Verlander, three homers help Tigers beat White Sox
CHICAGO -- Justin Verlander struck out 10 over 6 1/3 innings and JaCoby Jones, Nick Castellanos and Ian Kinsler all homered as the Detroit Tigers beat the Chicago White Sox 6-3 on Tuesday.
Verlander struck out at least one hitter in every inning he pitched and was anchored by Detroit's home run power a day after the scheduled season opener for both teams was washed out by rain.
The Tigers jumped on White Sox starter Jose Quintana for five runs in the second inning. Jones hit his first career home run -- a three-run shot into the White Sox bullpen -- after Quintana surrendered a single to Justin Upton and hit Mikie Mahtook with a pitch.
With two outs in the inning, Castellanos drilled a 387-foot, two-run homer to extend the lead to 5-1.
Kinsler, who reached base four times, made it 6-1 with a solo shot off of Quintana in the fourth inning. Quintana, who pitched 5 1/3 innings and walked three and struck out two, surrendered only five hits in his first career Opening Day start, but three were home runs.
The White Sox, playing their first game under manager Rick Renteria, got to within 6-2 in the fourth inning on a Jose Abreu RBI groundout, but struggled against Verlander, who yielded six hits and walked two.
Jacob May capped the scoring in the ninth inning with a RBI groundout.
Chicago took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Melky Cabrera drove in Tyler Saladino with a double. Saladino was one of the lone bright spots for the White Sox as the leadoff hitter went 2-for-4 with a walk. Cabrera also had two doubles, and Abreu had two hits for the White Sox.
NOTES: Tigers OF J.D. Martinez had a cast removed and underwent therapy on Monday after spraining the Linsfranc ligament in his right foot last month while making a catch. Manager Brad Ausmus told reporters recently that Martinez would miss 3-4 weeks. ...Tigers LHP Kyle Ryan will leave the team on paternity leave Tuesday night until Friday to be with his wife, who is scheduled to undergo a C-section on Wednesday in Lakeland, Fla. Blaine Hardy will replace Ryan until he returns. ...White Sox LHP Jose Quintana matched a career high when he allowed three home runs in a game. According to Baseball Reference, Tuesday's outing marked the fifth time in Quintana's career he has surrendered a trio of homers. ...LF Melky Cabrera became the first White Sox player to collect multiple doubles on Opening Day since former 1B Frank Thomas accomplished the feat in 1999.