Tigers 1B Cabrera leaves against Royals

Two four-game losing streaks and a three-game slide during the ensuing three weeks after the series loss in Detroit dropped Kansas City to a season-worst seven games below.500 before a recent upswing. He has gone at least six innings and given up one or no runs in fourth straight starts. This is a close match-up with both teams having a 45 to 55 percent chance of winning based on 10,000 game simulations generated one play at a time by the AccuScore Simulation Supercomputer.

Martinez made it 2-1 with his homer in the seventh – his second in two days and the 101st of his career. Royals’ starter Ian Kennedy is forecasted to have a better game than Tigers’ starter Daniel Norris.

Detroit is in position to win some games at home, tonight they have to get a good start from Norris. The Royals are 11 games back in the American League Central and 7.5 back in the Wild Card hunt.

Jarrod Saltalamacchia came off the bench to replace Cabrera at first and in the No. 3 hole in Detroit’s lineup.

The Tigers, already short-handed after Cabrera’s injury, lost Collins in the bottom of the eighth when he was ejected by plate umpire Dan Iassogna for arguing a called third strike. He went 1-for-4 with two strikeouts. After a walk, Norris was relieved by Alex Wilson. He gave up six hits and walked four while striking out one.

Eric Hosmer, Raul Mondesi and Lorenzo Cain drove in the Royals’ runs. He finished 2-for-2 with a walk and reached base on a fielder’s choice in the third.

Cabrera walked and flew out to center in his two at-bats tonight.