DETROIT -- They're still alive.

The Detroit Tigers, left for dead by many after their offensive struggles spilled over from the regular season into the playoffs, flexed some offensive muscle Tuesday night and forced a decisive Game 5 in their American League Division Series with the Oakland Athletics.

Jhonny Peralta and Victor Martinez hit clutch home runs and Austin Jackson drove in the go-ahead run with a broken-bat single in the seventh inning as the Tigers rallied from behind twice to pull out an 8-6 victory over the A's.

Max Scherzer -- pitching in relief -- worked out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the top of the eighth inning to preserve a 5-4 lead.

The Tigers tacked on three runs in the bottom of the eighth to make it 8-4. The A's scored two runs in the top of the ninth on a two-run single by Yoenis Cespedes. Joaquin Benoit struck out Seth Smith, who represented the tying run, for the final out of the game.

Game 5 is set for Thursday night in Oakland. Justin Verlander will start for the Tigers. Right-hander Bartolo Colon is expected to start for the A's.

The Tigers scored in just two innings in the first three games of the series and struggled early in this one. A's starter Dan Straily faced the minimum 12 batters through four innings before Prince Fielder led off the fifth with a bloop single for Detroit's first hit.

Martinez singled through the right side of the infield to put two on with nobody out, and Peralta followed with a three-run home run to tie the game at 3-3.

The game remained tied until Coco Crisp had an RBI single off Scherzer in the top of the seventh to make it 4-3. But the Tigers bounced right back when Martinez greeted relief pitcher Sean Doolittle with a solo home run in the bottom of the seventh. That tied it at 4-4.

Peralta followed the Martinez home run with a double and was replaced by pinch-runner Andy Dirks. After Doolittle retired the next two hitters, he walked No. 9 hitter Jose Iglesias. A's manager Bob Melvin stuck with the left-handed Doolittle against Jackson, who had struck out in his first three at-bats in the game and was hitless in 13 at-bats since leading off Game 1 with a double.

Jackson swung at missed at the first pitch, fouled off the next two pitches and then broke his bat on a soft line drive that fell just in front of right fielder Josh Reddick to score Dirks and give his team a 5-4 lead.

Things got a bit dicey in the bottom of the inning, but the Tigers never gave the lead back. Now, they're headed back to Oakland for the decisive Game 5.

KEY TO THE GAME

Scherzer worked a little magic, and got some help from Reddick, while fighting his way out of a huge jam in the eighth.

Brandon Moss drew a leadoff walk and went to third on a double to right field Yoenis Cespedes. Scherzer intentionally walked Seth Smith to load the bases with no outs, then fell behind Reddick, who eventually swung at a pitch way out of the strike zone on a 3-2 count.

Instead of a game-tying walk, it was out No. 1 for Scherzer, who then struck out Stephen Vogt for the second out of the inning.

Pinch hitter Alberto Callaspo just missed an extra-base hit when he hit a ball just foul down the line in left, then worked the count to 3-2 before lacing a line drive to center field. But Jackson tracked it down for the final out of the inning.

TIGERS HIGHLIGHTS

-- Tigers starter Doug Fister struggled early in the game. After allowing a run in the first inning, he gave up a single to Smith and walked No. 9 hitter Eric Sogard as the A's had runners at first and third with two outs. Fister got out of the jam when Crisp hit a ball hard to right field that was tracked down on the warning track by Torii Hunter.

-- Fister battled through some struggles early and turned in a respectable pitching line. He allowed three runs on seven hits in six innings. Fister struck out one and did not issue a walk. He threw 104 pitches, 61 for strikes.

-- The home run by Martinez went to video review after it bounced off a fan who was reaching over the railing in right field. But the home run was upheld upon video review as the Tigers tied it at 4-4.

-- A's relief pitcher Brett Anderson uncorked a wild pitch with the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth inning, which allowed pinch runner Hernan Perez to score from third base to make it 6-4. Omar Infante hit the next pitch he saw down the line in left for a two-run double to make it 8-4.

TIGERS LOWLIGHTS

-- The A's got on the board early against Fister. Crisp hit the second pitch of the game to the gap in left-center for a leadoff triple. Peralta didn't take a great angle to the ball and failed to hold Crisp to a double. Jed Lowrie, who entered the game without a hit in the series, singled through the hole between shortstop and third base with the infield drawn in with one out to score Crisp. That gave the A's an early 1-0 lead.

-- Lowrie got his second hit of the series in the fifth inning when he hit a fly ball that just cleared the fence in right field for a two-out, two-run home run to make it 3-0. Torii Hunter tried to time his jump at the fence, but the ball just got over his glove.

-- Scherzer relieved Fister to start the seventh inning and surrendered the tiebreaking run. Stephen Vogt led off with a single past a diving Omar Infante at second base, then went to second on a bunt by Eric Sogard. Crisp then singled up the middle to score Vogt and give the A's a 4-3 lead.

-- Jackson struck out in each of his first three at-bats and has now struck out 10 times in the series.

OTHER GAME NOTES

-- The home run by Peralta was the first home run for the Tigers since Sept. 24, when they hit three in the same inning in a win over the Minnesota Twins. Peralta rejoined the Tigers after serving a 50-game suspension two games later.

-- Miguel Cabrera singled in the sixth inning and has now reached base in 28 consecutive postseason games, a major-league record.

-- The paid attendance for the game was 43,958.

-- Game 5 will be broadcast Thursday night on TBS.

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