Yankees at Tigers
CC Sabathia makes his return to the mound when he leads the New York Yankees into the second of three straight at the Detroit Tigers on Saturday. Sabathia left the Yankees late last season to enter alcohol rehab, putting a stamp on another tough year for the veteran left-hander, who was given the last spot in the 2016 rotation despite posting a 5.51 ERA during spring training.
"There was a lot of discussion," New York manager Joe Girardi told reporters after choosing Sabathia over Ivan Nova. "A lot of it came down to CC's September last year. He's been there so many times." Each of the first four Yankees starters have failed to last six innings and their bats have been incredibly inconsistent so far, recording a total of three runs in two losses and 24 runs in two wins. They managed three hits - all singles - in Friday's 4-0 loss in the series opener. Miguel Cabrera slugged his first home run of the season for Detroit, which improved to 3-0 for the third straight year.
TV: 1:10 p.m. ET, MLB Network, YES (New York), FSN Detroit Plus
PITCHING MATCHUP: Yankees LH CC Sabathia (2015: 6-10, 4.73 ERA) vs. Tigers RH Mike Pelfrey (2015: 6-11, 4.26)
Sabathia was 2-1 with a 2.17 ERA in five September starts before electing to enter rehab, allowing one earned run or fewer in four of those outings. His longest start of the year was an eight-inning effort at Detroit on April 20, when he let up two runs in a hard-luck loss. The 35-year-old is 10-6 with a 3.88 ERA all-time at Comerica Park, but has been roughed up by Cabrera (10-for-32 with two homers and 12 RBIs) and shortstop Jose Iglesias (6-for-13).
Pelfrey, who signed a two-year deal in December, made 30 starts with Minnesota last year, the first time he reached that mark since 2011. He was 2-7 with a 5.93 ERA after the All-Star break while giving up 123 hits in just 82 innings. The Wichita State product, who had a 2.66 ERA in five Grapefruit League outings, is 1-4 with a 5.91 ERA in six career starts in Detroit.
WALK-OFFS
1. Tigers 2B Ian Kinsler is 7-for-15 with four runs scored and four RBIs on the season.
2. New York DH Alex Rodriguez was given the day off in the series opener.
3. The Yankees are 62-38 in the last 100 meetings and 16-4-4 in the previous 24 seasons series.