Detroit

DETROIT - Prince Fielder waved his arms frantically, gleefully calling off his teammates while the crowd at Comerica Park roared. From the moment the big first baseman signed his massive contract in January, an entire city had waited for a chance to celebrate like this. After another dazzling effort by Detroit's starting pitchers and another soaring home run by Miguel Cabrera, Fielder caught the final out to send the Tigers to the World Series - with a sweep of the New York Yankees, no less.

DETROIT - The Detroit Tigers have shut down the New York Yankees so far in the AL Championship Series - and Justin Verlander hasn't thrown a single pitch. Now the Detroit ace takes the mound for Game 3 Tuesday night. The Tigers won the first two games in New York, and the only runs the Yankees scored came in a four-run ninth inning against closer-in-limbo Jose Valverde in the opener. New York must now regroup - without injured shortstop Derek Jeter - and snap out of its funk before it's too late.

THERE WERE times this year when Justin Verlander took the mound while his team was reeling a bit - and the righthander's presence was Detroit's best shot at snapping out of a momentary funk. Now, the hard-throwing ace is in a different situation. Led by Verlander, the Tigers' rotation has been absolutely terrific this postseason, and his job is simply to keep this remarkable run going against the slumping New York Yankees. "I think pitching, much like hitting, is contagious," Verlander said.

NEW YORK - Anibal Sanchez and the Detroit Tigers made the plays, got a favorable call from an umpire, and took advantage of their few chances at the plate. The reward: a commanding lead in the AL Championship Series, and a trip home with their ace ready to start. Sanchez shut down a Yankees lineup minus injured Derek Jeter, who broke his ankle in the 12th inning of a 6-4 loss Saturday night, and Detroit won without any drama, beating New York, 3-0, Sunday for a two-games-to-none cushion in the best-of-seven series.

Never underestimate an NFL team that desperately needs a victory. The Lions are off to a 1-3 start after last season's 10-6 record and playoff appearance. They appeared to be a team on the climb. But the Lions have a number of issues - a deficient pass defense, an anemic run game, and historically poor special teams - that have them taking steps backward. An anonymous general manager recently told a publication that the Lions were overrated, full of themselves, especially one player in particular - Ndamukong Suh. The talented defensive tackle hasn't been as dominant since his rookie season two years ago. Detroit coach Jim Schwartz and some of his players have said that they need to play with more edge, like they did last season, when they led the league with 147 penalties.

NEW YORK - Alex Rodriguez returned to the Yankees' starting lineup for their AL Championship Series opener against Detroit on Saturday night, dropped to sixth in the batting order. Rodriguez was 2 for 16 with no RBIs in the division series against Baltimore, going hitless in 12 at-bats against righthanded pitchers with nine strikeouts. Manager Joe Girardi pinch-hit for him in Games 3 and 4. "This is a guy we know can do a lot of damage," Girardi said. "I talk about sometimes going with my gut and evaluating what I see and different things you take into account when you made the lineup up, talk to people, and I think he's raring to go. " The 37-year-old third baseman had not hit as low as sixth since Joe Torre batted him eighth in the fourth and final game of the 2006 AL division series against the Tigers, according to Stats L.L.C.

DETROIT - Al Alburquerque reached out and snagged a sharp grounder to the mound - then planted a little kiss on the ball before tossing it to first. The relieved reliever gave his Detroit teammates a reason to laugh in the ninth inning of a tight game. Moments later, the Tigers were celebrating. Don Kelly scored the tying run on a wild pitch in the eighth, then hit a bases-loaded sacrifice fly in the bottom of the ninth that lifted the Tigers over the Oakland Athletics, 5-4, on Sunday for a 2-0 lead in their AL playoff series.

AL ALBURQUERQUE reached out and snagged a sharp grounder to the mound - then planted a little kiss on the ball before tossing it to first. The relieved reliever gave his Detroit teammates a reason to laugh in the ninth inning of a tight game. Moments later, the Tigers were celebrating. Don Kelly scored the tying run on a wild pitch in the eighth, then hit a bases-loaded sacrifice fly in the bottom of the ninth that lifted the Tigers over the visiting Oakland Athletics, 5-4, Sunday for a 2-0 lead in their best-of-five AL Division Series.

ANIBAL SANCHEZ retired the final batter on a weak grounder, and Detroit players began celebrating around the mound. Moments later, the home crowd roared a little louder when the AL Central standings were posted on the scoreboard in leftfield - with the Tigers back in a tie for first. "We control our own destiny. We've just got to continue to play good baseball," catcher Gerald Laird said after the Tigers blanked the visiting Kansas City Royals, 2-0, Tuesday night. "We don't have to rely on anybody to beat anybody now. It's all on our shoulders.

THE TRANSCENDENT power of music yields an astounding and moving story of redemption in the documentary "Searching for Sugar Man. " Can one bootlegged album change the world? Yes. And here's your proof: An obscure singer-songwriter out of Detroit named Sixto Rodriguez cuts two lyrical life-on-the-street albums for a boutique Motown label in the early '70s. Critics loved them, nobody bought them, the radio didn't play them and Rodriguez, an eccentric fellow who often performed with his back to the audience in Detroit clubs with names like The Sewer, didn't make it as a touring act. He put down his guitar, picked up a shovel and worked as a day laborer in Detroit.