Major League Baseball?s stretch of interleague games ends this weekend, and the top series remaining has to be in Detroit, where the AL Central-leading Tigers host the NL West-leading San Francisco Giants in what could be a World Series preview. Detroit opened as a slight Bodog betting favorite for tonight?s opener.
The Giants have followed a seven-game winning streak with back-to-back losses in Chicago to the lousy Cubs, scoring just three total runs in 22 innings over those two games. There was one major bright spot in Thursday?s loss as Pablo Sandoval went 2-for-6 on Thursday and hit his first homer since coming off the disabled list. He had been struggling since coming back with 11 straight games without an extra-base hit. But he now has four doubles and a homer in his last five games. The offensively challenged Giants need his bat. Thursday?s loss had to sting has San Francisco had a 1-0 leading heading into the bottom of the ninth and a 2-1 lead going to the bottom of the 13th.
Detroit enters off losing two of three at home to the Mets. Tigers pitchers allowed 30 runs combined in the first two games, but then Justin Verlander beat the Mets 5-2 on Thursday. He finished June with a 6-0 record and a 0.92 ERA and tied the Yankees CC Sabathia for the major league lead in wins this season. But the Giants won?t have to see Verlander at all in this series.
The pitching matchup tonight is Giants lefty Madison Bumgarner (4-9, 3.84) against Tigers veteran righty Brad Penny (5-6, 4.66). Bumgarner struck out 11 on Sunday in his last outing, picking up his first home win of the season. He threw seven strong innings, allowing one run on six hits and a walk. Penny is winless in his last four outings, but has three quality starts in that stretch.
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The Giants have followed a seven-game winning streak with back-to-back losses in Chicago to the lousy Cubs, scoring just three total runs in 22 innings over those two games. There was one major bright spot in Thursday?s loss as Pablo Sandoval went 2-for-6 on Thursday and hit his first homer since coming off the disabled list. He had been struggling since coming back with 11 straight games without an extra-base hit. But he now has four doubles and a homer in his last five games. The offensively challenged Giants need his bat. Thursday?s loss had to sting has San Francisco had a 1-0 leading heading into the bottom of the ninth and a 2-1 lead going to the bottom of the 13th.
Detroit enters off losing two of three at home to the Mets. Tigers pitchers allowed 30 runs combined in the first two games, but then Justin Verlander beat the Mets 5-2 on Thursday. He finished June with a 6-0 record and a 0.92 ERA and tied the Yankees CC Sabathia for the major league lead in wins this season. But the Giants won?t have to see Verlander at all in this series.
The pitching matchup tonight is Giants lefty Madison Bumgarner (4-9, 3.84) against Tigers veteran righty Brad Penny (5-6, 4.66). Bumgarner struck out 11 on Sunday in his last outing, picking up his first home win of the season. He threw seven strong innings, allowing one run on six hits and a walk. Penny is winless in his last four outings, but has three quality starts in that stretch.
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