DETROIT _ The Detroit Tigers beat the Texas Rangers, 3-1, Friday night at Comerica Park behind Jordan Zimmerman's stellar start.
It was a poor start for the Tigers as Zimmerman gave up a home run on the second pitch of the game. The Tigers responded, though, in the second with a two-run home run from James McCann to take a 2-1 lead.
Neither team scored over the next five innings. Then, in the bottom of the eighth, JaCoby Jones padded the Tigers lead with a solo home run. Joe Jimenez took over from Zimmermann to start the ninth and closed out the victory.
Zimmermann gave up the solo shot in the first, but rebounded nicely. He lasted eight innings, allowing just four hits and one run while recording 11 strikeouts.
Other than McCann's and Jones' homers, the Tigers were not great at the plate. The rest of the team had just three hits combined.
Zimmermann needed just 96 pitches in his eight innings against the Rangers. Friday's game was Zimmermann's fourth career start with at least 11 strikeouts, and his first since 2014, when he was with the Nationals. Jimenez, filling in for injured closer Shane Greene, gave up one hit and recorded one strikeout in the ninth.
Rangers starter Bartolo Colon, 45, took the complete-game loss while throwing 97 pitches. It was Colon's first complete game against the Tigers against since May 7, 2005, when he was with the Angels.
