Tigers rough up Matsuzaka, sweep Red Sox
Rookie ace gives up three homers in game for first time in 6-5 loss
 Paul Sancya / AP Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka wipes his brow between pitches during a 6-5 loss to the Tigers on Sunday. Matsuzaka (10-6) gave up six runs on 10 hits in five innings. |
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DETROIT - Gary Sheffield and the Detroit Tigers made Daisuke Matsuzaka pay for his lackluster location.
Sheffield hit one of Detroit’s three homers off the Japanese star, Curtis Granderson took a home run away from Boston and the Tigers beat the Red Sox 6-5 Sunday to complete a three-game sweep.
Carlos Guillen and Marcus Thames also homered against Matsuzaka, who gave up three homers for the first time in the major leagues. Sheffield added two doubles off the right-hander.
“We’re pretty good at hitting mistakes,” Detroit manager Jim Leyland said. “It doesn’t matter who is pitching.”
After trailing 6-2, Boston scored twice in the seventh and once in the eighth to pull within a run. With runners on first and third in the ninth against Todd Jones, J.D. Drew fouled out to end the game.
As it turned out, Granderson’s catch proved to be as important as it was impressive.
The center fielder sprinted to his right, jumped in stride and snagged a ball — with his left armpit over the wall — to rob Wily Mo Pena of a homer in the fourth.
“If that’s not a web gem, I’ve never seen one,” Leyland said. “Nobody makes a better play than that.”
Detroit heads into the All-Star break after winning five straight and 14 of 19, moving a game ahead of Cleveland in the AL Central. The Tigers beat Boston 9-2 in the series opener and 3-2 in 13 innings Saturday night after winning the last two games of a three-game series against the Indians.
“They seem to be hitting their stride,” Matsuzaka said through an interpreter.
The Red Sox were a season-high 22 games over .500 on June 24, but have since lost eight of 13 overall and six in a row on the road.
“I’m not thrilled,” manager Terry Francona said.
Boston still, however, has a double-digit lead in the AL East.
Matsuzaka (10-6) allowed six runs and 10 hits in five innings, which equaled his shortest start in his first major league season. He had given up just two runs in his previous four starts and hadn’t lost since June 10.
“The problem was with my control,” Matsuzaka said. “I felt I left a lot of my pitches in soft locations.
“I wasn’t able to throw the fastball for strikes.”
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Thames, who hit a grand slam in the series opener, turned one of Matsuzaka’s mistakes into a 440-foot shot.
“I haven’t seen any go out there like that,” Leyland said. “When he hits them up like that, it reminds me of Mark McGwire to be honest.”
In just 131 at-bats, Thames has 10 homers and might challenge Craig Monroe for the starting job in left field after the break.
Nate Robertson (5-6) allowed four runs and four hits in 6 1-3 innings. Boston scored two runs in the third inning off him on three walks, a hit batter and a sacrifice fly.
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