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Recap: Yankees 2 Tigers 1

After having won the last two games against the Tigers by scores of 5-2 and 13-4, the Yankees went back to their pitching and defense model for winning and outlasted Detroit in a 2-1 affair at Comerica Park Thursday afternoon. Right-hander Masahiro Tanaka was stellar in this one as he went 6 and 1/3 innings while allowing three hits, two walks, one earned run, and striking out six batters. His ERA is down to 3.22 on the season. Tanaka used his array of offspeed stuff to keep the Tigers hitters off balance and also hit 93 mph with his fastball towards the end of his outing.

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A nasty splitter to get Yoenis Cespedes in the fourth.

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The Yankees offense is leading the league in home runs, but the Bronx Bombers scored a pair of runs on a balk with a man on third and two outs and an RBI ground out. Each time Jacoby Ellsbury put himself in scoring position using his speed. He stole second in the sixth inning and later scored when he bluffed Anibal Sanchez into a balk.

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As you can see, Sanchez started his motion and then backed his right foot off the rubber when he noticed Ellsbury breaking for home. The Yankees bench was vocal about the balk not being called initially, but they got it and then Tigers skipper Brad Ausmus followed with enough complaining to get himself ejected, though he admitted after the game that the call was ultimately correct.

Top WPA Play (.131): Ellsbury also leadoff the eighth inning with a double and later scored the go-ahead run.

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Key Moment: Tanaka left the game with runners on first and second and just one out in the seventh, but Joe Girardi’s bullpen was able to escape the threat with no damage done. Girardi brought in left-handed pitcher Justin Wilson with catcher Alex Avila due to hit and Ausmus countered by pinch-hitting James McCann to regain the platoon advantage. McCann came close to plating the go-ahead run for the Tigers, but he made the mistake of hitting a ground ball in the general vicinity of third basemen Chase Headley.

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Headley’s diving stop kept the game tied for the time being and the back end of the Yankees bullpen put the Tigers offense on ice. Dellin Betances entered the game in the seventh, retiring Nick Castellanos on a pop up in foul territory to end the frame. Betances threw Castellanos all breaking balls in the at-bat, but let his fastball go in the eighth as he struck out Ian Kinsler with a 97 mph heater to end the inning. He looked like the version of Betances we saw last year as he retired all four men he faced.

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Andrew Miller also looked dominant, which is no surprise because he’s been great all season. He retired the heart of the Tigers lineup in order in the ninth, striking out Miguel Cabrera and then J.D. Martinez to end the game. Miller’s strikeout percentage so far this year is 51.7.

In the last week the Yankees are 6-1 against Detroit and Tampa Bay as an away team. The lone loss during this stretch was the 2-1 defeat against the Tigers on Monday, which was still a very well pitched game by CC Sabathia against a tough offense. The Yankees are coming home for a three-game series against the red hot Mets in the Bronx and after this road trip it’s a happy group of Yankees heading home.

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