Francisco Liriano has not done well against the Detroit Tigers in his career, but on Thursday he was domiant in leading the Pittsburgh Pirates to an 8-4 win at Comerica Park, which got the Pirates a sweep over the Tigers in interleague play. 

As a matter of fact, since May 2010, Liriano has gone 1-9 during his 14 games pitched against the Tigers. 

"I just had to go out there and forget everything that has happened with the Tigers," he said. "In the past, I've tried to make perfect pitches to those guys, and I have ended up leaving the ball in the middle of the plate. Today, I just executed."

Liriano shut down the Tigers, giving up five hits and three walks over seven innings pitched. The lefty from Americo Pere high school in San Cristobal, Dominican Republic improved his record to 5-6 with the win and his ERA to 2.99. 

"Frank just pitched a major-league game," Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle said. "That's a great offense, and he did an excellent job of keeping them from running the bases."

Offensivley, Neil Waker did it again. The second baseman had his second straight four-hit game as he went 4-for-5 with three RBI. During this series alone, Walker is 10-for-17 with seven RBI and two home runs. His batting average jumped from .257 to .278 over just the three games. 

"We played good, tough baseball," said Hurdle, a Michigan native. "We were tough on the mound, tough in the field and we showed some backbone at the plate."

Mark Melancon pitched just one out after Vance Worley gave up a run on three hits. Melancon shut the door and made his 25th save of the season. 

As for Detroit, Kyle Ryan toed the slab and made it just four innings. During his short span, he gave up two runs on three hits and five walks. Ryan took the loss and is 1-2 on the season with a 4.55 ERA.

Bruce Rondon struggled in the ninth inning, giving up four runs on four hits, increasing his ERA to 12.00 and handing away any chance at a comeback for the Tigers. 

In the eighth, J.D. Martinez hit a 413 foot home run, plating himself, Ian Kinsler and Miguel Cabrera. Martinez's 21st home run of the season just was enough to get Detroit close, but the bullpen killed their new vibe in the game. 

"I'm definitely frustrated," he said. "The biggest thing I took out of last year was how much fun it was in September, playing with the division coming right down to the wire. That was the most fun I've ever had in baseball.

"If we don't start getting some wins, that last month is going to be a drag."

In the fifth inning, Brad Ausmus was ejected for arguing balls and strikes. Home-plate umpire Sam Holbrook called a third strike on Martinez, which made Ausmus argue and get tossed. 

"The pitch to J.D. was just the last straw," Ausmus said. "He threw me out before I could even get out the dugout."