Boston Red Sox (27-22) @ Detroit Tigers (24-16)
Alfredo Aceves (1-0, 2.42) @ Max Scherzer (6-1, 2.98)
1:05 PM EDT |Comerics Park (Detroit, MI)
TV: NESN, MLB Network RADIO: WEEI 850, WWZN 1510
INJURY REPORT
Detroit: Phil Coke,(Placed on the 15 day DL May 24th) ;Brad Thomas, left elbow inflammation (Placed on the 15 day DL May 21st retroactive to May 11th); Carlos Guillen, recovering from knee surgery (Placed on the 15 day DL March 30th); Magglio Ordonez, right ankle weakness (Placed on the 15 day DL May 13th retroactive to May 11th)
Boston: Darnell McDonald, sore left quad (Placed on the 15 day DL May 26th); J.D. Drew, strained right hamstring (Day-to day, missed Wednesday’s game); Daisuke Matsuzaka, sprained elbow (Placed on the 15 day DL May 17th); John Lackey, strained elbow (Placed on the 15 day DL May 16th, retroactive May 12th) to Marco Scutaro, strained left oblique (Placed on the 15 day DL May 8th); Dan Wheeler, strained calf (Placed on the 15 day DL May 5th); Bobby Jenks, bicep soreness (Placed on 15 day DL May 5th, retroactive to May 2nd); Felix Doubront, left groin strain (Placed on the 7 day DL on May 11)
GAME NOTES
It may be impossible for the Boston Red Sox to look as good as they did yesterday in Cleveland. The team pounded out twenty hits and plated fourteen runs, seven of them in the first inning. Jon Lester picked up his major league leading seventh win, and the Sox took two of three from the best team in baseball. Now, it’s on to Detroit, where the Sox will face three tough pitchers over the weekend at Comerica Park. The first of these hurlers is Max Scherzer, who leads the Tigers with six wins. He carries a 2.98 into the afternoon and has sixty strikeouts in sixty-three innings. He took a loss in his last start, giving up three runs in five and two-third innings in an interleague matchup against Pittsburgh. With John Lackey and Daisuke Matsuzaka still absent, Boston sends Alfredo Aceves to the mound. Aceves pitched well Saturday against the Cubs, giving up only one run in five innings of work. He has a 1-0 record and a 2.42 ERA. J.D. Drew is still nursing his sore hamstring as he sits out this afternoon. Darnell McDonald, who has not seen much playing time this season, heads to the DL with a sore left quad. Josh Reddick was recalled from Pawtucket and will patrol right field today in Drew’s place. He’ll bat eighth. Jed Lowrie also gets a day off as Drew Sutton starts at short and bats seventh. Carl Crawford will hit sixth for the second day in a row.
Lineups
Red Sox
- Jacoby Ellsbury, CF
- Dustin Pedroia, 2B
- Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
- David Ortiz, DH
- Jed Lowrie, SS
- Carl Crawford, LF
- Josh Reddick, RF
- Drew Sutton, SS
- Jason Varitek, C
Detroit
- Austin Jackson, CF
- Don Kelly, LF
- Brennan Boesch, RF
- Miguel Cabrera, 1B
- Victor Martinez, DH
- Jhonny Peralta, SS
- Alex Avila, C
- Scott Sizemore, 2B
- Brandon Inge, 3B
Stats
-Aceves’s 3.22 BB/9 is up from a career mark of 2.31.
-Carl Crawford is batting .308 in May.
-Detroit’s 16 stolen bases are third least in the majors. Only the Braves and the Cubs have fewer.
-No one on the Sox has more than seven at bats against Scherzer. Ortiz is 3-5, Cameron is 2-6.
-Jacoby Ellsbury has the identical amount of homers and RBI’s as Andre Ethier: 4 and 22.
-Scherzer is 3-0 with a 0.77 ERA at Comerica Park this year.
-Boston has outscored their opponents 74-41 over their last twelve games.
-Detroit has scored thirteen runs in their last two games. Boston scored fourteen runs yesterday.
-The Tigers have lost four straight to Boston.
-The Red Sox can claim a stake of first place with a win today as the Yankees are idle.
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