BALTIMORE (AP) — Miguel Cabrera hit his 499th career home run, part of a three-hit night for the Detroit slugger that helped the Tigers hand the Baltimore Orioles their seventh straight loss, 5-2 on Wednesday.
Cabrera’s solo shot off Matt Harvey (6-11) in the fifth inning opened the scoring. He also had two singles earlier in the game, plus a sacrifice fly in the sixth.
The Tigers finish their trip Thursday at Baltimore.
Tarik Skubal (8-10) allowed five hits and walk in six innings in his second straight scoreless outing. He struck out six. Gregory Soto earned his 14th save in 15 chances with a scoreless ninth.
Anthony Santander hit a two-run homer for Baltimore in the eighth.
Baltimore did manage to avoid setting an unpleasant major league record. The Orioles had allowed at least nine runs in each of their previous six games. Only the New York Giants (in 1901) and Seattle Mariners (2000) have done that for seven games in a row.
Detroit left the bases loaded in the first and third innings. Then Cabrera went deep with one out in the fifth. The homer drew some cheers from the crowd at Camden Yards, and the 38-year-old slugger gave a little pump of his right fist when the ball cleared the wall in left-center field.
It was his 12th home run of the season. He hadn’t hit one since Aug. 3.
Cabrera is trying to become the 28th player in major league history — and the first Venezuela native — to reach 500 homers. His production has fallen off considerably in recent seasons. He hasn’t hit more than a dozen homers since 2017.
But Cabrera remains a star in Detroit as he chases this milestone and the 3,000-hit mark. He’s up to 2,950 hits.
Cabrera grounded out in the ninth in his final at-bat.
Detroit’s Niko Goodrum hit a two-run double in the fifth, then left the game with a left groin strain.
Baltimore’s Cedric Mullins extended his hitting streak to 18 games with an infield single in the third.
The start of the game was delayed 1 hour, 11 minutes by rain.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Tigers: Detroit put OFs Akil Baddoo and Derek Hill on the injured list after their collision in Tuesday night’s game. Baddoo went on the seven-day concussion list, and Hill went on the 10-day IL with bruised ribs.
Orioles: LHP Tanner Scott (sprained left knee) was activated from the IL. ... Manager Brandon Hyde said he doesn’t expect 1B/DH Ryan Mountcastle to be activated from the concussion IL on Sunday when he’s eligible to return. ... Hyde said he hopes RHP Tyler Wells (right wrist tendinitis) will be activated Thursday. ... LHP Bruce Zimmermann (left biceps tendinitis) should be activated when it’s time for him to pitch next. He threw five no-hit innings for Triple-A Norfolk on Tuesday in a rehab start.
UP NEXT
John Means (5-3) takes the mound for Baltimore on Thursday against Matt Manning (2-5) of the Tigers.
