Defensive improvements highlight loss to Sox

DETROIT -- The effort was there. The win remains elusive.

One more victory, and the Tigers can avoid the historic mark of 60 losses at home, and put the last of the records they’ve flirted with this year to rest. On Saturday, they came close because their defense provided a chance.

One night after the Tigers put forth what manager Ron Gardenhire called a “not very professional” performance, Detroit used a slew of highlight plays to keep the White Sox from running away with another win, from a Brandon Dixon diving catch near the left-field railing to a Jake Rogers pickoff at third base. The Tigers’ ninth-inning rally came up short, saddling them with a 5-3 loss at Comerica Park, but they put up the kind of effort that Gardenhire needed to see.

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“They were into it,” Gardenhire said. “Whether yesterday was just one of those days where they were a little gassed or whatever, it happens. You hope that with young guys, you shouldn’t, but I know you do.”

More efforts like Saturday and the Tigers should get the win they need to avoid becoming the first team in modern Major League history to lose 60 home games in a season. But they’re down to four chances: Sunday is the series finale against the White Sox, followed by three games against a Twins squad looking to clinch its first American League Central title since 2010.

The 1939 St. Louis Browns hold the Major League mark, going 18-59 at Sportsman’s Park. Gardenhire mentioned during Detroit's last homestand that he hasn’t talked about it with the players -- the last thing he wants is to put more pressure on an already struggling team. But at least some of them are aware of the potential record.

“We know that things haven’t gone our way a lot,” catcher/first baseman John Hicks said last week. “But we’re showing up every day. We’re coming out and fighting. All the veteran guys are trying to teach the younger guys. It’s an atmosphere of just trying to help everybody get better.”

Gardenhire made no secret of his frustration and befuddlement after Friday’s 10-1 loss, which included three errors and other plays in which defenders were out of position, the kind of plays Tigers coaches have been working to correct all summer. Not only did Detroit make plays in the field Saturday, it made plays that kept the White Sox from adding much on to the lead built on a three-run fifth inning.

Until Saturday, Dixon’s part-time work in left field was best known for a collision with center fielder Victor Reyes five weeks ago that knocked a ball over the fence as part of a three-homer game for Seattle’s Kyle Seager. Dixon’s highlight Saturday was a mad dash and dive into foul territory to retire Yolmer Sánchez leading off the sixth inning.

“Off the bat, I honestly thought it was going to be a fair ball,” Dixon said. “And then it kind of kept tailing away.”

According to Statcast, Dixon covered 115 feet in 5.6 seconds, reaching an elite top sprint speed of 30.9 seconds to make a four-star play on a ball with a 35-percent catch probability.

After back-to-back singles by Adam Engel and Leury Garcia and then a groundout, the White Sox had runners in scoring position with two outs for José Abreu, who moved ahead in the count against Tigers reliever David McKay. But while Abreu shrugged at McKay’s first pitch, Rogers saw Engel well off third base and made eye contact with third baseman Dawel Lugo.

“I looked over at Lugo, gave him the sign and he nodded back at me,” Rogers said.

It was similar to a back pick Rogers made earlier this month to first base. But instead of a pitch high and outside, Rogers took a pitch out of the dirt like an infielder, buzzing a throw past Abreu’s head to Lugo for the tag and a badly needed third out.

“I just tried to get it out cleanly,” Rogers said. “If I didn’t pick it clean, we’d probably be talking about something a little different.”

Those plays kept Detroit in a one-run game. It wasn't until Abreu came up two innings later that Chicago pulled away, the slugger delivering a two-run single through the left side off rookie reliever Bryan Garcia for his third hit of the night.

With Miguel Cabrera scratched because of a sore right knee, the Tigers put together eight hits -- seven of them singles -- in five innings against White Sox starter Iván Nova. Abreu made a tumbling catch on the tarp behind the White Sox dugout to retire Dixon, but Willi Castro tagged up from third to turn it into a sacrifice fly.

The Tigers rallied in the ninth with a Ronny Rodríguez pinch-hit RBI single, putting the tying run on base with nobody out. But the White Sox turned the tables defensively -- Castro scalded a grounder to the right side with a 109.4 mph exit velocity, the hardest-hit ball by the Tigers all night, but Sánchez turned it into a double play. Alex Colomé struck out Reyes to finish off his 29th save.