One rotten inning couldn't prevent five good ones from giving Tigers premier right-hander Justin Verlander a win Wednesday afternoon in Baltimore.
Verlander breezed through the first three innings before allowing two baserunners in the fourth. The roof caved in in the fifth as he yielded five runs on three singles, a walk and three-run homer by Nelson Cruz. Verlander recovered to retire the Orioles in order in the sixth and his bullpen blanked them the rest of the way to allow him to raise his record to 5-2.
His numbers didn't look pretty, however. He gave up five earned runs on six hits while walking three and fanning four as his ERA rose to 3.15. Verlander is set to make his next start Monday in Cleveland.