Detroit Tigers: Offense comes through in Minnesota

The Detroit Tigers won the first game of a three-game series in Minnesota tonight behind some solid offensive performances.

The Detroit Tigers opened their series in Minnesota against the Twins tonight with a strong offensive performance. They tallied nine runs on the night and won the game 9-6. These runs came behind some great offensive performances.

Drew VerHagen had a shaky start on the mound, giving up a run in the first two innings, but got it together to have one of his best outings. He went for 6.0 innings and struck out a career-high 11 hitters on the night, while only giving up three runs. VerHagen ended up earning the win, which puts his record at a surprisingly good 4-2, although his ERA still looks ugly at 6.31.

The Tigers had a huge inning in the sixth, which largely contributed to the win. Jose Berrios hadn’t allowed any runs up to that point, but gave up two singles and then a double to Dawel Lugo which scored a run. Travis Demeritte, who also had a big night, would walk later in the inning which led to Ronny Rodgriguez hitting the first grand slam of his major league career, giving the Tigers a 5-3 lead at the time.

The Twins didn’t go quietly though and had some great opportunities, but the Tigers pitching and defense made some great plays to seal the deal. A timely sliding catch by Demeritte in the right field with the bases loaded potentially saved the game for Detroit. Buck Farmer also got out of a jam after Jose Cisnero walked the bases loaded. Farmer would end up giving up two more runs in the eighth but was able to get out of the jam.

The division rivals play again tomorrow at 7:10 p.m. EST. Edwin Jackson will get the ball for Detroit and will look to have a better start than he did against Houston. The Tigers will need to keep the bats going to beat the dangerous Twins lineup and continue to play spoiler.