And pile on, he has! Kind of. A little.
Tigers vs. Rangers: Ryan Raburn Is Here To Pile On
The Tigers surged ahead of the Rangers with a four-run sixth. Justin Verlander returned to the mound for the top of the seventh despite an elevated pitch count, and he went 1-2-3 through the Rangers' 2-3-4. His hardest pitch of the inning was 92 miles per hour, which might be alarming, but it's also entirely possible that Verlander deliberately took something off with a comfortable lead.
So it was 6-2 Detroit going into the bottom of the seventh, where Koji Uehara came on in relief of C.J. Wilson. Uehara picked up a strikeout - Austin Jackson's fourth in four at bats - but then Uehara did his new thing, which is allowing home runs. Ryan Raburn blasted a first-pitch outside fastball over the right-center fence for a solo shot that turned a good lead into a more good lead.
That homer was the third that Uehara has allowed in these playoffs, in three appearances.
7-2 Detroit going to the eighth, and...and Justin Verlander is still pitching. Despite having thrown 123 pitches. This is different.
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