The results left both teams with identical 85-76 records going into their final games, when the Twins again play the Royals and the Tigers will meet the White Sox.
Should either the Tigers or the Twins win and the other loses, the winner would be the Central Division champion and playoff representative.
Should both teams win or lose, they would play a one-game tie-breaker in Minneapolis tomorrow for the division title.
Michael Cuddyer’s eighth inning home run broke a 4-4 tie to pull the Twins past the Royals at Minneapolis.
Minnesota grabbed a 4-0 lead on Delmon Young’s three-run double in the sixth inning, but the Royals roared back with three runs in the top of the eighth to tie the score.
Greinke, who came into the game with a 16-8 record and the league’s best earned run average, 2.16, lasted six innings, giving up six hits, while striking out five and walking two.
The loss went to Dusty Hughes (0-2), who gave up the tie-breaking homer to Cuddyer.
Blackburn allowed only four hits and two runs over seven innings, before Minnesota turned to their bullpen.
Jon Rauch (5-1), who took over in the eighth after reliever Jose Mijares allowed Kansas City back into the game, earned the win. Joe Nathan had a perfect ninth for the save, his 47th of the season.
At Detroit, Chicago’s Alex Rios went four-for-five and drove in three runs as the Tigers lost their third consecutive game.
Rios put Chicago ahead 3-0 with a run-scoring double in the third, added another run with a single in the fifth and singled home a third run in the ninth.
Freddy Garcia (3-4) held the Tigers to six hits and a run over seven innings, while striking out seven.
Detroit used six pitchers, with starter Alfredo Figaro (2-2) lasting only one-and-a-third innings.
Saturday’s other results:
• Angels 4, Athletics 2
• Rays 5, Yankees 3
• Red Sox 11, Indians 6
• Orioles 6, Blue Jays 3
• Mariners 2, Rangers 1
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