Detroit Tigers Notes And Quotes 5-9-11

--CF Austin Jackson made it back-to-back three-hit games and his two-run home run, a slicing liner down the left-field line, broke a 2-2 tie in the seventh. "He's just putting the ball in play," manager Jim Leyland said. "When he put the ball in play last year, he had a fantastic batting average (near .400 and best in the league). Jackson has been working a lot with hitting coach Lloyd McClendon to break bad hitting habits that had plagued him since the beginning of spring training. Getting his front foot down quicker was a major part of the problem, and now he's driving the ball and making more consistent contact.

--RHP Brad Penny overcame the one serious mistake he made, a bad 3-2 fastball that DH Jose Bautista creamed for a two-run home run in the third, to last 7 2/3 innings and win his third start in his last four. "He's pitched well lately," manager Jim Leyland said. "It's kind of gone unnoticed. What you saw is exactly why we wanted to get him." Penny gave up five hits in the first three innings but only two the rest of the way and retired 10 in a row during one stretch. He only struck out one, but he didn't walk anybody, and after the first couple innings, did a better job of keeping his fastball at the knees.

--RHP Jose Valverde became the 41st major league pitcher to record 200 saves when he struck out the side to preserve Detroit's follow-up to RHP Justin Verlander's no-hitter. Valverde, 7-for-7 in saves this year, threw 13 pitches and only two were out of the strike zone. All but one were fastballs too, as he continues to rely mainly on his heater over his trademark split-finger fastball. "This is a special day for me. This is Mother's Day and this is 200," he said. "Not too many guys have 200 saves in (the) Dominican (Republic). What I have to do is keep going."

--1B Miguel Cabrera was one at-bat shy of going hitless for his fourth game in a row. But Cabrera lined an RBI single to center in the eighth to give Detroit an extra margin of safety in its 5-2 victory. Cabrera might be expanding his strike zone a little because teams don't want to give him anything good to hit, but he still shows a willingness to take a walk when it's on the table.

--RHP Justin Verlander's second career no-hitter Saturday made him just the second Detroit pitcher to record a pair of hitless starts. RHP Virgil Trucks, now 94, had two no-hitters while Detroit was going through a 104-loss season in 1952. "A lot of guys throw one," RHP Brad Penny said. "Not many guys throw more than one. That's special company there."

"This day is one for Justin and the entire team to enjoy," manager Jim Leyland said. "He always has 'A' stuff, though. It doesn't surprise me he has two (no-hitters) now. It wouldn't surprise me if he gets another one at some point in his career." Verlander acknowledged trying to throttle back in the first couple innings to get into a rhythm. His pitch count was at 31 through three innings and once he got going, he upped the radar guns readings. Verlander was throwing 100-101 mph regularly in the last three innings of his near-perfect game. He walked one batter but he was taken out on a double play in the eighth.

--C Alex Avila sat out the next game after catching RHP Justin Verlander's second no-hitter. Avila hit a two-run home run Saturday, giving him six home runs and 23 RBI in his first 29 games this season. Last year in 104 games, Avila hit just seven home runs and drove in 31 runs. Avila was also behind the plate for RHP Armando Galarraga's famous imperfect game. "I think Alex has always been conscientious of learning how to handle the staff," manager Jim Leyland said, "calling pitches and calling the game. I think that's been first and foremost for him. I think he's done a very good job of that. He's learning all the time. He's getting better all the time."

--OF Brennan Boesch sat out his second straight game as manager Jim Leyland opted for more right-handed batters against two straight left-handers Toronto started. Boesch will be back in the lineup, hitting third, Monday against a right-hander for the series windup at Toronto. Leyland has to juggle Boesch with Ryan Raburn and Magglio Ordonez. OF Casper Wells, who started Sunday, also figures in the mix.

BY THE NUMBERS
100 -- Miles per hour the Rogers Centre radar gun showed the 106th of 108 pitches RHP Justin Verlander threw in getting his second career no-hitter. He reached triple digits on the radar gun in each of the last three innings.

QUOTE TO NOTE
"The most stressful part was I had to take a pee in the sixth inning and I was afraid to go." -- C Alex Avila, who waited until game's end to go to the bathroom because he didn't want to take a chance on messing with the karma during RHP Justin Verlander's no-hitter.

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