Detroit's brief two-game skid is now a thing of the past, as the Tigers handled the Chicago White Sox 5-2 on Sunday in the final game of the series to avoid a disastrous sweep.
Earning the win for the Tigers was starter Rick Porcello, who pitched 7.2 strong innings and yielded only five hits with one run. Porcello threw 99 pitches before giving way to the bullpen, as his lone run of the day came on a powerful blast to center field from the bat of Dayan Viciedo shortly before he exited in the eighth.
The Tigers tallied 10 hits as a team on the day, with five of them being of the extra base variety. Gerald Laird led the way with a solo home run, a single, and a double to finish 3-4 and move his 2012 average to .444. The veteran Laird finished a triple shy of the cycle while giving All-Star Alex Avila a much-needed break behind the plate.
Even during an afternoon where Detroit's 1-2-3 hitters combined to go 0-for-11 from the dish until the ninth inning, Porcello's command of the strike zone was more than enough to get the job done. The now 6-3 Tigers will kick off a three-game road series with Kansas City on Monday as ace Justin Verlander will be desperate for his first win of the year.
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