The Detroit Tigers are struggling. They are not the same team as they were three months ago; they just lost two of three to the lowly White Sox. The Yankees are looking to win two of three games against the Detroit Tigers, like they did against the Houston Astros and the Toronto Blue Jays.
The Yankees should be able to win at least one of these games against the Detroit Tigers, because Carlos Rodon has an advantage in the second game. President Donald Trump will be at the third game on September 11 between the New York Yankees and Detroit Tigers. How many games in this series do you think the Yankees will win?
Detroit Tigers and New York Yankees Pitching Preview
In the first game of the series, the Detroit Tigers will start Casey Mize against Will Warren. Mize has the advantage in this game. He is 13-5 with a 3.87 earned run average. Though it is worth noting, Mize has only 110 strikeouts in 125.2 innings pitched. So, he is not a strikeout pitcher, which should benefit the Yankees, who strike out a bunch. Mize is coming off a horrid 7-0 loss against the Athletics.
Mize is being opposed by Warren. Warren has been hot and cold for the Yankees this year, but on balance, he has been good. He was so-so in his last start against the Houston Astros, pitching only five innings. It is a good thing that with an off day before the series against the Detroit Tigers, the bullpen should be well-rested. Overall, Warren is 8-6 with a 4.28 earned run average. He does have 153 strikeouts in 141 innings pitched.
In the second game of the series, the Yankees have the advantage with Carlos Rodon starting against Jack Flaherty. Flaherty is only 7-13 for the Detroit Tigers this season. He has not been good of late, losing five of his last six outings. Flaherty is being opposed by Rodon. What can we say about Rodon? He has been a bulldog recently for the Yankees and is 16-7 with a 3.12 earned run average.
In the third game of the series, on September 11, President Trump is scheduled to throw out the first pitch, and the Yankees may need a big start from their starter Cam Schlittler, who is being opposed by Mr. To-be-Determined. If Schlitter pitches like he did two and three starts ago, he will be fine. If he labors, like he did in his last outing, the Yankees will struggle to win.
Hitting Preview
The Yankees seem to be rounding into hitting form, and their entire batting order is dangerous. It is particularly important to point out that if Aaron Judge plays right field, then Giancarlo Stanton can be the designated hitter. The Tigers are led by the dangerous Riley Greene, who has a .267 batting average but 32 home runs. Spencer Torkelson has 28 home runs.
Conclusion
The Detroit Tigers have a comfortable 8.5-game lead in the American League Central. However, it is important to point out that they just lost two out of three games to the Chicago White Sox. The Yankees, on the other hand, just took two of three games from the American League East-leading Toronto Blue Jays right after they took two games from the Houston Astros. The Yankees are the hotter team coming into this series, and should prevail in this important series as well. Luckily, they get to avoid Detroit ace Tarik Skubal.
