He just hasn’t been able to eliminate the few mistakes that it would take to start shutting teams down. A couple walks, two runs. Since he could not get the third out, Ausmus yanked him and put K-Rod on the mound.
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“If we could score, he’d have a better record”, manager Robin Ventura said.
But with one out in the bottom of the inning, Victor Martinez singled and J.D. Martinez launched a long homer over the Chicago bullpen to give Pelfrey and the Tigers a lead, on their way to a 7-4 win. The White Sox hope the arrival of Shields can give the team enough of an emotional boost to avoid a three-game sweep when they visit the Detroit Tigers for the series finale on Sunday.Chicago already has Chris Sale, Jose Quintana and Carlos Rodon at the top of the rotation but, with no impact bats on the market this early, made a decision to add to an area of relative strength by trading right-handed pitcher Erik Johnson and 17-year-old shortstop prospect Fernando Tatis Jr.to the San Diego Padres in exchange for Shields.
Tigers: Cabrera, who has been having trouble with stiffness in his lower back, seemed to be struggling on a sixth-inning at-bat, but stayed in the game.
Asked if he saw Shuck coming, Coats added: “The gap was kind of open and it was kind of no-man’s land, and I didn’t hear him”.
The White Sox are 6-14 in Quintana’s last 20 starts in game three of a series, and 0-4 in Quintana’s last four starts overall.
Detroit tacked on three more runs in the eighth off reliever Matt Albers. The White Sox are shorthanded in the outfield with LF Melky Cabrera on the Family Emergence Leave List and CF Austin Jackson dealing with a turf toe injury.
Sunday’s win was a shining example of what the Tigers can look like when all is well – starting pitching was stellar, the offense provided timely and balanced production, defense was crisp and the bullpen was resolute. Avila spent his first seven seasons with the Tigers and played in the 2011 All-Star Game.
Coats leads the International League in average and ranks third in on-base percentage (.399), slugging percentage (.567) and OPS (.966). On to 2016, Martinez has been the slugger that the Tigers have needed, picking up the slack for J.D. Martinez and Justin Upton, forming a fearsome top of the lineup quartet with Ian Kinsler, Miguel Cabrera, and Nick Castellanos. “I take my responsibility for the game”.
“I’m good, nothing too serious”.
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Coats had been called up from Triple-A Charlotte earlier in the day. Cabrera is now on emergency family leave and didn’t play Saturday. Lemon was honored as part of Negro League weekend at Comerica Park. Michael Fulmer (5-1, 3.24) faces J.A. Happ (6-2, 3.06). The win pulls the Tigers back to.500 on the season, and within half a game of the sinking Sox in the American league’s central division.
