Cabrera tells Tigers he's sorry for being drunk

[October 07, 2009]  MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Detroit star Miguel Cabrera apologized to his teammates for being drunk last weekend while the Tigers were trying to clinch the AL Central title, then delivered two big hits in Tuesday night's tiebreaker loss to Minnesota.

The slumping Cabrera had a double his first time up, then hit a two-run homer that put the Tigers ahead 3-0 in the third inning.

But it wasn't quite enough. He had two groundouts and a walk the rest of the way and was thrown out at home plate by Twins second baseman Nick Punto in the 12th inning of Detroit's 6-5 loss that gave Minnesota the division championship.

"He made a great play," Cabrera said. "If he doesn't make a good throw, I'm safe, no problem. I don't know what to say right now."

Before batting practice, Cabrera told reporters he was sorry for his actions and the stress he caused the organization. He insisted the alcohol consumption -- between two games the Tigers lost -- didn't negatively affect his performance.

"No, no, no. I was good. I was focused," Cabrera said.

Cabrera went 0 for 4 and stranded six runners in a 5-1 loss to Chicago on Saturday, a game that started about 12 hours after Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski picked him up at a police station following a fight with his wife -- apparently over his late arrival from a night out.

Police said Cabrera's wife, Rosangel, called 911. Both of them had marks on their faces when officers arrived, but they were minor and no charges were filed. The 26-year-old Cabrera registered a 0.26 blood alcohol content, three times above Michigan's legal driving limit.

Cabrera, who hit .324 with 34 home runs and 103 RBIs this year, is in the second season of an eight-year, $152.3 million contract. He went 0 for 11 over the weekend while the Tigers lost two out of three games to the White Sox -- and was hitless in his last 14 at-bats overall -- and let the Twins catch them in the standings.

"I want to focus on the game right now," Cabrera said, sitting solemnly in front his cubicle in the visitor's locker room at the Metrodome on Tuesday afternoon. There was a bruise and a scratch still visible on his face, but they were faded.

Cabrera said he learned a lesson from the situation and insisted he was able to fully focus on baseball and not this off-the-field problem.

"This is a big game," Cabrera said. "Hopefully we play good."

[Associated Press; By DAVE CAMPBELL]

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