LDN - Sports

Cruz blast helps Mariners top Tigers

[August 11, 2016] SEATTLE -- The Seattle Mariners went into the July 31 trade deadline with a seller's mentality, dealing two established relievers and a member of their starting rotation for younger, cheaper talent.

A 10-game homestand later, the Mariners have somehow turned themselves into an unlikely contender.

Nelson Cruz's one-out, tiebreaking solo homer in the bottom of the eighth inning helped propel the red-hot Mariners to their sixth win in a row as they beat the Detroit Tigers 3-1 on Wednesday night.

Cruz hit a 1-1 pitch from Detroit reliever Justin Wilson 421 feet to give Seattle a 2-1 lead before teammate Leonys Martin added an RBI single as the Mariners (60-53) completed their second consecutive sweep and an 8-2 homestand to move within a game-and-a-half of the Boston Red Sox in the American League wild-card standings.

"We're not thinking about the wild card," Tuesday starter Felix Hernandez said. "We just go out and try to win games."

Detroit (61-53) dropped its fourth game in a row as the Tigers continue to lose ground in the AL Central and in the wild-card race.

Cruz went 3-for-4 while hitting his team-high 28th home run of the season. Teammate Robinson Cano hit his 25th homer with a solo shot in the first inning.

"We put all the pieces together," Cruz said.

Two veteran starting pitchers with impressive track records battled through some early issues to make it through seven innings, each giving up just one run without being involved in the decision. Seattle's Hernandez allowed three hits over seven innings but walked four. He threw 117 pitches, 38 of which came during the four walks. Justin Verlander of the Tigers needed 121 pitches to get through seven innings, allowing one run off seven hits.

"He's been pretty strong since last July," Detroit manager Brad Ausmus said of Verlander.

Wilson (2-4) took the loss after allowing two runs in the eighth.

Seattle reliever Arquimedes Caminero (1-0) was the winning pitcher, having thrown a scoreless top of the eighth before Nick Vincent came on and earned his second save of the season while closer Edwin Diaz took the night off.

Both bullpens got a well-deserved day of rest after the two teams played a 15-inning marathon late into Tuesday night.

The Tigers had just four hits, with Victor Martinez accounting for two of them. Martinez went 2-for-2 with a pair of singles and two walks and has now reached safely in 18 consecutive games.

Cano hit his solo homer that gave Seattle a 1-0 lead in the first inning. It marked Cano's sixth 25-homer season and his first since 2013, when he hit 27 with the New York Yankees.

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Mariners designated hitter Nelson Cruz (23) is greeted in the dugout after his solo home run against the Detroit Tigers during the eighth inning at Safeco Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

Detroit right fielder J.D. Martinez had a two-out, RBI single in the top of the fourth to tie the score 1-1. The Tigers benefitted from an overturned call earlier in the inning, as leadoff hitter Ian Kinsler was initially ruled out on a steal attempt but was later rewarded second base upon video review. Kinsler moved to third on a groundout and scored on Martinez's two-out single.

Hernandez and Verlander were starting against each other for only the third time in their impressive careers and for the first time since 2009. While neither pitcher was involved in the decision, they both lived up to the hype.

"It was just what it was billed to be," said Ausmus, whose team was swept in a road series for the first time since early May, when the Cleveland Indians took three from the Tigers. "Two very good pitchers going at it, and they both pitched well. The difference was the eighth (inning)."

NOTES: Coming on the heels of a 15-inning marathon, both teams made moves to bolster their taxed bullpens on Wednesday. Detroit, having placed CF Cameron Maybin on the 15-day disabled list with a Grade 2 sprained thumb, recalled RHP Warwick Saupold. Seattle selected RHP Jarrett Grube from Triple-A Tacoma. To make room for Grube on the roster, the Mariners sent OF Guillermo Heredia to Triple-A and designated Triple-A INF Luis Sardinas for assignment. Neither of the promoted pitchers saw action in Wednesday's game. ... Mariners LHP Charlie Furbush, who has been on the disabled list since last July because of a rotator cuff issue, will undergo surgery and is expected to be out 12-18 months. Doctors discovered a tear in his left rotator cuff, ending his 2016 season before it began. ... Seattle LHP James Paxton, originally scheduled to start Saturday at Oakland, is no longer listed as the probable for that game. Paxton is recovering from a bruised left elbow after taking a line drive to his pitching arm on Sunday.

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