Justin Verlander was again masterful, striking out a career-high 14 batters in a 6–0 romp versus the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks. June 26: With Kirk Gibson and Alan Trammell in the visiting dugout as members of the Arizona Diamondbacks staff, the Tigers finally retired Sparky Anderson's number 11 in a pre-game ceremony. Gibson and Trammell starred for the Tigers' 1984 World Series winning team, which was managed by Anderson. Detroit went on to beat Arizona, 8–3, thanks to seven runs in the bottom of the eighth inning. June 27: Making up a rain-out at home versus the Blue Jays, the Tigers won 4–2 thanks to a tie-breaking triple in the bottom of the eighth from Jhonny Peralta. June 30: Justin Verlander again played stopper in a 5–2 victory over the visiting New York Mets. The Mets had pounded out 38 hits and 30 runs in the first two games of the series before Verlander tamed them on 7 hits. After a 16–12 June, the Tigers (44–38) found themselves 1.5 games up on the Indians in the AL Central. July 2: The only notable achievement in a 15–3 blowout loss to the San Francisco Giants was Tigers utilityman Don Kelly replacing catcher Victor Martinez in the third inning. The appearance gave Kelly, who had pitched one-third of an inning three days prior against the Mets, the distinction of playing all nine positions in his career. July 3: In a day of mixed emotions, Alex Avila was informed that he had won the fan voting as the starting catcher for the AL in the All-Star Game and the Tigers defeated the Giants, 6–3. Immediately after the game, however, the Tigers front office announced the firing of pitching coach Rick Knapp. Knapp would be replaced by bullpen coach Jeff Jones for the remainder of the season. July 5: Despite allowing only one run, Justin Verlander saw his 9-game winning streak end against Dan Haren and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in a classic 1–0 pitcher's duel. July 8: José Valverde saved a Tiger victory for the third time in three nights in a 6–4 victory over the Royals, running his consecutive saves streak to 23. July 10: Justin Verlander collected his 12th win on the season, 2–1 over the Royals, as the Tigers headed to the All-Star Break 1.5 games in front of the Cleveland Indians in the Central Division. July 17: Carlos