DETROIT — Robbie Grossman’s squeeze bunt in the 10th inning drove in the winning run and the Detroit Tigers won a duel of small ball, beating the Houston Astros 2-1 Sunday for a split of their four-game series.
The Tigers (34-44) went 5-2 against Houston (48-30) this season. There were a total of only seven hits in their final meeting this year, and Detroit needed just three to win.
In the Houston 10th, Gregory Soto (4-1) walked leadoff hitter Chas McCormick with automatic runner Abraham Toro on second. Jason Castro sacrificed the runners over, but Jose Altuve popped out and Myles Straw grounded out.
Houston brought in Blake Taylor (0-2) for the bottom of the inning with Akil Baddoo starting on second. Jonathan Schoop’s groundout moved the winning run to third for Grossman.
Grossman bunted Taylor’s first pitch to the third-base side of the mound and Baddoo beat Taylor’s desperate flip.
Houston starter Jake Odorizzi allowed two hits and a walk in five innings. In his last three outings — two starts and a long-relief performance — he has given up four hits and two walks in 14 scoreless innings, striking out 15.
Tigers starter Tarik Skubal yielded one run on one hit and three walks in seven innings, striking out nine.
The Astros loaded the bases with one out in the fourth, but Skubal was able to escape with only a sacrifice fly by Carlos Correa. It was Correa’s fifth RBI of the series.
Cristian Javier walked Willi Castro and Zack Short with one out in the Detroit seventh, but got Jake Rogers to pop out. Astros manager Dusty Baker brought in Brooks Raley, and Baddoo tied the game with a soft single to right.
Both teams had two runners on in the eighth, but couldn’t bring home the go-ahead run.
MOVES
The Tigers kept Short, who had been called up as the 27th man for Saturday’s doubleheader, optioning INF Isaac Paredes to Triple-A Toledo. They also placed RHP Michael Fulmer (cervical spine strain) on the 10-day injured list and recalled LHP Miguel Del Pozo from Toledo.
UP NEXT
Tigers: Hop over Lake Erie for a three-game series with the Cleveland Indians. Matt Manning (1-1, 3.38) will face Cleveland’s Eli Morgan (0-2, 10.32) in Monday’s opener.
Astros: Return home for a three-game series against the Baltimore Orioles. Houston is scheduled to start Zack Greinke (8-2, 3.56) on Monday while the Orioles have not announced a starter.
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