Detroit @ Cleveland preview
Progressive Field
Last Meeting ( Jun 3, 2010 ) Cleveland 6, Detroit 12
The Detroit Tigers have had four days to mull the way the first half of the season ended. It wasn't a pleasant memory to carry into the break.
The Tigers fell out of first place when they had their five-game winning streak snapped the night before the All-Star break, so they're eager to try to get back on top of the American League Central standings when they begin the second half against the Cleveland Indians tonight at Progressive Field.
Detroit hasn't dropped past second place in the division all season, but its struggles on the road – the Tigers are 16-25 away from Comerica Park – are a big reason the Chicago White Sox took over the division lead Sunday. The Tigers haven’t won a road series since sweeping a two-game set at Oakland on May 19-20.
They hope to change that against a struggling Cleveland team that they have won six of eight against so far this season.
The Indians begin the day with the second-worst record in the American League, and they lost five of their last six before the break. They're 17-22 at home and don't have anyone in their lineup hitting over .285.
Now they have to deal with a hot pitcher in 25-year-old right-hander Max Scherzer, who is 5-2 with a 2.44 ERA in eight starts since returning from a brief trip to the minors in May.
Scherzer (6-6, 4.61 ERA) has won his last four decisions, most recently holding Baltimore to one run on six hits over seven innings July 7. He hasn't allowed more than one run in any of his last four starts and has struck out six or more in his last six outings.
Like his team, though, Scherzer has struggled away from home. He's 1-4 with a 5.44 ERA in eight road starts, including a rough outing at Cleveland on May 9 in which he lasted only five innings and allowed five runs on nine hits to take the loss.
Scherzer won't have to contend with three of Cleveland's top offensive threats, as outfielders Shin-Soo Choo and Grady Sizemore and infielder Asdrubal Cabrera are on the disabled list.
He will, however, have to face Matt LaPorta, who is 15-for-42 (.357) with four homers and 11 RBIs in 12 games since being recalled from the minors.
The Tigers have their share of hot hitters, led by first baseman Miguel Cabrera, who enters the second half on a 19-game hitting streak. Cabrera has hit .400 with three homers and 18 RBIs during the streak to raise his average to .346, second in the majors behind Texas' Josh Hamilton.
Cabrera is 5-for-8 with a homer against 32-year-old right-hander Jake Westbrook, Cleveland's scheduled starter.
Westbrook (5-5, 4.75 ERA) hasn't fared well against the Tigers in his career – he's 5-8 with a 5.69 ERA in 22 appearances against Detroit, 19 of them starts – but he has allowed only four runs in 13 1/3 innings against them this year.
Westbrook beat the Tigers on June 1 in Detroit, holding them to one run on five hits over 7 2/3 innings in Cleveland's 3-2 victory.