ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The Tigers finally broke a two-series losing streak Thursday by pounding the Minnesota Twins 13-1 and taking two of three games in Detroit.
Offensively, the Tigers carried a host of burning questions into the game. From Miguel Cabrera's slump to Jose Iglesias's health, the Tiger lineup was packed with uncertainties heading into Thursday afternoon's finale.
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But after scoring just seven runs in their previous four games, the Tigers set new season highs with 13 runs and 20 hits in the dismantling of the Twins. Cabrera exploded for three hits, two home runs and five RBI, Anthony Gose went 4-5 and Bryan Holaday picked up three hits, a home run and 3 RBI in his first game of the season.
On the mound, Anibal Sanchez put a shaky start behind him and threw eight one-run innings. He struck out nine and picked up his third win in his best start so far this season.
The Tigers will try to keep rolling in St. Louis this weekend against the best team in MLB. The Cardinals beat Cleveland Thursday to improve to 24-10 and lead the NL Central by five games.
Detroit and St. Louis haven't met between the lines since June of 2012. As a result, most of the pitchers are coming into this series without any experience against the opponent's lineup.
On Friday, Carlos Martinez will get his first career look at the Tigers while Shane Greene does the same against the Cardinals.
First Pitch: 8:15 p.m. on FSD
Martinez is coming off back-to-back starts in which he allowed seven earned runs. The 23-year-old won each of his last three starts in April before getting knocked around in May.
The recipe to beat Martinez is similar to the one Detroit used to trounce Minnesota's bullpen on Thursday. Martinez allows an inflated 1.54 home runs and 4.63 walks per nine innings, making him a candidate for disaster against the powerful middle of the Tigers' lineup. He's at his best when he gets hitters to swing and miss or put the ball on the ground, something the Tigers have made a habit of during their offensive slumps.
Greene will also look to keep the ball on the ground in the series opener. In his four best starts, in which he allowed a combined two earned runs in 31 innings, Greene induced an average of 1.58 ground balls per inning and walked only five batters.
Greene allowed just one run on four hits over eight innings against the Royals Sunday night. If he can build off of that outing, the Tigers will be in good shape to win a second straight game.
Detroit trails Kansas City by one game in the AL Central heading into the weekend series. The Royals are hosting the Yankees this weekend.