Detroit @ Atlanta preview
Turner Field
Last Meeting ( Jun 26, 2010 ) Detroit 3, Atlanta 4
Five days must have seemed like an eternity for Tommy Hanson, who is eager to put the worst start of his brief career behind him.
The young phenom looks to get back on track and help the Atlanta Braves to an eighth straight home win against the Detroit Tigers on Sunday.
A first-round pick in 2005, Hanson (7-4, 4.17 ERA) is one of the brightest young pitchers in the game.
The 23-year-old established himself as a potential ace of the Braves’ staff for years to come by going 11-4 with a 2.89 ERA as a rookie last season.
Hanson picked up where he left off by winning seven of his first 10 decisions this season. However, the wheels came off in his last outing.
The right-hander allowed career highs of nine runs and 13 hits in 3 2/3 innings of a 9-6 loss to the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday, raising his ERA from 3.38 to 4.17.
Luckily for Hanson, the Tigers haven't been very good on the road this season. Detroit has lost six of its last seven road games and is just 14-23 away from Comerica Park.
Their road struggles, combined with the Braves’ home dominance, has been a recipe for disaster for Jim Leyland’s club. On Saturday, the Tigers were handcuffed by struggling starter Kenshin Kawakami and Chipper Jones hit a go-ahead homer in a 4-3 Braves' win.
The victory was Atlanta's seventh straight at Turner Field and 16th in its last 17 games there.
The Braves should be even tougher with Billy Wagner, who recorded his 400th career save on Friday, available after a day off. The Atlanta bullpen had to use three relievers to hold off the Tigers’ ninth-inning rally.
The rally fell short when Johnny Damon struck out looking with the bases loaded.
Detroit will now try to avoid its first three-game losing streak in nearly a month behind a well-rested Justin Verlander (8-5, 3.94).
He allowed five runs and five hits against the New York Mets on Tuesday before being lifted after two-plus innings due to a rain delay. It was the worst start of the season for Verlander, who dominated the Braves in his lone start against them three years ago.
He helped the Tigers to a three-game sweep at Turner Field in the last series between the teams by allowing one run and four hits in seven innings of a 2-1 win on June 23, 2007.