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ST. LOUIS (AP) — Finally, Miguel Cabrera thrived under the lights.
The two-time American League MVP ended a season-long slump in night games with a two-run homer and two singles and the Detroit Tigers also got homers from Yoenis Cespedes and J.D. Martinez in a 10-4 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night.
"Half of our games have been day games, so I don't know — maybe he feels more comfortable," Martinez said. "But tonight was a night game and you saw, so it really doesn't matter."
Cabrera entered batting just .158 with no homers and one RBI in 57 at-bats at night — he's hit .471 with eight homers and 25 RBIs in 68 at-bats by day. Manager Brad Ausmus called those numbers an "anomaly" before the game and Cabrera said simply, "I don't think about it."
"Honestly, I haven't thought about it once since we talked about it this afternoon," Ausmus said. "It's a non-issue in my mind."
Cabrera hit his 399th career homer and third in two games in the seventh inning off Mitch Harris, tying Andres Galarraga for most by a Venezuelan-born player, and Martinez followed with his eighth homer to make it 5-0.
"He's one of the best, there's nothing else you can say about Galarraga," Cabrera said. "He was a big-time hitter."
Shane Greene (4-2) allowed five hits in five scoreless innings before being removed due to numbness in his pitching arm. The team termed the injury mild and Greene said, "My gut feeling is I'll be on the mound in five days."
Ausmus said the fourth and pinky fingers on Greene's right hand became numb, perhaps from swinging the bat.
Leadoff man Anthony Gose had three hits and an RBI for the Tigers, who have piled up 23 runs and 37 hits the last two games. The 10 runs and 17 hits are both season highs against St. Louis.
"They have an offense that's really swinging the bats well," Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. "They've got threats all the way through and they make you pay if you make mistakes."
Jhonny Peralta and Jason Heyward hit two-run homers in the late innings for the Cardinals.
Cespedes hit his fifth homer off Carlos Martinez (3-2) in the second and added a two-run double in the ninth. Gose tripled and scored on Ian Kinsler's sacrifice fly in the fifth and added two singles, giving him seven hits in the last two games.
Martinez struck out with the bases loaded to end the St. Louis second and bunted into the third out with two on to end the fourth. Mark Reynolds fanned on a pitch in his eyes with two on to end the fifth with Detroit leading 2-0.
"There were some missed opportunities," Matheny said. "We also had some good at-bats."
Martinez matched his season best with eight strikeouts but was lifted after the Tigers got two hits to open the sixth. But the start represented significant progress given the right-hander allowed seven runs in each of his last two starts.
UP NEXT
Tigers: David Price got two extra days between starts after injuring a hamstring when he stepped on a bat backing up a play behind the plate. "If I had to stay on five days, if it was the playoffs or the World Series or something and I needed to pitch, I would have been out there," Price said.
Cardinals: Tyler Lyons makes his third start of the season. He's 0-3 with a 6.81 ERA in 10 career games at home, six of them starts.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Tigers: Justin Verlander, on the DL with a triceps strain since the start of the season, threw 35 pitches in the bullpen.
Cardinals: Jaime Garcia (shoulder) made his second rehab start, allowing two earned runs in six innings with six strikeouts for Double-A Springfield. ... OF Randal Grichuk (back) homered in extended spring training and was on his way to St. Louis, and could be activated Saturday.
NUMBERS GAME
Matt Holliday singled and has reached safely in 33 straight games to start the season, tied for second-most in franchise history.
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