DETROIT — Jim Leyland said shuffling the Tigers’ lineup for Game 4 of the ALCS had nothing to do with the hosts evening the best-of-seven series.
Yet, because Leyland’s moves — dropping a frigid Austin Jackson from first to eighth, moving Torii Hunter into the leadoff spot, Miguel Cabrera into the second hole, batting Prince Fielder third and Victor Martinez fourth — helped produce a 7-3 victory in front of 42,765 at Comerica Park Wednesday night, the shakeup can’t be ignored.
“It has nothing to do with Jim Leyland. It’s about the players,’’ Leyland said. “The only thing I know for sure is we are going back to Boston.’’
Jackson was one of several players who helped the Tigers guarantee a sixth game will be played Saturday at Fenway Park. He went 2-for-2, drove in two runs and drew two walks after starting the game in a 1-for-13 slide against the Red Sox and in a 3-for-33 funk with 18 strikeouts in the postseason.
“I didn’t have much of a reaction, I know I have been scuffling during the postseason, that’s not a secret’’ said Jackson, who learned of the lineup shuffle via a text message from hitting coach Lloyd McClendon that woke him up Wednesday morning. “I was happy I was still in the lineup. The move was made to get me to relax.’’
Game 5 is Thursday night with Anibal Sanchez and Jon Lester in a pitching rematch of Game 1 in which the Red Sox didn’t get a hit until the ninth inning and finished with one.
Five runs in the second inning against Jake Peavy and helped by Dustin Pedroia bobbling what would have been a double play ground ball helped the Tigers relax after losing Game 3, 1-0, Tuesday. Peavy issued three walks in the inning, including a bases-loaded walk to Jackson.
“I think we probably contributed to the building of the inning, things we have control over and that’s hopefully command the strike zone with a little bit more consistency,’’ Red Sox manager John Farrell said. “You are asking for a little bit of trouble by additional baserunners and unfortunately what turned out to giving them an extra out lends to the crooked number on the board.’’
Following Jackson’s RBI walk, Peavy fed Jose Iglesias a ground ball to Pedroia. In his haste to get the ball to shortstop Stephen Drew, Pedroia bobbled it and settled for forcing Jackson at second as Jhonny Peralta scored.
“It looked like it handcuffed [Pedroia] a little bit and instead of being out of it [with one run], then the base hitting behind it and they put five on the board,’’ Farrell said.
Hunter followed with a two-run double and Cabrera chipped in with an RBI single to give Doug Fister a 5-0 bulge to start the third inning.
Two runs in the fourth when Jackson singled a run home off Pedroia’s glove and Cabrera added a second RBI gave the Tigers a 7-0 lead. That went to 7-1 in the sixth and the Red Sox threatened to come all the way back in the seventh against the Tigers’ bullpen.
With the lead cut to 7-2 and Shane Victorino on second base with one out lefty Drew Smyly was summoned to face David Ortiz and retired him on a grounder to the right side.
Closer Joaquin Benoit was shaky in the ninth when the Red Sox scored a run, but got Ortiz to fly out for the final out.
Leyland said he will use the same lineup Thursday night in Game 5 hoping for the same results.
“I figured it was coming sooner or later,’’ Jackson said of the lineup change.
Wednesday night it came at the right time for the Tigers.