Verlander, Cabrera star, but Tigers fall 4-3 to ChiSox
CHICAGO – Justin Verlander’s 2015 season was a battle from start to finish.
The Detroit Tigers right-hander opened his campaign on the disabled list for the first time in his career. He struggled out of the gate. He starred in the second half. But before he could close out his comeback season, Rob Brantly gave him one last hurdle to clear.
And when Verlander struck out the former Tiger farmhand swinging on the 12th pitch of his at-bat to end the sixth inning, he walked off the field at U.S. Cellular Field with a fist pump, solidifying his spot as one of the game’s top starters.
“I think it capped off a two-month stretch of outstanding pitching,” manager Brad Ausmus said.
The franchise’s two feature stars – Verlander and Miguel Cabrera – highlighted the Tigers’ 4-3 loss to the Chicago White Sox on Saturday night in chilly Chicago.
Verlander threw six strong innings to put a punctuate a stellar second half and Cabrera went 3-for-4 with a home run to all but wrap up his fourth American League batting title in five seasons.
“All in all, after getting back in the groove, I’m definitely pleased and optimistic heading into next year,” Verlander said.
He slogged through the first inning, allowing a run on two hits over 29 pitches, but steadied the ship from there, closing his comeback campaign by allowing two runs on five hits. He struck out nine and walked one, throwing a season-high 121 pitches.
“I think he has shown to any doubters that he’s still a top of the rotation guy,” Ausmus said.
Verlander finished the season with a 3.38 ERA.
“At the end of the day, not a bad start,” he said. “Pleased to end the season on a solid note.”
Cabrera did the same, checking out with a .338 average. He is unlikely to play in the season finale on Sunday, Ausmus said.
Asked about winning the batting title, Cabrera said, “I don’t know yet. It’s the end of the season tomorrow so we gotta wait.”
He leads Boston Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts by 18 points.
The performance – capped by his 18th home run of the season, which snapped a career-long 29-game drought – was a fitting finish to a season that was hampered by injuries.
Cabrera missed more than a month with the left calf strain and had been bothered by the right ankle for the entire regular season, he said.
“It’s been a battle for my ankle all year, playing through pain,” he said. “Hopefully next season there will be no issues and I’ll be pain free and I’ll be able to play 100% every day.”
The Tigers took a late lead when James McCann hit a pinch-hit RBI double in the ninth inning. He scored Rajai Davis, who led off the inning with a walk, but closer Neftali Feliz blew his fourth save in eight tries with the team in the ninth inning.
In the ninth, Feliz walked Avisail Garcia to open the inning before J.B. Shuck doubled him home and Leury Garcia singled home the game-winning run.
With the loss, the Tigers will finish in last place in the American League Central. They are guaranteed to finish with one of the 10 worst records in baseball, which secures their first-round draft pick should they sign a free agent with draft-pick compensation in the off-season.
And after putting a bow on this season, Verlander – whose performance is of the utmost importance next season – looked ahead to next season.
“Obviously,” he said, “we need to win more.”
In a season where a lot of things went wrong, he was right.
Contact Anthony Fenech: afenech@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @anthonyfenech.
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