Baseball: Kenny Rogers on song as Tigers level world series

DETROIT- The Tigers roared back in Major League Baseball's world series yesterday, beating the St Louis Cardinals 3-1 to tie the best-of-seven championship at 1-1 thanks to a two-hit performance by Kenny Rogers and a 10-hit attack.

The Tigers warmed the Comerica Park crowd of 42,533 with a club-record tying homer by Craig Monroe, three hits from Carlos Guillen and another inspired performance by veteran left-hand pitcher Rogers on a chilly night in Detroit.

Rogers extended his remarkable post-season streak to 23 innings without allowing a run with eight scoreless innings. But his performance was not spotless.

A substance at the base of his pitching thumb was noticed in the first inning and led to discussions between the umpires and managers.

Television close-ups showed Rogers, 41, had some discolouration at the bottom of his thumb during the first inning that had been cleaned off by the time he took the mound to start the second inning.

Whether or not Rogers was trying to bend the rules, the wily left-hander was even more effective over his last seven innings than he had been in the first, when he gave up a walk and a single to Scott Rolen before retiring the side.

Rogers did not yield another hit until Yadier Molina singled to right leading off the eighth inning.

Closer Todd Jones made it interesting in the ninth, giving up two hits, making an error and hitting a batter to allow a run and load the bases before getting Molina to ground out to end the game.

The series now shifts to St Louis for the third game tomorrow, with Detroit left-hander Nate Robertson opposing Cy Young holder Chris Carpenter.

Monroe belted a 128m homer deep into the bleachers in left-centre in the first to give Detroit a 1-0 lead and tie the Tigers' team record of five post-season home runs hit by Hall of Famer Hank Greenberg.

The Tigers did not stop there against former teammate Jeff Weaver.

With two outs, Magglio Ordonez blooped a single over the head of the short stop and came around to score on Carlos Guillen's double.

A line single to right by Sean Casey in the fifth scored Guillen for Detroit's third run.

- REUTERS