BOSTON (AP) -- Juan Gonzalez is starting to get into the swing. Now, the hitters in front of him need to do the same.

Gonzalez hit a tiebreaking homer in the sixth inning and the Detroit Tigers managed to get past the Red Sox 2-1 Saturday with the help of a Boston baserunning blunder.

Gonzalez, who hit his fourth homer in as many games and also doubled, is 9-for-20 with six RBI in his last five games.

"He started swinging the bat well in Cleveland," Tigers manager Phil Garner said. "We can rally around him if he keeps swinging the bat."

Gonzalez, the first batter reliever Tim Wakefield (1-3) faced, hit his eighth homer. The shot cleared the screen above the left-field wall.

"I'm seeing the ball really well," Gonzalez said. "I made a couple of adjustments with my mechanics. I'm feeling more comfortable. The thing I need now is more men on base."

The Red Sox had tied it at 1 in the fifth, but poor baserunning cost them a run.

With the bases loaded, Dave Mlicki wild-pitched a run home. Carl Everett then hit a fly ball to Bobby Higginson, who doubled off Brian Daubach at second base before Trot Nixon tagged and reached home.

"I was assuming Nixon would score," Higginson said. "I was trying to get a double play to end the inning. Having him not score was a bonus."

Daubach, who was cut down going from first to third on a single to left-center in Friday's win, felt his play lost the game.

"It was something that just can't happen," Daubach said. "It was a very good catch. A good play by Higginson, and it cost us the game."

"That set the stage for the whole game," Garner said.

Boston manager Jimy Williams, not one to criticize his players, nearly agreed that Daubach may have been too aggressive.

"Maybe he got a little too far," Williams said. "But he did the hard part getting on."

Boston had beaten the Tigers in five of six games this year, pitching shutouts in three of them. The Red Sox defeated Detroit 3-0 Friday night.

Mlicki (2-5) posted his second win after dropping his first five starts. He gave up one run and three hits in 5 1/3 innings.

Todd Jones, Detroit's fifth pitcher, worked the ninth for his 11th save in 12 chances. The Red Sox used six pitchers.

Gonzalez also doubled as Detroit stopped a three-game losing streak. Boston lost for the third time in 13 games.

The Tigers took a 1-0 lead in the fourth. With two outs, Gonzalez and Higginson doubled. Pete Schourek struck out Rob Fick with the bases loaded to end the inning.

Schourek allowed one run and four hits in five innings.

Game notes
Red Sox 3B John Valentin, who started Friday after being on the DL since April 10, was not in the lineup. ... Detroit's Luis Polonia served the second of a three-game suspension for his part in a bench-clearing brawl April 22 at Chicago. ... Boston's other shutouts against the Tigers were April 18 and 19 in Detroit. ... The Tigers improved their major-league worst road record to 6-17. ... Jose Marcias singled off Wakefield's left calf and the right-hander had to leave the game in the seventh. Wakefield suffered a bruise and is listed as day-to-day. ... Boston reliever John Wasdin was halfway to the mound when Wakefield was hurt, but manager Jimy Williams called for Rheal Cormier, giving Cormier as much warmup time as needed. Wasdin had already been warming up. ... Boston's staff was attempting to post its third consecutive shutout for the first time since posting three straight in August of 1990 in Toronto.