The Detroit Tigers claimed their third consecutive series win over the Baltimore Orioles this weekend at Comerica Park, making it seven wins in the last ten attempts in the battle for the final wildcard spot.
This week, things won’t get any easier, as AJ Hinch’s team embarks on a six-game road trip that takes them to the capital of BBQ to face the Kansas City Royals in the next three games. They are also 7-3 in their last 10 games and are now four games behind the American League Central-leading Cleveland Guardians.
The home team has a 2.5-game lead over the Minnesota Twins, making it the last wild card as the Central Division plays a bigger role in the playoffs this summer than predicted. Detroit is 2.5 games behind but loses the tiebreaker to both of the aforementioned teams.
Things are going to get tough in KC over the next few days, so hold on to your hats, Tigers fans! In the meantime, take a look at the starting pitchers lined up for this week’s series.
Detroit Tigers (77-73) at Kansas City Royals (82-68)
Times (ET): Mon: 19:40 o’clock; Tue: 19:40 o’clock; Marry: 19:40
Location: Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri
SB Nation website: Royals Review
Media: Bally Sports Detroit, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network
Game 151 Pitching Duel
| player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
| To be announced | – | – | – | – | – |
| Lugo | 193.0 | 21.7 | 5.8 | 3.27 | 4.4 |
Game 151: To be announced against RHP Seth Lugo (16-8, 2.94 ERA)
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Baseball Expert
Game 152 Pitching Duel
| player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
| Mize | 94.2 | 17.2 | 5.6 | 3.97 | 1.3 |
| Ragan’s | 173.1 | 29.6 | 8.4 | 2.99 | 4.6 |
Game 152: RHP Casey Mize (2-6, 4.47 ERA) vs. LHP Cole Ragans (11-9, 3.32 ERA)
Mize
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Ragan’s
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Game 153 Pitching Duels
| player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
| Skubal | 180.0 | 30.2 | 4.7 | 2.56 | 5.4 |
| swamp | 121.1 | 22.8 | 7.1 | 4.19 | 1.5 |
Game 153: LHP Tarik Skubal (16-4, 2.50 ERA) vs. RHP Alec Marsh (8-8, 4.52 ERA)
Skubal
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swamp
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Series outlook: A must-win series
If Detroit can’t at least win this series, it can pretty much forget about its playoff ambitions; a sweep, on the other hand, would very interesting. Both teams have been in top form recently, but the matches don’t seem to be easy for the Olde English D.
The Royals begin the week ranked 12th in OPS (.725) and 9th in runs scored (709), while the Tigers rank 23rd (.685) and 17th (635), respectively. On the pitching side, KC ranks 10th in ERA (3.85), 16th in WHIP (1.26), and 20th in batting average against (.245), versus the Olde English Ds at 3rd (3.63), 2nd (1.17), and 6th (.235), respectively.
The Tigers have only three wins in ten tries against the Royals this summer, so this opponent has obviously given the franchise some problems. However, the Detroit team we’ve seen over the past few weeks looks like a completely different team than it was earlier in the year, so hopefully they can prevail on the road this week.
