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Carl Crawford double in 10th gives Dodgers 3-2 win over Tigers

Carl Crawford, right center, celebrates with teammates after driving in the winning run in the 10th inning of the Dodgers' 3-2 win over the Detroit Tigers on Tuesday.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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It’s not how you score runs, just that you score more than the other guy. Wild pitches, bases-loaded walks, bunts, bloopers, sacrifice flies, stumbling outfielders -- whatever works.

Tuesday night the Dodgers edged the Detroit Tigers, 3-2, scoring their second run on a shallow sacrifice fly and -- after Detroit tied it against Kenley Jansen with two outs in the ninth inning -- winning it in the 10th when Carl Crawford was credited with a generous double to score Chone Figgins. That occurred when right-fielder Rajai Davis fell down attempting to cut off the hit.

Figgins led off the bottom of the 10th with a walk. After Dee Gordon popped up a sacrifice bunt attempt, Crawford sliced a drive to left against reliever Phil Coke. Davis struggled to run the drive down and then stumbled trying to cut it off. He fell to the ground and the ball went to the wall for the double that scored Figgins.

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The Dodgers originally thought they had won the game against American League Cy Young winner Max Scherzer in the seventh. Matt Kemp led off the inning with a walk and Juan Uribe followed with a drive into the right-field corner, or as the Tigers viewed it, where visiting outfielders go to perish.

The Tigers had already lost right fielder Torii Hunter after he crashed into the right-field wall in the second inning. He stayed in the game until the fifth, leaving with a bruised knee.

Don Kelly replaced Hunter, and in the seventh he was chasing a Uribe drive into nearly the same spot. He could not reach the ball and hit the wall hard. Kemp was holding up midway to second in case Kelly made the diving catch, and could advance only to third on what went for a Uribe double. Kelly got back up, apparently unhurt.

Scherzer struck out catcher Tim Federowicz, and the Dodgers sent Justin Turner to pinch-hit for reliever Chris Withrow. Turner lifted a little blooper to center fielder Austin Jackson, but Kemp tagged anyway.

Kemp, who had major foot surgery in the off-season, sprinted home without a play. Jackson’s weak throw was off line, and the Dodgers had a 2-1 lead.

Dan Haren had matched Scherzer for six innings, both pitchers allowing only solo home runs.

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Haren still barely hit 90 mph, but he held the Tigers to three hits, walking one and striking out four. The only run he allowed came on Jackson’s homer in the second inning. In the 12 innings of his first two starts as a Dodger, he has allowed one run.

The Dodgers’ first run came on their first at-bat. Gordon, who’d hit only two home runs in parts of three previous seasons, tagged a 1-2 pitch and sent it out to right.

For the night, Scherzer (0-1) allowed two runs on six hits and a walk, striking out four.

Withrow threw a perfect seventh and has pitched in five games (six innings) this season without allowing a run; he has struck out nine.

Chris Perez pitched a scoreless eighth and the call went to Jansen, who this time could not close. He gave up a leadoff double to Ian Kinsler, and then got the next two outs -- including a strikeout of Miguel Cabrera -- before Victor Martinez lined a clean single to center to drive in the tying run.

J.P. Howell threw a perfect 10th inning to pick up the win.

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