Tigers at Indians
The Cleveland Indians are on the upswing again with a dominant five-game winning streak and look to continue building their lead in the American League Central Saturday when they host the Detroit Tigers. The Indians have outscored all division opponents 38-6 during their streak after posting a second straight shutout while scoring in double digits in each contest.
Yonder Alonso belted a grand slam for one of Cleveland’s three homers in Friday’s 10-0 triumph and is a robust 6-for-12 with six RBIs over the last three games while Edwin Encarnacion and Francisco Lindor also went deep in the win. Trevor Bauer looks to knock off the Tigers for the fourth time in 2018 when he takes the mound Saturday for the Indians against veteran left-hander Francisco Liriano (hamstring), who comes off the disabled list for his first appearance in four weeks. Second-place Detroit has dropped three in a row after winning its previous five to fall six games behind Cleveland in the division. The Tigers managed just one double and four singles in Friday’s setback, but shortstop Jose Iglesias extended his hitting streak to five games in which he is 8-for-19.
TV: 6:10 p.m. ET, FS Detroit, STO (Cleveland)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Tigers LH Francisco Liriano (3-2, 3.90 ERA) vs. Indians RH Trevor Bauer (6-5, 2.50)
Liriano is winless in his last five starts after allowing five runs on six hits (three homers) and three walks over five innings of an 8-4 loss to the Chicago White Sox on May 26 in his last outing. The 34-year-old Dominican Republic native has already faced the Indians twice this year, going 0-1 with a 6.10 ERA, and owns a 2.59 ERA on the road as opposed to 5.47 at home. Rajai Davis is 14-for-39 with a homer versus Liriano, who is 5-7 with a 4.39 ERA in 22 career games (17 starts) against the Indians.
Bauer has alternated wins over the last four starts, including eight innings of one-run ball at Detroit on June 8 for the last of his three wins over the Tigers in 2018. The 27-year-old UCLA product has struck out at least 10 in five of his last seven starts, totaling 74 of his 129 on the season (100 2/3 innings), and boasts a .206 batting average against. Leonys Martin is 7-for-11 with a pair of doubles against Bauer, who is 7-5 with a 5.95 ERA in 15 career appearances (14 starts) versus the Tigers.
WALK-OFFS
1. Detroit OF JaCoby Jones had a double Friday and has hit safely in each of the last eight games in which he had an official at-bat.
2. Cleveland 3B Jose Ramirez saw his three-game hitting streak end Friday, but has reached base in a career-high 29 straight contests.
3. The Tigers are 3-8 against the Indians this season and have dropped 35 of 48 meetings with their division rivals since the start of 2016.