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Tigers score 7 in 11th to beat Indians

Sep 5, 2014 - 5:54 AM Cleveland, OH (SportsNetwork.com) - Eugenio Suarez entered the game as a pinch-runner in the 10th inning and delivered a go-ahead two-run single in the 11th as the Detroit Tigers beat the Cleveland Indians 11-4 on Thursday to wrap up a four-game series.

Victor Martinez added a three-run homer in the 11th for the Tigers, who won three of four in the series to pull within one game of Kansas City for first place in the AL Central.

Detroit scored four runs in the first inning, seven in the 11th and nothing in between. Ian Kinsler had three hits and scored two runs in the win.

Michael Brantley hit a tying RBI double in seventh inning for the Indians and Yan Gomes knocked in two runs.

"We battled back so hard to tie that game," said Cleveland manager Terry Francona. "Everybody did such a good job to give us a chance. Then you're trying to give up (no runs) and you give up seven."

Rajai Davis drew a walk off Josh Tomlin (6-9) in the 11th, Kinsler singled and both players eventually scored on Suarez's bases-loaded single to left field for the go-ahead runs.

An inning earlier, Cleveland's Scott Atchison pitched out of a jam after Miguel Cabrera led off with a double. Atchison struck out Nick Castellanos and got Bryan Holaday on a grounder to strand runners at first and third.

In the ninth inning, Michael Bourn hit a one-out infield single for Cleveland, beating reliever Phil Coke (4-2) to first base on the toss from Martinez, but was later thrown out trying to steal second, ending the threat.

Earlier, Bourn singled off Al Alburquerque in the seventh and scored from first base on Brantley's double to the left-center field wall off Blaine Hardy, tying the score at 4-4 for the Indians.

Indians starter Trevor Bauer entered the game 1-3 in his last eight starts (the team was 5-3 in those games) with 21 earned runs allowed in 45 1/3 innings.

The Tigers tacked on four more in the first inning, sending 10 batters to the plate with Holaday delivering a two-run single and Davis adding an RBI hit. The first run scored on Bauer's wild pitch with the bases loaded.

Brantley hit a leadoff double in the fourth and scored Cleveland's first run on Gomes' sacrifice fly. He made it to third base on an error when Tigers second baseman Kinsler and right fielder Tyler Collins let Carlos Santana's shallow pop-up drop between them.

The Indians rallied for two runs in the sixth -- the last inning for Tigers starter Max Scherzer. Santana walked, went to third on Jason Kipnis' double and scored on Gomes' groundout. Lonnie Chisenhall followed with an RBI single through the left side to make it 4-3.

"He pitched well," Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said of Scherzer. "I think the defense in the outfield failed him. We could have gotten a little more help out of the defense."

Two of the three runs surrendered by Scherzer were earned. He struck out six, walked three and gave up four hits.

Game Notes

Coke got five outs for the win ... Bauer went 5 2/3 innings, giving up six hits and four walks and striking out four ... Detroit finished 5-3 on an eight-game road trip ... The Indians continue an 11-game homestand with a three-game series against the White Sox starting Friday ... The Tigers start a nine-game homestand on Friday against San Francisco.