When Tigers right hander Max Scherzer was optioned to AAA earlier in the year, his ERA was a ghastly 7.29 and he had struck out just 26 batters in 42 innings. His record in his first eight starts was 1-4.

He was sent down to fix a problem with his mechanics and whatever they found down in Toledo has paid immediate dividends for Detroit.

Scherzer (6-6) worked seven innings last night, earning a win and a series sweep of Baltimore. The Orioles didn’t get their first run until the seventh and by that point they were already down by four. (more after the jump)

Scherzer has now made eight starts since being recalled and his numbers reflect the kind of talent the Tigers knew he had when they traded for him this past winter. With another strong outing last night, Scherzer has now gone 5-2 over his past eight outings, striking out 62 batters over 51.2 innings and posting an ERA of 2.44 in that span. He has allowed just four homers since his recall after yielding nine before he was demoted.

The Tigers got single runs in the first and third, then added two more in the fifth, all coming against Brad Bergesen, who took the loss. Austin Jackson lead off the game with a double and scored on a Magglio Ordonez ground out to start the scoring, then rookie shortstop Danny Worth took Bergesen deep for his first career home run.

Carlos Guillen and Brandon Inge each knocked in a run in the fifth, coming on a single and double, respectively.

Rookie Robbie Weinhardt made his major league debut in relief of Scherzer in the eighth and pitched a scoreless frame, despite hitting the first batter he faced. He came out to pitch the ninth, but was lifted after allowing a triple to start the frame. Phil Coke allowed that runner to score via sacrifice fly, but otherwise slammed the door to earn his first save of the season.

Cheers for

• Danny Worth- Worth’s home run came as a part of a two-hit day. Anything they get from that position offensively is gravy for the Tigers.
• Max Scherzer- Mad Max is quickly becoming one of my favorites. He attacked the hitters all night, throwing just 103 pitches in his seven innings.
• Brandon Inge- Inge’s two hits raised his average to .272 on the year. He’s not clearing the fence as often as we might have expected, but he’s certainly finding the gaps effectively. Over his last 30 games, Inge is homerless, but has hit .343 with a .879 OPS. He’s been huge lately.

The Tigers extended their lead in the Central race to one full game over second place, but it’s no longer the Twins who are closest. The White Sox won their fourth straight last night to keep pace with Detroit, but Minnesota fell to Toronto, dropping to third in the standings. The Tigers have the day off today as they wait for the Twins to come to town this weekend, we’ll have much more on that series coming up later.

Last night was all about the return of Dontrelle Willis to Detroit. The D-backs newest southpaw displayed the same wildness, and much the same results he found while pitching for the Tigers.

Detroit jumped out to an early 4-0 lead thanks to Willis’ wildness and some timely hitting. Willis walked the first batter of the game, a common occurrence for him, and two batters later, Magglio Ordonez crushed a two-run homer to the deepest part of the yard. In the second inning, Brandon Inge doubled to start the frame and rode home on a double by Danny Worth. Ryan Raburn then brought in another run with a sacrifice fly.

But for all of his struggles early, Willis settled in a bit and allowed just one more Tiger to cross the plate. His teammates battled back and tied the score at 4-4 in the fifth against Tigers starter Armando Galarraga. Galarraga was solid early, but wore down due to the oppressive heat and humidity, he said as much after the game.

Arizona got a homer from Miguel Montero in the fourth, then scored three times in the fifth before Galarraga was lifted from the game. After Detroit took the lead again in the bottom of the inning, Brad Thomas couldn’t hold it and the two teams were square at five headed to the eighth.

With a major storm threatening the game, Brandon Inge centered a Chad Qualls fastball and drove it over the head of Chris Young in center for a triple, scoring Brennan Boesch from first. Alex Avila then brought Inge home with an important insurance run. Jose Valverde, a former Diamondback, sat down the side in order in the ninth, picking up his 15th save of the year. (…)

Cheers for

• Brandon Inge- Inge collected a season-high three hits, falling a home run shy of the cycle. He scored twice and drove in the winning run with his eighth inning triple. He has risen his batting average all the way up to .264, by batting .397 (25-for-63) over his last 17 games.
• Danny Worth- As much as I was disappointed by seeing Worth’s name in the lineup, he delivered last night. After collecting just one hit in 16 at bats since being recalled, Worth came through by reaching base three times, including two hits.
• Magglio Ordonez- Last year, Maggs managed just nine home runs, and it took him until game 163 to do that. This year, in just 57 games, Ordonez has matched that total thanks to his two-run shot last night. He’s batting .333 and already has 45 runs batted in.
• Eddie Bonine- Bonine entered the game and immediately shut down the D-backs. He worked two full innings, allowing just one hit, keeping the game tied until the Tigers could scratch out some runs.

Jeers for

• Brad Thomas- Thomas has been good for Detroit this year, especially recently, but he was ineffective in his one inning of work last night. After allowing an inherited runner to tie the game in the fifth, he gave up one of his own to re-tie the game in the sixth.
• Armando Galarraga- He wasn’t nearly as good as he has been, but this wasn’t as bad as his numbers indicate, either. Galarraga had trouble with a lineup that featured seven left handed bats, neutralizing his slider and forcing him to nibble at the outside corner. Galarraga is much better when he’s attacking the zone, but he didn’t do that very often last night.

The Tigers will see another former teammate on the mound tonight, in the person of Edwin Jackson. EJax won 13 games and made the all-star team for the Tigers last season, but has struggled in his first campaign in the desert, posting a 5.18 ERA thus far.

Detroit will send another struggling right hander to the hill to oppose him in Rick Porcello, who was skipped over in his last turn through the rotation. For the Tigers to have success tonight, they’ll need Porcello to get his sinker down, and for Jackson to get his up.  To see the opposing view, check out Venom Strikes.

The Tigers have closed to within a half game of first-place Minnesota, thanks to some favorable interleague scheduling. The Twins face off again with the Phillies today.

This seems almost a lateral move to me, as neither Everett nor Worth are ever going to hit all that much. Everett has an above average glove, and so does Worth, at least potentially, but Worth is likely to hit a bit more. Not a lot more, mind up, just a bit more.

Worth has never been a great hitter in the minors, so counting on him to all of a sudden become an above average hitter in the big leagues is a fool’s errand. While he did impress in his two week stay in the Show last month, keep in mind that in his 25 plate appearances, he walked just once and recorded eight hits (.333 average), but all were singles. (…)

If you are expecting to be wowed by the new Tiger’s bat, you will likely be disappointed.

But you will be wowed with his glove. As Worth showed last month, he can pick it at second base. He can pick it at short, too, that you’ll see. He’s not ever going to hit .300, I don’t think, and he’ll probably never hit even 10 homers in a year, but he likely won’t hit .185, either.

All that being said, this still feels like the right move. If Everett isn’t a starter, he offers no value to his team, as there would almost never be a time he would be a viable pinch-hitting option. Unless you need to lay down a squeeze bunt, anyway.

In other news, the Free Press is reporting today that Toledo OF Clete Thomas will miss the remainder of the season after undergoing microfracture surgery on his knee. This is the same surgery that Indians OF Grady Sizemore underwent last week. The rehab will take 9-12 months.

This is obviously bad news for Thomas. Clete was expected to make the big club out of camp this year after being a staple of the Tigers bench for most of the last two years. The signing of Johnny Damon likely cost Thomas a roster spot and a shoulder problem landed him on the DL to start the year.

Thomas has been passed over by Brennan Boesch and probably Casper Wells on the Tigers depth chart even before this knee injury, so even without it he might have had trouble returning to Detroit this year. Now, he’ll likely have to prove his health next season before the Tigers can use him, either as a reserve, or as a trade chip.