Alex Avila hit a 2- run homer, his second of the game, in the bottom of the 8th inning to give Detroit a 7-6 victory over the Rays. Avila hit his 7th and 8th homers of the season and had 3 RBIs.
Miguel Cabrera hit a 3-run homer, his 9th of the season.
After a number of outings of Justin Verlander picking up a lack of offense, the offense finally picked up Verlander. He got hit for 6 runs on 9 hits in 6 innings pitched. The bullpen that has been getting battered recently (though at least quality starts by starters has limited their exposure somewhat) put together 3 sharp innings.
Al Alburquerque pitched two-thirds of an inning in relief of Daniel Schereth's 1.1 innings, and earned his first Major League win. He's 1-1 on the season. That's 2 "first Major League wins" by Tigers pitchers in 2 nights.
Joaquin Benoit was called upon to get the same to spell Jose Valverde. He closed it out for his first Tigers save. He's had a couple good outings in a row, so maybe his troubles are behind him.
Jim Leyland shook up the lineup a bit. Don Kelly started for Brandon Inge and hit second. He was 2-3 with a run scored. Scott Sizemore was dropped to 9th in the lineup and was 2-3. Sizemore needs to get going, and so does the 2 spot in the lineup in general. That's where Sizemore has been hitting, and before him Will Rhymes. Austin Jackson is warming up in the leadoff spot but the 2 spot continues to slump.
I have to wonder about Brandon Inge. He plays great defense. But he continues to hit right around .200, and this year and most of last he has not even hit for the power that he could at least provide in the past. So he's become, at least for now, a .200 hitting singles hitter. I have to wonder how much longer that can go on. Don Kelly doesn't have the power that Inge has, at least historically, but he can get on base. And he can play decent defense.
As I look at this year and see a Tiger team that has most of the pieces it needs to be a playoff team, and maybe a legitimate playoff threat, it seems like they'll probably make some trade deadline moves to shore up the roster. An offensive upgrade for third base could happen. They could also use some relief help if guys are going to continue to be inconsistent, and maybe a starting pitcher if it's decided that the best bullpen fix is to move Phil Coke back there.
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