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DETROIT - Max Scherzer was finally willing to do a bit of scoreboard watching.For the Detroit Tigers, a fourth straight AL Central title is within reach.Ive said the whole time Im not worried about what Kansas City does, and Im focused only on what we do, but this is the first time this season, I actually want Kansas City to lose, Scherzer said. That way we can come to the park (Friday) and win, and clinch it.Scherzer didnt get his wish a€” the second-place Royals won Thursday night a€” but the Tigers had already reduced their magic number to two with a 4-2 victory over the Minnesota Twins. Detroit needs more than just a victory to clinch the division Friday a€” but if the Tigers win and the Royals lose, the Central will belong to Motown again.The Tigers, who have already wrapped up a post-season spot, lead Kansas City by two games with three to play.Scherzer made it through six tough innings, Victor Martinez hit a two-run homer in the first and Miguel Cabrera added a solo shot in the fourth. Detroits bullpen, so often a problem this year, breezed through the final three innings without allowing a baserunner.Weve battled Scherzer pretty good through the course of the year, Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. Hes got great stuff and we thought it was moving everywhere tonight. We had a lot of good at-bats and made him throw a ton of pitches. He still hangs in there.Scherzer (18-5) allowed two runs and five hits.Minnesotas Trevor May (3-6) allowed three runs and five hits in six innings. He struck out seven and walked one.Martinez gave Detroit an early lead with his 32nd homer of the year. Cabreras 24th made it 3-0, but the Twins made Scherzer work. After escaping trouble in the second and fourth, the right-hander allowed a two-run double to Joe Mauer in the fifth.Scherzer struck out nine and walked four while throwing 116 pitches.He had good stuff. I think he was a little erratic at times with his location. As a result, his pitch count got up, Detroit manager Brad Ausmus said. He worked out of a couple jams and then held them to a couple runs.Rajai Davis doubled home an insurance run for Detroit in the seventh.RELIEVEDDetroits maligned bullpen held on rather easily. Joakim Soria pitched the seventh, Joba Chamberlain handled the eighth and Joe Nathan finished for his 34th save in 41 chances.Nathan struck out two in the ninth and lowered his ERA to 4.89.Today was smooth. The results worked out, Nathan said. Was it my best stuff? I dont know about that. I threw pretty good.KEPT IN CHECKMinnesota has given the Tigers problems of late, splitting a four-game set in late August and taking two of three from Detroit earlier this month. The Twins scored 60 runs in those seven games, but they were quiet offensively Thursday.Mauer drove in Minnesotas only runs but also struck out twice.TRAINERS ROOMTwins: Minnesota does not expect 3B Trevor Plouffe to need surgery after he broke his left forearm Wednesday, but hes seeking a second opinion just to be sure.Tigers: Detroit RHP Anibal Sanchez was up in the bullpen briefly, but he didnt come into the game. Sanchez hasnt pitched since being activated Tuesday from the disabled list. He was on the DL with a pectoral strain.Ausmus says hed like to get Sanchez in a game soon, but its hard to find a good spot for what would be his first appearance since Aug. 8.I think he does need to get in there, Ausmus said. We were looking for opportunities the last two days. Im a little hesitant to throw him, first inning out of the pen, into the fire of a one-run game in the seventh, but we do have to get him in there.UP NEXTThe Tigers send Rick Porcello (15-12) to the mound Friday against Minnesotas Anthony Swarzak (3-2) on a night Detroit hopes will turn celebratory. The Tigers have not clinched a division title at home since 1987. Cheap Adidas Senators Jerseys . After missing 20 games as a rookie a year ago, Valanciunas - like the Raptors as a whole - has been fortunate to be in good health this season. As he spoke about it, the Raptors sophomore centre scanned the room for wood to knock on. "It is disappointing because we lost today so thats the worst part of the day," said Valanciunas, who left Tuesdays game with a lower-back sprain in the third quarter, missing the rest of Torontos 118-113 overtime defeat at the hands of the Hawks. Cheap Senators Jerseys . The international synchronized skating competition takes place from January 31 - February 1, 2014, and features 39 teams from 10 countries, in senior, junior, and novice. http://www.cheapsenatorsjerseys.com/?tag...-gaborik-jersey. -- Washingtons Bradley Beal seemed to make every shot he took in setting a career high with 37 points. Adidas Clarke MacArthur Jersey . Brandon Morrow allowed five runs on six hits over three innings. He struck out two, walked one and hit a batter. Edwin Encarnacion had a two-out, bases loaded two-RBI double in the third inning. Adidas Mike Hoffman Jersey .Voegele will next play Anna Schmiedlova of Slovakia, who saved 10 of 16 break points to defeat Annika Beck of Germany 7-6 (6), 6-4.Also, Marina Erakovic of New Zealand defeated eighth-seeded Caroline Garcia of France 6-2, 4-6, 6-4.Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola was nearly sold when he was a young player at Barcelona - until Johan Cruyff intervened. Cruyff was the Barca boss when Guardiola broke into the first team at the Nou Camp, and in his posthumously-released autobiography, the Dutch legend - who died of lung cancer earlier this year - praised the midfielder. Watch NOW TV Watch Sky Sports for just ￡6.99. No contract. As a player at Barcelona, they wanted to get rid of Pep because they thought he was a lanky great beanpole who couldnt defend, who had no strength and couldnt do anything in the air, he wrote. So he was blamed for all the things he wasnt good at, while I thought they were all things he could learn to do well.What all those people didnt see was that Guardiola had the fundamental qualities needed at the top level: speed of action, technique, insight. Those are phenomena that very few people exhibit, but in his case they were present in spades. As well as his his footballing qualities, Guardiola has a very strong personality and in intelligent mind. You can talk to him about any subject under the sun… A Barcelona fan pays tribute to late Dutch football star Johan Cruyff who died earlier this year In a tribute to what his former boss did for Barcelona, Guardiola once said: Cruyff built the cathedral.dddddddddddd It is up to us to maintain it.Cruyff - who guided Barca to four consecutive La Liga titles and the European Cup in the early 1990s - admitted he was moved by Guardiolas words.Thats not just a brilliant choice of words, but also very touching, he wrote. Because Ive simply done what I thought was best for everyone...Because this isnt just the football I love, its the football the supporters love as well. Its football as football must be.My turn: the autobiography of Johan Cruyff is published by Macmillan and is available on Thursday for £20.You can watch Englands tour of Bangladesh, plus Premier League football and the Japan Grand Prix on Sky Sports. Upgrade now and enjoy three months at half price! 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