DETROIT – Ugueth Urbina walked Brian Roberts with the bases-loaded in the ninth-inning to break a tie, and the Baltimore Orioles completed a three-game sweep of the Detroit Tigers with a 7-3 victory Sunday.

The Orioles trailed 2-1 entering the ninth against Urbina (1-2), who had not allowed a run at home this season. But the Detroit closer retired only one of the seven batters he faced, blowing his first save in 13 chances since Aug. 31 for the Florida Marlins.

Javy Lopez and Luis Matos started the inning with singles, and B.J. Surhoff followed with a run-scoring hit to tie it.

Urbina walked pinch-hitter Rafael Palmeiro to load the bases, then struck out Robert Machado for the first out. Roberts tried to lay down a suicide squeeze bunt, but fouled it off, then walked on a 3-1 count.

Jerry Hairston followed with his fourth hit of the game, a two-run single off the left-field fence. Jamie Walker replaced Urbina and got the second out before Larry Bigbie, who entered as a pinch-runner for Lopez, hit a two-run single to finish the scoring.

Buddy Groom (2-0) got one out for the win as the Orioles became the first team to sweep the Tigers in Detroit this season.

Ivan Rodriguez had a pair of run-scoring singles for the Tigers, who lost for the sixth time in seven games.

Tiger starter Mike Maroth allowed an unearned run and six hits in seven innings, while Baltimore’s Erik Bedard gave up two runs and seven hits in six innings.

Detroit went ahead in the third when Greg Norton led off with a double and scored on Rodriguez’s two-out single. The Tigers loaded the bases later in the inning, but Craig Monroe popped out to shortstop.

In the fifth, Bobby Higginson led off with a triple to the scoreboard in right-center and scored on Rodriguez’s bloop single to center.

Baltimore scored in the sixth. Roberts singled with one out, took third on Hairston’s single and scored when Rodriguez threw away a pickoff attempt.

The Tigers made it 7-3 in the ninth off Jorge Julio on Rondell White’s two-out single.

Notes: Chris Shelton’s bat shattered in the fourth, and the barrel of the broken bat sailed 15 rows into the stands behind the Tigers dugout. … Baltimore C Machado and 1B Jose Leon collided going after a sixth-inning foul pop, but neither was injured. … The WNBA champion Detroit Shock were honored before the game, with guard Deanna Nolan throwing out the first pitch. … Hairston’s four hits matched a career high. … SS Carlos Guillen did not start for Detroit for just the second time this season, but entered the game as a pinch-hitter in the eighth. … The top of the ninth took 31 minutes to play.

AP-ES-05-30-04 1635EDT