DETROIT -- After he joined the Tigers from the Orioles at the Trade Deadline, Charlie Morton made a late-season acquisition of his own: The 41-year-old endeared himself to his new teammates by adding an espresso machine to the Tigers' clubhouse. On Wednesday afternoon, the boost of caffeine seemed to do them good. Detroit batters jumped Astros ace Framber Valdez for a six-run opening inning and cruised from there, completing a three-game series sweep with a 7-2 win at Comerica Park.

The Tigers are no strangers to hot starts, to games as well as seasons. Detroit ranks among the top 10 teams in the Majors in first-inning runs, RBIs, batting average and OPS, despite ranking in the bottom half of the Majors in first-inning home runs. They brought all of that in the finale, saddling Vald

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