The Seattle Mariners defeat the Detroit Tigers 7-2 in third game of series - MLB Update
The American League’s Seattle Mariners snatched a 7-2 triumph over the league rivals Detroit Tigers at the Comerica Park in Michigan on Thursday night to clinch their first series sweep of the season.
The Mariners’ rookie pitcher Michael Pineda had a remarkable day with the ball, as he tossed seven shut-out innings to clinch a series sweep for the club since July 2003. Pineda gave an early double in the second inning, but made a striking come-back and
did not allow any hit in his last four innings. The 22-year-old right-hand pitcher made a prominent nine strike-outs and allowed just three walks to earn his fourth win of the series. Pineda, having a 4-1 win-loss record with 2.01 ERA, is one of the prominent
pitchers of the season.
He was so brilliant with the ball that the opponent’s manager Jim Leyland could not resist praising Pineda. Leyland said, "Against that guy that can happen to anyone. Maggs isn't quite sharp yet, but he's getting a lot of at-bats and he's getting them against
good pitchers. That is not going to help his average right now, but it will help him a lot later. He's a pro, and he's going to hit."
The Tigers’ manager was not alone, who acknowledged Pineda’s impressive ball throwing abilities, as the catcher Alex Avilla also seemed impressed with the pitcher. Avilla said, "That guy was nasty. He's going from 94-99 on his fastball, plus a slider and
a split-finger, and he is throwing all three of them for strikes. He's going to be tough on everyone."
As Pineda has set up the foundation, the reliever David Pauley and closer Jamey Wright also tossed shut-out short innings.
On one side, Pineda held the opposition to just two runs while on the other hand, the Mariners’ bat awoke splendidly. Chasing a two-run deficit in the third inning, Ichiro Suzuki trimmed the lead by one, adding a RBI double and Chone Figgins drove in a tying
single in the same inning. It provided the Mariners a momentum that they took full advantage of and moved positively towards their first series sweep.
In the fourth inning, Justin Smoak hit a leading run and in the sixth, Miguel Olivo launched a brilliant 376-feet long homer to widen the lead 4-2. The Tigers’ starter Brad Penny, who until now has given nine hits, did not give any hit in the seventh inning.
In the eighth inning, the skipper Leyland relieved him with Ryan Perry, but the move did not work as he gave a homer to Lance Rodriguez and the Mariners acquired a 7-2 lead.
Perry gave an overall three runs on two hits, walked two and managed just one strike-out. However, the Closer Jose Valverde pitched a perfect scoreless inning.
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