpen into the equation.

Greinke didn't compliment himself the way the Tigers lauded him.

"I didn't really pitch great the whole game, so it just kind of evened out in the [seventh] inning," Greinke said.

Each man in the Detroit starting lineup, except veteran Johnny Damon, had at least one hit from the fifth inning through the 11th. But even though he didn't join the hit party, Damon enjoyed the win as much as anybody.

"It's definitely an exciting time to see some of our younger guys play," Damon said. "They've opened some eyes."

Robert Falkoff is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Jackson the catalyst as Tigers roll over KC

By Alan Eskew / Special to MLB.com

09/05/10 12:39 AM ET

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KANSAS CITY -- When Johnny Damon looks at Tigers teammate Austin Jackson, he sees a young version of himself.

Damon was 21 when he broke in with the Royals in 1995. Jackson, 23, had three hits -- including a home run and a single in the eighth to produce the go-ahead run -- as the Tigers topped the Royals 6-4 on Saturday night.

"At this stage of his career, I think he's better right now," Damon said. "I came up two years before him. Probably, when I was his age I was probably more ready. Obviously, my first two years it was, 'Oh my God, here I am let me see what I can do.'"

"He came up with the Yankees and deserved to have been called up when he was 21, and maybe he would have struggled a little bit at times then. But he's very polished. I'm looking for big things from him in September so he can lock down the Rookie of the Year [Award]."

Jackson is hitting .309 and tops AL rookies with 159 hits, the most by a Tigers rookie since Jake Wood's 171 in 1961. He also leads AL rookies with 89 runs, 30 doubles, nine triples and 21 stolen bases.

"I didn't know what my first year would be like," Jackson said. "I knew defensively I could play at this level. Hitting is one of the things I knew that I was going to have to make adjustments. The pitching up here is a lot better. Once they see you the second and third time around, they pitch you different."

His numbers certainly merit consideration for the American League Rookie of the Year Award.

"I would definitely think so," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "I would hope so. If he's not, they shouldn't have one. I'm not saying he should be it for sure, but if he's not in the top two or three, there is something wrong."

Jackson's single in the eighth scored Brennan Boesch, who was pinch-running for Max St. Pierre. St. Pierre had singled for his first Major League hit after 14 years in the Minors. Will Rhymes, who extended his career-high hitting streak to 12 games, scored the other run in the eighth on a passed ball.

Jackson's home run to lead off the fifth, which hiked the Tigers' lead to 4-2, was only his third of the season. After an April 25 home run, Jackson did not hit another one out until Aug. 17.

Miguel Cabrera doubled home Jackson, who led off the game with a walk, and Ryan Raburn in the first, and leads the league with 110 RBIs.

"I've been working for a long time to get to this level," Jackson said. "I couldn't ask for anything more. Everything seems to be falling in place. I would like to be better as a team."

If he thinks he's been working a long time to reach the Majors, it took St. Pierre 978 games in the Minors, beginning in 1997, before putting on a Major League uniform.

"It was even better than I thought," St. Pierre said. "The crowd stood up. It was an unbelievable feeling. I had to hold myself back not to cry. I said, 'I can't start crying here, they're going to think I'm a baby.' It took 14 years to get here, but I'd do it all over again."

In the sixth, St. Pierre was almost in tears -- after fouling a pitch off his knee. The trainer and Leyland came out to check him out.

"It hurt," he said. "It got the nerve right away and I couldn't put any weight on it. I went numb right away, it hit inside my knee. After I struck out and put my shin guards on, I felt all right."

After St. Pierre did a postgame television interview on the field, his teammates doused him with beer as he headed up the runway to the clubhouse.

"The guys kept waiting and waiting and they said, 'Come on Max, hurry up,'" Leyland said. "I said, 'Hurry up, it took him 14 years to get here, so he's not going to be here for awhile.' The guys had a good time with it. It was nice. I gave him the lineup card."

Damon doubled to start the third, advanced to third on a ground out and scored on a Jhonny Peralta sacrifice fly to left, giving Detroit a 3-0 lead.

The Royals came back to tie the game at 4, with Kila Ka'aihue driving in three runs with a two-out single in the third and a two-run homer in the sixth. Billy Butler singled home the other run in the third, as the Royals bunched four consecutive two-out singles off Rick Porcello.

Porcello went seven innings, giving up four runs on seven hits, to pick up his third straight victory and improve to 8-11.

"I thought he was good, real aggressive," Leyland said. "He kept the ball on the ground for the most part. I thought he pitched well. I think he got a little frustrated that one inning when they got those runs with two outs with an infield chopper and a little dunker. That's all part of the game, but he kept his composure pretty good."

Alan Eskew is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Last Updated: September 04. 2010 10:32PM
Max St-Pierre's first big league hit sparks Tigers' tiebreaking rally
Tom Gage / The Detroit News

Kansas City, Mo. -- Now the dream is complete.

Even when he got to the big leagues after 14 years in the minors, Max St-Pierre said he had one last step to go on his climb.

"The dream is complete when I get a hit," he said.

He got his hit Saturday night in the Tigers' 6-4 victory over the Royals -- and it was a huge one.

On a full count pitch with one out in the eighth, after he'd fallen in a 0-2 hole, St-Pierre singled to left in the fourth at-bat of his first start. As a keepsake, the ball was thrown to the dugout, where Johnny Damon made it look like he was throwing it into the stands.

But Damon, with sleight of hand, made a quick transfer with another ball he had in hand. St-Pierre will be able to save the ball forever -- along with the memory of what it led to.

Will Rhymes followed with a single, St-Pierre advancing to second. He came out of the game for Brennan Boesch, as a pinch-runner, at that point. Austin Jackson's single to right drove in Boesch with the tie-breaking run.

The Tigers soon added another on the first two passed balls.

Jackson had another fine game, both offensively and defensively. He hit his third home run in the fifth, ended up with three hits, and also made an outstanding catch in left-center to take extra bases away from Alex Gordon.

But with St-Pierre getting hugs in the dugout from his teammates, it was unmistakable which Tiger had a game he'll always remember.

Rick Porcello (8-11) ended up as the wining pitcher. But it took the two runs in the eighth for him to get the decision.

Everything was going well for him until Kila Ka'aihue took him deep for a game-tying two-run home run in the sixth.

Until then, the Tigers starter seemed to have the game pretty well in hand. After all, the Tigers had led from the first inning, and except for the two runs on a sequence of soft singles in the third, Porcello hadn't been touched by the Royals.

If anything, it seemed like a game in which the Tigers should have led by more than the maximum of three runs they did lead by.

For one thing, Miguel Cabrera stepped up in the first -- after missing Friday night's game with biceps tendonitis -- and quickly drilled a two-run double high off the wall in deep left center.

The Tigers made it 3-0 in the third off starter Bruce Chen on Jhonny Peralta's sacrifice fly. But they struggled to tack on runs after that.

Until St-Pierre got them started in the eighth.


From The Detroit News: http://www.detnews.com/article/20100904/SPORTS0104/9040407/1129/Max-St-Pierre-s-first-big-league-hit-sparks-Tigers--tiebreaking-rally#ixzz0ycVKB32O

Low-producing offense costs Tigers in KC
Detroit gets just three hits to back Galarraga; Wells goes yard

By Robert Falkoff / Special to MLB.com

09/05/10 7:36 PM ET

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KANSAS CITY -- Sometimes a pitcher can be displeased with his performance even when there's not a lot of damage done to his ERA.

Such was the case with Tigers right-hander Armando Galarraga on Sunday as Detroit fell, 2-1, to the Royals and saw a three-game winning streak end. The box score shows that Galarraga allowed just four hits and one run in five innings and it came only because right fielder Brennan Boesch misplayed a Wilson Betemit fly ball that turned into an RBI double in the first inning.

But Galarraga walked five and needed 95 pitches to get through those five innings and said he couldn't always extend his right arm the way he wanted because of elbow stiffness.

"It's not a good start," Galarraga said. "My mechanics were bad and my pitches had no movement. I think I got lucky. I'm not happy with the start."

Galarraga is hopeful the elbow stiffness is just part of the wear and tear that starting pitchers sometimes experience at the end of a long season.

"Hopefully, it will feel better," Galarraga said. "I don't know if it's fatigue, just being tired."

Manager Jim Leyland said Galarraga felt "a little twinge" in the elbow warming up but was all right after he got loose. It was a day when the Tigers needed to keep the opponent's offense down, because Royals right-hander Kyle Davies had one of his better outings.

Davies pitched a three-hitter through six innings and came away with a victory when Alex Gordon snapped a 1-1 tie with a home run off reliever Brad Thomas in the sixth. Kansas City's bullpen took it from there, as Gil Meche, Robinson Tejeda and Joakim Soria turned in one scoreless inning apiece.

The Tigers (68-69) missed the opportunity for a winning road trip and a plus-.500 record heading home to face the White Sox and Orioles.

"I was a little disappointed today," Leyland said. "I thought it was kind of a lackluster offensive performance. I thought Davies was throwing a little harder today. We really didn't get many chances."

The one big chance came in the fifth after Casper Wells had tied the game with his second homer in the past four days. The Tigers loaded the bases with two outs and Johnny Damon worked Davies into a hitter's count. But on 3-1, Damon fouled off a fastball that he felt he could have driven sharply. Then Davies offered a changeup to strike out Damon.

"The changeup was just off the plate, too close to take," Damon said. "I felt like I had a good swing on [the 3-1 fastball]. That's the way my year has been going. I feel like I'm attacking the pitches that I need to and just not squaring them up."

On a day when they managed just three hits, the Tigers had defensive issues as well. Two seemingly harmless fly balls fell in. Wells lost Brayan Pena's second-inning fly in the sun, but that didn't cost Detroit. The misplay by Boesch in the first, however, was a sequence that came back to bite the Tigers.

"It took off a little more than I thought," Boesch said.

Said Leyland: "He just didn't get back to the ball."

The Tigers were quick to credit Davies, who fanned four and walked three.

"He was getting into fastball counts and then throwing the changeup and breaking ball," third baseman Brandon Inge said. "He was putting pitches where you couldn't do much with them."

The Tigers would have loved flying home with a four-game winning streak, but now they can only hope to start another streak as they play the White Sox, who are still trying to chase down Minnesota in the AL Central as the Tigers look on from a distance.

"The way I look at it, if a team is going to the postseason, they are going to earn it," Inge said. "I'm not going to give anything to them. If I were going to talk to the guys and be any sort of mentor, that's what I would tell them: You don't lay down for anyone."

Robert Falkoff is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Tigers end up on short end of bullpen battle
Pierzynski's RBI single off Valverde in 10th is difference

By Alex DiFilippo / MLB.com

09/06/10 4:27 PM ET

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DETROIT -- Edwin Jackson and Max Scherzer, the two frontline starters traded for each other last winter, dueled to a statistical draw Monday afternoon. That made sense for the Tigers, who swapped the two.

The Tigers and White Sox bullpens, on the other hand, proved to be the difference in a 5-4 Detroit loss. Considering the Tigers had their second-year setup man and closer going opposite Chicago's just-drafted lefty, manager Jim Leyland and Co. couldn't have figured on that.

Detroit won many of those battles early in the season, which helped make it such a dangerous comeback team. The Tigers aren't winning as many of them now.

"It was a real good ballgame," Leyland said. "We just didn't execute on a couple pitches and got burned."

One of them was a hanging slider from Ryan Perry, who understandably went to his bread-and-butter pitch on a full count with two outs in the eighth. He simply couldn't spot it where he wanted, which allowed Alexei Ramirez to loft an easy line drive into left field and score Brent Lillibridge from second to tie the game at 3.

The other was a 1-2 fastball over the plate from closer Jose Valverde that A.J. Pierzynski turned into a single, which continued Valverde's second-half struggles and marked the third single of the inning -- plating the go-ahead run.

Chris Sale, meanwhile, retired all eight Tigers he faced and struck out three for his first Major League victory. In so doing, the lanky left-hander continued to make the immediate impact the White Sox hoped to have when they called up the Lakeland, Fla., native last month after just 11 Minor League outings.

Like former Tiger Andrew Miller, Sale is making a big league impact just months after he was a first-round pick. Like Miller, Sale is a tall southpaw whose gangly frame and sidearming angle make him tough for batters to face from either side of the plate.

"He's pretty deceptive, and then he has pretty good stuff," Will Rhymes said. "He's tough on lefties and tough on righties, too, because he kind of hides [the ball]."

Unlike Miller, Sale can pitch into the upper-90s with a tailing fastball that breaks away from right-handed hitters and inside on left-handers. The Tigers, whose four runs all came within the first three innings, couldn't solve it.

For a brief moment, they wondered if they had, until replay showed Brandon Inge's go-ahead two-run home run was actually a full-count foul ball.

In hindsight, the eighth-inning shot wasn't really close, instead foul by several feet. Inge actually stopped and was ready to head back to home plate until third-base umpire Tony Randazzo ruled the ball was fair. He didn't get to second base before White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen was out at home plate to ask for a review.

Once replay overturned the ruling, Inge came out of the dugout and back into the batter's box for another full-count pitch. Sale dropped a full-count breaking ball on the outside corner for a called third strike and an end to Detroit's last -- and best -- threat of the afternoon.

Sale (1-1) entered at almost the same point that Perry did a half-inning earlier. Both Scherzer and Jackson allowed four runs on nine hits over 7 1/3 innings, overcoming early mistakes to salvage deep start. The only difference in their pitching lines was an extra walk by Scherzer.

Scherzer left after a one-out single from Andruw Jones to give way to Phil Coke, who retired left-handed hitter Pierzynski. Once Guillen brought in Alexei Ramirez to pinch-hit, Leyland turned to Perry, who had turned in two perfect innings to earn a win Friday night at Kansas City, over Coke, whom right-handed batters have hit for a .318 average since the All-Star break.

Once Perry fell behind Ramirez and pinch-runner Lillibridge stole second base, Perry came back at Ramirez with fastballs to run the count full. Ramirez fouled back a 3-1 fastball high and over the plate. He did not miss the 3-2 slider.

"He hung a slider," Leyland said. "He left it right up there for him, and he couldn't miss it. Up here, you have to make big pitches at the right time, big situations, and he just left it up."

Perry retired the White Sox in order in the ninth to send the game into extra innings, but it's the eighth-inning offering that haunted him. He unquestionably understood the urgency there.

"If I located where I wanted to, I would have got the results I wanted," Perry said. "I left it up and he was able to get a piece of it."

Perry has two blown saves, a win and a loss in his past four outings. Before that, he had seven holds in seven chances and a win over his previous three months since returning from the disabled list. By contrast, Valverde's second-half search for consistency has been running longer.

Manny Ramirez's third single of the game, Ryan Raburn's error on the ball in left field and back-to-back one-out singles from pinch-hitter Alex Rios and Pierzynski led to Chicago's go-ahead run in the 10th. Valverde (2-4) avoided further damage with a Gordon Beckham double play, but still allowed a run for the fourth time in five outings and the 10th time in his past 14 appearances.

"I'm not worried about Valverde at all," Leyland said. "He's our closer."

Scherzer ended up with as many earned runs (four) over 7 1/3 innings as he did over 37 innings in his previous five starts combined, yet still retired 10 of his final 12 hitters to give the Tigers a shot. Half of his damage came in a second-inning rally that Don Kelly helped halt with a sliding catch in short left field.

Kelly also plated three of the four Tigers runs with his first-inning RBI single and two-run homer in the fourth inning.

"It was a tough game," Kelly said. "The whole second half we've played in some tough games. We just continue to battle. As far as myself, I've got to go out there and try to help the team any way I can."

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Two homers, Verlander's stuff pace Tigers
Damon, Inge go deep as Detroit dumps White Sox

By Alex DiFilippo / MLB.com

09/08/10 12:29 AM ET

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DETROIT -- Justin Verlander is known for clocking in his fastball in the mid-90s and overpowering opposing hitters.

In Tuesday's 9-1 victory over the White Sox, Verlander didn't need to rely on his heater quite as much. No, his go-to pitch on the night was his curveball, which he dropped in and out of the strike zone. And when Verlander's breaking ball is working, it sets up his high-octane fastball perfectly.

"I've always talked about the breaking ball as my second-best pitch," Verlander said. "But it hasn't quite been there all year. I felt like tonight it was definitely the best it's been."

His ability to mix his pitches allowed him to keep the White Sox hitters off balance all night. He tossed seven innings of one-run ball on five hits with seven strikeouts on the way to his 15th win, snapping the White Sox seven-game win streak and moving them 4 1/2 behind the Twins in the American League Central race.

"He didn't spot his fastball as good as he can," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "But I thought he had a real good breaking ball. He threw some great curveballs tonight. That really helped him out. He gave us a tremendous outing and we needed that. We got some innings and we needed that. I thought his curveball was probably the key pitch."

With the Tigers ace clearly in the zone, Detroit's bats really didn't need to do much work. But from the get-go, they gave Verlander more than enough support to cruise along.

Johnny Damon got things started for the Tigers in the first inning when he lofted a two-run homer off White Sox starter Freddy Garcia to right field, despite a gusty wind blowing out to left.

Garcia (11-6) pitched a scoreless second inning before exiting with lower back stiffness. Right-hander Lucas Harrell entered in his place to start the third inning -- a move that initially worried Leyland.

The Tigers had never seen Harrell before, as he was making his third Major League appearance. But even an unknown pitcher couldn't slow Detroit's bats on this night.

Rookie Austin Jackson reached on Mark Kotsay's error to start off the third inning, and fellow rookie Will Rhymes pushed him to second with a sacrifice bunt. With first base open, slugger Miguel Cabrera was intentionally walked to put runners on first and second with two outs.

Don Kelly continued his hot hitting for the Tigers by drilling an RBI single to right, and Brennan Boesch followed suit with an infield single that scored a run. Then Jhonny Peralta lined a two-run double down the right-field line to give the Tigers a commanding 6-1 lead, with all four runs in the third frame unearned.

"I thought we did a pretty good job," Leyland said of the offense. "You could tell Freddy wasn't quite right. I don't know what was wrong, but you could tell he wasn't quite right. I was a little worried because they brought in a guy we hadn't seen before. I was a little concerned about that. But we were able to add on a couple runs. Peralta got that big hit down the right-field line. That was probably the biggest hit of the game."

Harrell shut the door for the next three innings against the Tigers, a feat that even impressed Verlander.

"The guy that came in, he's a young guy and he's no slouch," Verlander said. "He had some really good stuff. He had good velocity and good offspeed stuff. But our guys hung in there and put in some quality at-bats and some good two-out hitting to score some runs. It was big for us today."

Verlander's only blip came in the third inning when he allowed a double to Juan Pierre and an RBI single to Omar Vizquel. But from there, it was smooth sailing.

Verlander was obviously pleased with his strong outing. Making it even sweeter was a curveball he threw in the sixth inning. Knowing his pitch count was already quite high, Verlander made a point to up the velocity and really attack the hitters, which led to back-to-back strikeouts to start the inning before one slipped out that hit Manny Ramirez in the hand.

"The sixth inning I came out and was a little more aggressive with my body," Verlander said. "I was making sure I stayed back with my back leg then charge it with my fastballs. Then I think I just did that on the breaking ball, just stayed back and went after it. It allowed me to get on top of it and get it out front. It was like a light bulb went off. I was like, 'Oh, there it is. Where's that been all year?'

"Most of the year I've had that get-me-over [curveball], the soft one. But I haven't had the hard one. When I go to throw it hard, it pops out a little bit. I felt like tonight I threw one hard and was able to get on top of it and it had that sharp late bite that I like to see. Hopefully I'll retain that feel for it and move forward."

Rookie right-hander Robbie Weinhardt entered for Verlander in the eighth inning, and although it wasn't necessarily pretty, he tossed two innings of shutout ball. He admitted he couldn't find the strike zone with his sinker, normally his go-to pitch, but made up for it with his slider, which he said was the best it's been all year.

A day after being denied a home run because of instant replay, Brandon Inge scored some redemption with a three-run shot to left in the eighth inning to put a stamp on the victory that pulled the Tigers (69-70) one game shy of .500.

"I figured it would hit a bird or something that would knock it foul or something," Inge said of his homer. "Or maybe it would hit a jet stream that would kick it out foul. But it was good to see it stay in."

Alex DiFilippo is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Bonderman, Tigers breeze past White Sox

By Jason Beck / MLB.com

09/09/10 12:37 AM ET

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DETROIT -- Jeremy Bonderman can't control where he ends up next year, not now. He can't control whether the Tigers decide to bring him back, turn to one of their youngsters like Andy Oliver, or hit the market for an arm to fill out their rotation. All he can control right now is the way he pitches.

Wednesday night, maybe more than any other outing this season, showed how well Bonderman has progressed with his control. He commanded a game in which the Tigers didn't have MVP candidate Miguel Cabrera, Johnny Damon or Jose Valverde, and he made it look like a relatively easy cruise toward a 5-1 win over the White Sox at Comerica Park.

It was a night for the Tigers to play spoiler in the AL Central race, costing the White Sox a game in the standings on a night when they didn't have to face Cabrera and the Twins had to face Zack Greinke. The unexpected twist in the division chase came largely from a pitcher whom few really expected to make this transition.

"He's kind of adapted, hasn't he?" Brandon Inge said. "To me, it's pretty amazing. Bonderman was blessed for many, many years to just blow it by guys -- a 96-97-mph sinker that was coming in like a bucktoothed termite. Guys did not want to face him. And now, he has the surgeries, he has the injuries, and he's forced to pitch."

Bonderman topped 90 mph with just two of his 114 pitches, according to MLB.com's Gameday application -- once in the first inning, and once in the fourth.

He not only made that combination sink the White Sox offense, he did it quickly -- to the point where he worked through his first seven innings in 100 pitches and then worked the eighth. He would've had a chance at a complete-game shutout if not for Omar Vizquel's fourth-inning homer, the lone extra-base hit Chicago managed against him.

"We didn't get anything done today," White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said. "We couldn't get it going."

Five days after Bonderman overcame a four-run opening inning to give the Tigers a fighting chance against Greinke, he didn't allow any big innings at all. The entire game lasted just two hours and four minutes.

"I was just trying to go in and out and throw breaking balls, and slow them down and try to speed them up at times," Bonderman said. "The guys made some plays and we were able to get a win."

Bonderman said earlier this summer that he sometimes wishes he knew then what he knows now about pitching, how to change speeds and set up batters, and make adjustments. He has picked up more as the season has unfolded, partly through talking with other pitchers, such as ex-teammate Kenny Rogers, and partly through tinkering between starts.

He might actually have less on his fastball now than he did earlier this year, or he did on this night, but he put his knowledge to work better. He worked through the White Sox lineup in order the first time around and retired the first 10 batters he faced. Vizquel's homer not only was the lone White Sox run, it was their first baserunner.

Bonderman (8-9) gave up a Paul Konerko single and a Manny Ramirez walk with two outs in the same inning, then settled down to retire 14 of the final 15 batters he faced. Vizquel's sixth-inning single was the only other hit he allowed.

"He was throwing strikes and changing speeds," catcher Alex Avila said. "There was barely anybody on base. Really, I was just putting down a finger and putting up the glove. He was locked in today. It was a great effort on his part. It was really good pitching today."

Bonderman's eight strikeouts -- seven of them on offspeed pitches -- matched a season high. Just as impressive, 13 more outs came on ground balls, just three on flyouts.

"I thought he changed speeds on his breaking ball," manager Jim Leyland said. "I thought he made them mishit the ball a little bit. He wasn't overpowering by any means. He didn't have the overpowering fastball, but I thought he changed speeds on his breaking ball. And he kept the ball down pretty good."

Those who remember Bonderman from his younger years, before the shoulder problem two years ago and the nerve issue last year, will remember wondering if Bonderman would ever effectively change speeds. Now he can do it on multiple pitches. He has to do it.

"He was doing that with his four-seam [fastball] and his two-seam, too, at the same time," said Avila, whose two-run double capped a four-run fourth inning off White Sox starter John Danks (13-10).

"He was throwing some at 88, 89 and others at 84. They were a little slower and they had a little movement. That two-seamer, sometimes, he throws it like a changeup. When he throws it at 83, that's about as good as a changeup and it acts similar to [how] a changeup does, it kind of goes down and away to a lefty. He changed speeds at the right times and located."

He has to do it to succeed, to pitch effectively beyond this year. He still hopes to get some life back on his fastball as he moves on. He's a free agent at season's end, but he only turns 28 years old this fall. He's still young for a pitcher.

On nights like this, he's still effective, too.

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Porcello pitches Tigers to third straight win
Starter goes eight frames; offense collects 13 hits, all singles
By Alex DiFilippo / MLB.com | 09/09/10 5:54 PM ET

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DETROIT -- After watching the first three pitchers in the Tigers rotation toss impressive outings, Rick Porcello was eager to take the mound and follow suit Thursday afternoon.

Sure enough, the 21-year-old went out and had one of his strongest outings of the year against the White Sox, the team that issued the young right-hander his worst outing of the season that eventually led to a stint in the Minors.

But in Thursday's 6-3 win, it seemed that start back on June 9, in which he gave up eight earned runs, was ancient history. It was the new and improved Porcello, who made his eight innings of work look effortless en route to his fourth straight win.

"I feel a little more confident out there now," Porcello said. "I feel like I'm throwing the ball a lot better. It's a little easier to be calm when you are confident and you feel like your stuff is good."

Porcello worked eight innings and allowed three earned runs with three strikeouts and no walks. It marked his fourth straight start where he'd lasted at least seven innings without issuing more than one free pass.

His strong start mirrored that of the rest of the rotation. This series, all four starters worked at least seven innings, with three of them allowing no more than three runs to help the Tigers secure the series win and pull above .500 (71-70) for the first time since July 31. In fact, the Tigers starters gave up only nine runs, while the White Sox pitchers had to deal with eight unearned runs dealt their way.

"The way our entire staff pitched this week, starting with [Max Scherzer] and [Justin Verlander] and then [Jeremy Bonderman], it just kind of trickles down," Porcello said. "It's like, 'OK I did my job and now it's on to the next guy.' We are all aware of that. I've got to go out and do my job and tomorrow [Armando Galarraga] goes out and does his job. When you get into a rhythm like that, it definitely helps."

Porcello has taken major strides since starting the year with a 4-7 record and a 6.14 ERA before being sent down to Triple-A Toledo. His sinker is dipping in the strike zone and his slider has plenty of bite.

"I think the work of going down to Toledo and ironing out my delivery has helped my control," Porcello said. "I feel like I know where the ball is going, as opposed to before where it's all over the place. It's been the combination of that and also being able to throw my slider for strikes. I'm confident I can go to that now in a 3-2 count instead of just pumping fastballs. I can go to a slider. That's been big."

Because catcher Gerald Laird has been out with a back spasms, rookie Alex Avila was behind the plate for the series. Avila said getting ahead in the count was a point of emphasis entering the four-game set -- a message that Porcello obviously heard loud and clear.

"These guys have been making my job easy," Avila said. "Porcello was very good today. His sinker was really good. We used that more today than we have in his previous starts. It was very good, so was his changeup. We were able to mix in breaking pitches in there, too. He did a real good job of just changing speeds and just locating.

Just like Bonderman the previous night, Porcello retired the first 10 batters he faced before giving up a base hit to Omar Vizquel. Then Alex Rios ran into a fastball and powered it over the fence in left field. But it was a pitch that Porcello said was actually quite good.

But by that time the Tigers already had a four-run lead to give Porcello some breathing room.

Whatever momentum the White Sox thought they could garner with the homer was quickly erased when Porcello retired the next two batters to end the inning.

"That inning, especially after they hit the home run, it was big to sit those guys down and get us back in the dugout to get some more runs," Porcello said. "Our offense did a great job and battled."

The offense went on to record another run in the fourth inning to put the two-run shot out of memory, and after Porcello committed two wild pitches that led to a run in the seventh, Detroit again countered with a run.

Those add-on runs proved to be costly for the White Sox, who dropped to six games behind the Twins in the American League Central race.

"That's what we talk about as managers," Jim Leyland said. "I'm sure [White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen] is talking about it, too. They get on the board and they let us come right back and score. That's usually the kiss of death for you."

The Tigers nickeled and dimed White Sox starter Gavin Floyd (10-12) with 13 singles, including four by Johnny Damon and three by Will Rhymes, that were mainly bloops into the outfield or infield hits.

"He was hitting his spots. He did a pretty good job keeping us off balance," Rios said of Porcello. "He used his slider a lot. We couldn't do what we had to do."

With the way he was dealing, Porcello didn't need much help. The win pulls him to 9-11, a far cry from the 4-10 record he held at one point this season.

"I don't want to invest too much into records," Porcello said. "I think I'm just more confident and happier with the way I'm throwing the ball now compared to where I was at the beginning of the year. That's more of what I look at. Not so much wins and losses but going out there and having quality starts and keeping us in the game. Those are the things that I value."

Alex DiFilippo is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Galarraga unable to locate win column vs. O's
Cabrera paces bats with homer, three RBIs in series opener
By Jason Beck / MLB.com | 09/11/10 12:40 AM ET

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DETROIT -- Forget about Armando Galarraga trying to relive history with Jim Joyce on Friday night. Galarraga went out and tried to do the same thing he has attempted all summer: Build off history.

His struggles to do so are what weigh on him now. That perfect game is over. Now he's just trying to finish with a strong season. Friday's 6-3 Tigers loss didn't help.

This wasn't about Galarraga being denied history June 2 after what should've been 27 straight batters retired. This was about Galarraga not getting a win out of seven quality innings.

"I felt good. I just want to get a win," Galarraga said. "The season's almost over, and I have four wins. It's not like I think I don't throw the ball good. I've been throwing the ball good.

"You see my numbers. There's only four wins. What are you going to say? I already have 100-something innings. Four wins the whole year? Sometimes you get frustrated, because you want to see more wins."

He has 122 2/3 innings over 20 Major League starts this year, to be exact, including 17 starts since he retired the first 26 Indians batters he faced on June 2. He has two victories since that famous game. He has no-decisions in six quality starts in that stretch, including three of his past four outings.

Galarraga has a 2.01 ERA over his past five starts, but one win and four no-decisions to show for it. That's proving tougher for him to get past than Joyce's call three months ago.

"I feel good," Galarraga said. "Sometimes I don't get run support, but there isn't anything you can do about it. I've had that feeling for the last four starts. You know when you've got like two or three runs, you say, 'I'll try to keep the game at that, because I don't have run support too much.'"

He held the Orioles to three runs over seven innings Friday, which kept Detroit in a tie game heading into the eighth. It almost certainly should've been a Tigers lead at that point, given Austin Jackson's triple leading off the bottom of the seventh. Once O's reliever David Hernandez stranded him there, Galarraga's chance at a victory -- and Detroit's best chance to take over this game -- was gone.

"You can't win games up here playing the way we played tonight," manager Jim Leyland said. "We just didn't play a good ballgame. Galarraga was good. I thought he pitched well. But we just had opportunities that if we put a ball in play, we've probably got the lead late. But we didn't do it tonight."

Galarraga's run at another perfect game ended with Luke Scott's leadoff single and run in the second inning. Jake Fox's two-run homer put Baltimore ahead in the fifth, before Miguel Cabrera tied the game with his own two-run shot in the sixth.

Cabrera, who returned to the Tigers lineup after missing the previous two games with tendinitis in his left shoulder, went 2-for-4 and drove in all three Tigers runs. After Johnny Damon took advantage of a Matt Wieters error on a foul ball to draw a leadoff walk, Cabrera sent a Kevin Millwood pitch out on a line drive to the bullpen dugout beyond the left-field fence for his 34th home run of the season and 113th RBI.

"He threw me a lot of good pitches today," Cabrera said of Millwood. "He didn't give me anything. But that pitch, I think he slipped when he threw the ball. So it was almost in the middle. I was lucky there, because I know what kind of pitch to hit out."

The O's wisely didn't give Cabrera a chance to put Detroit in front an inning later with Jackson on third. Hernandez struck out Will Rhymes chasing a pitch for the first out, then jammed Damon into a popup to short to end the sacrifice fly opportunity. Cabrera's 30th intentional walk of the season put another potential run on base, but Hernandez's three-pitch strikeout of Ryan Raburn took him off.

"It was a big swing in the game," Hernandez (6-8) said. "You give up a run and they have their eighth-, ninth-inning [relievers] coming in. More often than not, those guys come in and close the door on any team. To hold them scoreless then we get two runs in the bottom of the inning, it was deflating for Detroit."

Baltimore's game-winning rally, by contrast, was a display in conversion after Ty Wigginton slammed a comebacker off reliever Phil Coke's right foot for a one-out single. Coke shook off the blow and stayed in the game, but Nick Markakis shot Coke's next pitch through the middle to put runners at the corners with one out.

It also gave Wieters his chance at redemption with a sac fly to the warning track in right after the Tigers intentionally walked Luke Scott to face him.

"He just got under the ball," said Coke (7-5). "I mean, he had a decent swing at it, but he got enough of the barrel on it to get it out where he got it to. I mean, it was down, it was away from him, and he just flicked his wrists at it. That happens."

Galarraga just wishes results like these wouldn't keep happening to him.

"I understand it's out of my control," he said. "I can't control that. I can only control being on the mound, throwing innings, having a good game and getting better and better."

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. Read Beck's Blog and follow him on Twitter @beckjason. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Scherzer, Tigers can't withstand O's big inning
By Alex DiFilippo / MLB.com | 09/12/10 12:15 AM ET

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DETROIT -- Max Scherzer posted zeros through the first five innings on Saturday night. He didn't make it look easy, though, as he weaved his way in and out of sticky situations early in the game.

In the sixth inning, the Orioles' hot bats finally caught up to Scherzer, resulting in the only four runs the right-hander gave up. Those four runs proved to be enough for Baltimore, which snuck past Detroit, 5-3, to secure the series victory at Comerica Park.

Scherzer's big struggles were seen on the scoreboard in the sixth inning. But from the get-go, he could tell what the Orioles' bats were trying to do against him. Brian Roberts lined the first pitch of the game to center field -- a sign of what Scherzer was about to see for the rest of the night.

Baltimore jumped all over Scherzer (10-10) early in the counts. And with the way the Orioles have been swinging the bats on their 4-1 road trip, why not? It wasn't like Scherzer didn't recognize it. The problem was that he couldn't lock in with his offspeed pitches when he got ahead in the count.

"They were all really hacking at that first-pitch fastball," said Scherzer. "You know they are going to be aggressive. That's when you really need your offspeed pitches. I hung too many sliders, and left too many changeups up in the zone. When you combine their approach with that, they are going to be able to get some base hits."

It was hits, hits and more hits for the Orioles, who tagged Scherzer for a season-high 12 knocks through his six innings pitched. He threw only 96 pitches, 72 for strikes, which was his lowest total since June 4.

Five of the 12 hits came in the sixth inning, which led to the four-spot. But Scherzer was actually ahead of the count that resulted in three of the five hits -- and also in the sacrifice fly from Ty Wigginton that plated a run. The biggest hit of the inning came off the bat of Cesar Izturis, a two-run triple, which came on the first pitch.

"I felt good in the sixth," Scherzer said. "My stuff was there, I just wasn't executing with two strikes. How many times was I in 0-2 or 1-2 counts, where I have a chance to have a put-away pitch, and I left it right in the middle of the zone. I tip my cap to them, they capitalized on it.

"It's going to be a hard night to have success when you aren't fully executing. That just shows you how much location matters."

When Scherzer took the mound to start that eventful frame, he was feeling dialed in. He had just retired five of seven Orioles batters via strikeout. The two exceptions came on singles in the fifth inning, when -- you guessed it -- he was ahead in the count.

"When he gets in a groove like that, it's pretty easy to catch him," catcher Alex Avila said. "They were just very resilient today. They are an aggressive team. You have to change speeds a lot with this team. They are up there swinging. I think that may have screwed up the game plan a little bit. He's a big feel guy, with feeling his pitches. And their approach didn't allow him to do that from the very beginning. That maybe resulted in some of the pitches being up."

Scherzer emphatically said the 27-minute rain delay had "zero" effect on his performance. It was just one of those nights where his offspeed pitches weren't as nasty as they have been of late. Minus his last start where he gave up four runs through 7 1/3 innings, Scherzer had gone seven straight starts allowing two or fewer earned runs.

"When I was getting the strikeouts, I was rearing back a little more to try and go back and get a better fastball," Scherzer said. "I was really trying to make my best pitch in that situation. I take pride in being able to dial it up when I need to. That fifth inning, there were runners on base and I needed to dial it up. I was able to execute some pitches in the fifth when runners were on base. It worked then, but when you just add it up over the whole night, if you aren't going to be executing with all three pitches, then you aren't going to have success."

Meanwhile, the Tigers' bats were silent against Orioles starter Jeremy Guthrie (10-13). The right-hander tossed seven shutout innings against Detroit and only allowed five hits -- with all five coming in the first three innings. After that, he seemed to find his groove, retiring the next 12 batters.

"He has a very good fastball. It's an above-average pitch," Avila said of Guthrie, who owns a 7-3 record in 11 starts since the All-Star break. "To go along with it, he has the curveball and a good changeup. His fastball has a little natural rise and cut to it. So it makes it tough to square up. He's a very underrated pitcher."

Detroit did manage to put together a rally in the eighth inning off Orioles reliever Matt Albers. With two outs, Don Kelly singled to score a run and Jhonny Peralta smacked a double that brought home two runs. However, the hopes of tying the game ended when Brandon Inge lined out to center with Peralta sitting at second.

"They are getting hits when they need them and we aren't," outfielder Ryan Raburn said. "We are leaving runners in scoring position and they are scoring more runs than us."

Baltimore countered in the top of the ninth inning with an add-on run that sealed the deal for the visitors and dropped the Tigers to 3-3 on the current homestand.

"We didn't do much offensively," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "We had that one little spurt there, but we just couldn't get enough. That add-on run in the last inning there was a killer for us."

Alex DiFilippo is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Cabrera's eighth-inning heroics spark Tigers
Slugger sinks O's with three-run double; Verlander fans 11
By Alex DiFilippo / MLB.com | 09/12/10 6:13 PM ET

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DETROIT -- The Tigers sure made Justin Verlander sweat it out.

Before the five-run eighth inning that helped the Tigers to a 6-2 victory over the Orioles, Detroit's ace pitcher was having a casual conversation with fellow starter Jeremy Bonderman in the dugout to try and distract himself from what was happening on the field. The Tigers' offense was dormant through the first seven innings, recording only one hit.

And after Verlander let one wild pitch get away that scored a runner from third in the fifth inning, he was in line to take the loss after throwing eight sparkling innings of two-run ball with a season-high-tying 11 strikeouts.

But in the end, he got a little help from his fellow All-Star. Slugger Miguel Cabrera stepped to the plate in the bottom of the eighth inning with the bases loaded and did what he's done so often this season -- drive in runs.

The Tigers only needed one to tie at that point. But hey, why not bring them all home? Cabrera crushed the ball deep to left-center field to up his Major League-leading total to 116 and help the Tigers avoid the series sweep.

"I thought Verlander had shutout stuff," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "I thought all pitches worked as good as I've seen them all year. That was shutout stuff. He didn't get a shutout, but he easily could have."

It would have been a shame to waste such an impressive performance from Verlander (16-8). He allowed a single to the second batter he faced, then went on to retire 12 straight before giving up a single to Felix Pie in the fifth inning. Pie came around to score when Michigan native Jake Fox hit his first career triple. Then Verlander let a curveball get away that scored Fox from third base.

Rookie Will Rhymes ledoff the frame with a single and Raburn advanced him to third when he lined a double down the left-field line.

Leyland had thought about pinch-hitting Austin Jackson for catcher Alex Avila in the eighth inning. But with two outs and two men on, the skipper opted to save Jackson, just in case the Tigers could put something together in the eighth inning.

Sure enough, Jackson's at-bat proved to be the turning point in the game. With runners on second and third, Jackson earned a walk against reliever David Hernandez, who had made the Tigers hitters look silly when he tossed a shutout inning on Friday.

With the bases loaded in a one-run game, the Orioles now had to pitch to Cabrera. He smashed the first pitch he saw to left-center field that plated three runs and put the Tigers ahead for good.

"You still have to do a good job," Cabrera said of his at-bat with no outs. "You still have to hit. I don't think about if they are going to walk me or if they are going to pitch to me. I focus my approach and what I'm going to do when I get at home plate."

Not giving Cabrera anything to hit with runners in scoring position was a point of emphasis for Orioles manager Buck Showalter all series. Unfortunately for the visitors, his hands were tied.

"If we strike out Jackson there, then we can walk Cabrera and I like our chances," Showalter said. "Cabrera makes you pay for mistakes. You can't let him come up there in those situations."

Tigers third baseman Brandon Inge said he wouldn't have blamed Showalter for walking Cabrera, even if it would have tied the game.

"I wouldn't fault anyone no matter what the situation is," Inge said of walking Cabrera. "The way he's been coming through for us, the way you could think is that [it could be] four runs or one run. But that's hard to do. It's really hard to do. In the game of baseball you don't want to give in like that. I can respect his aggressiveness to go after him."

Inge put a cap on the big inning by hitting a two-run homer to left field.

"[Cabrera] is our guy," Leyland said. "He delivered big when we needed him and Inge gave us a little boost there when we needed it. We've been a little short in the bullpen recently. But Miggy, that's what he does."

The big inning cost Orioles starter Chris Tillman a chance to snag his first victory since being recalled on Sept. 5. He was wildly effective on the afternoon, recording six walks, but holding the Tigers to only one hit and one run through 6 2/3 innings.

"He's one of the young pitchers that's just coming into his own," Leyland said of Tillman. "He's one of those young studs they've got that's learning how to be a Major League pitcher. He's got really good stuff."

Tillman almost thwarted Verlander's outing, where the Tigers ace said he was able to pick up where he left off in his previous start with his offspeed pitches. He said his offspeed stuff was the best it had been all season last time out.

After this one? Well, everything felt good.

"It was probably the best I've felt all year," Verlander said. "Everything seemed to be working well for me. My curveball was good again and my changeup was good as well. I felt like I could throw my changeup whenever I wanted for strikes, and also for balls. When you have that going for you, it's pretty beneficial, especially when you fall behind in the count to these guys, a fastball hitting team."

When Cabrera drove the ball, the 24,170 fans at Comerica Park were on their feet. And although Verlander tried not to get too excited when Cabrera stepped up to the plate, he had a good feeling his teammate would get the job done.

"It was pretty exciting, as usual," Verlander said. "It seems like you expect him to do it."

Alex DiFilippo is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Review, balls don't bounce Tigers' way
Murphy's homer turns tide as Detroit falls to Texas
By Todd Wills / Special to MLB.com | 09/15/10 12:52 AM ET

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ARLINGTON -- The dreaded video review jumped up and bit Jeremy Bonderman and the Tigers in an 11-4 loss to Texas on Tuesday night.

Bonderman had a healthy 4-1 lead, and the right-hander had retired five batters in a row when Rangers left fielder David Murphy crushed a slider in the direction of the right-field foul pole to start the bottom of the fourth.

First-base umpire Jerry Layne ruled a home run, saying after the game that he saw Murphy's drive go over the top of the foul pole. Tigers manager Jim Leyland argued that the ball sailed to the right of the foul pole. The umpires went in for a video review, and Layne came back out and ruled it was a home run to cut the Tigers' lead to 4-2. The Rangers later tied the game in the inning.

"What did you guys see?" Leyland said. "You guys all saw it? Fair or foul? Foul ball? Then you don't have to ask me. You guys should write what you saw instead of asking me and you should voice your opinion and you should voice yours on the TV.

"You don't have to ask me, because you saw it. It's as simple as that. Why should I get involved in it and get in trouble over it when you guys saw it? Write it. Put it on TV and write it. It's that simple. You don't need my opinion. You guys saw it. It was a foul ball, so say it was a foul ball."

Layne told a pool reporter after the game that he saw things differently.

"There was no evidence it was any different from what I had seen on the field," Layne said.

"You need irreversible doubt to change the call. It's where the ball is going out of the ballpark, straight over the fence, that matters. And it basically went over the foul pole. From what I saw out there, and what the video didn't disprove, it was a home run."

The inning unraveled for the oft-erratic Bonderman after the umpires' ruling. Bonderman hit Vladimir Guerrero, and after a fielder's choice by Nelson Cruz, he walked Ian Kinsler. Rookie Mitch Moreland followed with a line-drive single up the middle to make it 4-3, and the Rangers tied the game later in the inning when Brandon Inge booted a ground ball to third.

Leyland said the video review didn't impact Bonderman.

"Had nothing to do with it," Leyland said.

The Tigers played like a team out of the postseason race in Tuesday's loss. They had two crushing errors, and the bullpen allowed seven runs as Detroit fell below .500 for the season (72-73).

Sloppy defense plagued both teams, and doomed the Tigers in the bottom of the sixth with the game tied at 4. Reliever Robbie Weinhardt came in after Daniel Schlereth got the first out of the inning. Weinhardt allowed back-to-back singles to Elvis Andrus and Michael Young to put runners at first and third.

Will Rhymes, who had replaced Scott Sizemore at second base after pinch-hitting for him in the top of the inning, then booted a ground ball at second base, and even though Andrus would have scored, it extended the inning for the Rangers.

After getting Guerrero for the second out, Weinhardt had a sharp grounder by Cruz bounce off his arm into center field, allowing Young to score. Kinsler then singled to make it 7-4.

Reliever Eddie Bonine didn't fare any better in the bottom of the seventh, allowing three straight singles, including consecutive bunt hits by Julio Borbon and Andrus, in front of Young's bases-clearing double for a 10-4 Rangers lead.

"Our bullpen didn't do a very good job," Leyland said. "Bondo was out there on pure determination. He really battled his tail off and gave us a shot, but he didn't have much."

The Tigers took a 4-1 lead with two runs in the third and another in the fourth, taking advantage of fielding errors by the Rangers in each inning.

Detroit loaded the bases in the top of the third as Sizemore, playing for the first time since late July, led off with a single. Ryan Raburn was hit by a pitch, and Miguel Cabrera reached to load the bases when Kinsler dropped a popup at second base.

The Tigers took advantage when Jhonny Peralta delivered a sacrifice fly to left field and Casper Wells hit a two-out single for a 3-1 lead.

Ramon Santiago started off the Tigers' fourth-inning rally when he reached second base when Cruz misplayed a fly ball in right field. After Austin Jackson grounded out, Sizemore notched his 10th RBI of the season on a single to center field.

Todd Wills is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Tigers' loss caps frustrating stay in Texas
Leyland ejected as pitching roughed up for 22 runs in two days
By Todd Wills / Special to MLB.com | 09/16/10 12:22 AM ET

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ARLINGTON -- Jim Leyland wasn't around to see all of Wednesday night's 11-7 loss to the Rangers, ejected after the fourth inning over a disagreement with the umpiring crew that carried over from Tuesday's loss.

The Tigers' manager still knows what happened in two nights in Texas, even if he didn't see the final five innings. His team took two early leads and then just basically blew it, kind of like how the Tigers thought umpire Jerry Layne botched a video replay call on a Rangers home run in Tuesday's 11-4 loss.

Basically, it was just a frustrating two days all around for the Tigers, who fell two games under .500 at 72-74 with 16 games left on the schedule.

"We pitched terrible here for two days," Leyland said. "We had two leads twice and gave up 11 runs. That's not good. We gave up 22 runs in two ballgames. That's bad. We didn't field our position, we didn't make plays and we didn't pitch well."

Leyland's frustration, other than several close umpiring calls over two nights, came in the fact that the Tigers jumped out to a 4-1 lead on Tuesday and then a 2-0 lead on Wednesday, and the pitching staff didn't do anything to hold those leads and give the Tigers' bats a chance to add to them.

"We get up 4-0 or 5-0 and then we have a chance," Leyland said.

It didn't happen for the Tigers. Starter Armando Galarraga, who moved up to start in place of injured Rick Porcello, delivered his worst start of the season.

Galarraga went 3 2/3 innings, allowing seven earned runs on eight hits. It was Galarraga's worst start of the season and his shortest. It was the first time he's allowed more than four earned runs in a start going back to June 29 at Minnesota when he allowed six earned runs in four innings.

Galarraga lost his 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second. Vladimir Guerrero crushed a fastball that was actually down in the strike zone 449 feet into the visitors' bullpen to cut the Detroit lead to 2-1. Nelson Cruz followed with a double, and a throwing error by Alex Avila on a sacrifice bunt by Ian Kinsler allowed Cruz to scored easily from second base.

The Rangers took the lead in the third without the berefit of an extra-base hit. Elvis Andrus and Michael Young started the inning with singles and David Murphy made it 3-2 by reaching on Galarraga's throwing error. Galarraga got the next batter, Guerrero, to ground into a double play, but Young scored to make it 4-2.

The long ball ended Galarraga's night in the bottom of the fourth. Already trailing, 5-2, after giving up three more singles, Galarraga allowed a towering three-run home run to Murphy for an 8-2 deficit.

"He just didn't have it tonight," Leyland said.

The Tigers did mount a rally in the top of the fifth, perhaps feeding off Leyland's ejection. Catcher Gerald Laird, who entered the game in the eighth inning, said it was a spark.

The Tigers scored three runs in the inning, the big blow a two-run double by Ryan Raburn on a drive that went in and out of the glove of Cruz in right field to cut the Rangers' lead to 8-5.

The Rangers got that run back in the bottom of the sixth on Kinsler's RBI single.

The Tigers then cut the lead back to 9-7 in the top of seventh on a triple by Johnny Damon -- the 100th of his career -- and a sacrifice fly to center field by Miguel Cabrera. Raburn followed with his 13th home run of the season to center field.

"He's swinging good," Leyland said. "He's been on a roll for a while."

But on Wednesday night, just like Tuesday, the Tigers couldn't keep the Rangers off the scoreboard. Kinsler drilled a two-run home run off Ryan Perry in the bottom of the seventh as the Rangers extended their lead again to 11-7.

"They were starting to get a little momentum and you always want to respond to that," Kinsler said. "We were able to do that."

Long out of the American League Central race, the Tigers now head to Chicago, insisting that these final 16 games matter, even with them being 15 1/2 games out of first place and on the verge of being mathematically eliminated Friday night.

"It's important," said Tigers center fielder Austin Jackson, who made a spectacular catch in the fifth inning, running into the wall and hanging onto the ball. "We're playing for respect. We're playing for ourselves."

Todd Wills is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Scherzer, Tigers turn tables on Jackson
No-hit into the sixth, Detroit surges with six-run seventh inning
By Jason Beck / MLB.com | 09/18/10 1:15 AM ET

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CHICAGO -- The second duel in as many weeks between Edwin Jackson and Max Scherzer yielded a decisive winner. Surprisingly, it was not the one who took a no-hitter into the sixth inning.

Jackson was 10 outs away from his second no-no of the season, holding down the team that traded him to Arizona last December. By the ninth inning Friday night, the Tigers were a hit away from 10 runs. The Tigers seemed as surprised as anybody about that turn of events that led to their 9-3 victory over the White Sox at U.S. Cellular Field.

"When I hit that ball to third base [and saw Brent Morel make a diving stop and throw for the out]," Brandon Inge said, "I'm thinking, 'Oh man. He's pitching well and the guys behind him are making good plays. He's going to be tough to get a hit off of.'"

Inge wasn't the only one.

"He was throwing me a couple pitches today that he hadn't thrown me all year," Austin Jackson said. "I thought he threw me a sinkerball one time, and then I saw a cutter. I was like, 'What is going on?' I'm looking for this pitch and he throws [another] one. And then it looked like he threw me a splitty. I was like, 'What? Is he making up pitches out there?'"

Austin Jackson broke up the no-hit bid by legging out an infield single in the sixth. The next time he came to bat, his two-run homer capped a six-run seventh inning. In between, Edwin Jackson suffered cramps that eventually led to his exit, and Detroit's ensuing hit barrage led to a White Sox bullpen collapse.

"He had a no-hitter going and he had no-hitter stuff," manager Jim Leyland said. "Certainly we were aware of it. I don't know what happened to Edwin that one inning, but we were able to jump on him that inning and get some runs."

Scherzer, meanwhile, overcame a pair of 400-foot home runs to throw eight dominant innings. Appropriately, his first career win against the White Sox ended up being his first win opposite the man whose rotation spot he took.

Nine months after Scherzer came to Detroit in the trade that sent Edwin Jackson to Arizona, the two finished with almost identical pitching lines in no-decisions Sept. 6 at Comerica Park. That game ended up decided by the bullpens in the White Sox favor, the only win they got out of that four-game series in their faltering effort to chase the Twins in the American League Central race.

This week's Twins sweep of the White Sox took the postseason implications largely out of this rematch, but Edwin Jackson's first five innings put a chance at history on the line. Two walks to Ryan Raburn and a first-inning walk to Johnny Damon comprised all of Detroit's baserunners off of their former teammate heading into the sixth.

It was the fourth time Edwin Jackson has faced the Tigers this year, and the third time with the White Sox, but familiarity did Detroit little good Friday the way he was throwing. Jackson had already no-hit one of his old teams this summer when he blanked Tampa Bay, and Detroit looked next in line.

"That's the best [we've seen him], by far," Inge said. "I'm looking up and he's throwing 97. And then at one point, I thought the gun might be off and then I saw Scherzer go out and throw 94, and I was like, 'Wait a minute. It's not off.' That was pretty impressive.

'I know [Jackson's] got a slider. I know he's got a fastball. I don't expect him to throw a changeup. He threw me a changeup a couple times, so he's inventing stuff as he goes along."

Morel's diving play to rob Inge led off the sixth, and Alex Avila flew out on the very next pitch. Up came Austin Jackson, who struck out on three pitches in his previous at-bat. He was set up to do the same thing with a 2-2 count, and he was caught indecisive on a Edwin Jackson slider.

"I knew right when I was swinging, I was swinging at a bad pitch," Austin Jackson said, "so I really didn't take a full swing. I just kind of made contact and was pretty much out of the box already, because I knew that if I didn't get out of the box fast, there was a chance that I was going to get thrown out at first."

That last factor might have been the difference between a hit and an error. It was different than some of Austin Jackson's other efforts at an infield hit this year. Leyland has pointed out more than once his struggles to get out of the batter's box quickly, but his quick jump this time allowed him to beat shortstop Alexei Ramirez's throw.

"They got more hits after that," Edwin Jackson said, "so it doesn't really matter."

Edwin Jackson got two more outs. Will Rhymes grounded out to first to end the inning, then Damon flew out to center leading off the seventh.

Three singles and a walk later, the Tigers had a tie game and had knocked out Jackson (3-2) with Jhonny Peralta's game-tying single. Scott Linebrink struck out Brandon Inge to slow the threat, but Avila's double over center fielder's Andruw Jones' head put the Tigers ahead. Austin Jackson followed with his fourth home run of the year to put the Tigers in command.

All that support rewarded Scherzer (11-10), whose only damage came on solo homers from Manny Ramirez in the fourth inning and Morel in the fifth. He grew stronger as the game went on to last eight innings with 11 strikeouts.

"I made a couple mistakes, but I made a lot of good pitches tonight," Scherzer said. "I thought those two runs were going to be the difference in the game there the way Jackson was pitching, but the rest of the team came through in that seventh inning."

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. Read Beck's Blog and follow him on Twitter @beckjason. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Sizemore's shot backs Verlander in Chicago
Pinch-hit homer in eighth allows ace to win 17th, go distance
By Jason Beck / MLB.com | 09/18/10 8:50 PM ET

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CHICAGO -- Justin Verlander entered a category of consistency not seen in almost a quarter-century since the days when Dwight Gooden dominated baseball. Yet on the day he notched his fourth 17-win season, and did it with a complete game against his old nemesis, he was happy to put some of the spotlight on Scott Sizemore.

It hasn't been that long since Verlander was a rookie, albeit a 17-win rookie. With the ups and downs Sizemore has had in his first big league campaign, Verlander had to appreciate his pinch-hit three-run homer for more than just the 6-3 victory over the White Sox that helped him reach another piece of elite territory.

"It's not a singular stat," Verlander said. "By far, it's probably the most team-oriented stat there is. So me getting that many wins in that many years, it has a whole lot to do with my teammates and the guys that have been playing behind me for that time. It does mean something, but I think it should mean something for everybody."

It means plenty for Verlander and Sizemore alike, two college kids from Virginia with two different paths to the Majors.

Not since Gooden had anyone won at least 17 games in four of his first five big league seasons. It's a rare enough feat that among active pitchers, Tim Hudson was the only one with four 15-win seasons until Verlander got there earlier this month. Neither Roger Clemens nor CC Sabathia, Barry Zito nor Roy Halladay came close.

Verlander won 35 games in his first two seasons, won American League Rookie of the Year honors and an AL pennant in the same season, led the Majors in losses in 2008, then rattled off what is now a 36-win total over his last two seasons. Some, like his 2007 no-hitter, have been all him. Others, like his 125-pitch marathon over five innings for his first win of this season back in April at Anaheim, had a lot to do with his team.

This was a bit of both. Verlander cruised with an early lead by retiring 13 of his first 15 batters, gave up three straight hits in a White Sox rally that tied the game in the fifth, then retired the last 13 batters he faced from there to keep the game tied for Sizemore to power them ahead in the eighth inning.

It wasn't just 13 consecutive outs for Verlander to close it. None of the last 10 batters got the ball out of the infield after A.J. Pierzynski flied out to the right-field warning track in the sixth. Only one of those last 13 reached a three-ball count; five others were retired on the first or second pitch.

"I kind of fell out of it that one inning," Verlander said. "I had a pretty good groove going early. I was throwing with a little bit more effort than I wanted early in the game. My emotions got the better of me a little bit. Then after that one inning when I gave up three, I went out there and tried to settle myself down, pitch with a little bit more control, get some early action and hopefully stay in the game long enough to let our guys battle back and keep it a tight game. What a job they did."

Verlander needed 123 pitches for that golden 17th win, two fewer than he needed to go five innings for his first victory of the year. In so doing, he earned his fifth win in as many starts over the last two years against the White Sox, the team that beat him nine times in his first three seasons. He won at U.S. Cellular Field for the second time in 10 career outings.

"He's one of the best righties out there," White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said. "The game was 3-0 and I was wondering how we'd come back, and we did. I think he had only one bad inning. He threw the ball very well. He threw a lot of offspeed pitches today and only threw the fastball when he had to."

Verlander threw three fastballs at 100-101 mph to strike out Paul Konerko after Alex Rios' game-tying double and shut down the White Sox from there. Three straight two-out hits from three Tigers rookies created the rally that pulled Detroit ahead for good.

All six Tigers runs came with two outs, but the last three were the sweetest for them. Matt Thornton and Sergio Santos combined to retire six straight hitters, enough that Guillen kept the right-handed Santos in to face left-handed hitter Alex Avila rather than go to lefty Chris Sale.

After Avila hit a groundball single through the right side, Gerald Laird pinch-ran with instructions to steal on Santos' second pitch. Once he took off, Austin Jackson -- who bats 95 points higher against right-handers than lefties -- followed with a single through the left side, allowing Laird to reach third easily.

That put runners at the corners for Rhymes, who already had a two-out hit earlier to double in Brandon Inge in the fourth. Once Sale entered to face Rhymes, manager Jim Leyland countered with Sizemore, Detroit's Opening Day second baseman who went to Toledo in mid-May and became almost an afterthought once Carlos Guillen and Will Rhymes took over at second.

Once Sale fell behind in the count, Sizemore's thought was to sit on Sale's nasty fastball.

"I got ready for the fastball, and that's what he gave me," Sizemore said. "He's got good stuff. It felt great to get a hit off of him."

It was a no-doubt shot that traveled an estimated 413 feet to left field.

"You can't talk enough about Sizemore," Verlander said. "That was a storybook [shot]. I don't think he'll ever forget that home run. That was big for him and our team."

It was also pretty nice for Verlander.

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. Read Beck's Blog and follow him on Twitter @beckjason. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Tigers use wild play to help end wild night
By Jason Beck / MLB.com | 09/20/10 2:18 AM ET

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CHICAGO -- Jim Leyland's 3,000th Major League game lasted long enough to feel like his 3,001st as well.

Brandon Inge's 1,092nd career strikeout started the game-winning rally instead of ending the top of the 11th inning.

Gerald Laird's go-ahead RBI hit in the seventh inning was merely a warmup act for him to do it again in the 11th.

Three different Tigers relievers had their chances at their first Major League save in relief of fill-in closer Phil Coke, until lefty specialist-in-training Daniel Schlereth struck out Manny Ramirez, one of the game's great right-handed hitters, to finish the 9-7 win over the White Sox on Sunday night at U.S. Cellular Field.

It was that kind of night. And Leyland had to pause to think about how to describe it.

"That was ... wild," he said as he searched for the lineup card to save.

Laird did not have the same hesitation.

"It was an all-around fun game to be a part of," Laird said. "I'm just glad it's over."

After 4 hours, 13 minutes, and seven different Tigers pitchers, it ended up sealing Detroit's first sweep of the White Sox in the Windy City since 2001. Twenty of the Tigers' 24 runs in the series were scored in the seventh inning or later, including a pair of six-run seventh innings.

The first of them on Friday night put Detroit in front for good. Sunday's version surged Detroit ahead after just two hits over their first six innings, but things were just getting started.

"I don't care how you win. Never have," Inge said. "Ugly, pretty, it doesn't matter. That's one where you scratch and claw."

Or in Inge's case, you keep running until you have to stop. By the time that happened in the 11th, he was on third base.

White Sox reliever Sergio Santos seemingly had retired the Tigers in order when Inge swung and missed at his slider in the dirt. When the ball skipped past A.J. Pierzynski and towards the backstop, it looked like Pierzynski might still have a chance at the out.

Instead, Pierzynski's hurried throw to first hit Inge and caromed into right field.

"That one literally helped me by hitting me," Inge said. "It was a fluke play, but when the ball hit me, that helped, because I could get an instant read on where the ball was. Otherwise, if you don't feel anything, you're searching. You're kind of running this direction knowing the ball's going this way, so you're waiting for it to come in and see if it's overthrown. That one, I instantly knew.

"I didn't know I could end up on third. In my mind, I was going to third [unless] I saw [third-base coach Gene] Lamont hold me up at second."

Get to third base, Inge thought, and he'd be in position to score on a wild pitch or passed ball if Santos happened to bury another pitch in the dirt. Instead, he was in position for Laird to plate after an intentional walk to Brennan Boesch.

Leyland said he stuck with Laird instead of pinch-hitting with Alex Avila because of the right-handed Santos, who had given up just a .224 batting average against left-handed hitters compared with .290 against righties. Laird's bunting ability wasn't a factor for Leyland, but it was a factor for the White Sox, who had third baseman Brent Morel creep in as a defense.

Laird hit Santos' 95-mph fastball hard enough through the left side that it likely wouldn't have made a difference, but it was a thought.

"I was just glad the skipper gave me a chance to hit right there," Laird said. "He did mention I was going to hit if I faced him. I was glad he did."

Minutes later, and after Austin Jackson doubled in an insurance run, Laird went from delivering at the plate to leaning behind it as he tried to wish Paul Konerko's drive foul. Laird joked that he nearly threw out his back again trying to lean, hoping Konerko's shot down the left-field line would hook in front of the foul pole for strike two rather than behind it for a walk-off homer.

The poke off an Eddie Bonine fastball ran the count full. Bonine caught him looking on the next pitch, another fastball, this one at the knees.

With Pierzynski up with two on and one out, Leyland went to Schlereth, whose only pro saves came last year at Double-A Mobile in the D-backs' system. He got a potential double play ground ball, but the Tigers managed only one out from it.

At that point, Leyland admitted, "I got nervous."

That sense heightened once Schlereth lost Carlos Quentin to a walk, loading the bases for Ramirez. It was a treacherous lefty-righty matchup, but one that had played out a couple times last year.

"I faced Manny last year a couple times," Schlereth said. "That's the first time I threw him a fastball. He rolled over on it, and I think he expected me to throw it again."

Instead, Schlereth went with a curveball and back-to-back breaking balls. Ramirez laid off all of them, but the last two were called for strikes.

Schlereth got a non-alchoholic beer shower from his teammates after the game and kept the game ball to give to his father, ESPN analyst and former NFL great Mark Schlereth. Leyland got the lineup card as a keepsake. Robbie Weinhardt got his second big league win for keeping the game tied in the ninth and 10th.

The Tigers got out of town.

"The bottom line is we won," Schlereth said. "We just swept the White Sox. That's a good team. Hopefully, we can keep this going."

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. Read Beck's Blog and follow him on Twitter @beckjason. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Rhymes is the reason Tigers' streak continues
By Jason Beck / MLB.com | 09/20/10 12:20 PM ET

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DETROIT -- Will Rhymes' day began with a lunch order from Chipotle that he could stare at but couldn't eat, because he forgot his wallet. After further review, it ended with a bottle of Dom Perignon waiting in his locker at Comerica Park.

That's what a go-ahead run on a first Major League homer off Zack Greinke will do.

"I think that's been sitting on ice for a while," Rhymes joked about his gift from Brandon Inge after powering the Tigers to a 7-5 win over the Royals on Monday night. "A couple hundred at-bats, at least."

OK, Rhymes hadn't gone that long in the big leagues without a home run. But he could have without much surprise. As it was, after 164 at-bats, it was worth the wait.

His listed height of 5-foot-9 might be a bit generous, but his first Major League home run was not. Cy Young Award-winners don't give up a lot of cheapies, and Greinke hadn't given up a home run to any Tiger in 66 innings. AL MVP candidate Miguel Cabrera has never homered off of him.

Normally when Greinke gets a Royals rally and a middle-inning lead, it's time for him to shut down the opposition. With eight straight Tigers retired heading into the sixth inning and a 5-4 lead in his favor, thanks to a five-run Royals fifth, he was well on his way.

After an Alex Avila leadoff single, Greinke regrouped to strike out Inge and retire Ramon Santiago, leaving Rhymes trying to continue the rally. He saw some of the best of Greinke last month in Kansas City, from a nasty changeup to a slider that he called "unhittable," so he sat on a fastball.

He had a first-pitch fastball away that he passed up for strike one because he knew he couldn't drive it to the right side where he wanted. Once he got a fastball in and lofted it right, all Greinke could do was shrug.

"I thought it was a pop up leaving the bat," Greinke said. "It just kept going. He knew he hit it good, looking back on it. He thought it had a chance. Obviously, he hit it really well. But off the bat, I thought it was going to be just a routine popup."

That's excusable. The umpires initially thought it was a game-tying triple off the fence. So did Rhymes.

"I was running and just hoping he didn't catch it," Rhymes said. "I didn't get a look at it at all. I was just hoping to see the ball come back down to land somewhere."

Umpires initially ruled the ball hit off the top of the fence and stayed in play, which would have made it a game-tying triple. Replays, however, showed the ball hit off the lower half of the railing above the fence. Once umpires came to the same conclusion and overturned their original call, Rhymes trotted home with the go-ahead run and gave Johnny Damon a leaping high-five.

"I got to enjoy that home run a lot longer than most people do," Rhymes said. "That was the longest home-run jog ever."

He also gave the Tigers bullpen a lead it protected the rest of the way with some defensive help from a couple other rookies. Back-to-back hits from Wilson Betemit and Kila Ka'aihue seemingly had the Royals rallying again in the seventh, putting runners at the corners with one out. But Ka'aihue tried to stretch his line drive into a double on Casper Wells, who entered the game just a few batters earlier as a defensive replacement.

Wells fired a strike to second to nab Ka'aihue and take a sacrifice fly chance out of play.

"You have to make him make the play," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "The ball made a perfect bounce right back to him and he made a perfect throw."

Three pitches later, Avila made close to a perfect flip over the railing of the Royals dugout to catch Brayan Pena's popup to end the inning. It was a solid enough play that even Yost had to compliment him as he kept him from falling headfirst.

"That's a long ways down," Avila said. "As soon as I went over, I was looking straight down and all you see is that wood and concrete there. You feel like you're 100 feet off the ground."

Avila added an insurance run in the eighth when he took a Jesse Chavez pitch deep for his sixth home run of the year, a no-doubt drive to left. But no tape-measure shot was topping Rhymes, whose power is anything but routine.

"I hope he doesn't try to live [hitting the ball] in the air," manager Jim Leyland said.

He won't, but his power isn't rare; he homered twice for Triple-A Toledo this season, and had 18 over six Minor League seasons. But most of his power goes into line drives into the gap for doubles, not putting the ball in the air.

"Obviously, it's not something I'm going out there trying to do," he said. "It's just one of those things that happens every once in a while. But there's not a much better feeling for anyone, even guys who do it all the time, than to hit a home run. So it feels good. I'm not going to be up there trying to repeat it every night. That's gotten me in trouble in the past. But yeah, I'm certainly going to enjoy this.

"I'm glad it could come in a win. That really makes it so much better."

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. Read Beck's Blog and follow him on Twitter @beckjason. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.