Cabrera’s homer beats Bucs

Associated Press

DETROIT

Miguel Cabrera made an impressive swing look effortless.

Cabrera drove an outside pitch over the right-center fence in the eighth inning for a go-ahead, three-run homer that sent the Detroit Tigers to a 4-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday.

“As long as you watch baseball, you won’t see many guys that hit the ball to opposite field like that,” Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. “People get used to it around here. But trust me, in the history of the game, there’s not many guys that take it out to opposite field like it’s nothing.”

Leyland managed one of those players, Barry Bonds, for the first seven years of his career. Since Bonds left the Pirates in 1992 to sign with San Francisco, they haven’t had a winning record.

Pittsburgh, an NL-worst 23-40, has lost a season-high eight straight to push the franchise closer to extending its run of futility. The Pirates have had 17 straight losing seasons.

They looked as though they might finally end their skid until Carlos Guillen, who hit a leadoff home run in the 10th inning to give Detroit a 4-3 win Saturday night, singled as a pinch-hitter to open the eighth and chase starter Jeff Karstens.

Guillen and Johnny Damon, who drew a two-out walk against reliever Javier Lopez, were on base when Cabrera became the first major league hitter to reach 19 homers and 56 RBIs this season.

“Tough game,” Pirates manager John Russell said.

Garrett Jones hit a solo homer in the second inning and an RBI double in the fourth to put Pittsburgh ahead 2-0.

Karstens was charged with two runs on six hits and a walk in seven-plus innings, his longest start this season.