Bronx, NY- Newly-acquired Duke Sims blasted a three-run homer in the ninth inning, stunning the Yankee Stadium crowd, and the Tigers beat the Yankees 4-3 to complete a four-game sweep.
The Yankees were one out away from a 2-1 victory, with nobody on base in the ninth, when Gates Brown laced a Steve Kline offering into the right field corner for a double. Yankees manager Ralph Houk elected to intentionally walk Norm Cash, even though Cash represented the go-ahead run.
That brought up Sims, who was acquired from the Dodgers less than a week ago. He drilled a Kline fastball deep into the right field seats, his second homer as a Tiger. The blast gave the Tigers a 4-2 lead as the crowd howled in stunned disapproval.
The Yankees started their half of the ninth with back-to-back doubles off reliever Fred Scherman, so manager Billy Martin summoned Joe Niekro with the Tigers clinging to a 4-3 lead. Niekro set down the next three Yankees hitters in order to preserve the improbable win.
The Tigers (65-41) won their fifth straight game and increased their lead in the AL East to 7.5 games over idle Boston.
Scherman (3-1) got the win in relief of starter Joe Coleman, who went seven innings. Niekro picked up his first save of the year. Kline went all the way for New York in suffering the loss.
The Yankees went ahead 2-1 in the fourth inning, when Celerino Sanchez singled home Johnny Callison.
Cash got the Tigers on the scoreboard in the fourth inning with a solo homer (19). Sims singled after that, but from that point until the ninth, Kline kept the Tigers hitless.
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DET 000 100 003 4-8-2
NY 001 100 001 3-10-0
WP: Scherman (3-1)
SV: Niekro (1)
LP: Kline
HR: Cash (DET; 19); Sims (DET; 2)
Tigers overall: 65-41
Home: 30-20
Away: 35-21
Last 10: 7-3
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