CHICAGO – Shane Greene got blasted by the White Sox Tuesday, his third awful start in a row, sending the Tigers to a 5-2 loss. Greene has now allowed 20 earned runs in his last three starts, in which he lasted a total of just 11 innings.
Chicago entered the series on a five-game losing streak, and the Tigers kept the pain coming early. Anthony Gose ripped the first pitch of the game for a single, then stole 2nd base on the next pitch and moved to 3rd on an overthrow from the catcher.
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Ian Kinsler quickly capitalized, smacking the 4th pitch of the game into left field to give Detroit a 1-0 lead. Jeff Samardzija managed to stop the bleeding in the 1st, courtesy of a double play grounder from Miguel Cabrera.
As bad as the White Sox have been, Shane Greene came into the game pitching even worse. After allowing 15 earned runs in his last two starts, Greene gave the run right back in the bottom of the 1st.
Adam Eaton led off with a double down the right field line, followed by a Melky Cabrera walk. Jose Abreu then hit the 10th pitch of the inning for an RBI single to knot it up at 1-1.
Alex Avila put the Tigers back ahead in the 2nd with a home run that glanced off Cabrera's outstretched glove and into the bullpen. It was Avila's first homer since Opening Day.
Samardzija settled things down in the 3rd, retiring the Tigers in order.
Greene's implosion came in the bottom of the 3rd inning, when he allowed a single before issuing three straight walks to force in the tying run. An RBI groundout and a Conor Gillaspie triple gave the White Sox a 5-2 lead and ended Greene's night.
Alex Wilson came into the game and kept the Tigers close, pitching 3.1 scoreless frames. He allowed just one hit and one walk, struck out one and threw 28 of his 38 pitches for strikes.
But Samardzija was too good after the 2nd inning. He allowed just four hits and one walk from the 3rd through the 7th and left the game in line for his second win.
Zach Duke retired the Tigers in order in the 8th and closer David Robertson pitched around an error in the 9th for his 4th save.
With the loss, the Tigers fell into 2nd place in the AL Central, as the Royals beat the Indians at home.
Detroit will try to bounce back Wednesday night behind Alfredo Simon. Chicago will send out ace Chris Sale.