GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: AL: SEATTLE (74-64) at DETROIT (75-65)

AL: SEATTLE at DETROIT

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SEATTLE (1) AT DETROIT (6) - EVENT LOG
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Seattle Starting Lineups -- I Suzuki CF, J Vidro DH, J Guillen RF, R Ibanez LF,
A Beltre 3B, B Broussard 1B, K Johjima C, J Lopez 2B, Y Betancourt SS,
M Batista RHP.

Detroit Starting Lineups -- C Granderson CF, P Polanco 2B, G Sheffield DH,
M Ordonez RF, C Guillen SS, I Rodriguez C, T Perez LF, S Casey 1B, B Inge 3B,
J Verlander RHP.

Umpires -- Rob Drake (HP), Gerry Davis (1B), Brian Gorman (2B), Paul Nauert (3B).

Gametime Weather: 77 degrees, Partly Cloudy, wind right to left at 23 mph.


SEATTLE 1ST: I Suzuki grounded out to first. J Vidro grounded out to
shortstop. J Guillen flied out to right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) SEATTLE 0,
DETROIT 0.

DETROIT 1ST: C Granderson reached on infield single to third. P Polanco
doubled to left, C Granderson scored. P Polanco to third on wild pitch by
M Batista. G Sheffield walked. M Ordonez singled to center, P Polanco scored,
G Sheffield to second. C Guillen grounded into double play, second to shortstop
to first, M Ordonez out at second, G Sheffield to third. I Rodriguez struck out
looking. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) SEATTLE 0, DETROIT 2.

SEATTLE 2ND: R Ibanez flied out to left. A Beltre singled to left.
B Broussard flied out to center. K Johjima grounded out to third. (0 Runs,
1 Hit, 0 Errors) SEATTLE 0, DETROIT 2.

DETROIT 2ND: T Perez doubled to right. S Casey grounded out to first,
T Perez to third. B Inge singled to center, T Perez scored. C Granderson
grounded out to third, B Inge to second. P Polanco grounded out to shortstop.
(1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) SEATTLE 0, DETROIT 3.

SEATTLE 3RD: J Lopez flied out to left. Y Betancourt flied out to right.
I Suzuki lined out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) SEATTLE 0, DETROIT 3.

DETROIT 3RD: G Sheffield flied out to left. M Ordonez flied out to right.
C Guillen grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) SEATTLE 0, DETROIT 3.

SEATTLE 4TH: J Vidro hit a ground rule double to deep right. J Guillen
grounded out to first, J Vidro to third. R Ibanez hit sacrifice fly to right,
J Vidro scored. A Beltre struck out swinging. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
SEATTLE 1, DETROIT 3.

DETROIT 4TH: I Rodriguez lined out to center. T Perez popped out to
shortstop. S Casey hit by pitch. B Inge grounded into fielder's choice to
shortstop, S Casey out at second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) SEATTLE 1,
DETROIT 3.

SEATTLE 5TH: B Broussard flied out to center. K Johjima struck out
swinging. J Lopez grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) SEATTLE 1,
DETROIT 3.

DETROIT 5TH: C Granderson flied out to center. P Polanco fouled out to
right. G Sheffield struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) SEATTLE 1,
DETROIT 3.

SEATTLE 6TH: Y Betancourt grounded out to third. I Suzuki flied out to
left. J Vidro singled to center. J Guillen popped out to second. (0 Runs,
1 Hit, 0 Errors) SEATTLE 1, DETROIT 3.

DETROIT 6TH: M Ordonez doubled to deep center. C Guillen grounded out to
second, M Ordonez to third. I Rodriguez singled to right, M Ordonez scored,
I Rodriguez to second on error by right fielder J Guillen. T Perez grounded out
to second, I Rodriguez to third. S Casey grounded out to second. (1 Run,
2 Hits, 1 Error) SEATTLE 1, DETROIT 4.

SEATTLE 7TH: C Guillen at first base. R Santiago at shortstop. R Ibanez
singled to right. A Beltre flied out to center. B Broussard singled to left,
R Ibanez to second. K Johjima singled to left, R Ibanez to third, B Broussard
to second. J Reed hit for J Lopez. J Reed struck out swinging. Y Betancourt
lined out to left. (0 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) SEATTLE 1, DETROIT 4.

DETROIT 7TH: W Bloomquist at second base. B Inge struck out swinging.
C Granderson homered to right. P Polanco walked. P Polanco to second on wild
pitch by M Batista. G Sheffield grounded out to shortstop. M Ordonez walked.
C Guillen singled to right, P Polanco scored, M Ordonez to third. S White
relieved M Batista. I Rodriguez grounded out to shortstop. (2 Runs, 2 Hits,
0 Errors) SEATTLE 1, DETROIT 6.

SEATTLE 8TH: I Suzuki grounded out to second. J Vidro reached on infield
single to shortstop. J Guillen grounded into fielder's choice to third,
J Vidro out at second. R Ibanez grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) SEATTLE 1, DETROIT 6.

DETROIT 8TH: T Perez singled to right. R Santiago flied out to center.
B Inge grounded into double play, shortstop to first, T Perez out at second.
(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) SEATTLE 1, DETROIT 6.

SEATTLE 9TH: R Raburn in right field. J Zumaya relieved J Verlander.
A Beltre flied out to center. B Broussard walked. B Broussard to second on
fielder's indifference. K Johjima grounded out to third. W Bloomquist grounded
out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) SEATTLE 1, DETROIT 6.</div>

 

Verlander shines as Tigers top Mariners

<h3>DETROIT 6, SEATTLE 1</h3>DETROIT (Ticker) -- The Seattle Mariners have not figured outJustin Verlander yet.


Verlander dazzled through eight innings as the Detroit Tigerscoasted to a 6-1 victory over the Mariners in the opener of acritical weekend series on Friday.


The Tigers (76-65) have won three games in a row for the firsttime since July to draw within 2 1/2 of the New York Yankees(78-62) in the American League wild card race.


The loss did not help the postseason hopes of the Mariners(74-65), as they fell 3 1/2 games behind the Yankees in the racefor the wild card. New York played Kansas City on Friday.

The 24-year-old Verlander (16-5) yielded one run and seven hitsfor his fifth win in six outings overall. He improved to 4-0all-time against Seattle in four career starts.


The righthander has been outstanding of late, allowing just tworuns over his last three outings with the hopes of making a latesurge at the AL Cy Young Award.


Verlander was coasting along until things got interesting in theseventh. Kenji Johjima singled over the head of third basemanBrandon Inge to load the bases. But Verlander struck out pinchhitter Jeremy Reed and got Yuniesky Betancourt to fly out to endthe threat.


Detroit wasted little time supplying Verlander with some earlyoffense.


All-Star Placido Polanco laced an RBI double to the left fieldcorner and later scored on Magglio Ordonez's single off Marinersstarter Miguel Batista for a 2-0 lead in the first.

Ordonez finished with two hits to raise his average to .354 andsurpassed Ichiro Suzuki, who went 0-for-4, in the chase for theAL batting title. They entered the contest tied.


Inge had a run-scoring single in the second, Ivan Rodriguezadded an RBI in the sixth and Granderson belted his 20th homerone frame later to make it 5-1.


Batista (13-11) was tagged for six runs and nine hits with threestrikeouts through 6 2/3 innings. The Dominican righthander is0-3 in his past four starts.

 

AL: SEATTLE at DETROIT

<div class="pre">SEATTLE (1) VS DETROIT (6) - FINAL

SEATTLE ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
I Suzuki cf 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 .349
J Vidro dh 4 1 3 0 0 0 0 .313
J Guillen rf 4 0 0 0 0 0 2 .285
R Ibanez lf 3 0 1 1 0 0 1 .284
A Beltre 3b 4 0 1 0 0 1 1 .278
B Broussard 1b 3 0 1 0 1 0 1 .290
K Johjima c 4 0 1 0 0 1 2 .288
J Lopez 2b 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .260
a-J Reed ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 3 .000
W Bloomquist 2b 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .278
Y Betancourt ss 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 .282

Totals 33 1 7 1 1 3 14

a-struck out swinging for J Lopez in the 7th.

BATTING: 2B - J Vidro (21, J Verlander). SF - R Ibanez. RBI - R Ibanez (88).
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - W Bloomquist 1, Y Betancourt 2. Team
LOB - 7.

FIELDING: E - J Guillen (7, bobble). DP: 2 (J Lopez-Y Betancourt-B Broussard,
Y Betancourt-B Broussard).


DETROIT ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
C Granderson cf 4 2 2 1 0 0 0 .297
P Polanco 2b 3 2 1 1 1 0 1 .340
G Sheffield dh 3 0 0 0 1 1 1 .275
M Ordonez rf 3 1 2 1 1 0 0 .354
R Raburn rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .304
C Guillen ss-1b 4 0 1 1 0 0 1 .297
I Rodriguez c 4 0 1 1 0 1 3 .277
T Perez lf 4 1 2 0 0 0 0 .405
S Casey 1b 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 .283
R Santiago ss 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .310
B Inge 3b 4 0 1 1 0 1 2 .242

Totals 32 6 10 6 3 3 10

BATTING: 2B - P Polanco (31, M Batista); T Perez (5, M Batista); M Ordonez (46,
M Batista). HR - C Granderson (20, 7th inning off M Batista 0 on, 1 Out). RBI -
P Polanco (59), M Ordonez (121), B Inge (62), I Rodriguez (54), C Granderson
(68), C Guillen (93). 2-out RBI - C Guillen. Runners left in scoring position,
2 out - I Rodriguez 2, S Casey 1, P Polanco 1. GIDP - C Guillen, B Inge. Team
LOB - 6.


----------------------------------------------------
SEATTLE - 000 100 000 -- 1
DETROIT - 210 001 20x -- 6
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SEATTLE ip h r er bb so hr era
M Batista (L, 13-11) 6 2/3 9 6 6 3 3 1 4.73
S White 1 1/3 1 0 0 0 0 0 6.75

DETROIT ip h r er bb so hr era
J Verlander (W, 16-5) 8 7 1 1 0 3 0 3.56
J Zumaya 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 3.86

WP - M Batista 2. HBP - S Casey (by M Batista). Pitches-strikes: M Batista
94-51; S White 14-10; J Verlander 92-65; J Zumaya 18-8. Ground balls-fly balls:
M Batista 11-6; S White 3-1; J Verlander 9-12; J Zumaya 2-1. Batters faced: M
Batista 32; S White 4; J Verlander 31; J Zumaya 4.

UMPIRES: HP--Rob Drake. 1B--Gerry Davis. 2B--Brian Gorman. 3B--Paul Nauert.

T--2:13. (Plus rain delay totaling 31 minutes in the 5th). Att--39,750.

Weather: 77 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 23 mph, right to left.</div>

 

Verlander shines as Tigers top Mariners

<h3>DETROIT 6, SEATTLE 1</h3>DETROIT (Ticker) -- The Seattle Mariners have not figured outJustin Verlander yet.


Verlander dazzled through eight innings as the Detroit Tigerscoasted to a 6-1 victory over the Mariners in the opener of acritical weekend series on Friday.


The Tigers (76-65) have won three games in a row for the firsttime since July to draw within 2 1/2 of the New York Yankees(78-62) in the American League wild card race.


The loss did not help the postseason hopes of the Mariners(74-65), as they fell 3 1/2 games behind the Yankees in the racefor the wild card. New York played Kansas City on Friday.

The 24-year-old Verlander (16-5) yielded one run and seven hitsfor his fifth win in six outings overall. He improved to 4-0all-time against Seattle in four career starts.


The righthander has been outstanding of late, allowing just tworuns over his last three outings with the hopes of making a latesurge at the AL Cy Young Award.


Verlander was coasting along until things got interesting in theseventh. Kenji Johjima singled over the head of third basemanBrandon Inge to load the bases. But Verlander struck out pinchhitter Jeremy Reed and got Yuniesky Betancourt to fly out to endthe threat.


Detroit wasted little time supplying Verlander with some earlyoffense.


All-Star Placido Polanco laced an RBI double to the left fieldcorner and later scored on Magglio Ordonez's single off Marinersstarter Miguel Batista for a 2-0 lead in the first.

Ordonez finished with two hits to raise his average to .354 andsurpassed Ichiro Suzuki, who went 0-for-4, in the chase for theAL batting title. They entered the contest tied.


Inge had a run-scoring single in the second, Ivan Rodriguezadded an RBI in the sixth and Granderson belted his 20th homerone frame later to make it 5-1.


Granderson's home run made him just the sixth player since 1900with at least 20 homers, 20 triples and 20 doubles in a season.Kansas City's George Brett was the last to accomplish the featin 1979.


Batista (13-11) was tagged for six runs and nine hits with threestrikeouts through 6 2/3 innings. The Dominican righthander is0-3 in his past four starts.

 

Verlander shines as Tigers top Mariners

<h3>DETROIT 6, SEATTLE 1</h3>DETROIT (Ticker) -- The Seattle Mariners have not figured outJustin Verlander yet.


Verlander dazzled through eight innings as the Detroit Tigerscoasted to a 6-1 victory over the Mariners in the opener of acritical weekend series on Friday.


The Tigers (76-65) have won three games in a row for the firsttime since July to draw within 2 1/2 of the New York Yankees(78-62) in the American League wild card race.


"We're starting to get our confidence level high, like it waslast year, as we feel the excitement of trying to get in likelast year," Detroit's Curtis Granderson said. "This is exactlywhere we want to be."


The loss did not help the postseason hopes of the Mariners(74-65), as they fell 3 1/2 games behind the Yankees in the racefor the wild card. New York played Kansas City on Friday.

"We just don't feel good about ourselves right now," Seattlemanager John McLaren said.


The 24-year-old Verlander (16-5) yielded one run and seven hitsfor his fifth win in six outings overall. He improved to 4-0all-time against Seattle in four career starts.


"I didn't have my best fastball or changeup," Verlander said."But I was aggressive early and got some ground balls andpopups."


The righthander has been outstanding of late, allowing just tworuns over his last three outings with the hopes of making a latesurge at the AL Cy Young Award.


"We just get spoiled," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "Youexpect the guy (Verlander) to go out there and be perfect everytime."


Verlander was coasting along until things got interesting in theseventh. Kenji Johjima singled over the head of third basemanBrandon Inge to load the bases. But Verlander struck out pinchhitter Jeremy Reed and got Yuniesky Betancourt to fly out to endthe threat.


"Good pitchers, they have to step it up. That's what we have todo, step it up," Seattle first baseman Ben Broussard said. "Iwas on second, I saw the pitches he was throwing. They weregood pitches."


Detroit wasted little time supplying Verlander with some earlyoffense.


All-Star Placido Polanco laced an RBI double to the left fieldcorner and later scored on Magglio Ordonez's single off Marinersstarter Miguel Batista for a 2-0 lead in the first.

Ordonez finished with two hits to raise his average to .354 andsurpassed Ichiro Suzuki, who went 0-for-4, in the chase for theAL batting title. They entered the contest tied.


Inge had a run-scoring single in the second, Ivan Rodriguezadded an RBI in the sixth and Granderson belted his 20th homerone frame later to make it 5-1.


Granderson's home run made him just the sixth player since 1900with at least 20 homers, 20 triples and 20 doubles in a season.Kansas City's George Brett was the last to accomplish the featin 1979.


"(Granderson's) a special player," Detroit designated hitterGary Sheffield said. "As he goes, this team goes."

Batista (13-11) was tagged for six runs and nine hits with threestrikeouts through 6 2/3 innings. The Dominican righthander is0-3 in his past four starts.


"We can't blame anybody for our situation," Batista said. "Wejust have to battle through it and get the best out of it."