By Dave Hart
LocalSportsJournal.com
Tigers 4, Indians 1 – The Tigers snapped their four-game losing streak on Saturday afternoon with another strong pitching performance by Alfredo Simon.
Victor Martinez had three RBIs to lead Detroit offensively while Ian Kinsler hit a two-double.
Simon picked up his fourth win of the season. He pitched six and two thirds innings, allowing one run on six hits while striking out three.
Detroit will look to take the series Sunday afternoon against Cleveland.
Record: 12-6
2nd Place in AL Central (1 game behind Kansas City)
Magic # to clinch their 5th straight AL Central Division title: 147
Magic # to clinch their 5th straight playoff berth: 143
Next Game: 04/26/2015 vs Cleveland Indians 1:08 p.m. @ Comerica Park
Hitting Stats: Victor Martinez 3 RBI (8), Ian Kinsler 2B (4) RBI (9) SB (2), Rajai Davis 3 SB (6), Jose Iglesias SB (5)
Pitching Stats: Alfredo Simon W (4-0) 6.2 IP 6 H 1 R 1 ER 2 BB 3 K, Joakim Soria SV (6) 1 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 1 K
Red Wings 4, Lightning 0 – The Red Wings made sure they did not have another third period letdown.
Detroit scored four goals in a playoff game for the first time since 2013 against Chicago, to push Tampa Bay to the brink of elimination.
Goalie Petr Mrazek picked up his second shutout victory of the series, stopping all 28 Lightning shots.
Riley Sheahan scored the game-winning goal late in the first period with a power play goal.
The series will shift to Detroit for Game 6 on Monday night.
Red Wings lead 1st Round series 3-2
Number of wins to win a Stanley Cup championship: 13
Number of wins to win an Eastern Conference title: 9
Next Game: 04/27/2015 Game 6 of 1st Round vs Tampa Bay Lightning 7 p.m. @ Joe Louis Arena
Stats: Riley Sheahan G (2), Drew Miller G (1), Pavel Datsyuk G (3), Danny DeKeyser G (1), Niklas Kronwall A (1), Henrik Zetterberg A (3), Luke Glendening A (1), Jonathan Ericsson 2 A (4), Darren Helm A (3), Kyle Quincey A (3), Joakim Andersson A (1)
Goalie Stats: Petr Mrazek W (3-2) 28 saves on 28 shots 2nd shutout of playoffs
