DETROIT — For a second straight night, a big second inning played a major role in the outcome of the ALCS. This time it was the Red Sox big inning.
Boston scored three times in the second inning, added another run in the third and held on to win Game 5 of the ALCS over the Detroit Tigers, 4-3.
Mike Napoli led off the second inning with a solo home run off Tigers starter Anibal Sanchez. Boston would add two more runs to take a 3-0 lead after two innings of play. Napoli would hit a double in the third inning and score later on a wild pitch to give the Red Sox a 4-0 lead.
The Tigers would score one run in three consecutive innings starting in the fifth, but could never sustain a rally. Koji Uehara came into the game in the eighth inning and worked a five-out save to preserve the win for the Red Sox.
Boston leads the best-of-seven series 3-2 with the series now moving back to Boston. Game 6 is Saturday at Fenway Park with Max Scherzer scheduled to start for Detroit against Boston’s Clay Buchholz. First pitch is set for 4:37 p.m.
