LAKELAND, Fla. (AP) _ Detroit went without a homer for the first time all spring, but the Tigers got clutch pitching from Allen McDill and held on for a 3-2 win over the Houston Astros on Monday night.

Rob Sasser scored the go-ahead run in the seventh on Brandon Inge's RBI grounder.

Sasser doubled off loser Erik Plantenberg. Bobby Higginson, trying to show new manager Phil Garner he can hit left-handers, moved up Sasser with a single, setting up Inge's RBI grounder for a 3-2 lead.

McDill, a non-roster left-hander, loaded the bases with no outs in the seventh, but got out of it with a strikeout and a line drive double-play, getting the win.

Todd Jones, the Tigers' regular closer, hit the leadoff batter in the ninth with a pitch, then retired the next three for his second save of the spring.

The starters _ Dave Mlicki for Detroit and Chris Holt for the Astros _ each allowed two runs and four hits in four innings. But the two runs off Holt were unearned.

Daryle Ward left with a tight left hamstring after his RBI double in the first.

The Astros took a 2-0 lead in the fourth when Mitch Meluskey doubled and scored on Matt Mieske's RBI single.

Detroit tied it with two unearned runs in the bottom of the inning. Tony Clark and Dean Palmer both reached on fielding errors. An RBI single by Juan Encarnacion scored Clark and Rob Sasser's RBI grounder drove in Palmer.