Detroit Tigers left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez couldn’t keep his scoreless streak intact forever.
It lasted 18 innings.
“Feels good to put zeros on the board,” Rodriguez said. “I don’t really look at how many scoreless innings. I just go out there and put the most zeros I can put on the board to help the team win the game.”
Rodriguez gave up a solo home run to Baltimore Orioles catcher James McCann, an ex-Tiger, in the second inning in Game 1 of Saturday’s doubleheader. He was sharp the rest of the way, though, as the Tigers took down the Orioles, 7-4, and snapped a two-game skid.
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The Tigers (10-15) beat the Orioles for the first time in five games this season. The offense collected 16 hits (plus three walks) and went 4-for-17 with runners in scoring position. In Thursday’s 7-4 loss, the Tigers went 1-for-14 with runners in scoring position.
“It’s a conversation all the time,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “You want to get a good pitch to hit, but you want to see results. These guys are battling, and we’ve left so many guys on base. After a win, I don’t get asked about the 10 guys left on base because that means we did something with the other opportunities. That’s probably just as important in the big scheme of things.”
In his 18-inning scoreless stretch, Rodriguez racked up 19 strikeouts without issuing a walk. On Saturday, he allowed one run on four hits with two walks and five strikeouts across 5⅔ innings, throwing 62 of 98 pitches for strikes.
McCann hit Rodriguez’s fifth-pitch fastball, in a 3-1 count, for a 419-foot home run to left-center with one out in the second. McCann, a 10-year MLB veteran, has two homers this season — both against the Tigers.
“I’m never thinking about how many runs we score,” Rodriguez said of the Tigers scoring five runs in the first three innings. “I’m thinking about going out there and putting up zeros. If the game is 0-0 or 10-0, I want to go out there and get three outs. That’s it. That’s the way I think every time I’m on the mound.”
Right-handed reliever Mason Englert took over with runners on first and second in the sixth inning, with the Tigers ahead by four runs. He walked…