After splitting the first 2 games of the series, the Detroit Tigers and Boston Red Sox took the field for a Saturday night classic at Comerica Park.
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J.D. Martinez had a pair of doubles and Erick Aybar had three hits for the Tigers, but Upton was the star.
The rookie Andrew Benintendi had an incredible day of career firsts both coming late in a game that was over early. The Tigers send Daniel Norris to the hill Saturday to oppose the Red Sox for the first time since 2015. Detroit has scored 19 runs in those 10 defeats.Boston remained a half-game behind Toronto in the AL East.The Red Sox broke a scoreless tie in the top of the third with consecutive singles by Dustin Pedroia, Bogaerts and Ortiz loading the bases.
With the win, the Tigers stand seven games behind the Indians in the American League Central division and 3 1/2 games out of the league’s wild card spot. In his last three starts, Norris has gone 0-3 despite posting a 2.92 ERA. I was certain that this was management’s excuse to get him off the field, without embarrassing him with a demotion to the bullpen.
Shane Greene: I really wanted this to be a hiss-free game, but Greene’s inning of work was pretty bad.
Ortiz also singled in the first on a night when the Tigers honored him with a framed picture of his appearance in the 2005 All-Star game in Detroit.
“This was a big game, especially against a team we’re trying to catch, ” Verlander said.
“I wasn’t sure it was going to get out until I saw J.D. give up on it”. I just want to perform. You can’t jog on your first one, ” he said.
“This one came down to base on balls and Justin Upton”, manager John Farrell of Boston said. They’ve seen him attack hitters with the tenacity of a battle-tested veteran, evolving and adapting so rapidly it’s hard to believe he’s just 23 years old. “We know this is a young man with a lot of talent, and he’s going to keep hitting”. In other major league action, Kendall Graveman fired a two-hit shutout as Oakland blanked the White Sox, 9-0, at U.S. Cellular Field.
Records continue to fall for David Ortiz like his home runs rain down from the sky. “It’s my brother’s birthday, Mom and Dad are here and my wife and kid are here”, Upton said.
When the Red Sox allow at least one home run, they are 41-43, well-matched with the Tigers who are 33-42 when allowing at least one homer. Detroit is a disappointing 1-4 as the favorite over its last 10 games.
The score remained the same until the 5th inning when Ortiz blasted a two-run homer to give the Red Sox a 3-1 lead. But the inexorable Red Sox offense came back for more in the sixth, stringing together four seeing-eye singles to plate two more runs and knock Fulmer out of the game. “They just had my number tonight”. He tipped his cap to the crowd as he walked off.
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The Red Sox lost with Henry Owens on the mound, as you might have expected to, leaving the Sox with a series split they’ll be plenty happy with under the circumstances.
