Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
With all the talk of Justin Verlander and the blister or cracked skin on his throwing hand, the right-hander played well enough to earn his Detroit Tigers their fifth straight victory. While the crazy, overblown talk about the former Cy Young winner’s hand was the topic of conversation for days, the veteran starter just laughed it off and pitched a gem.
Verlander allowed just one run, struck out eight and gave up five hits in seven innings, earning his third win of the season and dropping his ERA to a very healthy 1.83.
As Verlander was heating up, so were the bats. Prince Fielder, Miguel Cabrera and Alex Avila all contributed with home runs of their own.
The Tigers are one of the league’s hottest teams right now and with the pitching staff they have plus the hitters in their lineup, don’t expect this win streak of five to stop any time soon.
They also have a favorable schedule for the next couple of weeks and with the red-hot Anibal Sanchez pitching against the Minnesota Twins today in the final game of the series, the streak could hit a modest six easily. Sanchez went and struck out 17 batters in his last start, tying a franchise record and making it look simple.
Detroit is currently in first place in the AL Central after reclaiming the spot with a Kansas City Royals loss yesterday.
Being in the top-10 in most offensive categories and top-15 in most pitching categories is a good recipe for success, especially when an already-solid team is starting to get even hotter.
Connor Muldowney is a columnist for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @Connormuldowney, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
