GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: AL: DETROIT (29-20) at TAMPA BAY (20-28)

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">DETROIT (5) VS TAMPA BAY (4) - MID 9TH - IN PROGRESS

DETROIT ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
C Granderson cf 4 0 0 0 1 3 5 .274
C Monroe lf 5 1 1 1 0 2 5 .232
G Sheffield dh 3 2 1 1 2 0 1 .254
M Ordonez rf 5 0 2 1 0 1 2 .357
C Guillen ss 4 1 1 0 0 2 2 .320
S Casey 1b 4 1 1 0 0 0 1 .266
M Rabelo c 4 0 2 0 0 1 0 .255
O Infante 2b 4 0 2 1 0 0 1 .327
B Inge 3b 3 0 1 0 1 1 3 .217

Totals 36 5 11 4 4 10 20

BATTING: 2B - M Ordonez (25, E Jackson). HR - G Sheffield (10, 5th inning off E
Jackson 0 on, 0 Out), C Monroe (7, 7th inning off C Orvella 0 on, 0 Out). RBI -
O Infante (5), G Sheffield (24), C Monroe (29), M Ordonez (48). Runners left in
scoring position, 2 out - C Monroe 3, M Ordonez 1, S Casey 1. GIDP - C Guillen.
Team LOB - 8.

BASERUNNING: SB - G Sheffield 2 (7, 2nd base off G Glover/S Riggans, 2nd base
off C Orvella/S Riggans).

FIELDING: E - M Rabelo (1, throw). PB - M Rabelo.


TAMPA BAY ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
E Dukes cf 2 0 0 0 1 1 0 .220
B Upton 2b 4 1 1 0 0 0 2 .323
C Crawford lf 4 0 0 0 0 2 2 .311
T Wigginton dh 3 1 2 1 1 0 0 .250
C Pena 1b 4 1 1 0 0 1 1 .305
D Young rf 2 0 0 1 0 0 2 .247
A Iwamura 3b 2 1 1 0 1 0 1 .345
S Riggans c 3 0 0 0 0 1 2 .125
B Harris ss 3 0 0 1 0 0 0 .303

Totals 27 4 5 3 3 5 10

BATTING: 2B - C Pena (5, C Durbin). 3B - A Iwamura (2, Z Miner). SF - D Young.
RBI - D Young (27), B Harris (13), T Wigginton (27). Runners left in scoring
position, 2 out - A Iwamura 1. Team LOB - 4.

BASERUNNING: SB - B Upton (10, 2nd base off B Seay/M Rabelo). CS - C Crawford
(6, 2nd base by C Durbin/M Rabelo).

FIELDING: E - C Crawford (2, throw); S Riggans (1, throw). DP: 2 (B Upton-B
Harris-C Pena, B Harris-C Pena).


----------------------------------------------------
DETROIT - 020 010 200 -- 5
TAMPA BAY - 000 200 11 -- 4
----------------------------------------------------

DETROIT ip h r er bb so hr era
C Durbin 6 3 2 1 3 1 0 4.39
Z Miner 1 2 2 1 0 2 0 2.84
B Seay 1/3 0 0 0 0 1 0 5.52
J Mesa 1/3 0 0 0 0 0 0 10.12
T Byrdak 1/3 0 0 0 0 1 0 3.12

TAMPA BAY ip h r er bb so hr era
E Jackson 6 8 3 2 2 9 1 7.12
C Orvella 0 2 2 2 1 0 1 9.00
B Stokes 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.65
G Glover 2 1 0 0 1 1 0 5.18

C Orvella pitched to 3 batters in the 7th.
Z Miner pitched to 1 batter in the 8th.

BALK - C Orvella. HBP - E Dukes (by C Durbin). Pitches-strikes: C Durbin
88-54; Z Miner 24-16; B Seay 4-3; J Mesa 4-2; T Byrdak 3-3; E Jackson 116-74; C
Orvella 15-9; B Stokes 3-2; G Glover 21-12. Ground balls-fly balls: C Durbin
9-7; Z Miner 1-0; B Seay 0-0; J Mesa 1-0; T Byrdak 0-0; E Jackson 4-5; C
Orvella 0-0; B Stokes 2-1; G Glover 1-3. Batters faced: C Durbin 24; Z Miner 5;
B Seay 1; J Mesa 1; T Byrdak 1; E Jackson 28; C Orvella 3; B Stokes 2; G Glover
7.

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

Weather: INDOORS.</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL AT TAMPA BAY - PITCHING CHANGE
DET: TODD JONES (1-1, 3.43) STARTING THE 9TH
CURRENT SCORE: DETROIT 5, TAMPA BAY 4

DUE UP FOR TAMPABAY: D YOUNG (.247, 0-FOR-2, RBI)</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL AT TAMPA BAY - MID INNING UPDATE
PLAY: T Jones relieved T Byrdak.
SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, NONE ON, 0 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: DETROIT 5
TAMPA BAY 4 BOTTOM, 9TH

DUE UP FOR TAMPA BAY: D Young (.247, 0-FOR-2, RBI)</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL AT TAMPA BAY - MID INNING UPDATE
PLAY: J Wilson hit for S Riggans.
SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, A IWAMURA ON FIRST, D YOUNG ON SECOND, 0 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: DETROIT 5
TAMPA BAY 4 BOTTOM, 9TH

DUE UP FOR TAMPA BAY: J Wilson (.350, 0 HR, 1 RBI)</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL AT TAMPA BAY - MID INNING UPDATE
PLAY: G Norton hit for B Harris.
SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, A IWAMURA ON SECOND, D YOUNG ON THIRD, 1 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: DETROIT 5
TAMPA BAY 4 BOTTOM, 9TH

DUE UP FOR TAMPA BAY: G Norton (.154, 0 HR, 1 RBI)</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL AT TAMPA BAY - SCORING UPDATE
SINGLE BY ELIJAH DUKES SCORED DELMON YOUNG AND AKINORI
IWAMURA.

FINAL SCORE: TAMPA BAY 6, DETROIT 5</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">AL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
DETROIT 0 2 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 5 11 1
TAMPA BAY 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 1 2 6 8 2 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: DET - CHAD DURBIN, ZACH MINER (7TH), BOBBY SEAY (8TH), JOSE MESA
(8TH), TIM BYRDAK (8TH), TODD JONES (9TH) AND MIKE RABELO

TAM - EDWIN JACKSON, CHAD ORVELLA (7TH), BRIAN STOKES
(7TH), GARY GLOVER (8TH) AND SHAWN RIGGANS

HOME RUNS: DET - GARY SHEFFIELD (10) OFF EDWIN JACKSON IN THE 5TH, 0 ON
CRAIG MONROE (7) OFF CHAD ORVELLA IN THE 7TH, 0 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 0 2 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 5 11 1
TAMPA BAY 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 1 2 6 8 2 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: DET - CHAD DURBIN, ZACH MINER (7TH), BOBBY SEAY (8TH), JOSE MESA
(8TH), TIM BYRDAK (8TH), TODD JONES (9TH) AND MIKE RABELO

TAM - EDWIN JACKSON, CHAD ORVELLA (7TH), BRIAN STOKES
(7TH), GARY GLOVER (8TH) AND SHAWN RIGGANS


WP - GARY GLOVER (2-2)
LP - TODD JONES (1-2)
SAVE - NONE

HOME RUNS: DET - GARY SHEFFIELD (10) OFF EDWIN JACKSON IN THE 5TH, 0 ON
CRAIG MONROE (7) OFF CHAD ORVELLA IN THE 7TH, 0 ON

TAM - NONE


TIME: 3:05 ATT: 14,769

PROBABLES: DET - JEREMY BONDERMAN (3-0, 3.57)
TAM - CASEY FOSSUM (3-4, 7.15)</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">DETROIT (5) VS TAMPA BAY (6) - FINAL

DETROIT ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
C Granderson cf 4 0 0 0 1 3 5 .274
C Monroe lf 5 1 1 1 0 2 5 .232
G Sheffield dh 3 2 1 1 2 0 1 .254
M Ordonez rf 5 0 2 1 0 1 2 .357
C Guillen ss 4 1 1 0 0 2 2 .320
S Casey 1b 4 1 1 0 0 0 1 .266
M Rabelo c 4 0 2 0 0 1 0 .255
O Infante 2b 4 0 2 1 0 0 1 .327
B Inge 3b 3 0 1 0 1 1 3 .217

Totals 36 5 11 4 4 10 20

BATTING: 2B - M Ordonez (25, E Jackson). HR - G Sheffield (10, 5th inning off E
Jackson 0 on, 0 Out), C Monroe (7, 7th inning off C Orvella 0 on, 0 Out). RBI -
O Infante (5), G Sheffield (24), C Monroe (29), M Ordonez (48). Runners left in
scoring position, 2 out - C Monroe 3, M Ordonez 1, S Casey 1. GIDP - C Guillen.
Team LOB - 8.

BASERUNNING: SB - G Sheffield 2 (7, 2nd base off G Glover/S Riggans, 2nd base
off C Orvella/S Riggans).

FIELDING: E - M Rabelo (1, throw). PB - M Rabelo.


TAMPA BAY ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
E Dukes cf 3 0 1 2 1 1 0 .225
B Upton 2b 4 1 1 0 0 0 2 .323
C Crawford lf 4 0 0 0 0 2 2 .311
T Wigginton dh 3 1 2 1 1 0 0 .250
C Pena 1b 4 1 1 0 0 1 1 .305
D Young rf 3 1 1 1 0 0 2 .251
A Iwamura 3b 3 2 2 0 1 0 1 .356
S Riggans c 3 0 0 0 0 1 2 .125
a-J Wilson ph 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .350
B Harris ss 3 0 0 1 0 0 0 .303
b-G Norton ph 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .154

Totals 30 6 8 5 4 5 10

a-sacrificed to third for S Riggans in the 9th; b-intentionally walked for B
Harris in the 9th.

BATTING: 2B - C Pena (5, C Durbin). 3B - A Iwamura (2, Z Miner). S - J Wilson.
SF - D Young. RBI - D Young (27), B Harris (13), T Wigginton (27), E Dukes 2
(18). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - A Iwamura 1. Team LOB - 6.

BASERUNNING: SB - B Upton (10, 2nd base off B Seay/M Rabelo). CS - C Crawford
(6, 2nd base by C Durbin/M Rabelo).

FIELDING: E - C Crawford (2, throw); S Riggans (1, throw). DP: 2 (B Upton-B
Harris-C Pena, B Harris-C Pena).


----------------------------------------------------
DETROIT - 020 010 200 -- 5
TAMPA BAY - 000 200 112 -- 6

One out when winning run scored.
----------------------------------------------------

DETROIT ip h r er bb so hr era
C Durbin 6 3 2 1 3 1 0 4.39
Z Miner (H, 1) 1 2 2 1 0 2 0 2.84
B Seay (H, 4) 1/3 0 0 0 0 1 0 5.52
J Mesa (H, 3) 1/3 0 0 0 0 0 0 10.12
T Byrdak (H, 3) 1/3 0 0 0 0 1 0 3.12
T Jones (L, 1-2; B, 3) 1/3 3 2 2 1 0 0 4.22

TAMPA BAY ip h r er bb so hr era
E Jackson 6 8 3 2 2 9 1 7.12
C Orvella 0 2 2 2 1 0 1 9.00
B Stokes 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.65
G Glover (W, 2-2) 2 1 0 0 1 1 0 5.18

C Orvella pitched to 3 batters in the 7th.
Z Miner pitched to 1 batter in the 8th.

IBB - G Norton (by T Jones). BALK - C Orvella. HBP - E Dukes (by C Durbin).
Pitches-strikes: C Durbin 88-54; Z Miner 24-16; B Seay 4-3; J Mesa 4-2; T
Byrdak 3-3; T Jones 15-7; E Jackson 116-74; C Orvella 15-9; B Stokes 3-2; G
Glover 21-12. Ground balls-fly balls: C Durbin 9-7; Z Miner 1-0; B Seay 0-0; J
Mesa 1-0; T Byrdak 0-0; T Jones 1-0; E Jackson 4-5; C Orvella 0-0; B Stokes
2-1; G Glover 1-3. Batters faced: C Durbin 24; Z Miner 5; B Seay 1; J Mesa 1; T
Byrdak 1; T Jones 5; E Jackson 28; C Orvella 3; B Stokes 2; G Glover 7.

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

T--3:05. Att--14,769.
Weather: INDOORS</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
AL
DETROIT 5
TAMPA BAY 6 FINAL</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DETROIT (5) AT TAMPA BAY (6) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

DETROIT 2ND: C Guillen singled to right. S Casey singled to left,
C Guillen to second. M Rabelo singled to center, C Guillen to third, S Casey to
second. O Infante singled to left, C Guillen scored, S Casey to third,
M Rabelo to second, S Casey scored, M Rabelo to third, O Infante to second on
throwing error by left fielder C Crawford. B Inge struck out swinging.
C Granderson struck out swinging. C Monroe struck out looking. (2 Runs, 4 Hits,
1 Error) DETROIT 2, TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 4TH: C Crawford struck out looking. T Wigginton walked. C Pena
doubled to deep right, T Wigginton to third. D Young hit sacrifice fly to
center, T Wigginton scored, C Pena to third. C Pena scored on M Rabelo's
passed ball. A Iwamura walked. S Riggans popped out to third. (2 Runs, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) DETROIT 2, TAMPA BAY 2.

DETROIT 5TH: G Sheffield homered to left. M Ordonez lined out to right.
C Guillen struck out swinging. S Casey grounded out to second. (1 Run, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) DETROIT 3, TAMPA BAY 2.

DETROIT 7TH: C Orvella relieved E Jackson. C Monroe homered to center.
G Sheffield walked. G Sheffield stole second. G Sheffield to third on balk by
C Orvella. M Ordonez singled to left, G Sheffield scored. B Stokes relieved
C Orvella. C Guillen grounded into double play, second to shortstop to first,
M Ordonez out at second. S Casey fouled out to first. (2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors)
DETROIT 5, TAMPA BAY 2.

TAMPA BAY 7TH: Z Miner relieved C Durbin. A Iwamura tripled to center.
S Riggans struck out swinging. B Harris grounded out to shortstop, A Iwamura
scored. E Dukes struck out looking. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) DETROIT 5,
TAMPA BAY 3.

TAMPA BAY 8TH: B Upton singled to left. B Seay relieved Z Miner.
C Crawford struck out swinging, B Upton stole second, B Upton to third on
throwing error by catcher M Rabelo. J Mesa relieved B Seay. T Wigginton
grounded out to shortstop, B Upton scored. T Byrdak relieved J Mesa. C Pena
struck out swinging. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 1 Error) DETROIT 5, TAMPA BAY 4.

TAMPA BAY 9TH: T Jones relieved T Byrdak. D Young singled to right.
A Iwamura singled to center, D Young to second. J Wilson hit for S Riggans.
J Wilson sacrificed to third, D Young to third, A Iwamura to second. G Norton
hit for B Harris. G Norton intentionally walked. E Dukes singled to left,
D Young and A Iwamura scored. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 5, TAMPA BAY 6.</div>

 

AL: DETROIT at TAMPA BAY

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DETROIT (5) AT TAMPA BAY (6) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Detroit Starting Lineups -- C Granderson CF, C Monroe LF, G Sheffield DH,
M Ordonez RF, C Guillen SS, S Casey 1B, M Rabelo C, O Infante 2B, B Inge 3B,
C Durbin RHP.

Tampa Bay Starting Lineups -- E Dukes CF, B Upton 2B, C Crawford LF,
T Wigginton DH, C Pena 1B, D Young RF, A Iwamura 3B, S Riggans C, B Harris SS,
E Jackson RHP.

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


Gametime Weather: INDOORS.


DETROIT 1ST: C Granderson walked. C Monroe flied out to right.
G Sheffield flied out to left. M Ordonez grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 0 Hits,
0 Errors) DETROIT 0, TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 1ST: E Dukes hit by pitch. B Upton bunted into fielder's choice
to pitcher, E Dukes out at second. C Crawford grounded into fielder's choice
to shortstop, B Upton out at second. C Crawford caught stealing second,
catcher to second.(0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 0, TAMPA BAY 0.

DETROIT 2ND: C Guillen singled to right. S Casey singled to left,
C Guillen to second. M Rabelo singled to center, C Guillen to third, S Casey to
second. O Infante singled to left, C Guillen scored, S Casey to third,
M Rabelo to second, S Casey scored, M Rabelo to third, O Infante to second on
throwing error by left fielder C Crawford. B Inge struck out swinging.
C Granderson struck out swinging. C Monroe struck out looking. (2 Runs, 4 Hits,
1 Error) DETROIT 2, TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 2ND: T Wigginton singled to left. C Pena grounded out to second,
T Wigginton to second. D Young flied out to right. A Iwamura flied out to
center. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) DETROIT 2, TAMPA BAY 0.

DETROIT 3RD: G Sheffield grounded out to third. M Ordonez doubled to deep
left. C Guillen struck out swinging. S Casey grounded out to first. (0 Runs,
1 Hit, 0 Errors) DETROIT 2, TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 3RD: S Riggans popped out to first. B Harris grounded out to
third. E Dukes walked. B Upton grounded into fielder's choice to third,
E Dukes out at second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 2, TAMPA BAY 0.

DETROIT 4TH: M Rabelo singled to right. O Infante flied out to center.
B Inge singled to left, M Rabelo to second. C Granderson struck out looking.
C Monroe struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 2, TAMPA BAY 0.

TAMPA BAY 4TH: C Crawford struck out looking. T Wigginton walked. C Pena
doubled to deep right, T Wigginton to third. D Young hit sacrifice fly to
center, T Wigginton scored, C Pena to third. C Pena scored on M Rabelo's
passed ball. A Iwamura walked. S Riggans popped out to third. (2 Runs, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) DETROIT 2, TAMPA BAY 2.

DETROIT 5TH: G Sheffield homered to left. M Ordonez lined out to right.
C Guillen struck out swinging. S Casey grounded out to second. (1 Run, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) DETROIT 3, TAMPA BAY 2.

TAMPA BAY 5TH: B Harris grounded out to shortstop. E Dukes flied out to
right. B Upton grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 3,
TAMPA BAY 2.

DETROIT 6TH: M Rabelo struck out swinging. O Infante popped out to second.
B Inge walked. C Granderson struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
DETROIT 3, TAMPA BAY 2.

TAMPA BAY 6TH: C Crawford grounded out to pitcher. T Wigginton singled to
left. C Pena flied out to left. D Young grounded into fielder's choice to
third, T Wigginton out at second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) DETROIT 3,
TAMPA BAY 2.

DETROIT 7TH: C Orvella relieved E Jackson. C Monroe homered to center.
G Sheffield walked. G Sheffield stole second. G Sheffield to third on balk by
C Orvella. M Ordonez singled to left, G Sheffield scored. B Stokes relieved
C Orvella. C Guillen grounded into double play, second to shortstop to first,
M Ordonez out at second. S Casey fouled out to first. (2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors)
DETROIT 5, TAMPA BAY 2.

TAMPA BAY 7TH: Z Miner relieved C Durbin. A Iwamura tripled to center.
S Riggans struck out swinging. B Harris grounded out to shortstop, A Iwamura
scored. E Dukes struck out looking. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) DETROIT 5,
TAMPA BAY 3.

DETROIT 8TH: G Glover relieved B Stokes. M Rabelo grounded out to
shortstop. O Infante reached on infield single to shortstop. B Inge lined
into double play, shortstop to first, O Infante doubled off first.(0 Runs,
1 Hit, 0 Errors) DETROIT 5, TAMPA BAY 3.

TAMPA BAY 8TH: B Upton singled to left. B Seay relieved Z Miner.
C Crawford struck out swinging, B Upton stole second, B Upton to third on
throwing error by catcher M Rabelo. J Mesa relieved B Seay. T Wigginton
grounded out to shortstop, B Upton scored. T Byrdak relieved J Mesa. C Pena
struck out swinging. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 1 Error) DETROIT 5, TAMPA BAY 4.

DETROIT 9TH: C Granderson flied out to center. C Monroe popped out to
second. G Sheffield walked. G Sheffield stole second, G Sheffield safe at
third on throwing error by catcher S Riggans. M Ordonez struck out looking.
(0 Runs, 0 Hits, 1 Error) DETROIT 5, TAMPA BAY 4.

TAMPA BAY 9TH: T Jones relieved T Byrdak. D Young singled to right.
A Iwamura singled to center, D Young to second. J Wilson hit for S Riggans.
J Wilson sacrificed to third, D Young to third, A Iwamura to second. G Norton
hit for B Harris. G Norton intentionally walked. E Dukes singled to left,
D Young and A Iwamura scored. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) DETROIT 5, TAMPA BAY 6.</div>

 

Dukes' late heroics carry Devil Rays past Tigers

<h3>TAMPA BAY 6, DETROIT 5</h3>ST. PETERSBURG, Florida (Ticker) -- Thanks to rookie ElijahDukes, the Detroit Tigers continue to slide.

Dukes hit the game-winning single off closer Todd Jones in thebottom of the ninth inning as the Tampa Bay Devils rallied for a6-5 victory over the Tigers on Monday night.

Detroit has now dropped four straight contests, highlighted by athree-game sweep at the hands of the Cleveland Indians to losecontrol of the American League Central.

With the Devil Rays trailing, 5-4, in the ninth, Delmon Youngand Akinori Iwamura stroked back-to-back singles to open theframe against Jones (1-2) with none out. Josh Wilson hit asacrifice and fellow pinch hitter Greg Norton was intentionallywalked, loading the bases for Dukes' heroics.

Dukes laced a high chopper over the outstretched arm of Detroitthird baseman Brandon Inge, scoring Young and Iwanura tocomplete the come-from-behind victory.

Tampa Bay's Gary Glover (2-2) pitched two scoreless innings topick up the win.

Brendan Harris recorded an RBI groundout in the seventh and TyWigginton also added a run one inning later to bring the DevilRays within one entering the decisive frame.

Edwin Jackson lasted six innings, allowing three runs and eighthits with a season high-tying nine strikeouts. Tampa Bayimproved to 1-9 in games the 23-year-old has started dating tolast season.

Tigers starter Chad Durbin was impressive before giving way tothe bullpen, yielding two runs and three hits in six innings.

Gary Sheffield and Craig Monroe each homered for Detroit, whichfell to 18-18 all-time at Tropicana Field.

 

Dukes' late heroics carry Devil Rays past Tigers

<h3>TAMPA BAY 6, DETROIT 5</h3>ST. PETERSBURG, Florida (Ticker) -- Thanks to rookie ElijahDukes, the Detroit Tigers continue to slide.

Dukes hit the game-winning single off closer Todd Jones in thebottom of the ninth inning as the Tampa Bay Devils rallied for a6-5 victory over the Tigers on Monday night.

Detroit has now dropped four straight contests, highlighted by athree-game sweep at the hands of the Cleveland Indians to losecontrol of the American League Central.

With the Devil Rays trailing, 5-4, in the ninth, Delmon Youngand Akinori Iwamura stroked back-to-back singles to open theframe against Jones (1-2) with none out. Josh Wilson hit asacrifice and fellow pinch hitter Greg Norton was intentionallywalked, loading the bases for Dukes' heroics.

"I always thought I was a threat, but I guess not," Dukes said."I was just trying to put the ball in play and run to first asfast as possible."

Dukes laced a high chopper over the outstretched arm of Detroitthird baseman Brandon Inge, scoring Young and Iwanura tocomplete the come-from-behind victory.

"We are not doing the little things to win games," Detroitmanager Jim Leyland said. "We are doing too many little thingsto lose games. That is exactly what we did."

Dukes was glad to see something positive following publishedreports in which he was accused of making death threats againsthis estranged wife and kids. It was Dukes' first home gamesince the reports and he received a mixed reaction from the homefans.

"I thought it went pretty well overall," Devil Rays manager JoeMaddon said. "I thought I heard a smattering of boos, but not awhole lot. The fact that we worked him back into the lineupwas crucial to getting back to the point we did. Obviously hehad the big knock. Again, we were just trying to do the rightthings."

Jones had converted his last eight saves.

"When you don't hit your spots, you're going to get crushed,"Jones said. "I didn't hit my spots on Delmon, I didn't hit myspot on Aki and I missed on Elijah and you are going to pay forit. It is the big leagues. I am sure I will miss my spot againand I am sure I will make some pitches."

Tampa Bay's Gary Glover (2-2) pitched two scoreless innings topick up the win. Brendan Harris recorded an RBI groundout in theseventh and Ty Wigginton also added a run one inning later tobring the Devil Rays within one entering the decisive frame.

Edwin Jackson lasted six innings, allowing three runs and eighthits with a season high-tying nine strikeouts. Tampa Bayimproved to 1-9 in games the 23-year-old has started dating tolast season.

In the second inning, Jackson was backing up home plate and washit flush in the left cheek on a throw by left fielder CarlCrawford that sailed over catcher Shawn Riggans' glove.

"It feels like I got punched in the jaw," Jackson said. "Ithurt. I could definitely feel it during the game. It feelslike I just got out of a boxing ring. We got a win, so it kindof kills some of that pain."

"It was sort of just a freak thing," Riggans said. "But it<div class="pre">might have (woken) him up. How could it not have? A ball hits</div>you in the face thrown 250 feet away."

Tigers starter Chad Durbin was impressive before giving way tothe bullpen, yielding two runs and three hits in six innings.

"There is no panic," Durbin said. "We know were a goodballclub." Gary Sheffield and Craig Monroe each homered forDetroit, which fell to 18-18 all-time at Tropicana Field.

"We had a couple of opportunities," Leyland said. "We gave themtoo many extra bases on a couple of plays that add on runs fromit. One got away from Mike (Rabelo). We just didn't do enoughto win the game. Period. We did too many things to lose thegame."

Sheffield's blast of the 465th of his career, tying Hall ofFamer Dave Winfield for 29th on the all-time list. It alsomoved him into a tie with Sam Crawford for 44th in RBI with1,525.