By Daniel Dullum
Thursday, October 10, 2013

After struggling throughout most of the 2013 regular season, Detroit pitcher Justin Verlander has more than made up for it in the postseason.

In the decisive game five of the American League Divisional Series, Verlander tossed eight innings of shutout ball, scattered two hits and dominated Oakland in a 3-0 Tigers victory before 46,359 at the O.co Coliseum.

While Detroit moves on the American League Championship Series against Boston, the Athletics again endure a disappointing end to their season. It’s the third year in a row that Detroit has ended the A’s season.

Oakland has lost nine of its last 10 postseason series, dating back to the 1990 World Series. The A’s last postseason series win came in the 2006 ALDS against Minnesota.

The second-guessers will likely be out in force, questioning the wisdom of A’s Manager Bob Melvin for his decision to start rookie Sonny Gray (0-1) instead of veteran 18-game winner Bartolo Colon. Gray surrendered a two-run homer to Miguel Cabrera and three earned runs overall in his six-plus innings of work.

Addressing the media following the game, Melvin explained, “(Gray) pitched fine tonight. He basically just gives up the home run to Cabrera. When you don’t score a run and only get a couple of hits, you know you have to be perfect.”

While Gray wasn’t his sharpest, it was one of Verlander’s finest outings of what was an off-season for the former Cy Young Award winner. The veteran hurler gave up singles to Josh Lowrie and Yoenis Cespedes, walked one, and struck out 10 over eight innings.

Joaquin Benoit, the Tigers’ closer by default, continued to excel in that role, tossing a scoreless ninth for his second save of the postseason. With two on, he retired Seth Smith on a fly ball to close out the series.

A’s relievers Dan Otero, Sean Doolittle and Grant Balfour shut out Detroit over the last four innings, but the A’s offense never got on track.

The injury-hobbled Cabrera hit his two-run bomb in the fourth inning, his first round-tripper since Sept. 17. With the home run, Cabrera has hit safely in all 29 of his career postseason games – the longest such streak in Tigers history, exceeding 18 by Hall of Fame slugger Hank Greenberg (all in World Series play).

It was nearly one year ago that Verlander tossed a complete-game and shutout over Oakland in the same ballyard to end Oakland’s 2012 season.

Verlander’s playoff mastery over the Athletics has now taken on historic proportions. His consecutive scoreless inning streak against the A’s has reached 30 – the longest such streak by any starter in major league history.

Hall of Fame pitcher Christy Mathewson, who tossed 28 consecutive scoreless World Series innings for the New York Giants against the Philadelphia Athletics, held the previous mark.

Ultimately, in this ALDS, it came down to pitching as it often does. Over the five games, A’s hitters struck out 57 times, setting an LDS record. Coco Crisp was Oakland’s top hitter in the ALDS, going 7-for-18 (.388) with two doubles, one triple, two RBI and four runs scored.

At the other end of that spectrum, Brandon Moss fanned 13 times, setting an Athletics record for a postseason series in that category. Moss broke the previous mark of 12, set by Josh Reddick last year.

When the ALCS opens Saturday, it marks the first time the Red Sox and Tigers have ever met in postseason play since divisional play began in 1969.

(subject Oakland Athletics)

(TAGS: Oakland Athletics,Detroit Tigers,ALDS,Justin Verlander)

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