ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Riley Greene hit a two-run homer in the first inning, Jack Flaherty pitched three-hit ball over 5 2/3 innings and the Detroit Tigers beat the Texas Rangers 3-0 on Saturday.
Tyler Holton retired the only batter he faced after relieving Flaherty, before Keider Montero pitched three no-hit innings with one walk for his first career save and to finish off the seventh shutout by the Tigers this season.
Flaherty (2-8) struck out five without a walk, but did hit a batter. The right-hander has gone at least five innings not allowing a run in both starts since coming off the injured list because of a left-foot strain. He is 2-1 in his last five starts after going into June with an 0-7 record his first 12 starts.
Cal Quantrill (3-1) made his third consecutive start for Texas in the spot of injured Jack Leiter, Quantrill struck out two, walked one and hit a batter while allowing three hits and three runs — two earned — over five innings.
The Rangers were held scoreless for the sixth time this season. This one came two days after a season-high 17 hits to win the series opener 10-4 before a the series paused Friday for a World Cup game played at the adjacent home stadium of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys.
After Quantrill retired the first two batters of the game, Kerry Carpenter hit a sharp single before Greene’s 12th homer, a 386-foot shot pulled down the right-field line. The Tigers led 3-0 after an error on left fielder Alejandro Osuna’s misplayed flyball in the third set up an RBI groundout for Ben Malgeri.
Up next
A matchup of former first-round draft picks in the series finale Sunday. Casey Mize (3-5, 2.63 ERA), the No. 1 overall pick in 2018, starts for Detroit while Kumar Rocker (2-6, 3.83), the third overall pick in 2022, is set to pitch for Texas.
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