A pair of right-handers are set to take the hill in the final game of a four-game set in the Bronx.
Detroit Tigers at New York Yankees
Detroit suffered a 9-5 loss to the Yankees last night and the team finishes a seven-game road trip with the final game of a four-game series at Yankee Stadium this afternoon. The team continues to be led by All-Star first baseman Miguel Cabrera, who launched two home runs in Wednesday’s contest. He enters today’s game hitting .348 with 18 home runs and 54 RBI in 56 games on the road this season. The Tigers will be playing just their fourth game as a road underdog of +200 to +225 this season, producing a 1-2 record in those games (+20) and a 1-3 mark over the last three years (-80). The club is 27-22 in day games this season (+200) and the total stands at 21-25 O/U in those contests. Detroit is averaging 4.7 runs per game and hitting for a combined .270 average under the sun in 2010.
Tigers starting pitcher Rick Porcello is 5-10 with a 5.53 ERA in 19 starts this season and the club has won his last two outings. In those starts, he has allowed five runs (four earned) and 17 hits over 13 innings of work. The right-hander is 1-5 with a 6.35 ERA in eight road outings, allowing opponents to hit for a .323 average. Porcello enters his start this afternoon giving up 11.4 hits per nine innings, compared to 9.3 hits per nine innings he allowed during his rookie campaign in 2009. He will be making his 12th daytime start, producing a 4-5 record and 5.12 ERA. In two career appearances versus the Yankees, the second-year starter is an even 1-1 with a 5.06 ERA.
New York has won two of the first three games in this series by piling up 15 runs and hitting five home runs in order to keep pace with the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL East divisional race. “Our offense hasn’t been clicking exactly the way we’d like it the last few weeks, so it’s nice to score some runs the last two nights,” first baseman Mark Teixeira said. He has led the offense over a majority of the season, reaching base in 57 of his past 61 games. Shortstop Derek Jeter has stepped up his performance by hitting safely in 14 of his last 19 games and scoring 15 runs over that span. The Yankees are 28-15 in day games this season (+320) and the total is an even 20-20 O/U in that span. The club is also an impressive 50-29 when facing right-handed starters in 2010 and 181-123 the last three years (+1,210).
Yankees starting pitcher Phil Hughes is 14-5 with a 3.94 ERA in 22 starts this season and the club has alternated wins and losses over his last seven outings. He tallied an 8-3 road victory over the Royals last time out, giving up three runs and nine hits in six innings while failing to record a single strikeout for the first time all year. The right-hander is 8-3 with a 4.79 ERA in 13 home starts this season, issuing 24 walks and striking out 61 in 77 frames. He will be making his eighth daytime start of the year, notching a 5-1 record and 4.04 ERA. In six career games (four starts) against the Tigers, he is 3-2 with a 3.86 ERA, including an 8-0 victory at Comerica Park on May 12.
Bettors will find the Tigers being a disappointing 7-16 on the road when the total is 9 to 9.5 (-680) this season and the total stands at 9-11 O/U in those games. It will be hard to ignore the Bronx Bombers 23-11 mark at home with the same total and the team’s 8-1 record as a home favorite of -225 to -250 (+560).
