Final
Slumping Astros try to recover against Tigers
May 4, 2013 - 2:14 PMVideo
Houston, which has made the transition to the American League from the NL, has found the move rather rocky and at this point is tied for the fewest wins in the majors with Miami at eight. Already 10 1/2 games out of contention in the AL West, the Astros fell for the fourth straight time and dropped their eighth in the last nine outings with their 4-3 setback on Friday.
Holding a 3-2 advantage heading into the ninth inning, the Astros turned to Jose Veras to close out the contest, but he gave up two runs on just one hit and a walk as Alex Avila delivered with a one-out, two-run home run that also scored Don Kelly.
"It felt amazing," Avila said of his fourth home run of the season. "I'm sure my expression on the field said it all. When you're struggling and you do something good on the field, it feels good."
Bud Norris pitched a solid seven innings for the hosts, permitting two runs on five hits and three walks, fanning seven, but the bullpen failed to hold up his effort.
Jose Altuve logged three hits for the hosts, another two coming from Matt Dominguez.
Picking up the win for the Tigers was Drew Smyly, while the save went to Jose Valverde. Doug Fister didn't factor into the decision, as the starter scattered nine hits, leading to a pair of earned runs, while striking out four over six innings of action.
"You got to keep it close," said Smyly. "They had a chance to break it open. We had to keep it close. A one-run game in the ninth, anything can happen. That home run was awesome."
Ahead of Kansas City for first place in the AL Central by only a half game, Detroit has won two straight and seven of the last eight overall.
Coming off his third double-digit strikeout effort of the season on Monday, Max Scherzer is set to take the hill again for the Tigers tonight. The right- hander, already 1-1 in his career versus Houston, registered his third win in as many decisions earlier this week when Detroit recorded a 4-3 victory over Minnesota at home.
In that outing Scherzer lasted 7 1/3 innings, giving up three runs on six hits, while striking out 10 without issuing a single base-on-balls. The Missouri product now has 46 strikeouts through 31 1/3 innings, against only seven walks.
As for the Astros, they have right-hander Lucas Harrell preparing to counter on the mound. Harrell, who started his major league career with the Chicago White Sox but has yet to record a decision against Detroit, has won three straight outings heading into the weekend.
Earlier this week Harrell allowed just one run on eight hits and a walk through 6 1/3 innings of action in a 9-1 victory over the Yankees in New York. The Astros have generated a total of 22 runs in the three wins for Harrell but only seven in the other three outings for the hurler.
Detroit swept the Astros in their three-game set at home back in 2006 before losing two of three in Houston during the 2009 campaign.
- DETROIT: 17
HOUSTON: 2
Final
May 4 10:24 PM - Jason Castro single to right scored Jose Altuve with one out. Runner on first and Brandon Laird due up.
Tigers 17, Astros 2 Bot 9, 1 OutMay 4 10:19 PM - Victor Martinez none-out, two-run Home Run (1) to left scored Matt Tuiasosopo. Andy Dirks due up.
Tigers 17, Astros 1 Top 9, 0 OutsMay 4 10:07 PM - Torii Hunter double to left scored Omar Infante with two outs. Runner on second and Ramon Santiago due up.
Tigers 15, Astros 1 Top 8, 2 OutsMay 4 9:55 PM - Pinch-Hitter Don Kelly flied out to left. Runner on first with two outs and Torii Hunter due up.
Tigers 14, Astros 1 Top 8, 2 OutsMay 4 9:54 PM - Pinch-Hitter Don Kelly double to left scored Omar Infante with one out. Runner on second and Torii Hunter due up.
Tigers 15, Astros 1 Top 8, 1 OutMay 4 9:52 PM - Omar Infante reached first on Ronny Cedeno's fielding error, scoring Jhonny Peralta with one out. Runner on first and Austin Jackson due up.
Tigers 14, Astros 1 Top 8, 1 OutMay 4 9:50 PM - Jhonny Peralta double to left scored Andy Dirks with none out. Runner on second and Alex Avila due up.
Tigers 13, Astros 1 Top 8, 0 OutsMay 4 9:41 PM - Carlos Corporan two-out, solo Home Run (2) to right. Chris Carter due up.
Tigers 12, Astros 1 Bot 7, 2 OutsMay 4 9:35 PM - Prince Fielder single to right scored Torii Hunter with two outs. On the play, Miguel Cabrera advances to second. Runners on first and second and Victor Martinez due up.
Tigers 12, Astros 0 Top 7, 2 OutsMay 4 9:26 PM - Miguel Cabrera single to right scored Austin Jackson with two outs. On the play, Torii Hunter advances to third. Runners on first and third and Prince Fielder due up.
Tigers 11, Astros 0 Top 7, 2 OutsMay 4 9:24 PM - Torii Hunter single to center scored Alex Avila with two outs. On the play, Austin Jackson advances to second. Runners on first and second and Miguel Cabrera due up.
Tigers 10, Astros 0 Top 7, 2 OutsMay 4 9:22 PM - Miguel Cabrera lead off Home Run 2 (6) to left. Prince Fielder due up.
Tigers 9, Astros 0 Top 6, 0 OutsMay 4 8:57 PM - Alex Avila double to left scored Andy Dirks with one out. Runner on second and Omar Infante due up.
Tigers 8, Astros 0 Top 5, 1 OutMay 4 8:39 PM - Miguel Cabrera bases loaded walk scored Alex Avila with one out. Bases loaded and Prince Fielder due up.
Tigers 7, Astros 0 Top 4, 1 OutMay 4 8:18 PM - Miguel Cabrera two-out, two-run Home Run (5) to left scored Torii Hunter. Prince Fielder due up.
Tigers 6, Astros 0 Top 2, 2 OutsMay 4 7:43 PM - Jhonny Peralta single to right scored Victor Martinez with two outs. Runner on first and Alex Avila due up.
Tigers 4, Astros 0 Top 1, 2 OutsMay 4 7:24 PM - Victor Martinez double to center scored Torii Hunter and Miguel Cabrera with one out. Runner on second and Andy Dirks due up.
Tigers 3, Astros 0 Top 1, 1 OutMay 4 7:21 PM - Miguel Cabrera single to right scored Austin Jackson with none out. On the play, Torii Hunter advances to third. Runners on first and third and Prince Fielder due up.
Tigers 1, Astros 0 Top 1, 0 OutsMay 4 7:16 PM - DETROIT: 0
HOUSTON: 0
Top 1, 0 Outs
May 4 7:10 PM
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