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Martinez, Tigers rout Twins

Aug 27, 2011 - 3:52 AM Minneapolis, MN (Sports Network) - Victor Martinez drove in four runs and Delmon Young knocked in three runs against his former team, as the Tigers downed the Twins, 8-1, in the opener of a three-game series.

Rick Porcello (12-8) held Minnesota to one run on seven hits and three walks over 6 1/3 innings for Detroit, which maintained its 6 1/2-game lead over the Indians atop the AL Central with its seventh win in eight games.

Scott Diamond (0-2), in his second career start, was touched for five runs on 11 hits in 6 1/3 innings to take the loss.

Minnesota has scored five runs during a six-game skid.

"You don't see many teams with four rookies in the starting lineup. It's not an excuse, it's reality. ... It's hard to win when everyone's still trying to learn," Twins first baseman Justin Morneau said when asked about the club's most recent swoon.

The Twins put their first three hitters on base in the second and only pushed one run across on Drew Butera's single to right.

"We dodged a couple of bullets and [Porcello] settled down," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "One hit there could have really broke it open."

Detroit responded in their next at-bat, which Brandon Inge and Austin Jackson got started with singles. Young's base hit plated Inge, and Jackson raced in on Martinez's sacrifice fly.

Young, acquired in a trade with the Twins earlier this month, greeted Glen Perkins with an RBI single after Diamond loaded the bases with one out in the seventh. Martinez added a ground-rule double to left-center to bring in Jackson and Ramon Santiago for a 5-1 cushion.

The Tigers padded the margin with three in the eighth. Santiago tacked on a run-scoring sac fly, Young knocked in Ryan Raburn and Martinez worked a walk with the bases loaded to force in another. Lester Oliveros was credited with all three runs allowed.

Game Notes

Phil Coke hurled 1 2/3 hitless innings in relief for Detroit, which leads the season series, 10-3...Minnesota is 5-18 in August...Young, Raburn and Miguel Cabrera each had three hits in Detroit' 16-hit effort. Cabrera missed Thursday's win at Tampa Bay for the birth of his son Christopher Alexander...Porcello, Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer became the first trio of Tigers pitchers with 12 or more wins in the club's first 131 games of the season since Jack Morris, Dan Petry and Walt Terrell did so in 1985.