Tuiasosopo having up-and-down August

DETROIT -- Matt Tuiasosopo made the Tigers roster as a lefty-killer and situational starter off the bench. In August, he has as many hits (four) in eight at-bats off of right-handed pitching as he does in 27 at-bats off of lefties. That's the kind of odd month that it has been for him.

He has had strong months with a hint of power, and he had a four-homer July with just a .222 average. August, however, has been a different kind of month for him. Manager Jim Leyland doesn't believe he's in a slump, but said he fell into a trap of trying to pull too many pitches off A's lefty Tommy Milone on Tuesday.

Tuiasosopo bounced back Wednesday with an opposite-field line drive single off another tough A's lefty, Brett Anderson.

Some left-handed hitters will see things against a lefty, even in their struggles against them, that help them in their approach when they face a righty. Tuiasosopo doesn't see much difference in his approaches, but said facing a right-hander will sometimes force him to keep his foot in at the plate instead of opening up too soon to swing.