KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Drew Smyly picked up where fellow Tigers starter Rick Porcello left off, tossing seven shutout innings and leading Detroit to a 9-2 rout of the Kansas City Royals on Saturday night. Porcello and the Tigers bullpen retired the final 18 hitters in an 8-2 victory the previous night, and Smyly (2-1) retired the first four he faced. After a issuing a walk to Alex Gordon, the former reliever then retired the next six in a dominant performance. Smyly wound up allowing two hits and two walks before giving way to Joba Chamberlain, who threw a perfect eighth. Phil Coke allowed two runs in the ninth to lose the shutout. Nick Castellanos drove in three runs the Tigers, the first off spot starter Danny Duffy (1-2) and two more off the Royals bullpen. That was it until the ninth, when Detroit tacked on six more runs, the highlight a three-run shot by Torii Hunter. The win was the Tigers fifth straight over Kansas City. Duffy moved from the bullpen back to the rotation in place of Bruce Chen, who went on the disabled list this week with a bulging disc in his back. Duffy was on a pitch count and wound up lasting just four innings, allowing two hits and walking four while throwing 75 pitches. Kansas City played without catcher Salvador Perez, who was given the night off after fouling a pitch off his shin in the series opener. Royals manager Ned Yost said he expects the All-Star to be back in the lineup Sunday — though they sure could have used his bat in this one. The only hits the Royals could muster off Smyly came on Eric Hosmers double in the fourth and a single in the fifth by Danny Valencia, who was thrown out trying to reach second. Meanwhile, the Tigers took advantage of Duffys erratic ways. The left-hander walked the bases loaded in the fourth inning, and Castellanos followed with a liner to left that Alex Gordon caught on the run. But rather than throw home immediately, the Gold Glove winner hesitated, and that gave Miguel Cabrera time to score. In the sixth, reliever Louis Coleman allowed a double to Cabrera and intentionally walked Victor Martinez, who has been hot all series. Herrera came in and Castellanos ripped a double to right, driving in both runs while ending a 0-for-15 slump. That was plenty of support for Smyly, who made 63 appearances out of the bullpen last season and two this season, but who may be firmly establishing himself as the fifth starter. The victory was Smylys first as a starter since beating the Royals on July 6, 2012. NOTES: Royals RHP Aaron Brooks made his big league debut, giving up all six runs in the ninth. ... Tigers RHP Robbie Ray is expected to be promoted from Triple-A Toledo to start Tuesday against Houston in his big league debut. ... Tigers RHP Anibal Sanchez (cut middle finger) had no problems throwing Friday, manager Brad Ausmus said. Sanchez went on the DL on April 27. ... LHP Jason Vargas starts Sunday for Kansas City. RHP Justin Verlander starts for Detroit. Rickey Jackson Jersey . Jurrjens signed a minor league contract with Cincinnati in May, and was 2-3 with a 4.46 ERA at Triple-A Louisville. He has a 53-37 record with a 3.63 ERA in seven major league seasons, including five with Atlanta. New Orleans Saints Jerseys . Theres little time for rest, too. The Flyers and Rangers play again Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden. Simmonds scored in the first period and twice more in the second for his first career post-season hat trick. Mason survived a busy first period and stopping 31 straight shots until Carl Hagelin scored late in the third. http://www.shoptheofficialsaints.com/Elite-Bobby-Hebert-Saints-Jersey/ . LA (SportsNetwork. Willie Roaf Jersey . They were expecting him there all along. The Pacers announced Friday night that George has been cleared "to return to normal basketball activity," a decision made three days after he was concussed in Game 2 of the Indiana-Miami series. Archie Manning Jersey .com) - A pair of Eastern Conference rivals will meet on Saturday as D. ST. PAUL, Minn. -- The Minnesota Wild put a lot of work into summer projects the past two years. This time, theyre on track for a little less activity. Some key restricted free agents need new contracts to be retained. Another scorer would be a big help for the forward lines. The goalie situation, of course, remains in flux. Following the franchises deepest advancement in the playoffs in more than a decade, though, there are fewer holes. In 2012, the Wild were the stars of the NHL off-season by signing Zach Parise and Ryan Suter. In 2013, they had to shed several high-salaried veterans to create more space under the cap and on the roster for ready-to-contribute prospects. This time? "I just feel that this year theres not the sense of urgency that we have had in past seasons, that we have to add certain pieces in order to be more competitive," general manager Chuck Fletcher said Monday. He added: "This year I think we can be a little bit more patient." With the draft set for Friday and Saturday in Philadelphia and unrestricted free agency starting three days later, the NHL marketplace is set up for the flurry. "I think youll see a lot of movement this year. Its not a particularly strong free-agent class. I think teams will look to potentially fill their needs via the trade route," Fletcher said. Whether that includes the Wild, well, thats difficult to predict at this point. Fletcher said hes been fielding more calls than hes been making. "We either have players right in their prime that are key contributors on our team, or young players that are just starting their career that were really not that excited about moving. We dont have a lot of players in that 25 to 29-year-old age class that seem to be the prime trade candidates in a lot of cases," Fletcher said. That doesnt mean goalie Niklas Backstrom or centre Kyle Brodziak, for example, wouldnt be dealt if the Wild were to find a partner.dddddddddddd Backstrom is on track to be ready for training camp Sept. 18 after his latest midsection surgery. He has two more years left on his contract, and Brodziak has one. Dumping some salary would give the Wild more flexibility to pursue a high-priced unrestricted free agent, with Thomas Vanek the primary focus of outside speculation. The former University of Minnesota standout played for three teams in 2013-14, lastly with Montreal. Darcy Kuemper played his way into the starting goalie spot and is one of four restricted free agents the Wild will probably re-sign. Forwards Nino Niederreiter, Justin Fontaine and Jason Zucker are the others. Most of the unrestricted free agents will probably be let go, including goalie Ilya Bryzgalov, forwards Dany Heatley and Matt Moulson. Forward Cody McCormick and defencemen Clayton Stoner and Nate Prosser are also in this category, without any guarantee the Wild would be their highest or favourite bidder. Fletcher declined to speak about any interest or not in any of them specifically. "I think some of those guys will move on at this point. Theyre aware of where were at," Fletcher said. Fletcher traded Cal Clutterbuck for Niederreiter the day of the draft last year. He dealt Brent Burns for Devin Setoguchi and Charlie Coyle on draft day 2011. He acquired Brodziak in that scenario in 2009. This time, the Wild dont have a second-round pick, due to the trade for Moulson, so theyd be less interested in parting with their first-round pick, 18th overall. "Historically we havent been a team thats ever been confused with the Edmonton Oilers circa 83-85," Fletcher said. "If we could add a little bit more offence without sacrificing our defensive structure wed like to do that." ' ' '