Tigers & Twins going down to the wire…
Written by The Go-To-Man Mattie T. on October 4, 2009
This is what baseball is all about.
On the 162nd & final day of the 2009 Major League Baseball season, the AL Central title could be decided today depending on what happens between the Detroit Tigers & the Minnesota Twins.
The Tigers are in danger of becoming the first team in baseball to hold a division lead since May 10th & lose it in the final week with a loss or Minnesota win today.
First things first, they must find a way to beat Ozzie Guillen’s Chicago White Sox, who will look to finish their season with a 3-game sweep today.
Detroit will send Justin Verlander (18-9, 3.45) to the mound, while Chicago will counter with John Danks (13-10, 3.69).
Verlander has been dominant against the White Sox this season, as he is 2-0 in 2 starts with a 0.50 ERA & has a 2.76 ERA in 15 CoAmerica Park starts.
Danks is coming off the first complete game of his career, as he allowed just 1 run on 3 hits during Chicago’s 6-1 win over Cleveland on September 28th.
The Minnesota Twins will look to finish off a 3-game sweep of Kansas City today, as veteran Carl Pavano (13-12, 5.07) will face Luke Hochevar (7-12, 6.24).
Pavano is 4-4 in 11 starts with a 4.50 ERA since joining Minnesota on August 7th via trade & is 3-4 in 7 career starts against Kansas City with a 7.17 ERA.
Pavano has struggled against the Royals this season, as he’s 3-3 against them in 6 starts with a 6.63 ERA & 7 home runs given up, which is his highest total among all opposing MLB teams.
Hochevar has been lit up for a 8.16 ERA this month in 5 starts, but is 1-0 in 2 starts against Minnesota this season with a 1.93 ERA.
If both Detroit & Minnesota win today, a tiebreaker game for the AL Central title will be held on Tuesday at the Metrodome at 4PM CST, as the winner will face the New York Yankees in the American League Divisional Series.
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