Prince Fielder, Miguel Cabrera and Justin Verlander were presented with their 2012 All-Star jerseys before Friday's game against the Kansas City Royals. Delmon Young must have felt a little left out, or maybe inspired by the pageantry, as his sixth inning heroics sealed a 4-2 win for the Tigers.
Quintin Berry hit a triple in the third inning that scored Ramon Santiago and Austin Jackson. The Royals answered in fifth with two runs of their own. But the tie game lasted only long enough for Delmon Young to make his next plate appearance.
Young homered for the second straight game in the bottom of the sixth inning. Young's eighth home run of the season drove in Prince Fielder and broke a 2-2 tie.
Starting pitcher Drew Smyly finished the game with 10 strikeouts in six innings of work, allowing just two earned runs six hits. That was Smyly's highest strikeout total for any start this season. It improves his record to 4-3 with a 4.42 ERA in 15 starts this season.
The Tigers and Royals are in action again on Saturday at 4:05 p.m. Eastern.
For more on the Detroit Tigers and the Kansas City Royals, check out their respective SB Nation blogs at Bless You Boys and Royals Review. More news and analysis on MLB can be found over at Baseball Nation.