DETROIT – Matt Boyd out-dueled one of the best pitchers in the world Thursday to lead the Detroit Tigers in a win over the Cleveland Indians on Opening Day.
Miguel Cabrera got the Tigers out to an early lead, crushing a two-run home run through the snow off of Shane Bieber in the first inning. The blast just cleared the right field wall, and Cabrera initially thought he’d hit a double, sliding into first base.
Recommended Videos
Click here to see video of the Cabrera home run (and slide).
Detroit added a run in the bottom of the second, after Victor Reyes reached on a dropped third strike and JaCoby Jones brought him home with a double.
From there, Matt Boyd did the rest. He fired 5.2 scoreless innings, allowing three hits and four walks while striking out two. He worked out of jams in the second and fourth innings, but induced mostly weak contact from the Tribe throughout the afternoon.
Jose Cisnero came in and finished off the sixth inning after a runner reached. Daniel Norris got four big outs in the seventh and eighth to give the Tigers a 3-0 lead entering the ninth.
Cleveland finally broke through against closer Gregory Soto. Catcher Roberto Perez hit a two-run bomb into the bullpens in left field to cut the lead to one. A two-out walk brought Cesar Hernandez up as the go-ahead run.
Soto induced a weak popup to shallow right field, and Jonathan Schoop drifted back to secure the first win of the season.