–RHP Doug Fister was perfect through six innings but also ran into something he was all too familiar with during his time with the Mariners — no run support. Fister retired the first 18 batters he faced before giving up a first-pitch fastball double to Royals LF Alex Gordon in the seventh. Gordon scored on a bunt and sacrifice fly. Detroit did not score while Fister, who went 7 2/3 innings, was on the mound. “Fister was fantastic,” manager Jim Leyland said.

Fister said, “It’d be foolish of me not to get them back out there as soon as possible. That’s part of working fast.”

Fister was throwing first-pitch curves and fastballs for strikes and then working the Kansas City hitters from ahead.

–RF Magglio Ordonez may be on the downside as a major-leaguer, but he’s still capable of doing some damage. Ordonez no longer has power, but he’s still a threat with men on base, which he showed with an RBI single up the middle with two out in the eighth to create a 1-1 tie and give his replacement, PR Ramon Santiago, a chance to win the game in the 10th with a walk-off home run. Ordonez is essentially a platoon player now, removed in late innings for defense or pinch runners.

–2B Ramon Santiago ripped a 95 mph 1-2 fastball into the right field seats with one out in the 10th inning to enable Detroit to stop a two-game losing streak with a 2-1 victory over Kansas City. “He ran into a fastball, he jumped on it,” manager Jim Leyland said. “He hit it out good. It wasn’t like it was a paint-scraper.”

Santiago’s reward? A shaving cream pie in the face, courtesy of RHP Jose Valverde.

“I’ll take it any time,” Santiago said. “Hopefully they’ll do it more often.”

Santiago entered the game as a pinch runner for RF Magglio Ordonez, who had singled home the tying run in the eighth.

“You like to see somebody like Santi having the cameras talking to him,” Leyland said. “It’s nice to see people like that getting attention, kind of the underdog.”

–RHP Joaquin Benoit turned in an infrequent two-inning appearance and picked up a victory when 2B Ramon Santiago blasted a game-ending home run in the bottom of the 10th. He faced seven batters, one of whom reached base, on a single. Benoit has worked as long as two innings just once before this season, and only three times has he pitched more than an inning. Benoit showed a very effective changeup to get two of his three strikeouts. “They’re a young team, very aggressive,” he said. “I was trying to use that to my advantage. I was trying to keep them off balance, slow them down a little bit.”

–DH Victor Martinez could catch in a pinch, manager Jim Leyland said. “I think if I had to, I probably could (use him behind the plate),” Leyland said, “but I’d prefer not to.” Martinez has not caught since Aug. 4 due to a knee injury he suffered Aug. 6 in a play at the plate at Kansas City. Leyland wasn’t sure about whether Martinez would catch again this season. “I don’t know about that,” he said. “I don’t think I’d go as far as to say that right now, but I don’t know the answer to that.”

–RHP Jacob Turner will remain with Detroit following his second career start Thursday. Manager Jim Leyland said Turner would provide rotation protection in case a rainout forces a doubleheader. “Plus,” Leyland said, “I think it will be good for him to see what it’s like amongst this stuff. Hopefully, we won’t have to use him after Thursday, but in case we would, we would at least have the option.”

–LHP Phil Coke was called upon to get just one batter out, which he did via strikeout. Coke hasn’t been scored upon in a month. He has been throwing a 95 mph fastball and throwing it just where he wants. He was brought in to get out LF Alex Gordon with two outs and runners on second and third in the seventh. He struck Gordon out, effectively mixing his fastball with a sweeping curve.

–UT Ryan Raburn, who sat out the previous two games because of a jammed left ring finger, returned to the lineup Tuesday. He played both second base and right field, and he went 1-for-3 with a walk.

BY THE NUMBERS
22 — One-run victories by Detroit this season. The Tigers have played 37 one-run games.

QUOTE TO NOTE
“He might not light up the radar gun, but he’s got good stuff. You’re seeing what we liked about him; he’s got pitchability. And he moves right along.” — Manager Jim Leyland, on Detroit RHP Doug Fister, who did not get a decision but who did give the Tigers a chance to win a game they eventually did win, 2-1 in the 10th on a walk-off home run. Fister, acquired from Seattle at the July trade deadline, retired the first 18 batters he faced and allowed one run in 7 2/3 innings.

Copyright (C) 2011 The Sports Xchange. All Rights Reserved.

A day after Brad Penny gave up seven runs in five innings, it was Max Scherzer (13-8) who allowed seven runs in three innings as the Tigers lost 9-5 to the Kansas City Royals Monday night.

“It’s pitching, pitching and pitching that decide most games,” Leyland said. “We got some very good pitching for a while and got on a roll, but now we haven’t gotten that in the last two days.”

Salvador Perez, Alcides Escobar and Alex Gordon all homered while Johnny Giavotella added a bases-loaded double for the Royals, who came in 18½ games behind Central Division leaders.

“I couldn’t locate my pitches, and that cost me tonight,” Scherzer said. “When I threw good pitches, they hit them, and when I threw bad pitches, they hit them harder.”

Leyland wasn’t surprised by Kansas City’s offensive show. The Royals finished with 18 hits.

“People need to realize that isn’t the team that fell way out of the race,” he said of the Royals. “They’ve brought up some young, aggressive hitters that are pretty impressive.”

Luke Hochevar (9-10) ended a four-start winless streak. He gave up five runs on eight hits in seven innings.

Gordon led off the game with his 19th homer, and Perez’s RBI double made it 2-0 in the second.

“I remembered that (Scherzer) likes to start fastball, fastball, fastball, so I was expecting the last one,” Gordon said. “We knew we needed to score runs against them.”

The Royals then broke the game open with three runs in the third. Melky Cabrera and Billy Butler started the inning with singles, and Eric Hosmer walked to load the bases. Scherzer retired the next two batters, but Giavotella hit a line-drive into the right-center gap, scoring all three runners.

The Tigers made it 5-3 in the bottom of the inning on an RBI groundout by Ramon Santiago and run-scoring singles by Delmon Young and Victor Martinez, but Scherzer couldn’t keep the Tigers in the game.

Perez led off the fourth with his first career homer — a 415-foot drive to left-center that bounced off the brick wall behind the seats — and Escobar followed with a shot into the left-field stands.

Gordon singled, ending Scherzer’s night, but Duane Below got out of the inning.

Miguel Cabrera’s RBI double pulled the Tigers back to 7-4, but the Royals got RBIs from Cabrera and Hosmer to put the game away in the sixth.

Detroit threatened in the eighth, adding a fifth run, but Blake Wood came in to get a double play and a strikeout to escape further damage. Wood also pitched the ninth for his first career save.

NOTES: The Tigers announced before the game that OF Brennan Boesch will need surgery to fix a sprained thumb, but that he will try to find a way to play with the injury. Boesch has only played once since Aug. 22 because of the injury. … RP Al Alburquerque (concussion) has been cleared to resume baseball activities, and will be available after getting his arm ready. Alburquerque has been sidelined since he was hit with a ball during batting practice in Baltimore on Aug. 13.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

DETROIT (AP) — Salvador Perez and Alcides Escobar hit back-to-back homers and the Kansas City Royals beat the first-place Detroit Tigers 9-5 Monday night.

Alex Gordon also homered and Johnny Giavotella added a bases-loaded double for the Royals, who came in 18½ games behind Central Division leaders.

Luke Hochevar (9-10) ended a four-start winless streak. He gave up five runs on eight hits in seven innings.

Max Scherzer (13-8) allowed seven runs on 10 hits and a walk in three-plus innings to drop to 2-2 in August. Both losses were to the Royals.

Gordon led off the game with his 19th homer, and Perez’s RBI double made it 2-0 in the second.

The Royals then broke the game open with three runs in the third. Melky Cabrera and Billy Butler started the inning with singles, and Eric Hosmer walked to load the bases. Scherzer retired the next two batters, but Giavotella hit a line-drive into the right-center gap, scoring all three runners.

The Tigers made it 5-3 in the bottom of the inning on an RBI groundout by Ramon Santiago and run-scoring singles by Delmon Young and Victor Martinez, but Scherzer couldn’t keep the Tigers in the game.

Perez led off the fourth with his first career homer — a 415-foot drive to left-center that bounced off the brick wall behind the seats — and Escobar followed with a shot into the left-field stands.

Gordon singled, ending Scherzer’s night, but Duane Below got out of the inning.

Miguel Cabrera’s RBI double pulled the Tigers back to 7-4, but the Royals got RBIs from Cabrera and Hosmer to put the game away in the sixth.

Detroit threatened in the eighth, adding a fifth run, but Blake Wood came in to get a double play and a strikeout to escape further damage. Wood also pitched the ninth for his first career save.

NOTES: The Tigers announced before the game that OF Brennan Boesch will need surgery to fix a sprained thumb, but that he will try to find a way to play with the injury. Boesch has only played once since Aug. 22 because of the injury. … RP Al Alburquerque (concussion) has been cleared to resume baseball activities, and will be available after getting his arm ready. Alburquerque has been sidelined since he was hit with a ball during batting practice in Baltimore on Aug. 13.

By Sean Yuille

– Managing Editor

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Aug 29, 2011 – (Sports Network) – Max Scherzer takes aim at his third straight winning decision this evening when the Detroit Tigers open a four-game set with the Kansas City Royals at Comerica Park.

Scherzer, who is 13-7 with a 4.21 earned run average, did not get a decision on Wednesday against Tampa, as he allowed two runs and four hits in five innings of a 3-2 loss.

His 13 wins are a career high.

Scherzer is 2-1 this season versus the Royals and 4-3 lifetime against them with a 2.85 ERA in eight starts.

Detroit was denied a three-game sweep in Minnesota on Sunday, as it dropped an 11-4 decision at Target Field. Ramon Santiago went 4-for-4 with a two-run single for the Tigers, who suffered just their second loss in 10 games, but still lead the American League Central by six games over Chicago.

Brad Penny (9-10) was hammered for seven runs and eight hits in five-plus innings to take the loss, his first in four starts.

“I didn’t really have a good breaking ball today,” said Penny. “Didn’t have a lot of opportunities to throw it and get a feel for it, but I felt strong, my arm felt great.”

Kansas City, meanwhile, avoided a three-game sweep on Sunday, as Bruce Chen rebounded after a shaky first inning to help the Royals to a 2-1 victory at Progressive Field.

Chen (10-5) allowed the Indians to load the bases with nobody out in the opening inning, but limited the damage to one run and didn’t allow another runner to reach second in his 7 1/3-inning start.

The lefty allowed five hits and two walks while striking out four to post his second straight 10-win season. Joakim Soria earned his 24th save with a perfect ninth in the Royals’ 50th one-run game this year (22-28).

Billy Butler went 3-for-5 with the game-winning run, while Mike Moustakas extended his hit streak to 11 with the go-ahead single in the third.

Getting the call for the Royals tonight will be righty Luke Hochevar, who is 8-10 with a 4.91 ERA. Hochevar did not get a decision on Wednesday in Toronto, as he surrendered three runs and four hits in six innings of a 4-3 loss.

Hochevar has faced the Tigers 10 times (nine starts) and is 3-4 with a 5.10 ERA.

Detroit is 8-4 this season versus the Royals.

Read More: Bruce Chen (P – KAN), Billy Butler (DH – KAN), Joakim Soria (P – KAN), Brad Penny (P – DET), Ramon Santiago (SS – DET), Luke Hochevar (P – KAN), Max Scherzer (P – DET), Mike Moustakas (3B – KAN), Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals

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TIME: 07:05 P.M. EST
VENUE: Comerica Park

Although Justin Verlander is getting most of the headlines for the Detroit Tigers, Max Scherzer is quietly showing signs of improvement.

Scherzer will try to defeat the Kansas City Royals for the third time this season Monday night in the opener of a four-game set at Comerica Park.

Verlander became the majors’ first 20-game winner in Saturday’s 6-4 win at Minnesota. Detroit (73-60) has been searching for other starters to pitch well.

Scherzer (13-7, 4.21 ERA) could be filling the bill. The hard-throwing right-hander is 4-3 with a 2.97 ERA over his last nine outings. His 13 victories are second on the team and represent a career high.

Scherzer lasted five innings Wednesday and yielded two runs in a 3-2, 10-inning loss at Tampa Bay.

The Missouri native is 2-1 with a 3.06 ERA in three starts against Kansas City (55-79) this season. Melky Cabrera, Billy Butler and Alex Gordon – the Royals’ three best hitters – have combined to go 5 for 23 against him.

Detroit enters this series with the biggest division lead in the AL, a six-game cushion on Chicago in the Central. The Tigers finished 5-2 on their road trip after Sunday’s 11-4 loss to the Twins.

“When they got to 11, I think we all were kind of like, ‘Well, it’s been a pretty good trip,’” manager Jim Leyland said.

Miguel Cabrera went 6 for 11 in the weekend series while Delmon Young was 5 for 13 with four RBIs.

The Tigers played Sunday without Ryan Raburn (jammed finger) and have been without fellow outfielder Brennan Boesch (sprained thumb) for the last four games. It is unclear when either will return.

The Royals have lost four straight starts by Luke Hochevar (8-10, 4.91), who is 0-2 with a 4.68 ERA in that span. He yielded three runs over six innings Wednesday and did not get a decision in a 4-3 loss at Toronto.

The right-hander will face the Tigers for the fourth time this year, going 1-1 with a 2.29 ERA in the first three while matching up with Scherzer twice.

Miguel Cabrera is 12 for 25 with two homers in his career against Hochevar, including 3 for 8 this year.

Jhonny Peralta has homered twice against Hochevar in 2011. Peralta is 16 for 39 with seven extra-base hits against the Royals in 2011, helping the Tigers build an 8-4 edge in the season series.

Kansas City salvaged the finale of a three-game set in Cleveland with Sunday’s 2-1 victory. They had lost one-run games the two previous days.

“We could have had all three of them,” manager Ned Yost said. “The first two games were hard losses to take, but it shows you the resiliency of this team. They show up to play every day and battle and stay after it. That is a great sign.”

Royals outfielder Melky Cabrera is batting .398 with six homers and 20 RBIs over his last 28 road games.

Copyright 2011 by STATS LLC and The Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and The Associated Press is strictly prohibited.