Detroit Tigers Notes And Quotes 9-1-11

--CF Austin Jackson sparked Detroit's second consecutive come-from-behind victory over Kansas City, going 4-for-4 and scoring three times. "I'm just swinging the bat, getting lucky," he said. Jackson doubled leading off, and he singled with one out in the third, scoring both times to give the Tigers a brief 2-1 lead. His leadoff triple in the eighth sparked a three-run rally that gave Detroit a 5-4 win. "My dad used to say that the triple was the most exciting play in baseball," manager Jim Leyland said. "I think my dad was right. That triple is an exciting play. And we took advantage of it and scored some runs."

--RHP Jose Valverde notched his 40th save, becoming only the second Tiger to reach that mark. RHP Todd Jones saved 42 games for Detroit in 2000. Valverde has yet to blow a save chance this season. "That's good, 40-for-40, a good number," said Valverde, who reached 40 saves with Arizona in 2007 and Houston the following year. Valverde allowed a two-out single, a stolen base and a walk but got SS Alcides Escobar to fly to right to end the game.

"That's great," manager Jim Leyland said. "He's certainly done a heckuva job for us. He hadn't pitched for a few days, so that was good. In fact, he had a little sore back, so he got a little time off to get that better." Valverde had not pitched since posting his 39th save Aug. 27.

--3B Wilson Betemit pulled an RBI double into the right field corner to drive in the winning run against Kansas City, the team he opened the season with. "I was looking for a fastball," he said. "This guy (RHP Blake Wood) throws hard. He threw me a slider, and I hit it." Betemit is hitting a .298 with Detroit and has 13 RBI in 28 games.

--DH Victor Martinez can't run or catch, but he can still hit. Martinez, hitting more than .400 with runners in scoring position this season, drilled an RBI double to the wall in left center to score LF Delmon Young from first base with two outs in the eighth and tie the score at 4-4. His sore left knee has robbed him of his power, but Martinez is still hitting better than .300 from each side of the plate.

--LHP Daniel Schlereth picked up a victory when Detroit rallied for three runs in the eighth to defeat Kansas City 5-4. Schlereth walked one batter in a scoreless inning. "Schlereth came in and did a good job," manager Jim Leyland said. "He gave us a chance; no add-on runs. That was important."

--SS Ramon Santiago more than doubled his season RBI total in August. Santiago, who entered the month with 11 RBI, and marked his 32nd birthday with a sacrifice fly the score the first run of Detroit's game-winning, three-run rally in the eighth. It was his 12th RBI of the month.

--RHP Rick Porcello gave up four runs in seven innings, including a pair of solo home runs to Kansas City1B Eric Hosmer. It was a curious outing for Porcello because he mixed his pitches well and had the Royals hitting groundballs, but it seemed he had trouble putting hitters away. "For the most part," Porcello said, "with the exception of the two runs in the sixth inning, I think Alex (Avila, the catcher) called a really good game and we were pretty effective. Hosmer got me twice, but take away those two home runs and it was a pretty good outing. The main thing is we stayed in the game long enough to battle back and come out with a win." His biggest problem, again, was with left-handed hitters, who were 6-for-11 against him. Porcello entered the game with lefties hitting .330 off him. He gave up two hits to right-handers.

--2B Carlos Guillen appears probable for a return to Detroit's starting lineup Friday night against White Sox LHP John Danks. "I don't know that for a fact," manager Jim Leyland said, "but I think I'm playing him." Guillen, who is 5-for-11 (.455) through three rehab games for Class AAA Toledo, is 7-for-16 (.438) in his career against Danks. He has been out since Aug. 13 with a sore left wrist. "I don't play guys because I like them," Leyland said, "but I heard that Guillen hit the heck out of the ball (Tuesday). The idea is to win games."

--RF Magglio Ordonez, 37, is 5-for-18 in his last five appearances entering play Thursday and is hitting .318 since Aug. 15 with a six-game hitting streak. "I'm not sticking him in there because I like him," manager Jim Leyland said. "I mean, I do like him a lot, but I don't play guys because I like them."

--RF Brennan Boesch, who has been out for a week due to a sore right thumb, returned to action Wednesday as a pinch runner. He likely will need offseason surgery, but he hopes to return to the lineup this month.

BY THE NUMBERS
19 -- String of consecutive games against AL Central rivals Detroit is going through. The Tigers are 4-2 through the first six games of the 19, and 34-20 vs. divisional foes overall.

QUOTE TO NOTE
"If I was ever pulling for anybody to contribute down this stretch, it's Magglio (Ordonez). Your heart goes out to that guy. I just can't believe he can't help us." -- Manager Jim Leyland. Ordonez's RBI single Tuesday night was the crucial hit of Detroit's 2-1, 10-inning win over Kansas City because it tied up the game, 1-1, in the eighth. Ordonez has seen his role go from regular to platoon player over the course of this season.

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