It's a clean sweep for Tigers as they clobber West-leading Astros
Published in Baseball
DETROIT — After a tense, 10-inning battle the night before, the Detroit Tigers scored an early-round TKO Wednesday to sweep the three-game set with the Houston Astros at Comerica Park, riding a six-run, first-inning barrage against lefty Framber Valdez to a 7-2 win.
It was the Tigers’ seventh win in eight games and their American League best 42nd win at home, tying the Toronto Blue Jays.
The first six hitters reached base against Valdez. After Jahmai Jones and Gleyber Torres walked, Andy Ibanez ripped an RBI single and Spencer Torkelson dropped an RBI double down the right-field line.
Two runs scored on wild pitches and Dillon Dingler lashed an RBI triple over center fielder Taylor Trammell’s head.
Trammell fell awkwardly into the wall and was taken off the field on a cart. There was no immediate word on the nature of his injury.
Javier Baez brought Dingler home with the first of his two RBI singles.
The was more than enough cushion for 41-year-old Charlie Morton. The one-time Astro breezed through six innings, setting up his elite curveball with a clever mix of four-seam fastballs, sinkers and cutters.
He allowed just three hits with eight strikeouts. Six of the eight he booked with his 3,100 rpm curveball.
One of the hits was a two-out, two-run homer by Mauricio Dubon. His seventh homer, an opposite-field liner, broke a streak of 31 straight scoreless innings by Astros hitters and a streak of 23 straight scoreless innings by Tigers pitching.
He pitched through some duress in the fourth. He walked Carlos Correa with one out but got Jose Altuve (who had one hit in the series) to hit a double-play grounder to Ibanez at third. But Ibanez threw errantly to second base and the Astros had runners at second and third with one out.
Morton didn’t flinch. He struck out Christian Walker and Jesus Sanchez with curveballs.
Morton has logged three quality starts and two victories in his four starts as a Tiger.
With the win, the Tigers (76-53) finish a stretch of 13 games in 13 days with a 10-3 mark.
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