DETROIT -- The Kansas City Royals finally lost, but slugger Billy Butler hopes their impressive push in the AL Central will go on. Brad Brach Jersey . "This doesnt end anything," he said. "Weve got 10-1 in our last 11 games, and were going home in first place. We just have to keep playing the way we are right now." Anibal Sanchez pitched seven sharp innings, and the Detroit Tigers snapped Kansas Citys 10-game winning streak with a 2-1 victory Thursday. J.D. Martinez hit a tiebreaking homer in the fourth for the Tigers, who avoided a four-game sweep and pulled within a half-game of the AL Central-leading Royals. Sanchez (4-2) allowed five hits and a walk, keeping the Kansas City offence quiet even though he failed to strike out a batter. Joba Chamberlain pitched the eighth, and struggling closer Joe Nathan struck out the side in the ninth for his 14th save in 18 chances. Danny Duffy (4-6) allowed two runs and three hits in seven innings. He walked one and struck out five. "We just had a great road trip, Danny Duffy just pitched a great game, and we lost a game to a great pitcher and a home run where I have no idea how J.D. Martinez hit the ball out of the park," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "All I can do is tip my cap to him, because he killed us all series." Butler gave the Royals a 1-0 lead with an RBI double in the first, but Miguel Cabrera drove in a run with a double of his own in the fourth. Cabrera was tagged out on a bizarre double play when right fielder Nori Aoki caught Victor Martinezs flyball and threw back to the infield, where Cabrera was nonchalantly returning to second. Shortstop Alcides Escobar caught the ball and made the tag. Cabrera was initially ruled safe, but the call was overturned on replay. J.D. Martinez followed with a solo homer to right, his sixth of the year. He now has a nine-game hitting streak, with a .412 average in that span, and he hopes this win will end a stretch in which so much has gone badly for the Tigers. Detroit won for only the 10th time in its last 30 games. "Its funny, even talking to the umpires, they even chime in and say it. Theyre like, Dude, everything thats going wrong just seems to be going wrong for you guys. You guys just got to grind through it," Martinez said. "You see the breaks that weve been getting. We hit the ball hard, it gets caught. We hit it soft, it gets caught. We get on base, the ball goes to the backstop, comes back, gets thrown out, were out of an inning. Its just kind of like, craziness." Sanchez went without a strikeout for the first time in his career, but his fielders helped him. Third baseman Nick Castellanos reached over the railing of the Detroit dugout to catch a foul popup in the sixth. Nathan, who signed with the Tigers in the off-season, brought a 6.57 ERA into the game. He struck out Butler to start the ninth -- the Kansas City designated hitter argued the called third strike -- and Salvador Perez went down swinging. With the crowd on its feet and anxious for a much-needed win, Nathan struck out Lorenzo Cain to end it. "That looked like the Joe Nathan Ive faced for years," Butler said. "All those times with the Twins and then with Texas -- the one with a few hundred saves and all those All-Star games. Hes had some tough moments in his career, but that looked like the same guy today." The Royals were without outfielder Alex Gordon, who sat out because of flu-like symptoms. Detroit outfielder Torii Hunter (hamstring) did not play either. NOTES: The Tigers play at Cleveland on Friday night. Detroit RHP Rick Porcello (8-4) faces Cleveland RHP Corey Kluber (6-4). ... The Royals host Seattle. Kansas City RHP James Shields (7-3) takes on Mariners RHP Hisashi Iwakuma (5-3). Joey Rickard Jersey . "If we only consider this season," Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini said, "there is just one club in Manchester -- and its ours. Caleb Joseph Jersey . The Brewers finalized a US$36 million, three-year contract with free agent third baseman Aramis Ramirez on Wednesday, adding a much-needed bat to their lineup. http://www.theoriolesteamshop.com/Orioles-Jj-Hardy-Kids-Jersey/ . The Brazilian heads into Saturday afternoons race coming off a close runner-up finish to Ryan Hunter-Reay in the Indianapolis 500.Houston, TX (SportsNetwork.com) - James Harden nearly recorded a triple-double and the Houston Rockets used a fast start to take down the Oklahoma City Thunder, 112-101, on Thursday night. Harden led six Rockets in double figures with 31 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds. Trevor Ariza totaled 17 points and Donatas Motiejunas had 14 for Houston, which has won five of its last six. Dwight Howard, Patrick Beverley and Josh Smith each contributed 13 points to the victory. Kevin Durant paced the Thunder with 24 points and 10 rebounds, while Russell Westbrook, Dion Waiters and Reggie Jackson scored 16 points apiece in Oklahoma Citys third loss in four games. Both teams shot under 30 percent in the last meeting, a forgettable 69-65 Rockets victory on Nov. 16 in a game Durant and Westbrook were absent from the OKC lineup. Houston used relentless effort during a strong opening quarter in this one and jumped all over the Thunder from the onset. Harden looked to get a lift playing his former club, scoring the first seven points for the Rockets as part of a 23-2 run early in the first. Oklahoma City made the first two field goals of the game, then did not register another successful basket until the newly acquired Waiters hit a bank shot at 5:20 which closed the gap to 23-9. Andrew Cashner Jersey. Harden netted 15 points in Houstons highest-scoring quarter of the season as it grabbed a 40-18 advantage entering the second. Durant scored 15 of his 16 first-half points in the second quarter and helped the Thunder cut a 26-point deficit to 64-53 at the break. The Rockets maintained a double-digit lead throughout the third and brought an 88-75 edge into the fourth. Houston led 88-78 early in the fourth when Smith converted a pair of buckets inside during a 12-0 run that put the game out of reach. Game Notes OKC has been held under 100 points in four straight games on the heels of reaching the century mark in three straight -- two wins ... The win was Rockets coach Kevin McHales 200th career ... Durant had a game-high three blocks ... Serge Ibaka finished with 13 points and seven rebounds in the loss ... Houston shot 16-of-36 from beyond the arc. 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