Verlander Up To 99 MPH In 7th As Tigers Beat White Sox 7-4
TOM GAGE, Associated Press
DETROIT (AP) — Justin Verlander hit 99 mph in escaping a bases-loaded jam during his final inning, and Victor Martinez hit his 200th career home run as the Detroit Tigers beat the Chicago White Sox 7-4 on Wednesday.
Verlander (4-8) threw five straight fastballs 98-99 mph in striking out Geovany Soto to end the seventh and exited with a four-run lead. He allowed three runs on five hits with eight strikeouts.
Melky Cabrera's 100th career home run, a two-run shot in the fourth, accounted for the first two White Sox runs off Verlander.
The Tigers scored six runs off Frankie Montas (0-1) in his first career start. They scored twice in the first on Martinez's 11th home run, then added four more runs in the third — two of them scoring on J.D. Martinez's bases-loaded ground-rule double that gave him 98 RBIs for the season.
Verlander took care of the rest, winning for only the second time at Comerica Park this year. The victory ended a streak of three winless starts, but extended his run to eight consecutive starts since he last allowed more than four runs.
The late velocity was a signature for Verlander when he won the Cy Young and MVP awards in 2011, but was absent as he returned from a shoulder injury earlier this season. He debuted on June 13 and allowed at least five runs in four of his first nine starts. In the last nine, he's allowed as many as four just once.
Montas went three innings and allowed six runs on six hits. In five previous relief outings for the White Sox, he'd had a 1.13 ERA.
Rajai Davis had two singles and a triple for the Tigers, scoring three runs.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Tigers: 1B Miguel Cabrera did not play, but lower back soreness is not expected to keep him out for multiple games. "If we were fighting for a playoff spot, he'd be playing," manager Brad Ausmus said. "But with an off day tomorrow, I'd rather knock it out and have him be ready for the series we have left against teams in contention."
White Sox: Still day-to-day with patella tendinitis in his right knee, 1B Adam LaRoche is "ramping it up and taking batting practice. We're hoping to get him back in there maybe this weekend," said Sox manager Robin Ventura. ... 3B Mike Olt, whose third-inning two-out single was Chicago's first hit off Verlander, left the game with right shoulder discomfort after five innings.
NEXT UP
Tigers: Detroit is off Thursday, then opens a series at home against the Twins on Friday. Matt Boyd (1-5, 7.40) will go for the Tigers against Mike Pelfrey (6-10, 4.16).
White Sox: Chicago opens a four-game series at Yankee Stadium, with Chris Sale (12-10, 3.47) facing Michael Pineda (11-8, 4.10).
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