DETROIT (AP) — Matt Vierling hit a grand slam, Reese Olson pitched six sharp innings and the Detroit Tigers beat the Cincinnati Reds 8-2 on Thursday.

Akil Baddoo also went deep for Detroit, which salvaged the finale of the three-game series. Kerry Carpenter and Spencer Torkelson each drove in a run.

Olson (4-7) permitted one run and two hits. The rookie right-hander struck out seven and walked four.

Olson has yielded three runs in 19 2/3 innings in his three September starts.

“He’s always got good stuff,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “He’s got some of the best stuff on our team. Using it the right way and disrupting timing is something that’s he’s learning how to do.”

Olson was generally pleased with his outing, but he was disappointed with the walk total.

“Four walks, that’s pretty much a whole inning of pitches,” he said. “Other than that, I thought it was really good.”

Jake Fraley hit a leadoff single in the sixth for Cincinnati’s first hit of the game. Olson carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning in his previous start.

Spencer Steer and TJ Friedl homered for the Reds, who had won three straight.

Cincinnati (76-72) finished with five hits, hurting its pursuit of an NL wild card.

“On the road if you get two wins, that’s a good thing,” said Reds manager David Bell, who turned 51 on Thursday. “Today, it got away from us. Probably a closer game than the final score. In the end, it doesn’t matter, we lost. But a good road trip, good series and we get to keep playing fun, meaningful games.”

The Tigers jumped in front on Carpenter’s two-out RBI single off opener Derek Law (4-6) in the first.

Detroit added two more runs in the fourth. With Tyler Nevin aboard after a leadoff single against Ben Lively, Baddoo hit a liner over the right-field wall for his 10th homer.

Vierling’s eighth-inning grand slam came against former Tigers pitcher Buck Farmer. It was his ninth homer of the season.

“Luckily, it came at a good time,” Vierling said of his first career grand slam. “Kind of put the game away at that point.”

Cincinnati continues its road trip against the New York Mets this weekend.

“A lot of quiet mouths (in the clubhouse) right now and that’s what we need,” Lively said. “It’s going to get us fired up going to New York.”

ROSTER MOVES

The Reds placed right-hander Tejay Antone on the 15-day injured list due to right elbow discomfort. He returned to Cincinnati for further examination.

“Hopefully, we’ll have him back in a couple of weeks,” Bell said. “At this point in the year, even if he gets back for a couple of games, he can make a big difference for us.”

Lively was activated from the COVID-19 IL. Right-hander Carson Spiers was promoted from Double-A Chattanooga, and right-hander Connor Phillips was returned to Triple-A Louisville.

CASEY ON THE MOUND

Tigers right-hander Casey Mize threw another bullpen session on Wednesday. Mize, the top pick in the 2018 amateur draft, underwent Tommy John surgery last June. The Tigers are optimistic he’ll rejoin the starting staff at the beginning of next season.

“We’re thrilled the way his year went — what he’s been able to re-establish, delivery-wise, health-wise and recovery-wise,” Hinch said.

UP NEXT

Reds: RHP Hunter Greene (3-6, 4.75 ERA) will start the opener of a three-game road series against the New York Mets on Friday.

Tigers: LHP Tarik Skubal (5-3, 3.47 ERA) will start the opener of a 10-game West Coast trip against the Los Angeles Angels on Friday.

RED SOX 5, YANKEES 0

BOSTON — Trevor Story hit a three-run homer, Tanner Houck pitched six effective innings and Boston climbed out of the AL East basement with a 5-0 victory over the New York Yankees on Thursday in the opener of a doubleheader after the Red Sox fired Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom.

Bloom was dismissed after nearly four seasons. He was hired from the Tampa Bay Rays to help revive the farm system and bring financial stability to a team that was one of baseball’s biggest spenders.

“It’s not easy,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said of the move. “I’ve been through this twice already. Obviously, it’s a decision that ownership decided to go this route. We worked together all these years. It’s never easy to hear that.”

Rookie Ceddanne Rafaela added a solo shot and Wilyer Abreu had a first-inning RBI single for Boston, which has won nine of the 12 meetings between the longtime rivals this season.

Coming off a doubleheader sweep on Tuesday that moved New York into a tie with Boston for last place, the Yankees were shut out for the ninth time this season.

Gleyber Torres had two doubles for the Yankees.

The game was a makeup of Wednesday night’s rainout.

Houck (5-9) allowed four hits, struck out seven and walked three. Garrett Whitlock retired all six batters he faced, and Chris Martin finished a six-hitter.

“I definitely thought he was going to take me out,” Houck said of Cora’s visit before he got out of a sixth-inning mess. “I wanted to be out there. I’ve been working day in and day out, trying to get better and trying to push myself to get through the sixth inning.”

New York right-hander Michael King (4-6) gave up a run and six hits in 4 2/3 innings. He struck out eight and walked one.

“It’s nice being back on that routine,” King said of being back in the starting rotation for his fifth start. “I think that’s the main part of my body recovery that I feel liked I missed (coming) out of the bullpen.”

Story hit his homer into the center-field batters’ eye off Matt Bowman in the eighth. Rafaela hooked his second career homer around the Pesky Pole in the seventh against Greg Weissert, just past the leap of right fielder Oswaldo Peraza.

Houck escaped a first-and-third, one-out jam in the sixth with a little help from plate umpire Todd Tichenor.

“Today was a big day for Tanner,” Cora said. “He needed six innings.”

With the infield in during the sixth, Jake Bauers hit a slow roller to first baseman Triston Casas, who fired home. The ball bounced up and slightly past catcher Conner Wong but hit Tichenor. Wong grabbed it and got Torres out in a rundown. Houck then retired Peraza on a comebacker.

“We had a couple of chances there,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “I thought Houck threw the ball well, but we should have punched a couple through, no doubt about it.”

NEW PITCH LIMIT

Houck threw a career-high 105 pitches, 63 for strikes.

LOOK OUT

Weissert spun around on Casas’ hard-hit grounder to the mound, and the ball caromed off his left foot and over to first baseman Bauers for an out.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Yankees: Boone said top prospect Jasson Domínguez will undergo Tommy John surgery on his throwing elbow next Wednesday. Boone said the recovery time for a position player is nine to 10 months.

Red Sox: Right-handers Zack Kelly (right elbow inflammation) and Corey Kluber (right shoulder inflammation) are both on rehab assignments. Cora didn’t know what they’d be doing next.

UP NEXT

RHP Clarke Schmidt (9-8, 4.54 ERA) was set to go for the Yankees in the nightcap. RHP Nick Robertson (0-1, 6.06 ERA) starts for the Red Sox.