Tigers 5, White Sox 4: James McCann, 8th inning rally steals close win for Detroit

It was not the start David Price or the Detroit Tigers were expecting to see. Price had a shaky outing, but it was the offense that, silent through seven innings, bounced back in a huge way and saved the game. After Victor Martinez tied the game in the eighth, James McCann walked it off with a huge home run, giving the Tigers a 5-4 win over the Chicago White Sox and a series win.

Facing Jeff Samardzija (I didn't even have to copy+paste this time), Detroit's offense went down like newborn cubs rather than Tigers, getting just two hits and two walks against the righty through six innings. It was crickets on the basepaths for the Tigers until the eighth, but as they say, it's not over until it's over. And boy did they wake up.

Samardzija was at just 86 pitches to start the eighth. James McCann singled to start the inning, Iglesias drew a 10-pitch (!) walk, Gose singled, and Kinsler got hit by a pitch on his right elbow (drilled is more like it) to put the Tigers on the board. It was at this point that the righty thought it was a good idea to overpower Miguel Cabrera. It worked. He tried the same thing with Victor Martinez. That time it didn't work and V-Mart cleared the bases with an RBI double. McCann ended it splendidly by smoking an 0-2 pitch to deep left, walking it off 5-4 for Detroit.

Price, however, was very un-Price-like on Sunday. He struggled to finish off opposing hitters, particularly in an 0-2 count, and paid for it dearly. He was unaided by Yoenis Cespedes, who tripped after picking up a double by Jose Abreu, which allowed the slugger to advance to third to start the fourth. Abreu scored on a Garcia sac fly and Melky Cabrera followed it up with a home run surrendered by Price. The sixth inning was equally taxing for Price, who allowed two more runs -- an RBI single following a triple and hit by pitch, and a sac fly.

The seventh started oddly as Price, at 99 pitches with six hits and five strikeouts, apparently thought his day was done and never went to the mound. Alex Wilson had been warming in the bullpen but had stopped when the top of the sixth ended and had to be semi-rushed into duty. Wilson, despite being quickly inserted into the game, gave up just one hit and struck out a batter in 1 2/3 innings of work. Joakim Soria then delivered his first 1-2-3 inning for the Tigers since June 2, holding the 4-4 tie that McCann would later break.

ROARS:

Jose Iglesias: Broke Samardzija's developing no-hitter in the third inning with a five-pitch one-out single. He also gave the team his usual sparkling defense. He later battled a 10-pitch plate appearance to draw a walk, putting two on for the Tigers.

Victor Jesus Martinez: Good grief have they missed his healthy bat. Martinez took Samardzija's challenge by plastering the first pitch of his at-bat, a 96 mph four-seam fastball, up the right-center field gap, tying the game.

Ian Kinsler: Had one of two hits during the quiet period with a solid opposite field single. He then scored the first run of the game the hard way after being hit by a pitch on his right elbow. He scored on Martinez's bases-clearing double.

Joakim Soria: Gave the Tigers a 1-2-3 inning in the ninth, holding a 4-4 tie, including a strikeout of Gordon Beckham.

James Thomas McCann: Defensively he was solid, including a caught stealing of Emilio Bonifacio, and he singled in the eighth. However, it was his walkoff home run to left that won him the ROAR. WOW.

HISSES:

Tigers offense through seven: I'd give Samardzija more credit for this if it weren't for the no-effort day by the Tigers offense. Half a dozen of the outs recorded happened on just one pitch and at least three were on two. Six batters had at-bats of five pitches or more, but only one inning saw back-to-back battles. Iglesias' five pitch at-bat single and Kinsler's sixth-inning single were the only hits allowed until the eighth.

David Price: He rarely lands in this column. But four runs on six hits through six innings isn't good. Especially not when he can't get batters out on favorable counts, gave up a homer, and disappeared for the seventh inning.

STREAKS AND STATS:

• Yoenis Cespedes' eight-game hitting streak came to a screeching halt as he went 0-for-3 in Sunday's game.
• Sunday's start was only the second non-rain shortened start that David Price went no more than six innings and gave up four or more runs in a game. It's only his third game of the year giving up at least four runs in less than seven innings of work, his first since May 8 against the Royals when he gave up five runs on 13 hits, and his shortest (not shortened by rain) start since April 22 when he allowed eight runs on 10 hits to the Yankees in just 2 1/3 innings.
• Joakim Soria's 1-2-3 ninth inning was his first since June 2 against the Oakland Athletics.
• Sunday marked just the second time this season the Tigers have come from behind to win a game when trailing after the seventh. Prior to this game they were 1-30. It's also the first time the team has come back to win a game when trailing in the eighth inning or later.
• James McCann hit his second walkoff home run of the season on Sunday. His last was on May 21 against the Houston Astros, and his third home run of the season -- the other was an inside the parker.

WIN PROBABILITY GRAPH:

Source: FanGraphs