Angels 2, Tigers 1: David Freese belted a tiebreaking homer in the eighth inning as host Los Angeles won the final three of its four-game series versus Detroit.
Hector Santiago allowed one run on three hits over 5 1/3 innings and received spotless relief from Mike Morin and Joe Smith (4-0) before Huston Street worked a perfect ninth for his 27th save in 28 chances. Kole Calhoun had a pair of hits while Erick Aybar had a hit and scored for the Angels, who completed a 6-4 homestand with their major league-best 38th home win.
Reliever Joba Chamberlain (1-4) coughed up the home run ball to Freese, spoiling seven innings of one-run ball by Rick Porcello, who was denied in his bid for his American League-high 13th win. Victor Martinez had an RBI double for the Tigers, who were held to two runs in the last three games to lose for the eighth time in 12 contests.
The Tigers scored in their first at-bat when Martinez hammered a two-out double off the base of the wall in right-center to plate Ian Kinsler. Los Angeles tied it in the fifth when Porcello's errant pickoff attempt sailed past second base, allowing Aybar to move to third and he alertly come home when center fielder Austin Jackson was slow to get the ball back into the infield.
Freese, who was 2-for-19 with no extra-base hits and no RBIs in his previous six games, snapped the 1-1 deadlock with a solo shot - his sixth of the year - to left-center off Chamberlain with one out in the eighth. Street finished it off by retiring the top of the Tigers’ order, ending it with a strikeout of Miguel Cabrera.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Smith worked a 1-2-3 eighth and has retired the last 26 right-handed batters he faced. ... Martinez collected his 57th RBI of the season but only his second in the past 11 games. ... Detroit returns home to host the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday in the opener of a three-game series while Los Angeles is also off Monday before starting an eight-game road trip in Baltimore on Tuesday.
Detroit | LA Angels | |
Rick Porcello | Player | Hector Santiago |
No Decision | W/L | No Decision |
7.0 | IP | 5.1 |
6 | Strikeouts | 3 |
5 | Hits | 3 |
0.00 | ERA | 1.69 |
Detroit | LA Angels | |
Victor Martinez | Player | Kole Calhoun |
1 | Hits | 2 |
1 | RBI | 0 |
0 | HR | 0 |
2 | TB | 2 |
.333 | Avg | .500 |