(TSX / STATS) — KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Long balls and two-out, two-run doubles helped the Detroit Tigers end their grueling trip in the win column.
Victor Martinez and Alex Avila homered as the Detroit Tigers rallied from an early three-run deficit to beat the Kansas City Royals 6-5 on Wednesday night.
“I think we were able to take advantage of pitches we were able to hit and put a good string of hits together, after Victor’s (second-inning) home run,” Avila said.
The Tigers (25-28) took two of three in Kansas City (22-30), which has the worst record in the American League.
“It was just a matter of getting back to winning a series,” Avila said. “But, it always feels good getting on a plane after a win.”
The Tigers went 4-7 on their three-city trip.
“We still don’t call this a good road trip,” said Detroit’s Justin Upton, who had a two-run double in a four-run third. “It wasn’t a good road trip by any means. That’s all you can do is to win today and move on to Friday.”
Neither starting pitcher lasted long. Royals right-hander Ian Kennedy (0-5) was removed after three innings and 74 pitches. Tigers left-hander Matthew Boyd was yanked with two outs in the fourth after 63 pitches.
“Some of the breaking balls are flat,” Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said of Boyd. “I think they took advantage of flat off-speed pitches in the zone. I’d like to see him attack a little bit more. He did early, like in the second inning. Not really attacked, but again they got to him. In my mind, we had to go to (reliever Warwick) Saupold at that point.”
Saupold (1-0) pitched three shutout innings to pick up the victory.
Justin Wilson worked around Alex Gordon’s ninth-inning single to collect his fifth save.
The Detroit bullpen allowed one run in 5 1/3 innings after Boyd was pulled.
Kennedy continued to struggle, and he remains winless in his past 13 starts. He was roughed up for five runs, four hits and three walks while striking out four.
“He just hit a wall,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “He started laboring. He got a groundout, a walk and a strikeout, and you think he’s going to cruise through the third. Then a walk and a walk and a double. He just really started to labor to try to get that third out in the third inning. He was just fighting his command.”
The Royals staked Kennedy to a three-run lead after the first, sending eight men to the plate. Lorenzo Cain started it with a double, and Eric Hosmer had an infield single. Salvador Perez singled to center, scoring Cain. After Whit Merrifield walked, Cheslor Cuthbert’s two-out single scored Hosmer and Perez.
“We score three runs to start the game in the bottom of the first,” Kennedy said. “That stinks when you give up a lead like that.”
The Tigers quickly got a run back in the next inning, when Victor Martinez led off with his fifth home run of the season. He drove Kennedy’s 0-1 pitch out to right.
Kennedy gave up four runs in the third, all with two outs. He walked Andrew Romine, Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez to load the bases. J.D. Martinez doubled to right, scoring Romine and Cabrera. Upton then doubled to center, bringing home Victor Martinez and J.D. Martinez.
“I’m just missing off,” Kennedy said. “Not by a whole lot, but just enough to walk a lot of guys. They made me paid for it. I put myself in the situation. I beat myself. It’s frustrating.
“I felt really good the first two innings. Physically I felt good. I was just missing off a little bit. I’ll just try to correct that between starts.”
Avila homered in the fourth off Royals reliever Seth Maness, giving the Tigers a 6-3 lead. It was Avila’s seventh homer of the year.
The Royals got a run back in the bottom half of the fourth, with Alcides Escobar’s two-out single scoring Cuthbert, who had doubled.
“Cheslor is seeing the ball better,” Yost said. “He always plays good defense. It was a good night for him.”
Cuthbert’s RBI hit ended the night for Boyd, who yielded four runs and seven hits.
The Royals trimmed the Tigers’ lead to a run in the eighth. Jorge Bonifacio and Merrifield, who owns a career-best 16-game hitting streak, singled. Bonifacio scored on Alex Wilson’s wild pitch with two outs.
Upton left in the third inning with a mild right quadriceps strain he sustained while running the bases. He was replaced by Mikie Mahtook.
“I don’t think it’s anything major,” Ausmus said of Upton. “We’ll see how he is on Friday.”
NOTES: The Tigers altered their rotation for the weekend series with the White Sox. RHP Justin Verlander will start Sunday with his normal four days’ rest between starts. LHP Daniel Norris was moved back from Sunday to Tuesday. … Royals 1B Eric Hosmer singled in the third inning for his 1,000th hit. … Salvador Perez was the Royals’ DH with Drew Butera catching. Manager Ned Yost said it allows him to keep Perez’s bat in the lineup and give him a day and a half off behind the plate, with the club idle Thursday. … Ausmus said he anticipates 2B Ian Kinsler (hamstring strain) will come off the disabled list Tuesday. … The Tigers return home Friday to play 12 of their next 15 at Comerica Park. … LHP Jason Vargas will start Friday against the Indians to begin a three-game series. Cleveland will start RHP Josh Tomlin.
Photo credit – Orlin Wagner / Associated Press / Kansas City, MO
