Homers carry Tigers past Twins 4-2

DETROIT – Trevor May watched Max Scherzer pitch Thursday and imagined himself in that role — battling through long at-bats, refusing to lay one over the plate, finally walking off with a hard-earned victory that moved his team to the doorstep of a championship.

It's not as absurd a daydream as it once seemed.

While Scherzer, the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner, toiled through drawn-out mind games with Twins hitters, May, the rookie who once fought his own internal battles, basically pitched him to a standstill on the mound. Both went six innings, giving up five hits, and working out of trouble. But while Scherzer's occasional mistakes were walks that merely made his night a little more difficult, May's were delicious meatballs that landed far, far away.

Victor Martinez socked one deep to right field, Miguel Cabrera crushed the other to distant left-center, and the Tigers moved within one day, potentially, of clinching their fourth consecutive AL Central championship Thursday with a 4-2 victory over the Twins.

Scherzer "knows what he needs to do and he just goes after guys," May said in admiration after absorbing his sixth loss of the season. "I watched that, and I think, 'That's what I want.' "

May has gotten over one of the worst cases of rookie stage fright in memory and gradually turned into a confident, capable pitcher, prone to occasional hiccups rather than hurricanes.

"He's a lot more confident, understands a little bit better of what he needs to do to be successful up here," manager Ron Gardenhire said. "He was facing a very powerful team over there, but he made a lot of quality pitches. A couple balls they put in the seats, but that's what those guys do."

That and win. The Tigers collected their 89th victory, keeping them two games ahead of Kansas City, a 6-3 winner over the White Sox, in the division with three to play. In the unlikely event that the Royals catch the Tigers, a one-game playoff would be Monday.

The cool part about playing in Comerica Park this weekend, Brian Dozier said before the start of the Twins' final series of 2014, is that the team's youngsters can observe up close what it's like to play in a playoff atmosphere.

"That's a heck of a baseball team. They're really fighting for it," Gardenhire said. "But we were in it again. We had our chances."

Joe Mauer delivered a two-out, two-run double in the fifth inning to briefly make free-agent-to-be Scherzer (18-5) worry. But the Tigers are the masters of instant offense.

"Those guys hit home runs a lot," May deadpanned, and he's right: Martinez now has 32, Cabrera 24. "One was a terrible pitch, an 0-2 slider against Miggy. That's supposed to be hit out, especially against a guy like that; he doesn't miss those. The other one was a little better, but [Martinez] hits almost everything."

People don't hit May the way they used to, though; Thursday's start was the fourth in his past five with three or fewer earned runs allowed. The difference between that and the timid rookie who walked seven batters over two innings in his debut is mostly mental, May figures.

"I've learned I have the pieces that can make me successful at this level. It's just getting myself ready and sticking with it," May said. "It's a long season … and you can get discouraged very easily. But I know I have the ability to throw zeroes. All that stuff is within my reach."

Etc.

• Third baseman Trevor Plouffe was examined by a doctor who found that the bone he broke in his left arm Wednesday "was a clean break," General Manager Terry Ryan said, adding that a decision about whether surgery will be necessary will be made after a second opinion.

• The Twins' revamped spring complex will be named the CenturyLink Sports Complex, the team and Lee County, Fla., announced, but the main ballpark will remain Hammond Stadium.