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Indians Vs. Tigers Final Score: Cleveland Beats Detroit In Opener, 5-3

It's only May, but Chris Perez and the Indians want some recognition. They made a statement on Tuesday night, beating the consensus favorite to win the Central Division, 5-3, and picking up another game in the standings.

Ubaldo Jimenez shook off a second inning three-run home run by Alex Avila to toss a quality start and pick up the win despite six walks.

The Indians scored a run in the first, third, and fifth, and two in the sixth, all off Rick Porcello. Travis Hafner knocked in two runs on a single and a sac fly. Shin-Soo Choo scored twice and had two hits in the leadoff spot. Casey Kotchman scored a run and batted in another to go along with his game-high three hits.

Chris Perez had a rocky ninth inning, but struck out Miguel Cabrera looking and induced Prince Fielder to hit into a game-ending fielder's choice to earn his 14th straight save.

The series continues Wednesday night with first pitch slated for 7:05 p.m. ET.

For more on the Cleveland Indians, check out Let's Go Tribe. You can also head over to SB Nation's main MLB hub at Baseball Nation.

Photographs by spatulated, Triple Tri, and chrischappelear used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.