This series will feature a team that’s just treading water and another that’s just started to make a surge. The Boston Red Sox have begun their assent up the AL East rankings and are playing good baseball right now while the Detroit Tigers continue to hold steady around .500, unable to get consistent enough pitching to put any positive streak together.
This series will be contested from Friday, June 9, 2017 through Sunday, June 11, 2017 at Fenway Park in Boston. Friday’s game will be available on MLB Network with the games on Saturday and Sunday also on national television, covered by FOX and ESPN respectively.
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Pitching Matchups
The series will kick off on Friday with Chris Sale toeing the rubber at home opposite of Jordan Zimmermann on the road. If you go back a couple years, this would be a premier matchup, but with how both guys are throwing right now, it’s one of the biggest mismatches of the weekend.
Sale is being everything the Sox were hoping for and more. He’s 7-2 with a 2.89 ERA. He’s already struck out 119 in 84 innings has a 0.929 WHIP, 1.83 FIP and has a strikeout to walk ratio of seven.
The southpaw was really lights out early in the year. He’s been more hittable lately, allowing three or more runs in three straight games and striking out fewer than 10 batters in three straight games, after stringing together 10 or more in eight in a row.
Spending his career until now in the AL Central, Sale has plenty of experience against the Tigers. He’s 8-8 overall with a 3.01 ERA and 1.101 WHIP.
As for Zimmermann, following a good first month last year, it’s not been a good run in Detroit. Injuries impacted him last year and he’s pitching to a 5.98 ERA and 1.557 WHIP so far in 2017.
Somehow, Zimmermann’s managed to go 5-4, but his FIP is actually higher than his ERA indicating that he’s actually pitched worse than the nearly six earned runs a game he’s averaging.
It’s been somewhat of a Jekyll and Hyde season for Zimmermann. He allowed one run in six strong innings in his last start and preceded that with a seven-run, five inning stint. Before that, it was two runs in six innings. Unfortunately, it’s been more bad than good.
Zimmerman has a 4.84 career ERA against the Sox.
On Saturday, the Tigers are expecting to send Justin Verlander to the mound though he left last game with groin tightness and could be scratched.
For now, it’s his game. He hasn’t really been himself this year. He’s 4-4 with a 4.63 ERA and 1.457 WHIP. He’s walking way too many people with 33 to his 66 strikeouts in 70 innings.
The Sox’s starter is also dealing with some injury concern. He left a start at Triple-A this weekend with a hamstring injury. Brian Johnson is likely to get the start. He’s allowed four runs in 12 innings over two major league starts this year.
The series will wrap up with action on Sunday night featuring southpaws Drew Pomeranz and Daniel Norris.
Pomeranz got the win over the Yankees on Tuesday night, but labored through five innings. The Yankees’ made him work and he often bent, but did not break.
Overall, he’s 6-3 with a 4.02 ERA. He’s been throwing the ball pretty well and, aside from Sale and Craig Kimbrel, has the best strikeout rate on the team, meaning he can get the big K when needed.
Norris isn’t as much of a strikeout pitcher and is just 2-4 with a 4.48 ERA. His walks are up and so is his opponents’ batting average, but the 24-year old is coming off a quality start against the Angels and has allowed three runs or less in three straight games.
Who's Hot?
Andrew Benintendi has found his power stroke. He’s second on the team in home runs with eight. Power hasn’t been the team’s forte so far, but that’s starting to change as the weather warms up.
The rookie leftfielder is a good example. He’s slammed three home runs over the last week. Homers count for half of his hits in that time frame.
Another batter that’s been swinging it well this week is Jackie Bradley Jr. who is 7-for-20 in the last six games. In the last 30 days, he’s hitting .275 with six homers, tied with Mooke Betts for team lead in that time.
Between Benintendi, Bradley and Betts, the Red Sox’s outfield is clicking.
Another Sox player cruising along is Craig Kimbrel. The closer is the best in baseball right now. He struck out five batters on Tuesday, getting four outs with one reaching on a strikeout and passed ball. He’s striking out two thirds of the batters he’s faced.
Just when it looked like the magic was wearing off for Alex Avila, he’s slammed three homers in his last four games and is 5-for-14 overall in that time, adding a double as well.
J.D. Martinez continues to mash and Justin Upton’s bat is ticking up again. The corner outfielders are a combined 15-for-37 in the last week with four home runs and 11 extra bases.
Who's Not?
Deven Marrero isn’t performing. He’s been called upon to help fill in for Dustin Pedroia and Pablo Sandoval and is hitting.165 with a .521 OPS. Over the last week, he’s just 1-for-17.
Another option for the void at second is Josh Rutledge. He’s just 2-for-12 in the last week himself.
The Tigers continue to have issues in the bullpen. Alex Wilson has allowed three runs and five hits over his last two appearances though the rest of the pen has done well this last week.
Offensively, Nick Castellanos is batting .176 in his last 25 games with just four extra base hits in 91 at bats.
Centerfield remains an issue for the Tigers, too. Tyler Collins is finally gone after hitting .104 over his last 16 games, but Alex Presley is hardly a reliable answer. The journeyman has been good in his first few games, but is a career .253 hitter and hit .198 last year in 50 games.
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