Indians score 7 in 7th of 9-3 win over Tigers

Tigers reliever Al Alburquerque came within one strike of a spectacular escape: keeping the score tied by striking out the side with runners at second and third.

Then, on a 1-2 pitch with two out in the seventh, Cleveland's Jason Kipnis launched a tie-breaking three-run homer off Alburquerque.

Asdrubal Cabrera, the next hitter, also homered off Alburquerque. That capped the seven-run inning that sent the Indians past the Tigers, 9-3, Friday night at Comerica Park.

The Tigers' first game after the All-Star break resembled their final game before the break. In each, the starter took a shutout and the lead to the seventh, then gave up four runs in the inning and lost. The starters were Justin Verlander on Sunday in Kansas City and Anibal Sanchez on Friday night.

Sanchez faced four hitters in the seventh and didn't retire any. He departed when Nick Swisher lined a first-pitch, two-run bases-loaded single to bring Cleveland within 3-2. The switch-hitting Swisher had been 2-for-16 lifetime off Sanchez with 10 strikeouts, including whiffs on his previous two at-bats this game.

Left-hander Ian Krol relieved, and right-handed Ryan Raburn batted for lefty-swinging David Murphy and lined an opposite-field double to tie the score. Alburquerque arrived and fanned Yan Gomes and Chris Dickerson before Kipnis fought back from 0-2 to unload/ his three-run homer.

Cleveland's hard-throwing young right-hander, Trevor Bauer, got his first road win of the season. He turned in a quality start — six innings, three runs. In the two-run fourth that made it 3-0, Torii Hunter doubled in a run, stole third base on his 39th birthday, and came on home when catcher Yan Gomes threw wildly to third.

Designated hitter Victor Martinez returned to the lineup after he missed the final eight games before the All-Star break with a sore right side. Martinez singled in the eighth for his second single of the game. But, uncharacteristically, he struck out twice.

Kipnis ended some oh-fers when he homered. He'd been homerless in his 96 career at-bats at Comerica. He'd been 0-for-3 off Alburquerque with two strikeouts. And he'd been 0-for-3 in this game -- three groundouts. And then, after all those Comerica at-bats without a homer, Kipnis led off the ninth with his second homer of the game.

Lowe writes for The Detroit Free Press