Cleveland @ Detroit preview
Comerica Park
Last Meeting ( Aug 20, 2010 ) Cleveland 0, Detroit 6
The Detroit Tigers may be out of the race, but at least they’re not in the same boat as the Cleveland Indians.
The Tigers will be looking to beat up on their divisional rivals again when the teams meet on Saturday.
Firmly out of the postseason race at 12 games behind the AL Central-leading Minnesota Twins, Detroit has a lot of places to look for things that went wrong in 2010 - especially considering that it was in first place before the All-Star break.
But as bad as things have gotten for the Tigers, they still get to look down on the Indians in the standings. Cleveland is in danger of finishing in last place in its division for the first time since 1991, when the club ended up seventh in the AL East.
Grady Sizemore - the only player on the team who still has superstar potential - has missed most of the season due to injury and the offense has become a test to see which middling prospects can hit enough to maybe be a part of the team’s future.
The best prospect of the bunch, catcher Carlos Santana, is out for the rest of the season after an ugly collision at home plate resulted in season-ending knee surgery.
The pitching staff is in the same boat, with a group of young players battling to remain at the major league level.
Justin Masterson did himself no favors in that regard on Friday, as the Tigers pounded him for five runs and 11 hits in six innings en route to a 6-0 win. Miguel Cabrera drove in his major league-leading 101st run and went 2-for-4 to boost his average to .341.
Rookie Josh Tomlin will be look to prove that his hot start was not a fluke when he takes the mound for the Indians on Saturday. The 25-year-old right-hander was not a prized prospect when Cleveland summoned him from the minors on July 27, but Tomiln has proven he belongs so far, posting a 2.96 ERA in four starts. Only the Indians offense has kept him from more wins, managing an average of just over two runs per game in his starts.
Tomlin was pretty far down on the depth chart for starting pitchers in the organization to begin the season, but an 8-4 mark with a 2.68 ERA at Triple-A Columbus convinced Cleveland to give him a chance.
The Tigers will counter with a pitcher they hope will be a big part of their future in right-hander Max Scherzer.
Armed with some of the best pure stuff in the division, Scherzer has been Detroit’s top pitcher since mid-June. He has posted a 6-3 mark with a 1.97 ERA and a .209 batting average against in his last 12 starts. Scherzer has also fanned 76 batters in 77 2/3 innings.
However, his worst start during this span came against Cleveland on July 16, when he was tagged for four runs in five innings in a loss. Scherzer has lost to the Indians twice this season, getting knocked around for five runs in five innings on May 9 as well.