TIGERS DROP 15TH STRAIGHT
BoSox Amass 15 Hits, 5 HRs in Rout

BOSTON, July 22 (AP) - The Detroit Tigers fell for the 15th consecutive time, incurring a 14-6 pounding at the hands of the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.  The 15-game losing streak matches the longest in the majors this season; the New York Mets lost 15 straight games in May.  The Tigers' last win came on July 3 over the Kansas City Royals.  During the streak, Detroit has been outscored 110-40.

The Red Sox pounded out 15 hits, including five home runs by as many different players, en route to the blow out victory.  They took a lead they would never surrender in the bottom of the very first inning, scoring four times off Tigers starter Mike Maroth (3-14) on Bill Mueller's RBI single and a three-run home run off the bat of Jason Varitek.

The Tigers pushed a run across in the second when Kevin Witt scored on Craig Monroe's single, but Boston got that tally back plus one in the bottom of the same inning when Doug Mirabelli led off with a single and coasted home on Damian Jackson's home run into the seats above the Green Monster. 

The seventh Boston run came on a double play grounder off the bat of Kevin Millar in the fifth.

The Tigers cut the deficit to 7-2 in the sixth on Dmitri Young's sacrifice fly but Trot Nixon started a four-run rally in the bottom of the same frame with a lead-off home run off Steve Sparks.  Mirabelli singled, Jackson doubled him to third and Gabe Kapler greeted new pitcher Chris Mears with a towering three-run home run to left to up the Boston lead to 11-2.  Millar's lead-off homer in the seventh made it 12-2.

An RBI double by Witt and a run-scoring single off the bat of Monroe drew the Tigers to within eight in the eighth inning but Millar's two-run single in the bottom of the inning temporarily regained the ten-run advantage for the Red Sox.  Young's two-out two-run double in the top of the ninth accounted for the final margin.

The Tigers will travel to Cleveland to take on the Indians tomorrow in an attempt to avoid setting a new record for futility in 2003.

7/22/2003, Det03-Bos03, Fenway Park
 
                       1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9     R  H  E   LOB DP
2003 Tigers            0  1  0  0  0  1  0  2  2     6 11  1     7  1
2003 Red Sox           4  2  0  0  1  4  1  2  x    14 15  1     4  1
 
Tigers               AB  R  H BI   AVG    Red Sox              AB  R  H BI   AVG
Sanchez,A         cf  5  0  2  0  .261    Kapler            cf  3  2  1  3  .339
Morris,W          2b  4  2  1  0  .301    Mueller           3b  5  1  2  0  .358
Young,D           lf  4  1  2  3  .317    Garciaparra       ss  4  1  1  0  .309
Witt              dh  4  1  1  1  .310     Giambi,Je        ph  1  1  1  0  .180
Pena,C            1b  4  0  1  0  .187     Walker,T         2b  0  0  0  0  .262
Monroe            rf  3  0  2  2  .284    Ramirez,M         lf  3  1  1  0  .319
Munson            3b  4  0  0  0  .226    Millar            1b  5  2  3  4  .306
Halter            ss  4  1  1  0  .170    Varitek           c   5  1  1  3  .262
Walbeck           c   3  1  1  0  .179    Nixon             rf  4  1  1  1  .322
 Petrick          ph  1  0  0  0  .250    Mirabelli         dh  4  2  2  0  .330
                     36  6 11  6          Jackson,D         2b  4  2  2  2  .327
                                                               38 14 15 13
 
Tigers                           INN  H  R ER BB  K PCH STR   ERA
Maroth           L 3-14          4.0  8  7  7  2  2  92  49  6.33
Sparks                           1.0  3  3  3  0  1  14  10  6.67
Mears                            1.0  1  1  1  0  0  11   7  4.85
Patterson,D                      1.0  1  1  1  0  2  19  13 13.50
Rodney                           1.0  2  2  2  2  0  29  12 10.03
                                 8.0 15 14 14  4  5 165  91
 
Red Sox                          INN  H  R ER BB  K PCH STR   ERA
Lowe,D           W 10-6          7.0  5  2  2  2  7  98  62  4.95
Mendoza                          1.0  3  2  2  1  0  36  20  5.69
Jones,T                          1.0  3  2  2  0  2  20  14 10.95
                                 9.0 11  6  6  3  9 154  96
 
Det: Petrick batted for Walbeck in the 9th
Bos: Giambi,Je batted for Garciaparra in the 8th
     Walker,T inserted at 2b in the 9th
     Jackson,D moved to ss in the 9th
 
E-Munson, Garciaparra. 2B-Sanchez,A(24), Morris,W(9), Young,D(19), Witt(4),
Mueller(28), Jackson,D(5). HR-Kapler(3), Millar(17), Varitek(12), Nixon(19),
Jackson,D(2). RBI-Young,D 3(62), Witt(30), Monroe 2(39), Kapler 3(14),
Millar 4(65), Varitek 3(49), Nixon(50), Jackson,D 2(20). CS-Sanchez,A.
K-Sanchez,A, Young,D, Pena,C, Monroe, Halter 2, Walbeck 2, Petrick, Kapler,
Garciaparra, Varitek 2, Nixon. BB-Morris,W, Witt, Monroe, Kapler 2,
Ramirez,M 2. SF-Young,D.
GWRBI: Millar
Temperature: 89, Sky: clear, Wind: right to left at 8 MPH.
Attendance: 33,533
Game Time: 3:10