Alex Avila was making the most of his Easter Sunday in Cleveland. A two run, home run from Avila got the Tigers offense going in the 2nd.  Alex went 2 for 2, with two walks, a home run and a single. Matt Boyd had a strong outing as well, limiting the Indians to 1, through the 6th, when a sac fly from Ramirez made the game 2-1.

Tiger batters were back at it in the 8th. Cleveland’s Bryan Shaw took over for Carlos Carrasco. After a Castellanos double, and a single from Cabrera, the Tigers tacked on the all-important, insurance run. The first three batters would reach for the Tigers. A double play got Jones to third and he would score on a wild pitch from Cleveland reliever, Zach McAllister. The Tigers led 4-1.

Perhaps the most important thing, to take away from Sunday's game, was the strength of Tigers relief pitching from Alex Wilson, Justin Wilson and Francisco Rodriguez. Tiger relievers faced the minimum amount of hitters in the 7th and 8th. A double from Ramirez kept things interesting in the 9th, but ultimately, Rodriguez and the Tigers held on to keep the Indians off the board and take the series from Cleveland, 2 games to 1.

Miguel Cabrera went 1 for 4, with a single RBI in the 8th, scoring Castellanos. Miguel left in the 8th due to “lower back tightness.” Matthew Boyd gave up one run in six innings of work, with 7 hits, two walks and three strikeouts. Romine was caught stealing twice, in the 7th and 9th.

With the 4-1 win, the Tigers improve to 8-4 on the season. The Tigers have the day off on Monday, but will begin a three game series with Tampa Bay, Tuesday night. Michael Fulmer will face off against Rays starter, Matt Andriese. Coverage begins at 6:45, Tuesday night, on 95.3 WBCK.

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