A duel it was, until the seventh

The Tigers and Twins played a tight game, with an "as predicted here" pitching duel...until the seventh. I think the fact that Edwin Jackson is getting limited run support is starting to get to him. Going into the seventh, it was 1-1 and Jackson had thrown 93 pitches. 12 pitches later, the game was 4-1 with two on and Jackson was on the bench. I think if going into the inning, Jackson had the lead, he may have hit the bench and Leyland would have worked his three-lefties bullpen over the seventh, eighth and ninth innings.

Liriano, on the other side, nearly pitched a complete game and when he appeared to hit a bump in the eighth, he was sent to the showers and the Twins bullpen finished the job. Liriano finished the game with 103 pitches, 9 Ks and two earned runs - his best start of his now 1-4 season.

Tonight is the culmination of the two-game series. The Twins come in at 13-13 and the Tigers 13-12. The 2-1 Nick Blackburn takes the hill for the Twins and the youthful, hard-throwing Porcello will throw the first pitch tonight for the Tigers. Porcello comes in 1-3 with a 6.23. His last start came April 29 at home against the Yankees and he only lasted 3.2 innings before he allowed six earned runs.

The Tigers are going to need to produce at the plate if they expect to gain some ground on Minnesota and the White Sox. All three teams are separated by a game.

The Red Wings will resume their road to the Stanley Cup tonight. This is the Wings first trip out west since March 24 against Edmonton. They're coming off a two full-overtimes game. Time change, cross-country flight, long game on Sunday equals a loss in my book. Don't be surprised if the Wings fall behind in this series tonight. However, I do expect them to even things up on Thursday before heading back to the D.

If you're not busy right now, I would suggest watching Arsenal and Manchester United on ESPN2. It's going into the half and ManU is up 2-0 in the game and 3-0 on aggregate. Can Arsenal make a second-half comeback? Check it out...