Tigers and Orioles kick-off MLB’s second half at Camden Yards
MLB Weekend Series Preview- Detroit Tigers vs. Baltimore Orioles
This three-game matchup that gets underway at Camden Yards on Friday night features a couple of AL contenders that need to string together some wins to close the gap in their division. The Tigers trail Chicago by three games in the AL Central and the Orioles are in second-place in the AL East, but a full seven games behind New York.
Series Overview
Detroit brings a five-game winning streak into this series including a three-game sweep of Kansas City to close-out the first half of the season. This recent run has raised the Tigers’ overall record to 44-42 on the year. They are now an even 22-22 on the road this season.
Baltimore is just 4-6 in its last 10 games after dropping three of four on the road to the Angels right before the All-Star break. It is now just five games over .500 at 45-40 and feeling the heat from the rest of the division below as well as the Yankees up above. The Orioles are 22-20 at home this season.
Daily Starters
Friday, July 13
Doug Fister vs. Jason Hammel
Fister comes into this matchup 2-6 on the year with a 4.75 ERA. The right-hander has given-up a total of 18 earned runs on 27 hits in his last three outings after giving-up three or less earned runs in six of his previous seven starts. He is 2-1 against the Orioles with an ERA of 4.68.
Hammel has been one of Baltimore’s top starters all season long, but especially in his last 10 games. The right-hander has not allowed more than four earned runs in nine of those outings and posted one or less runs in four of those starts. Overall, he is 8-5 with a 3.47 ERA in 17 previous starts.
Saturday, July 14
Max Scherzer vs. Wei-Yin Chen
Scherzer has recorded six quality outings in his last seven starts including a five-hit and one-run effort his last time out against Kansas City. The right-hander is 8-5 overall with a 4.74 ERA in 17 starts. He is 2-1 with a 4.05 ERA lifetime against Baltimore.
Chen’s fast start has given way to a couple of rough patches over his past few outings, but the rookie still comes in with an overall ERA of 3.93 with a 7-5 record in a total of 17 starts. The left-hander has been tagged with 13 earned runs in his last three starts.
Sunday, July 15
Justin Verlander vs. Chris Tillman
The Tigers’ ace got rocked in this week’s All-Star Game with a five-run first inning barrage, but he should be able to quickly return to form for Sunday’s start. Overall, Verlander is 9-5 with a 2.58 ERA in 18 starts. The right-hander is a perfect 6-0 with a 3.05 ERA lifetime against the Orioles.
Tillman made his MLB season debut on July 4 and held Seattle to just two unearned runs on two hits in over eight innings of work. The right-hander is 8-9 with a 3.79 ERA in 16 minor league starts this season.
The Tigers are 5-2 in their last seven road games against a right-handed starter and the total has stayed ‘under’ in their last six games against the Al East. The Orioles are 4-9 in their last 13 games overall and 3-8 in their last 11 games against a right-handed starter. The total has gone ‘over’ in four of their last six home games.
Head-to-head, these two have evenly split the last 10 games 5-5, but Baltimore has already beaten Detroit two out of three games on the road this season. The total has gone ‘over’ in five of the last six meetings.
Dave Schwab
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