DETROIT (AP) -- Mike Lamb's quick glove put a fast ending to Detroit's potential rally Monday night.

Lamb short-hopped Deivi Cruz's hard grounder at third with the bases loaded and started a game-ending double play, sealing the Texas Rangers' 3-2 victory over the Tigers.

Kenny Rogers (4-5), helped by home runs from Luis Alicea and Rafael Palmeiro, won for the first time in a month. The Rangers stopped a three-game losing streak.

John Wetteland relieved Rogers to start the ninth. Singles by Dean Palmer and Bobby Higginson, a sacrifice and an intentional walk loaded the bases.

Lamb fielded Cruz's one-hopper and stepped on third base. Lamb then threw home to catcher Ivan Rodriguez, who tagged Palmer for the final out.

"Once (Lamb) caught the ball, it's just a matter of deciding which way he wanted to go," Rangers manager Johnny Oates said. "It really doesn't matter which way he goes once he touches third base. He's got the force at second, but don't hit that runner going home in the back.

"It's a nice play. It's an exciting way for the ballgame to end for us."

It was typical, losing pitcher Jeff Weaver said, of the way things have gone for the Tigers.

"I really thought we were going to pull it out, I really did," Weaver said. "It was an inch away from being a double down the line."

Wetteland got his 13th save in 16 chances.

"You throw a slider there and hope you get a cheap out. A cheap double play on the first pitch," Wetteland said. "Deivi hit it pretty good. If it was a fastball it's probably lined up the middle."

The Rangers won for just the second time in six games after a season-best seven-game winning streak.

The Tigers, who have lost four of five, played without Juan Gonzalez. He missed the game against his old team with a recurrence of a foot injury he developed over the weekend.

The series between the Tigers and Rangers is their first meeting since Gonzalez headlined a nine-player deal between the clubs last November.

Gonzalez was a late scratch from the original starting lineup. Detroit manager Phil Garner said he didn't know whether the slugger would be available for any of the three games against Texas.

"It's day-to-day," Garner said. "But it's worse today."

Rogers had lost his last three starts and was winless in three outings since an 8-4 victory April 30 over Baltimore. He gave up two runs on nine hits with no walks and four strikeouts.

"The key for me was once I gave up the two to keep it to two," Rogers said. "That was my thought process, to keep it to a minimum."

Rogers induced 13 groundouts and was helped by three double plays.

"He went back to his offspeed stuff and got the sinker going and had a lot of groundball outs tonight," Oates said. "He kept his pitch count down and got the groundball double plays when he needed them."

Weaver (1-5) gave up seven hits and three runs in eight innings. He struck out six.

Robert Fick hit an RBI single and another run scored from third on a double-play grounder as the Tigers took a 2-0 lead in the second.

Texas got those back in the third on Alicea's two-run homer, his second, and took a 3-2 lead in the fourth when Palmeiro hit his 14th home run.

"I threw a change to Rafael that was just good hitting," Weaver said. "On Alicea it was 2-0. I tried to go outside and got it over the middle of the plate."

Game notes
Gonzalez strained his left foot Saturday. He was the DH and went hitless Sunday. ... Palmeiro's homer ended an 0-for-11 slump. He is 3-for-25 on the Rangers' road trip. ... Tigers IF Gregg Jefferies had to leave the game after suffering a left hamstring pull while legging out an infield hit in the sixth inning. ... A young fan seated in the front row just past the first base dugout was apparently OK after being hit in the head by Ruben Mateo's foul liner early in the game. A Tigers spokesman said the boy was taken to a hospital as a precaution and was expected to have a black eye.