Indians at Orioles
Chris Davis continues his torrid home run pace to lead the Baltimore Orioles into playoff contention as they near the midpoint of the season. Davis looks to add to his major league-leading 28 homers when the Orioles host the Cleveland Indians in the third of a four-game series on Wednesday. Davis became the fifth player since 2001 with 28 homers or more before the end of June after belting a two-run blast in Baltimore's 6-3 victory.
The Indians gave away a three-run lead Tuesday, but remained 3 1/2 games behind the first-place Detroit Tigers in the American League Central. Jason Kipnis has led the way for the productive Cleveland offense, going 12-for-23 with nine RBIs in the last seven games. Indians shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera, who has been sidelined since June 3 with a strained right quadriceps muscle, could be activated for Wednesday's game.
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, SportsTime Ohio (Cleveland), MASN2 (Baltimore)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Indians LH Scott Kazmir (4-4, 5.37 ERA) vs. Orioles RH Jason Hammel (7-4, 5.30)
After three straight rough starts, Kazmir responded by allowing one run and five hits over seven innings to beat Minnesota on Friday. The left-hander, who came into the season without a victory since 2010, has surrendered 13 homers in 62 innings. Nick Markakis is 10-for-21 with two homers and seven RBIs against Kazmir, who is 5-5 with a 4.80 ERA in 15 starts vs. Baltimore.
Hammel has struggled in his last four starts, going 0-2 while yielding 15 runs and seven homers over 21 2/3 innings. The right-hander has not been successful at home this season, posting a 1-3 mark and 7.09 ERA. Hammel is 0-3 with a 6.20 ERA lifetime versus Cleveland in seven appearances (three starts) and Drew Stubbs has recorded two homers and two doubles in 14 at-bats against him.
WALK-OFFS
1. Baltimore CF Adam Jones has not been issued a walk since May 18, including 152 plate appearances.
2. Cleveland INF Mark Reynolds, who played for the Orioles the last two seasons, has been on base five of eight at-bats in his first two games against his former team.
3. Orioles RHP Jim Johnson is 12-for-12 in save opportunities since struggling in May and leads the American League with 27 overall.