Abrams' Two Homers Power Nationals Past Tigers 3-1 in Detroit

CJ Abrams reached 100 RBIs with a pair of home runs as Washington handed Detroit its fifth loss in seven games on Tuesday.

Shortstop CJ Abrams delivered both the opening blow and the decisive one on Tuesday, going deep to right-center in the second inning and adding a two-run blast in the seventh that snapped a 1-1 tie. The Washington Nationals left Detroit with a 3-1 win in the opener of their series at Comerica Park's season-winding stretch.

The seventh-inning shot, Abrams' 33rd of the year, chased Tigers starter Drew Anderson (5-7) from the game and pushed the shortstop to 100 RBIs, capping a 30-homer, 30-steal campaign. Jackson Kent (2-4) earned the win with four innings of relief behind opener Riley Cornelio, giving up one unearned run on six hits and two walks. Erik Tolman handled the ninth for his fourth save.

Detroit had knotted the score in the sixth, when Ben Malgeri came home on Kent's second wild pitch of the frame — an inning in which Washington also failed to convert two double-play chances. The loss was the Tigers' fifth in their last seven, and in each of those defeats they have managed just a single run, while piling up nine and 11 in their two victories.

Now level at 74-84 with four contests remaining, the clubs close their three-game set Wednesday afternoon. Detroit's Framber Valdez (10-11, 4.06 ERA) is slated to start against a Nationals pitcher who has not yet been named.