Detroit Tigers vs. Cleveland Indians: Game 3 – MLB Post Game Analysis
The Detroit Tigers extended their lead in the American League Central division to 9.5 games over the Cleveland Indians to virtually deny the Indians even a distant chance of qualifying for the playoffs after a convincing 8-6 victory at Progressive Field
in Cleveland, Ohio on Wednesday, September 7.
With this win, the Tigers completed a three-game series whitewash over Cleveland to add insult to injury.
Before this series, the Indians were pressing hard for the top notch in the Central but a whitewash not only dashed their chances of qualification, but also pushed them to the third place in the division, behind the Chicago White Sox. Cleveland had a decent
70-67 record before the home series against the division leaders, but has now been reduced to a winning percentage of exactly .500.
Justin Verlander won his 22nd game of the season to become the most vigilant nominee for the AL Cy Young Award this year. Although his performance was not as sparkling as it should have been, a Victor Martinez Grand Slam in the seventh inning
sealed the win for him. The Tigers were trailing 2-4 at the start of the seventh but a five-run inning shifted the momentum towards the visitors and gave them a thumping three-run advantage over the Indians.
"What a great win," said Verlander, who leaped off the bench and cheered Martinez's shot that highlighted a five-run rally in the seventh inning. "When he hit it, I said, 'It's that kind of year.'"
Verlander threw six innings for four runs amid three hits to take his win-loss record to 22-5 for the season. He struck-out eight batters in his spell of 113 pitches to take his tally of strike-outs to 232 for the season, the most in the Majors to date thus
far. The Tigers will now want him to remain fit for the postseason as their success in the playoffs will be directly proportional to his performance.
Jose Valverde reiterated his authority as a closer, pitching a perfect ninth inning yet again to save his 42nd game of the season and bring his earned-run average below the 2.50 mark. Valverde should now aim at keeping his fitness intact for the
postseason as an injury at this stage would be colossal for the Tigers. The closer has the most saves in the AL this season and a major reason for this has been his variation in pitching as opposed to the basic fastball used by conventional closers.
Valverde has not dropped a chance to save a game this season is now level with Todd Jones for the team-record for most saves he set in 2000. Given his form, he is likely to grab another save this season to surpass this record.
Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez have emerged as a formidable pair in the line-up for the Tigers and are fast becoming the backbone of a not-so-strong batting unit. However, if both of them continue with their form in the playoffs, the Tigers have a fair
chance of giving a tough time to the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox.
Detroit’s manager Jim Leyland, however, was in no mood to celebrate after this victory. He said that winning this series has allowed them to topple their closest competitors in the division but the remaining games need to be played with full vigour and there
is no room for a compromise in performance.
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