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Four-run ninth lifts Tigers over Mariners

Jun 2, 2008 - 1:47 AM By Paul Lowenberg PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

SEATTLE (Ticker) -- The Detroit Tigers finally scored some runs and managed to pull out a ninth-inning victory against one of the best closers in the American League last year.

Placido Polanco singled home the go-ahead run off J.J. Putz to trigger a four-run ninth inning, and the Tigers withstood Raul Ibanez's two-run blast to earn a 7-5 victory over the Seattle Mariners on Sunday.

Magglio Ordonez and Miguel Cabrera each drove in two runs to help Detroit to its fifth victory in six meetings with Seattle this season.

"We hung in there," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "We were fortunate enough to score a couple of runs off one of the best closers in the league. That won't happen very often."

Putz (2-3) struck out Ivan Rodriguez to open the ninth before walking Brandon Inge. Curtis Granderson followed with a single, sending Inge to third.

Polanco hit Putz's first pitch into right field for a single to score Inge and moved Granderson to second. Both runners advanced on Carlos Guillen's groundout before Ordonez singled off third baseman Adrian Beltre's glove to plate another run.

"We were aggressive against one of the greatest closers in the league," Polanco said. "We were able to get some strikes and hit them for base hits. That's how this game goes sometimes. We've had good days and bad days and today was a pretty good day for the team."

Cabrera's two-run double gave Detroit a 7-3 advantage.

"Everything felt fine," Putz said. "I made good pitches. The pitch to Polanco was in on his hands. What can you do with a blooper down the right field line? The walk is what really hurts, but Inge laid off some good splits."

Seattle wasted a scoring opportunity when Jeremy Reed opened the eighth with a bloop single to right off reliever Zach Miner (2-3) that got by Ordonez for an error, allowing Reed to go to second. Miguel Cairo sacrificed Reed to third and Ichiro Suzuki was intentionally walked, but Miner got Jose Lopez to ground out to end the inning.

Tigers starter Jeremy Bonderman went seven innings and gave up a career-high 12 hits, allowing three runs, striking out five and not issuing a walk.

"Bondo did all right," Leyland said. "He definitely bent, but he didn't break."

Bonderman, a native of Washington, agreed that it was kind of a tough day on the mound.

"I didn't have a good breaking ball today," Bonderman said. "I just kind of kept throwing it and gave up some hits on it. It was just one of those games where I had to battle my whole way through it."

The Tigers drove starter Miguel Batista from the mound in the sixth, loading the bases on two hits and a walk, to bring on righthander Sean Green. Ivan Rodriguez's sacrifice fly made it 3-3, but Green struck out Brandon Inge to avoid further damage.

"The ball was moving quite well today," Batista said. "Some guys just hit some good pitches. We're not losing any more as we were. We're playing better as a team. They have to beat us now."

Batista, winless in his last four starts, went 5 1/3 innings, giving up three runs on five hits and four walks.

Ibanez, who began the day in a 2-for-40 slump, had a pair of singles in addition to his ninth-inning blast.

The Tigers ended a 17-inning scoreless streak when Ordonez singled home a run in the first inning for a 1-0 lead.

Guillen, the Tigers' All-Star shortstop who has been playing first and third this season, started the game in left field - the first time he has played the outfield in his 11-year major league career.

Guillen's double into the right field corner scored Granderson from first for a 2-1 lead in the third inning. The Mariners responded with a sacrifice fly by Jose Vidro in the bottom of the inning to knot the score at 2-2.