Tigers 7, Rangers 4: Early offense leads to victory

The Detroit Tigers came away victorious in the second game of their series with the Texas Rangers, as some early power swings helped them escape with a 7-4 win.

The Tigers jumped on Rangers starter Mike Minor early, as six of the first nine batters would reach against him. This was highlighted as Jeimer Candelario, Victor Martinez, and Jose Iglesias, who each recorded home runs against Minor, tagging him for five runs in the first two innings.

The Rangers posed their first real threat in the sixth inning, chasing Tigers starter Mike Fiers as they put runners on the corners with only one out. Daniel Stumpf entered in relief, walking Nomar Mazara. The Rangers were able to further trump the Stumpf as Adrian Beltre delivered a two-run single to cut the Tigers lead to 5-2.

The Tigers would add another run, but the Rangers further foght back in the eight against Joe Jimenez, as Delino DeShields came around to score from first base on a double by Shin-Soo Choo. Beltre then drove in his third run of the game, closing the gap to 6-4. The Tigers added an insurance run in the top of the ninth before shutting the door in the bottom of the inning.

Fiers remains dependable

Aside from a Jurickson Profar home run in the fifth and a leadoff single followed by a sequence of events that saw DeShields end up at third base in the sixth, Fiers experienced little issue in his 5 ¹⁄₃ innings of work. He surrendered just two runs with five strikeouts. His six hits allowed, however, were less than ideal, and led to a slightly elevated count of 79 pitches in a somewhat short outing. But Fiers, so far, has performed above expectations.

Good bullpen, bad bullpen

The Tigers experienced the best of both worlds in the performances their relief corps turned in. Stumpf and Joe Jimenez both struggled in their outings, allowing the Rangers back within striking distance. Meanwhile, 1 ¹⁄₃ innings of shutdown ball from Buck Farmer, along with patchwork from the newly recalled Blaine Hardy and a four-out save — including three strikeouts — from Shane Greene quashed any attempts at a comeback.

Candelario stays hot

Reaching base three times, including two extra base hits, Candelario continues to be one of the most intriguing stories of the season. So far, he still looks every bit the player the Tigers were promised when they acquired him from the Chicago Cubs last season. In addition to his performance at the plate, Candelario helped keep the Rangers at bay in the eighth as he picked a hot shot to the left side for the final out of the inning.

On deck

The Tigers wrap up their road trip tomorrow afternoon in Arlington as Francisco Liriano faces off against Bartolo Colon in the rubber game of this series with the Rangers. First pitch is scheduled for 2:05 p.m. ET.