Major League Baseball
Detroit 9, Tampa Bay 4
When: 1:10 PM ET, Sunday, May 22, 2016
Where: Comerica Park, Detroit, Michigan
Temperature: 68°
Umpires: Home - Paul Nauert, 1B - Chris Conroy, 2B - Jerry Meals, 3B - Ron Kulpa
Attendance: 34758

DETROIT -- Beating a struggling Chris Archer was good for Detroit but the Tigers came out of a 9-4 win over Tampa Bay with problems of their own.

Probably the biggest was seeing winning pitcher Jordan Zimmermann (7-2) leave with two out in the sixth with what was termed a right groin strain. He was taken immediately for an MRI exam, the results of which weren't quickly known.

"We're going to hold off (making a roster decision) until we get a diagnosis (of the MRI)," Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said. "The off-day (Thursday) is going to help."

The question will be whether the injury is severe enough to force Zimmermann to miss two starts, which it did not appear to be from the way he was scooting down the dugout stairs.

"You certainly don't want to see your best pitcher from the start of the season out for any length of time," Ausmus said. "We might not need a starter (for him) because of the off-day."

A second issue was Miguel Cabrera, who had a solo home run plus an RBI single, getting hit near the left kneecap by a pitch in the seventh inning. He left the game for a pinch runner.

"I don't expect the thing with Miggy to be anything serious," Ausmus said. "The ball hit him on a nerve and he felt the pain go down his leg."

Cabrera has hit eight of his nine home runs since April 25 with 20 RBI in that span.

Cameron Maybin had a two-run single in the third and drew a bases-loaded walk in the seventh for a third RBI. He is 12-for-20 in a week of action since coming off the disabled list.

Victor Martinez added a two-run home run, his sixth, for Detroit in the eighth as the Tigers won for the sixth time in seven tries.

Archer (3-5) was coming off a stretch where he was 3-0 in his last five starts with a 2.43 ERA. Detroit drummed him for six runs on eight hits over three innings. He walked one and fanned four.

"There were really good approaches by the Tigers," Rays manager Kevin Cash said. "They didn't miss many balls. They barreled up a bunch. When you're on fire, they find holes.

"He could have continued going. But the thought was 75 pitches for three innings was quite a workload. He's one of our guys we gotta be smart with.

"Right now he's in that path where the breaks are just not going his way. So everything's magnified."

Zimmermann pitched five-hit ball over 5 2/3 innings before leaving with the injury. He didn't walk anybody and struck out three while allowing two runs.

Drew VerHagen, optioned to Triple-A Toledo after the game, got the final out of the sixth but gave up a two-run home run to Tim Beckham in the seventh. Southpaw Kyle Ryan got pinch-hitter Mikie Mahtook for the final out of the seventh.

Mark Lowe pitched the eighth and Alex Wilson the ninth for Detroit.

Ian Kinsler singled in the first and scored on a line double to left center by J.D. Martinez, who scored on a single to center by Cabrera. Andrew Romine had an RBI triple to extreme right in the second to break a 2-2 tie.

Cabrera led off the third with his ninth home run of the season, a towering line drive to dead center that hit the shrubbery just above the wall. Victor Martinez singled, Nick Castellanos doubled him to third and both scored on a sharp single to right by Maybin to make it 6-2.

Archer was relieved at the beginning of the fourth by Ryan Webb, who worked three scoreless innings. Steve Geltz gave up the two-run home run to Martinez and was also optioned to the minors. Tampa Bay will announce a call-up Monday.

The Rays got their best shot at Zimmermann in the second inning, getting both their runs on a home run by Logan Morrison. Steven Souza Jr. beat out a single to short ahead of Morrison's second home run of the season.

Beckham followed with a two-out single but Zimmermann then pitched hitless ball until Evan Longoria beat out a single to third with two out in the sixth.

Zimmerman threw one more pitch after Longoria's single and then was removed when he hopped and grimaced with what was later announced as a right groin muscle strain.

NOTES: Center field will be a "match-up" proposition, Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash said, although Mikie Mahtook could seize the job if he hits. Regular CF Kevin Kiermaier suffered two broken bones in his hand Saturday and will be out indefinitely. ... RHP Francisco Rodriguez enters Monday with 12 straight save conversions for Detroit. ... Rays RHP Brad Boxberger (adductor surgery) threw 27 pitches Saturday in a rehab appearance for Triple-A Durham and the closer was slated to pitch again Sunday. He could return to the majors this week. ... Tigers CF Cameron Maybin will draw a slight fine for slamming his bat and helmet to the ground after striking out in the eighth inning Saturday.
Top Game Performances
Starting Pitchers
Tampa Bay   Detroit
Chris Archer Player Jordan Zimmermann
Loss W/L Win
3.0 IP 5.2
4 Strikeouts 3
8 Hits 5
18.00 ERA 3.18
Hitting
Tampa Bay   Detroit
Tim BeckhamPlayer Miguel Cabrera
2 Hits 3
2 RBI 2
1 HR 1
5 TB 6
.500 Avg 1.000
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Hits HR TB Avg LOB K RBI BB SB Errors
Tampa Bay 10 2 17 .278 12 6 4 1 0 0
Detroit 13 2 24 .351 21 9 9 3 0 0