Drew Smyly's first game back from the disabled list did not go exactly as planned for the rookie pitcher and the Detroit Tigers on a balmy Tuesday night in Arlington, as a potent Texas lineup plowed through Detroit pitching en route to a 7-5 victory in the series' 2nd game.
The left-handed Smyly was staked to an immediate 2-0 advantage after a Prince Fielder two-run double brought home Austin Jackson and Miguel Cabrera in the opening frame, but offered up a run of his own on the scoreboard in the bottom half of the inning. Smyly's outing came unraveled in the 4th inning when a series of hits allowed Texas to plate four runs and flip the game on its head, forcing him to exit with both his 4th loss of the year and an ugly line (4.2 IP, 8 H, 6 ER).
Despite coming out on the wrong end of a loss, Smyly did not appeared bothered by the blister injury that forced him to the 15-day disabled list earlier in the month, which is a promising sign for the Tigers going forward. Offensively, Fielder's 2-for-4, four RBI performance was virtually the only bright spot for the Tigers, as Texas pitcher Yu Darvish and his 10 strikeouts made things tough on Detroit hitters all evening.
The final game of the series will feature the pitching duel of Detroit's Doug Fister taking on Texas' new addition Roy Oswalt on Wednesday night, as the two squads will each be in search of a pivotal series victory.
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