MIAMI – Akil Baddoo and Riley Greene homered, and five pitchers combined on a seven-hitter as the Detroit Tigers beat the Miami Marlins 5-0 Saturday.
Tigers star slugger Miguel Cabrera doubled and singled in four at-bats and continued to receive cheers in his final visiting series against the club the native Venezuelan began his 20-year career with. The game, promoted as Venezuelan Heritage Day, attracted a season-high crowd of 32,936 — the largest crowd for a Marlins home game since April 2017.
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“I enjoy all these outings, enjoying my last year in the big leagues,” said Cabrera, who will retire at the end of the season. “I’m happy where I am. Let’s keep winning and hopefully we can win the series (Sunday).”
Zack Short doubled twice for the Tigers, who evened the three-game series.
Joey Wentz (2-9) pitched 4 2/3 innings in relief after Beau Brieske started the bullpen game for the Tigers and went two innings. Optioned to Triple-A on June 29, Wentz was recalled before the game and struck out five to get his first win since May 8.
“Any time you get sent down people think it’s these massive changes,” Wentz said. “For me, it was kind of simplifying some of the stuff that I was doing. Take a breath and kind of clear the head and just go play baseball for a little bit.”
Jason Foley, Tyler Holton and Alex Lange got the final seven outs to complete the shutout.
“You need a lot of guys to pitch well when you make a decision to do that,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said of using five pitchers. “We can mix and match and try to find the right pockets for the right guys. Pitchers have to go do the work and put up zeroes. And they did.”
Miami’s Luis Arraez went 2 for 4 and his major league-leading batting average increased a point to .381.
After a 53-39 start, the Marlins are 3-10 since the All-Star break.
“We just couldn’t string anything together,” Miami manager Skip Schumaker said. “We had a couple of times that we had men on base with two outs. I thought we just didn’t win too many 3-2 counts. That could have maybe changed the course of the game, but Wentz, credit to him. He did a really good job against us.”
Detroit struck early on Baddoo’s three-run homer in the second. Javier Báez walked and Cabrera doubled before Baddoo drove a slider from Marlins starter Johnny Cueto over the wall in left for his fifth homer.
“Put a good swing on it and that’s my bread and butter,” Badoo said of his opposite-field blast. “I always feel good when I go oppo.”
Greene hit his eighth homer, a solo shot to lead off the sixth, to make it 4-0. The Tigers padded their lead on Short’s RBI double against J.T. Chargois in the ninth.
“The tack-on runs are probably just as important as the first pitch,” Hinch said. “Extend the lead and give your pitchers some breathing room.”
Cueto (0-2) was lifted after six innings. In his second start since spending three months on the injured list, Cueto gave up four runs, four hits and struck out five.
BASEBALL ROYALTY
Dave Concepción and Omar Vizquel were among the eight retired Venezuelan players who participated in a tribute to Cabrera before the game. Concepción also threw the ceremonial first pitch to fellow Venezuelan Arraez.
ROSTER MOVES
The Tigers optioned RHP Trey Wingenter Triple-A Toledo while the Marlins optioned RHP Bryan Hoeing to Triple-A Jacksonville to open a roster spot for reliever David Robertson. Robertson, acquired in a trade with the New York Mets late Thursday, joined the Marlins on Saturday.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Marlins: OF Jazz Chisholm Jr. (left oblique strain) is scheduled to play in a rehab game with Single-A Jupiter Sunday. ... LHP Tanner Scott (mild right strain) underwent additional tests. ... OF Avisaíl García (left back tightness) said he anticipates being activated Sunday. García has been sidelined since April 28.
UP NEXT
LHP Tarik Skubal (1-1, 3.71) will start the series finale for the Tigers on Sunday against Marlins LHP Jesús Luzardo (8-5, 3.22).