The Tigers came up short in 13 innings against the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday night from Camden Yards, as a pair of blown saves from the bullpen ruined Detroit's chance at seven straight victories.
Jim Leyland's squad appeared to have the game wrapped up on two separate occasions in the extra innings, but a blown save by Jose Valverde (his fourth) in the 11th inning and then another by Joaquin Benoit (his second) in the 13 inning each negated the Tigers' due diligence with the bat. Benoit, who stayed in the game in the 13th inning after serving up a game-tying home run to Baltimore's J.J. Hardy, took the loss by yielding a two-run walk-off home run to catcher Taylor Teagarden.
Offensively, third baseman Miguel Cabrera and outfielder Quintin Berry each led the way for the Tigers with a pair of 3-for-6 nights from the plate. Berry chipped in a pair of RBI from the No. 9 spot in the lineup as well, and nearly recorded the game-winning hit in the top of the 13th before Benoit got his hands on the game.
Despite the loss, the Tigers remain just four games out of first place in the American League Central. Detroit will send a recently-roeughed up Justin Verlander to the hill on Sunday in an effort to take the three-game series.
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