PITTSBURGH — Brought over from the New York Yankees in the off season to help transform a team with 19 consecutive losing seasons, A.J. Burnett is doing plenty of winning for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Burnett (Central Arkansas Christian) pitched six shutout innings to win his seventh consecutive start and the Pirates won for the fifth time in six games, 4-1 over the Detroit Tigers on Friday night.
Burnett (8-2) allowed 2 hits and 3 walks and struck out 4 to extend his streak of starts that resulted in victories to the longest for a Pirates pitcher in 38 years. Doc Ellis won eight consecutive outings in 1974.
“He relied a lot on his experience, a lot on his catcher and alot on making pitches,” Pittsburgh Manager Clint Hurdle said of Burnett. “He got ahead in counts, they’d run it back to three balls then he’d find a way to get outs.”
Burnett matched his career high by winning a seventh consecutive decision.
“It’s nice because it means the team is winning,” Burnett said, “but I wasn’t thinking about it.”
Andrew McCutchen went 3 for 4 to improve his batting average to .346, and Rod Barajas added two hits for the Pirates.
Ramon Santiago had an RBI double for the Tigers, who had won 4 of 5.
Detroit managed only three base runners against Burnett over the first five innings, but the first two batters of the sixth reached when Austin Jackson singled and Quintin Berry walked. Miguel Cabrera worked Burnett into a full count, but grounded into a double play on the eighth pitch of the at-bat.
Burnett improved to 5-0 at home this season, allowing six earned runs in 48 2/3 innings at PNC Park (1.11 ERA). He had losing records with the New York Yankees the past two seasons but is on pace to threaten the career-high 18 victories he had for Toronto in 2008, when Barajas was his catcher.
The first three Pirates had hits against Tigers starter Doug Fister. Neil Walker followed Alex Presley’s lead off double with an RBI single, and Walker scored when Garrett Jones grounded into a double play. The Pirates added two unearned runs in the second when Detroit mangled fielding Burnett’s sacrifice bunt attempt. Detroit scored in the seventh when Jhonny Peralta and Santiago hit consecutive doubles off reliever Jared Hughes.
RANGERS 4, ROCKIES 1
Roy Oswalt pitched efficiently into the seventh inning in his first start this season and host Texas won its seventh consecutive, beating Colorado. The 34-year-old Oswalt (1-0) allowed 1 run and 9 hits in 6 2/3 innings to win for the first time since signing with the Rangers on May 29.
ORIOLES 2, NATIONALS 1
Jason Hammel pitched eight innings of five-hit ball and tied his career high with 10 strikeouts to lead host Baltimore past Washington.
TWINS 5, REDS 4
Ryan Doumit and Ben Revere each had four hits to lead Minnesota over host Cincinnati.
METS 6, YANKEES 4
Ike Davis hit a three run home run as the host New York Mets beat the New York Yankees.
BLUE JAYS 12, MARLINS 5
Jose Bautista homered and drove in three runs, Kelly Johnson also had three RBI and visiting Toronto beat Miami.
INDIANS 2, ASTROS 0
Shin-Soo Choo hit a lead off triple and Michael Brantley drove in a run as Cleveland beat host Houston.
BREWERS 1, WHITE SOX 0
Rickie Weeks drove in the lone run with a single in the 10th and Milwaukee beat host Chicago.
BRAVES 4, RED SOX 1
Jair Jurrjens pitched 7 2/3 innings after being called up from Class AAA and Atlanta beat host Boston.
CARDINALS 11, ROYALS 4
Carlos Beltran hit 2 two-run doubles and St. Louis beat host Kansas City.
Friday’s games INTERLEAGUE Pittsburgh 4, Detroit 1 Baltimore 2, Washington 1 Tampa Bay at Philadelphia, ppd., rain Atlanta 4, Boston 1 Minnesota 5, Cincinnati 4 NY Mets 6, NY Yankees 4 Toronto 12, Miami 5 Cleveland 2, Houston 0 Texas 4, Colorado 1 Milwaukee 1, Chicago White Sox 0, 10 innings St. Louis 11, Kansas City 4 LA Dodgers at LA Angels, (n) San Francisco at Oakland, (n) Seattle at San Diego, (n) NATIONAL LEAGUE Chicago Cubs at Arizona, (n)
Sports, Pages 20 on 06/23/2012