Twins push Tigers closer to the brink

DETROIT -- Nearly 33,000 fans were on their feet cheering, hoping the Detroit Tigers would rally in the ninth inning to maintain their flickering playoff hopes.

They let out a collective sigh when Detroit fell short.

Minnesota’s Carlos Silva shut down Detroit over 7 2/3 innings in a 2-0 victory Monday night that put the Tigers on the brink of being eliminated from the playoff race.

“I think it’s kind of sad,” losing pitcher Nate Robertson said. “A lot of people were enjoying our run.

“But we’re still not out of it.”

The Tigers (85-72) are one loss, or a New York Yankees’ win, from elimination.

Nick Punto’s RBI single in the second inning and Jason Kubel’s run-scoring single in the ninth was all the offense for Minnesota, which has won five of seven to increase its chances of finishing with a winning record for the seventh straight year. The Twins (77-79) had lost seven in a row against the Tigers.

Detroit used its best lineup, but couldn’t score against Silva (13-14), who gave up six hits without a walk and struck out one.

“A couple of runs was good enough against a real good team,” Twins Manager Ron Gardenhire said. “You rarely shut those guys out.”

The Tigers were shut out for only the third time in 157 games this season.