A couple veteran pitchers who are finishing strong after a rough season will square off Friday night in Detroit.Kansas City’s Ian Kennedy and Detroit’s Francisco Liriano have a combined 7-18 record with ERAs above 4.50. Yet both have delivered a couple quality starts this month.Kennedy (2-8 Erik Gonzalez Jersey , 4.73 ERA) faced Minnesota in back-to-back starts after returning from a left oblique strain that put him out of commission for nearly two months. He pitched six innings and limited the Twins to one earned run in each of those outings.Article continues below ...Kennedy snapped his 17-game winless streak in his most recent start Saturday.“I just knew it was a really long time,” Kennedy told MLB.com. “It was a matter of time before it happened. Sometimes it’s out of your control. There are some times when I pitch bad and sometimes when you pitch good and things don’t work out. I was just happy to come back from the disabled list and pitch well.”Liriano (5-10, 4.54 ERA) had a similar stretch this season. When he posted a victory over the Chicago White Sox on Sept. 4, it snapped a streak of 17 consecutive appearances without a win.He also picked up the victory in his last outing Sunday, holding Cleveland to three runs and five hits in seven innings with seven strikeouts. It helped that the Indians rested their regulars after clinching the American League Central the previous day.Liriano, 34, will become a free agent at the end of the season. He’s hoping to land another contract and a solid September won’t hurt.“It’s important to finish strong,” he told the Detroit News. “Not just for me but for the whole team. Just want to finish strong and then see what happens next year.”Tigers rookie left fielder Christin Stewart is certainly finishing strong. Stewart hit the first two homers of his career during the first two innings in the opener of the four-game series. The Tigers won the slugfest 11-8 in a game featuring seven homers.“I’ll remember this day for the rest of my life,” said Stewart http://www.indiansfanproshop.com/authentic-josh-tomlin-jersey , who drove in six runs.Stewart hit 23 homers at Triple-A Toledo before his September call-up.“Big smile on his face, I know that, and big home runs for us,” Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire said. “This kid’s had a heck of a year and it hasn’t gone great for him so far offensively (with Detroit) and that just shows you a little bit of what he can do. He can get the barrel on the ball and put it in the seats.”Detroit was swept in a three-game home series by Minnesota before handing Kansas City its 101st loss this season.“We had a good night,” Gardenhire said. “We had a lot of guys swinging the bats and running around after a really bad series against the Twins, where they kicked our butts. It was nice to come back here and win a ballgame.”Liriano is 1-0 with a 2.28 ERA in four starts versus Kansas City this season and 8-5, 3.94 in 23 games (20 starts) in his career. Kennedy is 3-4, 3.59 in 10 starts versus Detroit, including a no-decision this season when he pitched six scoreless innings in the Royals’ 4-2 victory May 4. OAKLAND Carlos Carrasco Jersey , Calif. (AP) — Robinson Cano is back in the major leagues with the Seattle Mariners after serving an 80-game drug suspension.The eight-time All-Star has a new position — first base, for the first time — and a new spot in the batting order, too.“It feels great to be back, especially the way the team is playing,” Cano said before the game. “I’m excited. I was waiting for this moment.”Cano’s first game was fairly nondescript. He went 1 for 4 with a single in the Mariners’ 3-2 loss to the Oakland Athletics and played error-free in his new position.Cano arrived in Oakland late Monday, woke up early Tuesday and was at the Coliseum taking batting practice underneath the outfield stands three hours before the scheduled first pitch.“It was really hard, I’m not going to lie,” Cano said. “It was so hard watching the game from home knowing that (I) should be in there. My daughter was the thing that kept me positive. That was the biggest thing, being around my family.”The 35-year-old Cano rejoins a Seattle team that is in the middle of a playoff race. The Mariners entered the day 1 ½ games behind the Athletics for the second AL wild-card spot. Cano would be ineligible for postseason play if his team makes it.Cano was batting second after hitting third in 39 games before getting suspended. He was hitting .287 with four home runs and 23 RBIs when he was penalized.“It’s been a long wait for Robbie Roy Oswalt Jersey ,” Seattle manager Scott Servais said. “We’ve hung in there. We’ve put ourselves in a position where these games are very important and he’ s anxious to get back out there and help us.”Cano was suspended May 15 after testing positive for Furosemide, a diuretic that can be used to mask performance-enhancing drugs. The former New York Yankees second baseman underwent surgery to repair the fractured metacarpal in his right hand shortly after the suspension was announced.During his suspension, Cano worked out privately, spent some time at home in the Dominican Republic and played in the minor leagues before getting reinstated.It was during his time in the minors that Cano was approached about making a switch to first base for the first time in his career. Cano has played 1,995 games at second base, one at shortstop and 48 as designated hitter during his 14-year career.The change was made in part because Cano is ineligible for the postseason. Dee Gordon has played well at second base since the suspension and the coaching staff wants him to get as much work there as possible.“I had a chance to sit down with Robbie earlier today and talk through some things with him and what the plan is going forward,” Servais said. “Nothing is set in stone. Just trying to give him a heads up. He’s willing to do whatever’s asked of him.”Changing positions has been an adjustment, Cano acknowledged.“I don’t want to say difficult. I just want to say I’m not used to it,” Cano said of playing first base. “It’s good with me. It’s not about myself. It’s about the team. It’s about help the team to keep winning games and help the team to make it to the playoffs. No matter where they need me http://www.astrosfanproshop.com/authentic-carlos-lee-jersey , I’ll be ready for (it).”Several of Cano’s teammates, including Nelson Cruz, Denard Span and Gordon, attended Cano’s pregame news conference in support.That session a team meeting in which Cano addressed the Mariners players and coaches.“I told them I want to give my best and that I apologize man-to-man that I let the team down,” Cano said. “We’re all on the same page. From the beginning of spring training, we all want to make it to the playoffs. (I know) that I’m not going to play, but I want to help the team make it to the playoffs.”