Boston @ Detroit preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 16, 2013 ) Boston 3, Detroit 7

The pitchers who set the tone for this American League Championship Series oppose each other again Thursday night when Anibal Sanchez takes the mound for host Detroit against Jon Lester of Boston in Game 5. Sanchez struck out 12 in six no-hit innings in the opener and Lester also was strong as the Tigers squeaked out a 1-0 victory. Detroit center fielder Austin Jackson reached base four times as the Tigers evened the series with a 7-3 victory Wednesday.

Detroit’s Jhonny Peralta singled in the lone run against Lester in the opener, a contest in which Sanchez walked six and was pulled after 116 pitches. Jackson’s standout Game 4 performance in which he had two hits, two walks and two RBIs came after he was dropped to eighth in the lineup due to a deep postseason slump (3-for-33, 18 strikeouts). Boston slugger David Ortiz was hitless in five at-bats in Game 4 to drop to 1-for-15 in the series – his only hit being the game-tying grand slam in Game 2. The Red Sox had 12 hits to match their total over the first three games but went 2-for-16 with runners in scoring position and left 10 men on base.

TV: 8:07 p.m. ET, Fox

PITCHING MATCHUP: Red Sox LH Jon Lester (0-1, 1.42 ERA) vs. Tigers RH Anibal Sanchez (1-0, 0.00)

Lester allowed one run and six hits in 6 1/3 innings in Game 1 and has given up just three runs in 14 postseason innings this month. The opener marked his first loss since Aug. 29 as he finished the regular season by allowing two or fewer earned runs in seven of his last 10 starts and has added two such performances in the postseason. That stretch included a Sept. 3 start when Lester struck out nine and allowed one run in seven innings to beat the Tigers.

Sanchez joined Walter Johnson (12 innings in 1924 World Series) as the only pitchers to strike out 12 and walk six in the same playoff game. The stellar outing represented a sharp turnaround from his start against Oakland in the AL Division Series when he allowed six runs (five earned) and eight hits – including three homers – in 4 1/3 innings. Sanchez has struck out 10 or more batters six times this season.

WALK-OFFS

1. Red Sox CF Jacoby Ellsbury went 4-for-5 with an RBI in Game 4 after going 1-for-10 over the first three games.

2. Tigers RF Torii Hunter batted leadoff for the first time since 1999 and had a crucial two-run double in Detroit’s five-run, second-inning uprising.

3. Boston batters have fanned 10 times or more in all four games and 53 overall in the series.

PREDICTION: Tigers 2, Red Sox 1