Fun » "If you look on the monitors, there was no contact,

DETROIT -- Brad Ausmus called the Tigers series against the Kansas City Royals the biggest of the season so far. Robin Lehner Jersey . Detroit got off to a good start. Torii Hunter had two of his three hits in a six-run third inning and Detroit beat Kansas City 9-5 Monday to move within a game of the American League Central-leading Royals. "I thought there was going to be more energy in our ballclub today (than in recent games), because were looking up at the Royals in the standings and this is our chance," the manager said after the win. The win was the Tigers 9,000th in franchise history. Justin Verlander (13-12) allowed four runs and six hits in seven innings, walking one and striking out four for Detroit, which moved into a tie with Seattle for the second AL wild card. "It was pretty good," Verlander said. "They put up a couple runs in a couple innings, but even after they got those two early runs, I went back and watched the video and those were all good pitches. Theyve just got a good lineup." Nick Castellanos had two hits, two runs and two RBIs for the Tigers. Victor Martinez had three hits and an RBI, and Hunter scored twice and drove in a run. Royals starter Jeremy Guthrie (10-11) allowed eight runs -- six earned -- and 10 hits in 2 2-3 innings. Guthrie has given up 14 earned runs in his last 6 2-3 innings against Detroit. "We were down six and I knew we were going to battle back and make it interesting," Kansas City manager Ned Yost said. "We had the tying runs on in the eighth." Lorenzo Cain hit an inside-the-park home run for the Royals in the seventh inning. Eric Hosmer had three hits with an RBI for the Royals. Seven of Detroits first eight batters got his in the third, which began with Hunters infield single. Martinezs infield hit drove in the first run, glancing off the glove of first baseman Hosmer toward the dirt behind second. Don Kellys double made it 4-2, Castellanos hit a two-run double and RBI singles by Alex Avila and Hunter boosted the lead to 8-2. "He was one pitch away from getting out of that third inning but it just kept snowballing and he couldnt make that pitch," Royals manager Ned Yost said. Detroit tied a season high with eight hits in the inning. The last time it happened was in the fifth inning July 10 at Kansas City, a 16-4 win. That inning was also started by Guthrie. Detroit took a 2-0 lead in the second on a two-out, two-base error by Hosmer on Andrew Romines grounder with the bases-loaded. Hosmer bobbled the ball and then threw wildly to Guthrie, who was covering first. Romine wound up on second. TRAINERS ROOM Royals: LHP Danny Duffy, who was hurt on his first pitch Saturday, had an MRI on his sore shoulder Monday. It showed no structural damage. Yost said that Duffy should only miss one start. "Hes in Kansas City going through three or four rounds of treatment every day," Yost said. ... Closer Greg Holland, who hasnt taken the teams last two save opportunities because of a triceps injury, is getting closer to returning. Yost said Holland hasnt thrown off the mound yet but did throw on the side on Monday. Yost said he is hopeful that Holland will be available on Tuesday. Tigers: RHP Joakim Soria (left oblique strain) threw 27 pitches in a simulated game and felt good. "Big step today. Hopefully, it feels good tomorrow," Soria said. Ausmus said Soria threw all of his pitches and that Soria looked strong. If Soria feels good on Tuesday, he will likely be activated on Wednesday. UP NEXT Tuesday nights starters are Jason Vargas (11-7, 3.14) for the Royals and Max Scherzer (15-5, 3.25) for the Tigers. Scherzer is 9-5 in his career against Kansas City. SIGNALS CROSSED Hunter, in right field, and Kelly, playing centre, collided in right-centerfield on Cains home run in the seventh. Hunter caught the ball but it came out of his glove and rolled to the wall when he and Kelly collided. Hunter was down for a couple of minutes. But he remained in the game after being checked by a trainer. BUSY DAY The Tigers-Royals wasnt the only big game in downtown Detroit on Monday. The Detroit Lions hosted the New York Giants in the NFL Monday Night Football opener at Ford Field, which is across the street from Comerica Park. The football game began at 7:10 p.m., and thats why the start of the baseball game was moved from its original 7:08 to 4:08. Pat Lafontaine Jersey . -- The Minnesota Vikings have signed Jerome Simpson, the former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver recently convicted on a felony drug charge. Kyle Okposo Jersey . -- A deflected pass that landed in DeSean Jacksons hands. http://www.sabresauthority.com/authentic-victor-antipin-sabres-jersey/ . - While a fast-paced offence has become more of a fixture in recent years, the San Antonio Spurs can still grind out games when needed.DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- After more than 2,400 miles and 23 1/2 hours of racing, the most prestigious North American sports car race came down to eight minutes and a final five-lap sprint. The first race of the unified United SportsCar Championship -- the NASCAR-owned and IMSA-sanctioned series born from the merger between American Le Mans and Grand-AM -- ended with a NASCAR flair. A late, full-course caution swallowed Joao Barbosas 13-seccond lead and gave Max Angelelli a last-ditch chance to win the Rolex 24 at Daytona. Barbosa never gave him a chance, pulling away on the restart with 8:23 to race Sunday to give Action Express Racing its second victory in four years. It gave Barbosa his second overall win and third in class. Co-driver Sebastien Bourdais won the Rolex for the first time, while Christian Fittipaldi won for the second time. Action Express second entry finished third -- and Chevrolets new Corvette swept the podium -- in an outstanding day for the Bob Johnson-owned organization. Action won its first Rolex in 2010, and Barbosa was part of that team. "This one wasnt unexpected," Johnson said. "This one we expected to win." It wasnt easy. Barbosa was black-flagged for avoidable contact while running second Sunday morning, a penalty he called "really harsh" at the time. But the team worked its way back into contention. The caution nearly unraveled the comeback. While Angelelli thought there was enough debris to warrant the caution, Barbosa disagreed. "Max, he said he saw a lot of debris that I really didnt see," Barbosa said. "I was really surprised by that caution, but its racing, and we just had to deal with it. But were here, we won the race." Wayne Taylor Racing finished second for the second consecutive year. Co-owner Wayne Taylor came out of retirement to drive for the first time since 2010, seeking a chance to share the seat with Angelelli and sons Ricky and Jordan. The 58-year-old Taylor drove one stint Saturday and then retreated to the pit stand to strategize for what he hoped would be a third -- and most memorable -- victory. "It was a great result, and to have my family and my kids drive with me and Max, its been an emotional roller-coaster," Wayne Taylor said. Action Express second car, with drivers Brian Frisselle, Burt Frisselle, John Martin and Fabien Giroix, was third. Matt Tennyson Jersey. . Ford was shut out in its debut of its new EcoBoost engine. The No. 01 car of Chip Ganassi Racing team wasnt able to defend its race win because of a series of problems that plagued the car starting very early in the race. Ganassis No. 02 entry was taken out of contention when it developed a flat rear tire while Scott Dixon was running second with roughly five hours remaining. The car went to the garage with 48 minutes remaining when the floor of the Ford Riley began to unravel and Dixon could see the pavement under his feet. Michael Shank Racings entry, the 2012 race winning team, was halted by a broken gearbox. CORE autosport finished a lap ahead of 8Star Motorsport to win the Prototype Challenge class. "Ive loved motorsports all my life," CORE owner and co-driver Jon Bennett said. "Its so great for it to love me back today." Porsche North America claimed the GT Le Mans class with its No. 911 RSR entry. The crowded GT Daytona class had the most thrilling -- and controversial -- finish of the race. The victory went to Flying Lizard Motorsports when IMSA officials penalized Level 5 Motorsports for avoidable contact on the last lap. Alessandro Pier Guidi in the Level 5 Ferrari traded the lead in the final laps with FLMs Markus Winkelhock, who was driving an Audi. With the Audi mounting a challenge heading into the kink portion of the course, the two cars battled side-by-side through the tight corner. The Audi ran off course, and although replays showed no contact between the two cars, the Ferrari was penalized for avoidable contact and Flying Lizard got the victory. Level 5s drivers and team personnel charged toward Victory Lane to argue their case. "If you look on the monitors, there was no contact," driver Townsend Bell said. "Im gutted for (Pier Guidi) and the team. I think the fans want an answer for how a call comes in like that. I feel like we deserve this one." But Flying Lizard driver Spencer Pumpelly was adamant teammate Winkelhock was in the right and IMSA made the correct call. "We dont drive people off the road. We dont win races by driving people off the road," Pumpelly said. "They tried to do that, and it didnt work, and its a great result for us." Cheap Soccer Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Hockey Jerseys Nike NFL Jerseys China Cheap Nike MLB Jerseys China Wholesale Baseball Jerseys China Wholesale College Jerseys Cheap Jerseys From China Wholesale Jerseys Near Me Cheap Jerseys Online Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys Authentic Cheap Soccer Jerseys China Cheap NCAA Jerseys Authentic Cheap Nike NBA Jerseys Cheap NHL Jerseys Authentic MLB Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Throwback Jerseys Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China ' ' '