ALCS Game 4: Nelson Cruz Stars Again, Rangers Win 7-3 In 11 Innings

With the end: Tuesday night in Game 4 of the American League Championship Series, Nelson Cruz's three-run homer capped a four-run rally that gave the Texas Rangers a 7-3 victory and a commanding 3-1 lead in the series.

It wasn't until the end that either team seemed to have any real control of the proceedings. In the fourth, Miguel Cabrera's two-run double gave the Tigers a 2-0 lead, but with Rick Porcello pitching for Detroit, two runs didn't exactly seem a safe lead.

In retrospect, anyway. Because with the score still 2-0 in the sixth, the Rangers bunched together four hits off Porcello to go ahead 3-2. And while Texas starter Matt Harrison had pitched his last, his relief help has been so good lately that even a one-run lead seemed semi-safe.

Alexi Ogando is really tough on right-handed hitters. In regular-season action, he's held them to a .201 batting average and five home runs in 354 at-bats.

Brandon Inge has never been much against right-handed pitchers. In his long career, he's got a .223 batting average against righties, albeit with some power. Oh, and Inge spent most of this August in the minors, and played sparingly for the big club in September.

Mike Adams, the Rangers' eighth-inning guy, came in to pitch and retired leadoff man Ryan Raburn in good order. That brought up Miguel Cabrera. He's really scary, of course, but there was nobody on base and Adams is really tough on right-handed hitters and how much damage might Cabrera do, anyway?

Then Nelson Cruz saved him. Nelson Cruz throws really, really well. Delmon Young fought off some good pitches from Adams, ultimately hitting a fly ball to fairly deep right field. Cruz gathered in the out, then unleashed an absolutely perfect throw homeward, the ball arriving after one hop in the mitt of Mike Napoli, who was fully prepared to tag the onrushing Cabrera, out by nine feet.

The ninth was only moderately eventful. The top of the ninth inning ended when Cruz, who had walked, took off for second base and was easily thrown out by the pitcher. The bottom of the ninth ended when Ramon Santiago fouled off six straight Darren Oliver pitches before finally lifting Oliver's 12^th offering for an easy fly ball.

Managing at home, Jim Leyland went to his closer in the top of the 10^th, and Jose Valverde retired the Rangers in order. Managing on the road, Washington left his closer in the bullpen in the 10^th, and instead went to Scott Feldman. He walked speedy Austin Jackson, who was soon erased trying to steal second by Mike Napoli's perfect peg.*

Valverde came back out for the 11^th, and his first pitch to Josh Hamilton was a hanging splitter that Hamilton lined into the right-field corner for a leadoff double.

Michael Young could have bunted Hamilton to third, but instead he struck out. Leyland could have ordered Valverde to pitch to Adrian Beltre, but instead he ordered the intentional walk, presumably to set up the inning-ending double play.