Detroit @ Seattle preview
T-Mobile Park
Last Meeting ( Aug 20, 2009 ) Seattle 6, Detroit 7
Just call the Detroit Tigers road warriors for the next two weeks - and warriors period until early May.
Detroit begins an 11-day trip to the West Coast starting with a three-game set against Seattle tonight. The Tigers follow that with a pair of four-game series at the Los Angeles Angels and Texas Rangers.
In fact, Detroit does not have another day off until May 6, a stretch of 20 consecutive games.
The Tigers’ long trip begins in Seattle, which struggled mightily with its offense during the opening week but appears to be getting better.
The Mariners went 20 consecutive scoreless innings before Milton Bradley hit a three-run home run in the eighth inning of a 3-0 shutout of Oakland on Tuesday night. The Mariners followed that up with a 4-2 victory over the Athletics on Wednesday, winning their first series of the season. They managed 11 hits, one shy of their season high.
The Mariners also enter the series against Detroit after their first off day of the season Thursday. Detroit also was off Thursday but will play 27 games in the next 30 days.
Seattle right-hander Felix Hernandez is making his third start of 2010 but has yet to get a decision. Hernandez, who is expected to make another run at the Cy Young Award, allowed one walk and gave up three runs in seven innings in the Mariners’ 4-3 victory against Texas on Saturday. He started the season with an uncharacteristic six-walk performance against Oakland.
Hernandez has done well against the Tigers, winning five in a row. He is 5-2 overall against Detroit with a 2.68 ERA.
Detroit outfielder Johnny Damon, who got his 1,000th RBI in a 7-3 loss to the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday, has a career batting average of .615 against Hernandez, going 8-for-13.
The Tigers counter with right-hander Jeremy Bonderman, who played for Pasco High School, about 225 miles from Seattle. Bonderman, the only high school junior ever drafted by the major leagues, earned his first win in almost two seasons after returning from a blood clot in right shoulder. He has enjoyed moderate success against the Mariners, going 5-3 with a 4.68 ERA.
Poor pitching was Detroit’s biggest problem against Kansas City, allowing 22 runs and 45 hits.
Seattle’s Ichiro Suzuki ended his 0-for-13 start with a single in Wednesday’s victory over Oakland. He is 13-for-33 (.394) against Bonderman.
In 2009, Detroit went 5-4 against Seattle, winning two of three at Safeco Field.