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DETROIT -- Chris Sale knew he couldnt let up against J.D. Martinez on Wednesday night, no matter how long the Detroit Tigers slugger had been sidelined.As it turned out, it didnt matter.Sale started the eighth-inning matchup with his best fastball, and Martinez drove it an estimated 434 feet into the shrubs above the centerfield fence. It was the first major league pitch Martinez had faced since fracturing his elbow June 16.Sale said he approached Martinez the same way he would had he been playing every day.Nothing different at all, he said. I havent looked at it again, but I thought it was a good pitch, but hes a great hitter and they do things to win games. Thats what J.D. did to me.The homer put the Tigers up 2-1, but Chicago still had a great chance to keep the game alive against Francisco Rodriguez in the ninth.The White Sox put their first two runners, and Melky Cabrera moved to third on Justin Morneaus fly out. Rodriguez struck out Todd Frazier, but walked Avisail Garcia to load the bases. Dioner Navarro grounded out to second to end the game.I knew he was going to be throwing changeups, and I wanted to get a good pitch to hit, Navarro said. I was just too anxious and got ahead of it.Sale (14-5) took the loss, allowing two runs on six hits in an eight-inning complete game. He walked one and struck out 10.Thats about as sharp as hes looked all season, White Sox manager Robin Ventura said. They got one run with a slice down the line, and the other one, you just tip your hat to J.D.A crowd of 32,526 had done more than that, giving Martinez a standing ovation as he made his way to the plate and continuing to cheer until he took a curtain call after the inning.That was probably the coolest moment of my career, he said. I tried to go up there with a plan, but it was so crazy that I just decided to see the ball and hit the ball.The homer turned out to be the winning run, as Detroit won its eighth straight and moved within two games of first-place Cleveland in the AL Central.That was like a movie, Ian Kinsler said. That was something Ive never seen before. It is certainly good to have him back.Shane Greene (2-2) got the win after pitching out of a seventh-inning jam, while Rodriguez picked up his 30th save.Rookie Michael Fulmer allowed one run on five hits in 6 2/3 innings.Sale was making his first start against the Tigers since being a late scratch on July 23 -- the night he cut up the teams throwback jerseys.Fulmer and Sale dueled early, although the rookie was aided by Chicago hitting into three double plays in the first four innings.The Tigers finally broke through in the fourth. Miguel Cabrera led off with a double, Victor Martinez walked and Nick Castellanos hit an RBI double down the right-field line. Sale struck out Justin Upton, and Mike Aviles hit a foul pop down the first-base line. Jose Abreu made a running catch, then turned and easily threw out Victor Martinez at the plate.Fulmer kept rolling until the sixth, when Morneau tied the game with a long two-out homer to right-center. Morneau has hit two of his three homers this season off Fulmer.Frazier walked on four pitches and Fulmer hit Garcia, bringing Greene out of the Tigers bullpen to end the rally. Frazier and Garcia were the 10th and 11th runners inherited by Greene this season, with none having scored.TRAINERS ROOMWhite Sox: OF Charlie Tilson will miss the rest of the season after tearing his hamstring during his major-league debut Tuesday. Tilson is the third White Sox rookie this season to leave his first game with an injury, joining OF Jason Coats and 3B Matt Davidson. C Kevan Smith injured himself warming up for his first game, and ended up on the disabled list before playing.Tigers: Martinez was officially activated from the disabled list after missing seven weeks with a fractured elbow. Martinez didnt start Wednesday -- Brad Ausmus rested him after playing a doubleheader with Triple-A Toledo -- but is expected to start on Thursday. RHP Jordan Zimmermann (neck) will be activated Thursday to start against the White Sox.ROUND NUMBER FOR K-RODRodriguez became the 24th pitcher to reach 900 career games with his appearance in the ninth inning. With LaTroy Hawkins retiring after last season, Rodriguez leads all active players in games pitched.UP NEXTThe teams finish their three-game series Wednesday afternoon with Zimmerman (9-4, 3.95) facing Jose Quintana (8-8, 2.89). Swell Marble Bottle Ireland . Kiriasis and brakeman Franziska Fritz finished two runs in one minute 55.41 seconds -- a mere 0.01 seconds ahead of Meyers and Lolo Jones, who likely bolstered her Olympic hopes by helping give USA-1 a huge push in the second heat. Swell Water Bottle Deals . -- Jacksonville wide receiver Cecil Shorts will likely be a game-time decision whether hell play Sunday in the Jaguars home game against the San Diego Chargers. http://www.swellwaterbottleireland.com/ .com) - The women will also have a new champion at the Australian Open. Swell Water Bottle Ireland . Thats not a comment on the suspension that banished the Portland Winterhawks general manager and coach from his Western Hockey League teams bench for most of the 2012-13 season. Swell Bottle Ireland . -- The Missouri Tigers might not have a roster full of superstars. CHICAGO -- Moments after his successful return to Chicago with the U.S. national team, Jimmy Butler pulled on a T-shirt with a picture of Brazilian soccer star Pele on the front.Yup, its almost time for Rio.Kyrie Irving scored 13 points, DeMarcus Cousins powered a dominant performance in the paint, and the United States pulled away from Venezuela for an ugly 80-45 exhibition victory Friday night.Coming off three straight flashy victories in Las Vegas and California, the United States used a strong fourth quarter to shoot 42.4 percent from the field in by far its worst offensive performance of its five-city tour in preparation for the Rio Olympics. But the Americans used their superior athleticism to limit Venezuela to 24 percent shooting and owned the interior with a 54-29 rebounding advantage.Quite frankly, Im very pleased about tonight because you dont just want to just hit 17 3s and not work hard, U.S. coach Mike Krzyzewski said. We had to work real hard tonight.Butler, a two-time All-Star with the Bulls, had four points and eight rebounds in 21 minutes in his first start with Team USA. He was cheered every time he was announced at the United Center.This is like home for me now, Butler said. Im glad that I got to play here for USA in front of my hometown crowd. Theyve embraced me since day one. I hope they continue to do so. I want to win with the Bulls. I want to win with USA and bring a championship with the Bulls and a gold medal here.Butler had one of the few electric plays for the U.S. when he ran out on the break and dunked Kyle Lowrys tip pass in the fourth quarter. DeAndre Jordan also had a vicious dunk off a lob from Kevin Durant, and DeMar DeRozan drew chants of USA! USA! with a windmill jam in the final minutes.Klay Thompson?scored 13 points, and Cousins finished withh seven points and 12 rebounds.dddddddddddd. Durant had nine points of 3-of-9 shooting for the U.S., which plays one more exhibition Monday against Nigeria before departing for Brazil.We just kept fighting defensively, and we were great [in that area], Durant said. And in the second half, we made some shots.John Cox scored 14 points for Venezuela, which will play the U.S. again Aug. 8 in the Olympics. Nestor Colmenares pulled down 10 rebounds.Their defense is so good because they can switch everything because of their length and athleticism, Cox said. So theres not really another team in the Olympics that can do that.Irving & Co. were greeted with a round of hearty cheers when they came out for pregame warm-ups. Fans flocked to the side of the court where the Americans had their layup line. Anthony and Durant posed for pictures with a couple of eager boys.Before Butlers introduction drew the most applause of the night, former Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau received a thunderous ovation when he was announced with the U.S. coaching staff. Thibodeau took a year off after he was fired by the Bulls in May 2015 and was hired as Minnesotas coach and president of basketball operations in April.The star power also extended to the sideline near the U.S. bench, where former Olympians Scottie Pippen and Dwyane Wade watched the action attentively. Wade was joined by his wife, actress Gabrielle Union, hours after he held an?introductory news conference?with his hometown Bulls.Pippen played on the 1992 Dream Team that rolled to gold in Barcelona and also helped the U.S. win gold in 1996. Wade was on the Americans gold-medal-winning teams at each of the past two Olympics. ' ' '