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Twins edge Tigers

Jul 3, 2012 - 4:40 AM Detroit, MI (Sports Network) - Trevor Plouffe drove in a pair to highlight Minnesota's four-run fourth inning, and three Twins relievers combined to toss five scoreless frames in a 6-4 decision over the Tigers.

Rod Gardenhire earned his 900th career managerial win as Minnesota took the opener of the four-game series by recording 13 hits -- all singles.

"This is 900 wins for an organization, and I just happened to be the manager," said a humble Gardenhire. "I'm proud of this organization and proud to be a part of that."

Joe Mauer had two of those base hits, scored a run and knocked in another, while Ryan Doumit went 3-for-3 with an RBI for the Twins, who tied a season high with their fourth straight victory.

Anthony Swarzak (2-4) earned the win with 2 2/3 innings of relief behind Liam Hendriks, who gave up four runs on six hits and four walks in four-plus frames.

Hendriks' counterpart, Doug Fister (1-6), also failed to record an out in the fifth and was charged with six runs on eight hits to take the loss.

"They did find some holes and capitalized on some of my mistakes," Fister said. "I left the ball up a little bit."

Miguel Cabrera went 3-for-3 with a walk, a run scored and three RBI for the Tigers, who were coming off a 5-5 road trip.

Cabrera and Prince Fielder were each stranded in the ninth, as Delmon Young flew out to the warning track in right and Brennan Boesch went down swinging against Glen Perkins, who notched his third save in the process.

Fister, staked to a 1-0 lead on Cabrera's sacrifice fly in the third inning, did not surrender a hit until he succumbed to a rash of singles the second time and third time through the Twins' lineup.

Three straight base hits in fourth, the last by Josh Willingham, scored a run, and Plouffe drove in a pair with a two-out base hit. Another single by Doumit plated Plouffe to cap the four-run inning.

With no outs in the fifth, Mauer chased Fister with a run-scoring base hit through the right side of the infield, and Ben Revere scored later in the inning when Quintin Berry dove and missed Justin Morneau's sinking fly ball to left field.

The Tigers pushed three across in the bottom half to stay close, as Cabrera brought in a pair with a double to the left-field gap and scored on Young's sac fly.

Swarzak was pulled with two on and two outs in the seventh, and Alex Burnett struck out pinch-hitter Brennan Boesch to keep it a 6-4 game.

Burnett shook off a leadoff walk in the eighth.

Game Notes

Gardenhire ranks second on the Twins' all-time managerial wins list behind Tom Kelly (1140 wins)...Mauer has a 10-game hitting streak...Over his last 14 appearances, Burnett has not allowed a run (16 innings). He's given up only four hits in that span...Hendriks is winless in 12 straight big-league starts...Fister has given up 16 runs in his last three starts (10.05 ERA).