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Improved Verlander helps Tigers rebound from rough stretch

Duane Burleson / Getty Images Sport / Getty

DETROIT - After allowing seven runs to the Cleveland Indians on May 3, Justin Verlander took to Twitter - always a risky move for an athlete, especially one coming off a frustrating performance.

''I'm going to dominate soon! I'm close,'' his tweet said. ''Doubt me if you want. We'll see.''

Since then, Verlander has backed up his bold words, allowing just four runs in four starts to help the Tigers bounce back from an awful stretch earlier in the month.

''They've been outstanding. They've certainly been leading by example,'' manager Brad Ausmus said. ''Father Time doesn't stop for anyone, but I think these guys are far from dinosaurs.''

After that game against Cleveland in early May, Verlander was 2-3 with a 6.49 ERA. In his last four starts, Verlander has 37 strikeouts in 30 1-3 innings.

''I think we're playing the way we expected to. Obviously, everybody wanted to harp on when we weren't playing well, and I touched on how the veterans in this clubhouse weren't going to let that get us down,'' Verlander said. ''Guys are going to perform the way they expected to perform. It just so happened that nobody was performing the way they want to at the same time. That's tough to win that way.''

In a victory over the Phillies on Tuesday, Verlander brought back memories of his MVP form when he was still throwing 97 mph in the eighth inning. He also made an adjustment to his slider recently.

''It's like a cutter when it's up, but when it's down it still has down slider action,'' he said. ''I worked on it in the bullpen a while ago.''

With right-hander Jordan Zimmermann dealing with a groin injury, there will be even more pressure on Verlander to continue his recent surge, But he certainly doesn't mind that responsibility or the spotlight that comes with it.

That much was obvious when he sent out that tweet.

''It's just kind of a feeling that you have. I tweeted exactly the way I felt,'' Verlander said. ''I felt more and more consistent every time I took the mound, and so that's why I said what I did.''

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