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Maroth returns, Sheffield homers as Tigers top Royals

Apr 7, 2007 - 11:54 PM KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Ticker) -- Mike Maroth's return to the Detroit Tigers' rotation was a success.

Maroth pitched five innings and was supported by solo homers from Gary Sheffield, Ivan Rodriguez and Curtis Granderson as the Tigers held on for a 6-5 victory over the Kansas City Royals.

After missing most of last season due to surgery to remove bone chips from his left elbow, Maroth was not overpowering but still got the win.

"It was a little better feeling leaving the game here today than it was the last time," said Maroth, who injured his elbow May 25 in a start here. The lefthander returned as a reliever in September.

"It feels good to be back," Maroth said. "But it's more about the season in general than about this one game. I'm excited, but not just for this start. I have a lot of anticipation and I look forward to a nice long season."

"(Maroth) used his cutter more as he got into the game," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "He pitched OK. The good thing is he said he felt fine and that's a good thing." Maroth (1-0) left the game with a 6-4 lead; he allowed four runs, six hits and one walk with three strikeouts.

"You don't like to give up a three-spot and give a lead back," Leyland said. "That's usually the kiss of death."

Maroth admitted that it wasn't one of his better efforts.

"I did enough to win," Maroth said. "I wouldn't necessarily say I pitched well. It was not my best performance; I don't think my pitches were quite as effective, but I was throwing strikes and we did enough to win."

Jason Grilli allowed the Royals to draw within one run in the sixth when Esteban German doubled home a run. Fireballer Joel Zumaya pitched two scoreless innings. Todd Jones pitched the ninth, surviving an error by shortstop Carlos Guillen, to pick up his second save of the season.

Kansas City starter Gil Meche (1-1), coming off an impressive opening start against the Boston Red Sox, had problems with Detroit's lineup. In seven innings, the righthander allowed six runs and eight hits, including all three homers.

"Gil was getting the ball up more today and got hurt more on that today," Royals manager Buddy Bell said. "I thought he battled pretty good. It was a tough day to get a feel for your pitches. He battled through some things and gave us a chance to win."

"I couldn't get any rhythm," Meche said. "Today it felt like I was trying to find it every inning. We kept battling. After the third inning when I gave up three runs and we battled back, and I gave up the homer the next inning, it kind of eats you up to let down your teammates who are battling so hard for you."

Reggie Sanders had three hits - including a two-run homer - and German drove in two runs for the Royals (2-3), who were trying to crack the .500 mark for the first time since April 13, 2004. Sanders was playing for the first time this season.

"We're trying to get Reggie in there," Bell said. "He had a nice game and it was good to see."

"I'm just trying to do the things I need to do to stay focused," Sanders said. "It felt great from my standpoint, but the outcome wasn't what I wanted. When you have a good day like that you want a win, too. We all know what it's about at the end of the day; it's about winning."

Rodriguez continues to dominate the Royals. The All-Star catcher is batting .355 (206-for-580) with 19 home runs in his career against Kansas City. Rodriguez connected on the first pitch he saw in the fourth inning for his first homer of the season, giving the Tigers a lead they did not relinquish.

"It was a pitch over the plate and I was able to drive it over the left field fence," Rodriguez said. "I'm an aggressive hitter and he gave me a pitch to hit."

Sheffield also collected his first home run of the season, a solo shot in the first, and added an RBI single in the third inning. Sheffield has now homered for seven different major league teams.

"I got a good pitch to hit," Sheffield said. "Success early in the game breeds confidence. I'm still just trying to figure out some things and trying to stay ready. This isn't ideal weather to play in, but you just try to do your best. I want to keep figuring it out and get as comfortable as possible."