GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: AL: DETROIT (29-21) at TAMPA BAY (21-28)

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL AT TAMPA BAY - SCORING UPDATE
TWO-RUN HOME RUN BY IVAN RODRIGUEZ (5) TO RIGHT CENTER WITH
2 OUT IN THE 9TH OFF JAE SEO SCORED CRAIG MONROE.
CURRENT SCORE: DETROIT 14, TAMPA BAY 2

DUE UP FOR DETROIT: P POLANCO (.328, 2-FOR-5, RBI)</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
DETROIT 3 2 0 0 0 5 2 0 2 14 22 1
TAMPA BAY 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 2 4 1 (BOT 9)

CURRENT PITCHERS: DET - WILFREDO LEDEZMA
TAM - JAE SEO

DUE UP FOR TAMPA BAY: G NORTON (.188, 1-FOR-3)
C PENA (.300, 0-FOR-2, SF, RBI)
D YOUNG (.253, 1-FOR-3)</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">DETROIT (14) VS TAMPA BAY (2) - MID 9TH - IN PROGRESS

DETROIT ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
I Rodriguez c 6 2 3 3 0 1 2 .282
P Polanco 2b 6 1 3 1 0 0 5 .332
G Sheffield dh 6 2 3 5 0 0 2 .262
M Ordonez rf 5 1 2 0 0 0 2 .358
C Guillen ss 5 0 1 0 0 2 2 .317
M Thames 1b 3 0 2 1 0 0 0 .222
C Granderson pr-cf 2 2 2 0 0 0 1 .281
O Infante cf 3 1 1 0 0 0 2 .327
S Casey 1b 2 1 1 1 0 1 0 .269
C Monroe lf 5 2 3 0 0 1 1 .243
B Inge 3b 3 2 1 2 1 0 1 .219

Totals 46 14 22 13 1 5 18

BATTING: 2B - M Ordonez (26, C Fossum); I Rodriguez (11, J Ryu); C Monroe (13,
J Seo). 3B - C Granderson (7, J Ryu). HR - G Sheffield 2 (12, 1st inning off C
Fossum 1 on, 1 Out, 6th inning off S Camp 2 on, 2 Out), I Rodriguez (5, 9th
inning off J Seo 1 on, 2 Out). RBI - G Sheffield 5 (29), M Thames (10), P
Polanco (27), B Inge 2 (19), S Casey (11), I Rodriguez 3 (26). 2-out RBI - G
Sheffield 3, I Rodriguez 3. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - M Ordonez
1, C Guillen 1, P Polanco 2. GIDP - O Infante, M Ordonez. Team LOB - 7.

BASERUNNING: SB - C Guillen (4, 3rd base off C Fossum/D Navarro).

FIELDING: E - M Thames (1, ground ball).


TAMPA BAY ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
E Dukes cf 3 0 0 0 1 2 1 .221
B Upton 2b 4 1 1 0 0 2 1 .321
C Crawford lf 4 1 0 0 0 2 2 .305
G Norton dh 3 0 1 0 0 1 1 .188
C Pena 1b 2 0 0 1 0 1 1 .300
D Young rf 3 0 1 0 0 1 1 .253
A Iwamura 3b 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 .339
J Wilson 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .350
D Navarro c 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 .185
B Harris ss 3 0 1 0 0 1 0 .303

Totals 28 2 4 1 1 10 9

BATTING: 2B - B Harris (7, J Bonderman); B Upton (11, J Bonderman). SF - C
Pena. RBI - C Pena (28). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - E Dukes 1.
Team LOB - 4.

FIELDING: E - B Harris (7, throw). Outfield assists - D Young (M Ordonez at
3rd base). DP: 2 (B Harris-B Upton-C Pena 2).


----------------------------------------------------
DETROIT - 320 005 202 -- 14
TAMPA BAY - 000 101 00 -- 2
----------------------------------------------------

DETROIT ip h r er bb so hr era
J Bonderman 6 1/3 4 2 1 0 8 0 3.34
W Ledezma 1 2/3 0 0 0 1 2 0 4.85

TAMPA BAY ip h r er bb so hr era
C Fossum 1 7 5 5 0 1 1 7.89
T Corcoran 4 5 3 3 0 1 0 5.28
S Camp 1 2 2 2 0 0 1 5.31
J Ryu 1 3 2 2 1 1 0 5.06
J Seo 2 5 2 2 0 2 1 8.13

C Fossum pitched to 3 batters in the 2nd.
T Corcoran pitched to 3 batters in the 6th.

WP - T Corcoran, J Bonderman, J Ryu. BALK - J Bonderman. HBP - B Inge (by C
Fossum). Pitches-strikes: J Bonderman 103-64; W Ledezma 33-22; C Fossum 32-21;
T Corcoran 53-37; S Camp 15-10; J Ryu 23-13; J Seo 32-22. Ground balls-fly
balls: J Bonderman 8-3; W Ledezma 1-2; C Fossum 2-0; T Corcoran 6-5; S Camp
1-2; J Ryu 0-2; J Seo 3-0. Batters faced: J Bonderman 24; W Ledezma 6; C Fossum
10; T Corcoran 16; S Camp 5; J Ryu 7; J Seo 10.

UMPIRES: HP--Jim Joyce. 1B--Jeff Nelson. 2B--Jim Wolf. 3B--Tim Tschida.

Weather: INDOORS.</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL AT TAMPA BAY - MID INNING UPDATE
PLAY: J Cantu hit for C Pena.
SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, NONE ON, 1 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: DETROIT 14
TAMPA BAY 2 BOTTOM, 9TH

DUE UP FOR TAMPA BAY: J Cantu (.269, 0 HR, 1 RBI)</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
DETROIT 3 2 0 0 0 5 2 0 2 14 22 1
TAMPA BAY 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 4 1 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: DET - JEREMY BONDERMAN, WILFREDO LEDEZMA (7TH) AND IVAN RODRIGUEZ

TAM - CASEY FOSSUM, TIM CORCORAN (2ND), SHAWN CAMP
(6TH), JAE KUK RYU (7TH), JAE SEO (8TH) AND DIONER NAVARRO

HOME RUNS: DET - GARY SHEFFIELD (11) OFF CASEY FOSSUM IN THE 1ST, 1 ON
GARY SHEFFIELD (12) OFF SHAWN CAMP IN THE 6TH, 2 ON
IVAN RODRIGUEZ (5) OFF JAE SEO IN THE 9TH, 1 ON

TAM - NONE</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
DETROIT 3 2 0 0 0 5 2 0 2 14 22 1
TAMPA BAY 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 4 1 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: DET - JEREMY BONDERMAN, WILFREDO LEDEZMA (7TH) AND IVAN RODRIGUEZ

TAM - CASEY FOSSUM, TIM CORCORAN (2ND), SHAWN CAMP
(6TH), JAE KUK RYU (7TH), JAE SEO (8TH) AND DIONER NAVARRO


WP - JEREMY BONDERMAN (4-0)
LP - CASEY FOSSUM (3-5)
SAVE - NONE

HOME RUNS: DET - GARY SHEFFIELD (11) OFF CASEY FOSSUM IN THE 1ST, 1 ON
GARY SHEFFIELD (12) OFF SHAWN CAMP IN THE 6TH, 2 ON
IVAN RODRIGUEZ (5) OFF JAE SEO IN THE 9TH, 1 ON

TAM - NONE


TIME: 3:01 ATT: 11,518

PROBABLES: DET - NATE ROBERTSON (4-4, 4.03)
TAM - JAMES SHIELDS (3-0, 3.15)</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">DETROIT (14) VS TAMPA BAY (2) - FINAL

DETROIT ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
I Rodriguez c 6 2 3 3 0 1 2 .282
P Polanco 2b 6 1 3 1 0 0 5 .332
G Sheffield dh 6 2 3 5 0 0 2 .262
M Ordonez rf 5 1 2 0 0 0 2 .358
C Guillen ss 5 0 1 0 0 2 2 .317
M Thames 1b 3 0 2 1 0 0 0 .222
C Granderson pr-cf 2 2 2 0 0 0 1 .281
O Infante cf 3 1 1 0 0 0 2 .327
S Casey 1b 2 1 1 1 0 1 0 .269
C Monroe lf 5 2 3 0 0 1 1 .243
B Inge 3b 3 2 1 2 1 0 1 .219

Totals 46 14 22 13 1 5 18

BATTING: 2B - M Ordonez (26, C Fossum); I Rodriguez (11, J Ryu); C Monroe (13,
J Seo). 3B - C Granderson (7, J Ryu). HR - G Sheffield 2 (12, 1st inning off C
Fossum 1 on, 1 Out, 6th inning off S Camp 2 on, 2 Out), I Rodriguez (5, 9th
inning off J Seo 1 on, 2 Out). RBI - G Sheffield 5 (29), M Thames (10), P
Polanco (27), B Inge 2 (19), S Casey (11), I Rodriguez 3 (26). 2-out RBI - G
Sheffield 3, I Rodriguez 3. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - M Ordonez
1, C Guillen 1, P Polanco 2. GIDP - O Infante, M Ordonez. Team LOB - 7.

BASERUNNING: SB - C Guillen (4, 3rd base off C Fossum/D Navarro).

FIELDING: E - M Thames (1, ground ball). DP: 1 (C Guillen-P Polanco-S Casey).



TAMPA BAY ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
E Dukes cf 3 0 0 0 1 2 1 .221
B Upton 2b 4 1 1 0 0 2 1 .321
C Crawford lf 4 1 0 0 0 2 2 .305
G Norton dh 4 0 1 0 0 1 1 .176
C Pena 1b 2 0 0 1 0 1 1 .300
a-J Cantu ph 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .269
D Young rf 4 0 1 0 0 1 2 .251
A Iwamura 3b 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 .339
J Wilson 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .350
D Navarro c 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 .185
B Harris ss 3 0 1 0 0 1 0 .303

Totals 30 2 4 1 2 10 10

a-walked for C Pena in the 9th.

BATTING: 2B - B Harris (7, J Bonderman); B Upton (11, J Bonderman). SF - C
Pena. RBI - C Pena (28). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - E Dukes 1.
GIDP - D Young. Team LOB - 4.

FIELDING: E - B Harris (7, throw). Outfield assists - D Young (M Ordonez at
3rd base). DP: 2 (B Harris-B Upton-C Pena 2).


----------------------------------------------------
DETROIT - 320 005 202 -- 14
TAMPA BAY - 000 101 000 -- 2
----------------------------------------------------

DETROIT ip h r er bb so hr era
J Bonderman (W, 4-0) 6 1/3 4 2 1 0 8 0 3.34
W Ledezma 2 2/3 0 0 0 2 2 0 4.67

TAMPA BAY ip h r er bb so hr era
C Fossum (L, 3-5) 1 7 5 5 0 1 1 7.89
T Corcoran 4 5 3 3 0 1 0 5.28
S Camp 1 2 2 2 0 0 1 5.31
J Ryu 1 3 2 2 1 1 0 5.06
J Seo 2 5 2 2 0 2 1 8.13

C Fossum pitched to 3 batters in the 2nd.
T Corcoran pitched to 3 batters in the 6th.

WP - T Corcoran, J Bonderman, J Ryu. BALK - J Bonderman. HBP - B Inge (by C
Fossum). Pitches-strikes: J Bonderman 103-64; W Ledezma 42-26; C Fossum 32-21;
T Corcoran 53-37; S Camp 15-10; J Ryu 23-13; J Seo 32-22. Ground balls-fly
balls: J Bonderman 8-3; W Ledezma 4-2; C Fossum 2-0; T Corcoran 6-5; S Camp
1-2; J Ryu 0-2; J Seo 3-0. Batters faced: J Bonderman 24; W Ledezma 9; C Fossum
10; T Corcoran 16; S Camp 5; J Ryu 7; J Seo 10.

UMPIRES: HP--Jim Joyce. 1B--Jeff Nelson. 2B--Jim Wolf. 3B--Tim Tschida.

T--3:01. Att--11,518.
Weather: INDOORS</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
AL
DETROIT 14
TAMPA BAY 2 FINAL</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DETROIT (14) AT TAMPA BAY (2) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

DETROIT 1ST: I Rodriguez struck out swinging. P Polanco singled to left.
G Sheffield homered to left, P Polanco scored. M Ordonez doubled to deep
center. C Guillen singled to center, M Ordonez to third. M Thames singled to
right center, M Ordonez scored, C Guillen to second. C Guillen stole third.
O Infante grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, M Thames out
at second.(3 Runs, 5 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 3, TAMPA BAY 0.

DETROIT 2ND: C Monroe singled to left. B Inge hit by pitch, C Monroe to
second. I Rodriguez singled to left, C Monroe to third, B Inge to second.
T Corcoran relieved C Fossum. P Polanco grounded into fielder's choice to
pitcher, C Monroe scored, I Rodriguez out at second, B Inge to third, B Inge
scored, P Polanco to second on throwing error by shortstop B Harris. P Polanco
to third on wild pitch by T Corcoran. G Sheffield grounded out to shortstop.
M Ordonez grounded out to shortstop. (2 Runs, 2 Hits, 1 Error) DETROIT 5,
TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 4TH: B Upton struck out looking. C Crawford safe at first on
error by first baseman M Thames. G Norton singled to right center, C Crawford
to third. C Pena hit sacrifice fly to center, C Crawford scored. D Young
grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, G Norton out at second. (1 Run,
1 Hit, 1 Error) DETROIT 5, TAMPA BAY 1.

DETROIT 6TH: M Thames singled to left. C Granderson ran for M Thames.
O Infante singled to right center, C Granderson to second. C Monroe singled to
left, C Granderson to third, O Infante to second. S Camp relieved T Corcoran.
B Inge singled to left, C Granderson and O Infante scored, C Monroe to second.
I Rodriguez grounded into fielder's choice to third, C Monroe out at third,
B Inge to second. P Polanco flied out to left. G Sheffield homered to left,
B Inge and I Rodriguez scored. M Ordonez flied out to left. (5 Runs, 5 Hits,
0 Errors) DETROIT 10, TAMPA BAY 1.

TAMPA BAY 6TH: C Granderson in center field. S Casey at first base. E Dukes
struck out swinging. B Upton doubled to deep left. C Crawford struck out
swinging. B Upton to third on balk by J Bonderman. B Upton scored on
J Bonderman's wild pitch. G Norton struck out swinging. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
DETROIT 10, TAMPA BAY 2.

DETROIT 7TH: J Ryu relieved S Camp. C Guillen popped out to shortstop.
C Granderson tripled to deep right. S Casey singled to right, C Granderson
scored. S Casey to second on wild pitch by J Ryu. C Monroe struck out
swinging. B Inge walked. I Rodriguez doubled to deep center, S Casey scored,
B Inge to third. P Polanco lined out to third. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors)
DETROIT 12, TAMPA BAY 2.

DETROIT 9TH: S Casey struck out swinging. C Monroe doubled to deep left.
B Inge grounded out to third. I Rodriguez homered to right center, C Monroe
scored. P Polanco singled to center. G Sheffield grounded into fielder's
choice to third, P Polanco out at second. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 14,
TAMPA BAY 2.</div>

 

Sheffield, Bonderman help Tigers pound Devil Rays

<h3>DETROIT 14, TAMPA BAY 2</h3>ST. PETERSBURG, Florida (Ticker) -- The Detroit Tigers pickedthe right time to break out of their longest slide of theseason.

Jeremy Bonderman pitched 6 1/3 strong innings and the Tigerspounded out 22 hits en route to a 14-2 victory over the TampaBay Devil Rays on Tuesday.

Gary Sheffield homered twice and drove in five runs and PlacidoPolanco shook off his recent leg injury to club three hits,score a run and drive in a run for Detroit, which gained a gamein the American League Central standings with the win coupledwith the Cleveland Indians loss to the Boston Red Sox.

The Tigers held a one-half game lead in the division until beingswept by the Indians over the weekend, and missed anopportunity to gain a game back on Monday, when the Indiansdropped a 5-3 decision to the Red Sox. Monday's 6-5 walk-offloss to the Devil Rays extended Detroit's season-high losingstreak to four games.

Bonderman lasted 6 1/3 innings, allowing two runs - one earned -and four hits while striking out eight. Detroit's ace has nowmade two starts since coming off the disabled list and has heldThe Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and Tampa Bay to a combinedone earned run over 14 1/3 frames.

The Tigers wasted little time jumping all over Devil Rays'starter Casey Fossum. Polanco, who had missed the last twogames with a leg injury, knocked a one-out single in the firstwhich Sheffield followed with a two-run blast.

After Magglio Ordonez extended his hitting streak to 14 gameswith a double and Carlos Guillen singled, Marcus Thames pushedan RBI single into right-center to extend the lead to 3-0.

Fossum loaded the bases on a pair of singles and a hit batterwithout recording an out in the second frame before beingreplaced. Righthander Tim Corcoran came on in relief and forcedPolanco into an RBI fielder's choice, and a throwing errorbrought in another run.

Corcoran escaped further damage in the second, leaving Fossumwith five earned runs and seven hits in just one inning pitched.It was the veteran lefthander's shortest outing since lasting1 2/3 in his final start of 2006 - August 29 at the ChicagoWhite Sox.

Detroit put another five runs on the board in the sixth inning,when Brandon Inge drove in a pair with a single and Sheffieldhit his second blast of the night, a three-run shot off relieverShawn Camp.

The Tigers added two more runs in each the seventh and theninth.

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DETROIT (14) AT TAMPA BAY (2) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Detroit Starting Lineups -- I Rodriguez C, P Polanco 2B, G Sheffield DH,
M Ordonez RF, C Guillen SS, M Thames 1B, O Infante CF, C Monroe LF, B Inge 3B,
J Bonderman RHP.

Tampa Bay Starting Lineups -- E Dukes CF, B Upton 2B, C Crawford LF, G Norton DH,
C Pena 1B, D Young RF, A Iwamura 3B, D Navarro C, B Harris SS, C Fossum LHP.

Umpires -- Jim Joyce (HP), Jeff Nelson (1B), Jim Wolf (2B), Tim Tschida (3B).


Gametime Weather: INDOORS.


DETROIT 1ST: I Rodriguez struck out swinging. P Polanco singled to left.
G Sheffield homered to left, P Polanco scored. M Ordonez doubled to deep
center. C Guillen singled to center, M Ordonez to third. M Thames singled to
right center, M Ordonez scored, C Guillen to second. C Guillen stole third.
O Infante grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, M Thames out
at second.(3 Runs, 5 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 3, TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 1ST: E Dukes flied out to left. B Upton grounded out to third.
C Crawford struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 3, TAMPA BAY 0.

DETROIT 2ND: C Monroe singled to left. B Inge hit by pitch, C Monroe to
second. I Rodriguez singled to left, C Monroe to third, B Inge to second.
T Corcoran relieved C Fossum. P Polanco grounded into fielder's choice to
pitcher, C Monroe scored, I Rodriguez out at second, B Inge to third, B Inge
scored, P Polanco to second on throwing error by shortstop B Harris. P Polanco
to third on wild pitch by T Corcoran. G Sheffield grounded out to shortstop.
M Ordonez grounded out to shortstop. (2 Runs, 2 Hits, 1 Error) DETROIT 5,
TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 2ND: G Norton flied out to right. C Pena grounded out to second.
D Young struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 5, TAMPA BAY 0.

DETROIT 3RD: C Guillen flied out to center. M Thames lined out to left.
O Infante flied out to right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 5, TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 3RD: A Iwamura grounded out to second. D Navarro grounded out to
first. B Harris doubled to left. E Dukes struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) DETROIT 5, TAMPA BAY 0.

DETROIT 4TH: C Monroe grounded out to shortstop. B Inge flied out to
right. I Rodriguez flied out to right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 5,
TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 4TH: B Upton struck out looking. C Crawford safe at first on
error by first baseman M Thames. G Norton singled to right center, C Crawford
to third. C Pena hit sacrifice fly to center, C Crawford scored. D Young
grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, G Norton out at second. (1 Run,
1 Hit, 1 Error) DETROIT 5, TAMPA BAY 1.

DETROIT 5TH: P Polanco singled to left. G Sheffield singled to center,
P Polanco to second. M Ordonez grounded into double play, shortstop to second to
first, G Sheffield out at second, P Polanco to third. C Guillen struck out
swinging. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 5, TAMPA BAY 1.

TAMPA BAY 5TH: A Iwamura grounded out to second. D Navarro grounded out to
first. B Harris grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 5,
TAMPA BAY 1.

DETROIT 6TH: M Thames singled to left. C Granderson ran for M Thames.
O Infante singled to right center, C Granderson to second. C Monroe singled to
left, C Granderson to third, O Infante to second. S Camp relieved T Corcoran.
B Inge singled to left, C Granderson and O Infante scored, C Monroe to second.
I Rodriguez grounded into fielder's choice to third, C Monroe out at third,
B Inge to second. P Polanco flied out to left. G Sheffield homered to left,
B Inge and I Rodriguez scored. M Ordonez flied out to left. (5 Runs, 5 Hits,
0 Errors) DETROIT 10, TAMPA BAY 1.

TAMPA BAY 6TH: C Granderson in center field. S Casey at first base. E Dukes
struck out swinging. B Upton doubled to deep left. C Crawford struck out
swinging. B Upton to third on balk by J Bonderman. B Upton scored on
J Bonderman's wild pitch. G Norton struck out swinging. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
DETROIT 10, TAMPA BAY 2.

DETROIT 7TH: J Ryu relieved S Camp. C Guillen popped out to shortstop.
C Granderson tripled to deep right. S Casey singled to right, C Granderson
scored. S Casey to second on wild pitch by J Ryu. C Monroe struck out
swinging. B Inge walked. I Rodriguez doubled to deep center, S Casey scored,
B Inge to third. P Polanco lined out to third. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors)
DETROIT 12, TAMPA BAY 2.

TAMPA BAY 7TH: C Pena struck out looking. D Young singled to left center.
W Ledezma relieved J Bonderman. A Iwamura flied out to right. D Navarro lined
out to center. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) DETROIT 12, TAMPA BAY 2.

DETROIT 8TH: J Wilson at third base. J Seo relieved J Ryu. G Sheffield
grounded out to shortstop. M Ordonez singled to center. C Guillen struck out
looking. C Granderson singled to right, M Ordonez thrown out at third.
(0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 12, TAMPA BAY 2.

TAMPA BAY 8TH: B Harris struck out swinging. E Dukes walked. B Upton
struck out swinging. C Crawford grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits,
0 Errors) DETROIT 12, TAMPA BAY 2.

DETROIT 9TH: S Casey struck out swinging. C Monroe doubled to deep left.
B Inge grounded out to third. I Rodriguez homered to right center, C Monroe
scored. P Polanco singled to center. G Sheffield grounded into fielder's
choice to third, P Polanco out at second. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 14,
TAMPA BAY 2.

TAMPA BAY 9TH: G Norton grounded out to shortstop. J Cantu hit for C Pena.
J Cantu walked. D Young grounded into double play, shortstop to second to
first, J Cantu out at second.(0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 14, TAMPA BAY 2.</div>

 

Sheffield, Bonderman help Tigers pound Devil Rays

<h3>DETROIT 14, TAMPA BAY 2</h3>ST. PETERSBURG, Florida (Ticker) -- The Detroit Tigers pickedthe right time to break out of their longest slide of theseason. Jeremy Bonderman pitched 6 1/3 strong innings and theTigers pounded out 22 hits en route to a 14-2 victory over theTampa Bay Devil Rays on Tuesday. Gary Sheffield homered twiceand drove in five runs and Placido Polanco shook off his recentleg injury to club three hits, score a run and drive in a runfor Detroit, which gained a game in the American League Centralstandings with the win coupled with the Cleveland Indians lossto the Boston Red Sox. The Tigers held a one-half game lead inthe division until being swept by the Indians over the weekend,and missed an opportunity to gain a game back on Monday, whenthe Indians dropped a 5-3 decision to the Red Sox. Monday's 6-5walk-off loss to the Devil Rays extended Detroit's season-highlosing streak to four games.

"We had to keep the lead on these guys, they'll scrap to thelast out," Sheffield said. "We let one (get away) yesterday, butwe had a short memory and came back and scored a lot of runs."

Bonderman allowed two runs - one earned - and four hits whilestriking out eight. Detroit's ace has now made two starts sincecoming off the disabled list and has held The Los AngelesAngels of Anaheim and Tampa Bay to a combined one earned runover 14 1/3 frames.

"I don't consider myself a stopper, we have tons of stoppers,"Bonderman said. "We've been in a little funk."

The Tigers wasted little time jumping all over Devil Rays'starter Casey Fossum. Polanco, who had missed the last twogames with a leg injury, knocked a one-out single in the firstwhich Sheffield followed with a two-run blast.

"We've got a lot of guys that can hurt you," Sheffield said. "Wewere able to let Bonderman get settled in and then we came backand scored more runs."

After Magglio Ordonez extended his hitting streak to 14 gameswith a double and Carlos Guillen singled, Marcus Thames pushedan RBI single into right-center to extend the lead to 3-0.

"We have a good offensive ballclub," Detroit manager Jim Leylandsaid. "If pitchers make mistakes we're real dangerous. We'repretty good at hitting mistakes and pretty good at hitting themvery far."

Fossum loaded the bases on a pair of singles and a hit batterwithout recording an out in the second frame before beingreplaced. Righthander Tim Corcoran came on in relief and forcedPolanco into an RBI fielder's choice, and a throwing errorbrought in another run. Corcoran escaped further damage in thesecond, leaving Fossum with five earned runs and seven hits injust one inning pitched. It was the veteran lefthander'sshortest outing since lasting 1 2/3 in his final start of 2006 -August 29 at the Chicago White Sox.

"They got to me early," Fossum said. "They jumped on me earlyand I couldn't get anything going."

Detroit put another five runs on the board in the sixth inning,when Brandon Inge drove in a pair with a single and Sheffieldhit his second blast of the night, a three-run shot off relieverShawn Camp. The Tigers added two more runs in each the seventhand the ninth.

"That was not a very pleasant experience," Tampa Bay manager JoeMaddon said. "Our guys kept battling away. I still felt if wehad been able to keep it there (trailing 2-1 in the sixth), we'dhave a chance."