Texas @ Detroit preview
Comerica Park
Last Meeting ( Jul 20, 2010 ) Texas 8, Detroit 0
Josh Hamilton’s story of redemption is well-documented. Few people, however, know about teammate Colby Lewis’ long journey back to the majors.
The Texas Rangers are well aware of his travails. And they also know they wouldn’t be a threat to make a deep postseason run without him.
The late-blooming Lewis takes the hill Wednesday as the Rangers try for a three-game sweep of the fading Detroit Tigers.
A former first-round pick by Texas in 1999, Lewis suffered through injuries and disappointment for five seasons before turning his career around in Japan. Texas outbid a dozen teams this offseason and signed Lewis (9-5, 3.42 ERA) to a two-year, $ 2.5 million deal.
Lewis has given the Rangers a great return on their investment this time around, having won his past two outings and posting a 5-1 mark with a 3.13 ERA in his last seven starts. He allowed three runs and four hits in five innings of an 8-4 win over Boston on Friday.
In his lone start against Detroit this season, Lewis allowed four runs and seven hits in 6 1/3 innings of an 8-4 win on April 24.
The 30-year-old’s emergence is one of the reasons the Rangers are considered one of the favorites to represent the American League in the World Series.
Another reason is Hamilton, who was drafted No. 1 by Tampa Bay the same year that the Rangers took Lewis with the 38th pick. Hamilton’s struggle with substance abuse and subsequent rise to stardom is one of baseball’s best stories.
He continued his quest for the Triple Crown on Tuesday by going 3-for-4 with a home run in an 8-0 rout of Detroit. Hamilton leads the majors with a .357 average, is third in home runs (23) and ranks sixth in RBIs (69).
Hamilton and the Rangers have won three straight to open a five-game lead over the Los Angeles Angels in the AL West. It is the second-biggest division lead in baseball behind Atlanta, which leads the National League East by 6 1/2 games.
The Tigers, meanwhile, have looked lifeless since the All-Star break. Detroit managed just four hits on Tuesday en route to its seventh straight loss. The Tigers haven't lost eight straight in five years.
Their slump has pushed them 3 1/2 games back of the Chicago White Sox in the AL Central.
Detroit hopes Max Scherzer (6-7, 4.74) can get back on track and stop the bleeding. The right-hander suffered his first loss in over a month on Friday, when he allowed four runs and five hits in five innings of an 8-2 setback to Cleveland.
Scherzer allowed four runs in seven innings of a 5-4 loss to the Rangers on April 23.