GDT: 5/9/09 - DET (15-13) AT CLE (11-19) - 7:05 p.m. ET

CLEVELAND -- Rarely, if ever, has Jim Leyland had this many left-handed hitters to line up against a pitcher since he took over as the Tigers' manager. With Indians sinkerballer Fausto Carmona due up on Saturday night, he plans on using most of them.

"A whole bunch of them -- almost all of them," Leyland said.

On Saturday, Clete Thomas is expected back in right field, where he's been for most of the week and provided an infusion of speed from the No. 3 spot in the Tigers order. Speedy outfielder Josh Anderson will likely be back in left field, and Jeff Larish could be in at first base, giving Miguel Cabrera a day at designated hitter and Magglio Ordonez a rare day off.

The stats back it up. Left-handed hitters are batting .329 against Carmona this year, compared with the .206 average posted by right-handed batters. The trend follows the splits Carmona put up the previous two seasons -- his lefty-righty averages for his career are .291 and .236, respectively.

That's how the Tigers plan to attack the right-hander, whose 6-2 career record against Detroit comprises more than one-fifth of his 29 career Major League wins and an unbeaten streak against the Tigers that dates back to 2007. If it works, it'll be a welcome change from the left-handed dominance the Tigers have seen over their last two games, in which Mark Buehrle and Cliff Lee have combined to hold them to one run over 18 innings.

If that test isn't intriguing enough, the matchup opposite Tigers right-hander Edwin Jackson could be another.

While Jackson has only one victory against the Indians, his 3.08 ERA against Cleveland is his lowest against any opponent over at least four career starts. His two outings at Progressive Field featured 8 2/3 innings of one-run ball with nine strikeouts, though he hasn't pitched here since 2007.

Jackson enters this game on about as much of a roll as a 1-2 starter could at this point in the season. He has entered the seventh inning having allowed one or no runs in three of his last four starts, yet he has only one win to show for it. His average of 4.5 runs of support per nine innings as the pitcher of record ranks near the bottom among American League starters, though it still tops Lee's support.

If Carmona picks up where he left off against the Tigers last season, when he had three wins and a no-decision against Detroit, then Jackson could have more struggles. But this is where the Tigers' balance comes in handy -- not just lefty-righty, but with speed and power. They manufactured a run on the basepaths to defeat Lee on Friday night. They could easily try to do the same against Carmona.



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Pitching matchup

DET: RHP Edwin Jackson (1-2, 3.08 ERA)
Jackson has allowed one run or none through six innings in four of his six starts as a Tiger, but has a lone win to show it thanks to one of the lowest run support totals in the American League. His latest defeat came Monday, when he took a 1-1 game against the Twins into the seventh inning before Minnesota plated five runs to take charge. Jackson has a start and a relief appearance for his career at Progressive Field, holding the Indians to a run on eight hits over 8 2/3 innings with nine strikeouts.

CLE: RHP Fausto Carmona (1-3, 6.11 ERA)
Carmona received a no-decision against the Blue Jays Monday in his last start. He allowed four runs on eight hits over 6 2/3 innings. The right-hander walked one, struck out three and tossed 96 pitches in the outing. Carmona has logged at least six innings in each of his last four starts.
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Tidbits

...The Tigers have yet to lose a weekend game this season, going a combined 8-0 on Saturdays and Sundays.
... Placido Polanco has hit safely in his last seven games, going 9-for-28 with three doubles over that streak. His 13 doubles are one off the AL lead.
... Brandon Inge's fourth-inning single on Friday snapped an 0-for-14 slump.

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Up next (Probable Pitchers)

• Sunday: Tigers (RHP Rick Porcello, 2-3, 4.71 ERA) at Indians (RHP Anthony Reyes, 1-0, 6.84 ERA), 1:05 p.m. ET
• Monday: Off-day
• Tuesday: Tigers (RHP Armando Galarraga, 3-2, 4.08 ERA) at Twins (TBA), 8:10 p.m. ET

STARTING LINEUPS:

Ordonez sits, Granderson bats 5th

Manager Jim Leyland followed through with his plans to get in as many left-handed bats as he could against Fausto Carmona. That means Jeff Larish getting a day at first base, Miguel Cabrera a day at designated hitter, and Magglio Ordonez a day out of the lineup. Josh Anderson will lead off for the second time this week, with Curtis Granderson hitting fifth.

"Carmona, that's a tough ticket whyen you're going good, let alone when you're struggling," Leyland said.

Adam Everett is also sitting in favor of Ramon Santiago, but it isn't for his health. He said Luis Valbuena's hard but clean side got him in his left ankle, the one he sprained in Spring Training, but it didn't do much damage. If he didn't have the ankle taped because of the sprain, it would've easily been worse.

Don't be surprised to see the Tigers on the run again if they get guys on base, especially Anderson, Thomas and Granderson. Victor Martinez is back behind the plate, where he has thrown out one out of 10 would-be basestealers so far this season.

TIGERS

1. Anderson, LF
   
2. Polanco, 2B
   
3. Thomas, RF
   
4. Cabrera, DH
   
5. Granderson, CF
   
6. Larish, 1B
   
7. Inge, 3B
   
8. Laird, C
   
9. Santiago, SS
   

P: Edwin Jackson


INDIANS

1. Grady Sizemore, CF
   
2. Asdrubal Cabrera, SS
   
3. Victor Martinez, C
   
4. Shin-Soo Choo, RF
   
5. Mark DeRosa, 3B
   
6. David Dellucci, DH
   
7. Ryan Garko, 1B
   
8. Ben Francisco, LF
   
9. Luis Valbuena, 2B
   

P: Fausto Carmona


By the way, it's really windy and cooling off in Cleveland. The flags suggest the breeze is either coming from left or blowing left to right.

• Posted on May 9, 2009 at 6:04 PM
  

Hopefully Edwin can pitch almost as good as Justin last night. And some run support from our lineup would be well appreciated.

Run support is the key!

Inning 1
Top Half

B:0 S:1 O:1 -
Josh Anderson grounds out softly, third baseman Mark DeRosa to first baseman Ryan Garko.

B:1 S:0 O:1 -
Placido Polanco singles on a line drive to left fielder Ben Francisco.

B:0 S:2 O:2 - Clete Thomas grounds into a force out,
second baseman Luis Valbuena to shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera. Placido
Polanco out at 2nd. Clete Thomas to 1st.

B:3 S:2 O:2 -
With Miguel Cabrera batting, Clete Thomas steals (1) 2nd base.

B:3 S:2 O:3 -
Miguel Cabrera grounds out, first baseman Ryan Garko to pitcher Fausto Carmona.
Bottom Half

B:1 S:3 O:1 -
Grady Sizemore strikes out swinging.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Asdrubal Cabrera flies out to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

B:1 S:0 O:3 -
Victor Martinez grounds out, first baseman Jeff Larish to pitcher Edwin Jackson.

0-0 after 1 inning

Inning 2
Top Half

B:4 S:1 O:0 -
Curtis Granderson walks.


B:2 S:1 O:1 -
Jeff Larish lines out to center fielder Grady Sizemore.


B:2 S:0 O:2 - With Brandon Inge batting, Curtis
Granderson caught stealing 2nd base, catcher Victor Martinez to second
baseman Luis Valbuena.


B:3 S:3 O:3 -
Brandon Inge on foul tip.

Bottom Half

B:0 S:1 O:0 -
Shin-Soo Choo singles on a line drive to center fielder Curtis Granderson.


B:2 S:2 O:1 -
Mark DeRosa flies out to right fielder Clete Thomas.


B:3 S:1 O:2 -
David Dellucci pops out to shortstop Ramon Santiago.


B:1 S:2 O:3 -
Ryan Garko pops out to second baseman Placido Polanco.

0-0 after 2 innings

Inning 3
Top Half

B:1 S:0 O:1 -
Gerald Laird flies out to right fielder Shin-Soo Choo.


B:4 S:1 O:1 -
Ramon Santiago walks.


B:1 S:2 O:2 - Josh Anderson grounds into a force out,
pitcher Fausto Carmona to shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera. Ramon Santiago
out at 2nd. Josh Anderson to 1st.


B:4 S:1 O:2 -
Placido Polanco walks. Josh Anderson to 2nd.


B:0 S:0 O:3 -
Clete Thomas grounds out, second baseman Luis Valbuena to first baseman Ryan Garko.

0-0

Bottom Half

B:1 S:0 O:0 -
Ben Francisco singles on a line drive to left fielder Josh Anderson.

B:1 S:3 O:1 -
Luis Valbuena strikes out on foul tip. Ben Francisco steals (5) 2nd base.

B:0 S:3 O:2 -
Grady Sizemore on foul tip.

B:2 S:3 O:3 -
Asdrubal Cabrera swinging.

0-0 after 3 innings

Inning 4
Top Half

B:1 S:2 O:0 -
Miguel Cabrera singles on a ground ball to left fielder Ben Francisco.

B:3 S:2 O:0 -
Curtis Granderson singles on a line drive to pitcher Fausto Carmona. Miguel Cabrera to 2nd.

B:3 S:2 O:0 -
Injury Delay.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Jeff Larish flies out to left fielder Ben Francisco.

B:1 S:1 O:3 - Brandon Inge grounds into double play,
third baseman Mark DeRosa to second baseman Luis Valbuena to first
baseman Ryan Garko. Curtis Granderson out at 2nd.

0-0

Bottom Half

B:2 S:2 O:1 -
Victor Martinez grounds out softly, second baseman Placido Polanco to first baseman Jeff Larish.

B:1 S:1 O:1 -
Shin-Soo Choo doubles (7) on a line drive to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

B:1 S:2 O:2 -
Mark DeRosa grounds out, third baseman Brandon Inge to first baseman Jeff Larish.

B:2 S:2 O:3 -
David Dellucci flies out to left fielder Josh Anderson.

0-0 after 4 innings

Inning 5
Top Half

B:1 S:3 O:1 -
Gerald Laird called out on .

B:2 S:3 O:2 -
Ramon Santiago swinging.

B:1 S:1 O:3 -
Josh Anderson grounds out, second baseman Luis Valbuena to first baseman Ryan Garko.

0-0

Bottom Half

B:0 S:1 O:1 -
Ryan Garko grounds out, second baseman Placido Polanco to first baseman Jeff Larish.

B:2 S:3 O:2 -
Ben Francisco swinging.

5 for

B:0 S:1 O:3 -
Luis Valbuena flies out to left fielder Josh Anderson.

0-0 after 5 innings

Inning 6
Top Half

B:2 S:1 O:1 -
Placido Polanco flies out to center fielder Grady Sizemore.

B:2 S:3 O:2 -
Clete Thomas on foul tip.

B:0 S:1 O:3 -
Miguel Cabrera grounds out, third baseman Mark DeRosa to first baseman Ryan Garko.

0-0

Bottom Half

B:2 S:1 O:0 -
Grady Sizemore singles on a ground ball to right fielder Clete Thomas, deflected by second baseman Placido Polanco.

B:1 S:2 O:1 -
With Asdrubal Cabrera batting, Grady Sizemore caught stealing 2nd base, catcher Gerald Laird to shortstop Ramon Santiago.

B:1 S:3 O:2 -
Asdrubal Cabrera swinging.

B:1 S:3 O:3 -
Victor Martinez called out on .

7 for


0-0 after 6 innings

Inning 7
Top Half

B:4 S:1 O:0 -
Curtis Granderson walks.

B:4 S:1 O:0 -
Jeff Larish walks. Curtis Granderson to 2nd.

B:4 S:1 O:0 -
Coaching visit to mound.

B:1 S:1 O:1 - Brandon Inge out on a sacrifice bunt,
pitcher Fausto Carmona to second baseman Luis Valbuena. Curtis
Granderson to 3rd. Jeff Larish to 2nd.

B:0 S:0 O:2 - Gerald Laird grounds out, shortstop
Asdrubal Cabrera to first baseman Ryan Garko. Curtis Granderson scores.
Jeff Larish to 3rd.

B:2 S:1 O:2 -
Ramon Santiago singles on a ground ball to center fielder Grady Sizemore. Jeff Larish scores.

B:4 S:2 O:2 -
Josh Anderson walks. Ramon Santiago to 2nd.


B:4 S:2 O:2 -
Coaching visit to mound.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Pitcher Change: Rafael Betancourt replaces Fausto Carmona.


B:0 S:3 O:3 -
Placido Polanco swinging.

2-0

Bottom Half

B:4 S:2 O:0 -
Shin-Soo Choo walks.

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Coaching visit to mound.

B:2 S:1 O:0 -
Mark DeRosa singles on a ground ball to center fielder Curtis Granderson. Shin-Soo Choo to 2nd.

B:1 S:2 O:2 - David Dellucci lines into double play,
third baseman Brandon Inge to second baseman Placido Polanco. Shin-Soo
Choo doubled off 2nd.

B:2 S:2 O:3 -
Ryan Garko flies out to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

2-0 after 7 innings

Inning 8
Top Half

B:2 S:2 O:1 -
Clete Thomas flies out to left fielder Ben Francisco.

B:1 S:2 O:1 -
Miguel Cabrera singles on a ground ball to left fielder Ben Francisco.

B:1 S:3 O:2 -
Curtis Granderson swinging.

B:0 S:2 O:2 -
Jeff Larish triples (1) on a fly ball to left fielder Ben Francisco. Miguel Cabrera scores.

B:3 S:1 O:2 -
Brandon Inge singles on a line drive to left fielder Ben Francisco. Jeff Larish scores.

B:1 S:3 O:3 -
Gerald Laird swinging.

4-0

Bottom Half

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Pitcher Change: Joel Zumaya replaces Edwin Jackson.

B:1 S:1 O:1 -
Ben Francisco grounds out, third baseman Brandon Inge to first baseman Jeff Larish.

B:1 S:1 O:1 -
Luis Valbuena doubles (2) on a line drive to right fielder Clete Thomas.

B:2 S:2 O:2 -
Grady Sizemore grounds out, shortstop Ramon Santiago to first baseman Jeff Larish. Luis Valbuena to 3rd.

B:0 S:1 O:3 -
Asdrubal Cabrera flies out to left fielder Josh Anderson.

4-0 after 8 innings

Inning 9
Top Half

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Pitcher Change: Kerry Wood replaces Rafael Betancourt.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Ramon Santiago grounds out, second baseman Luis Valbuena to first baseman Ryan Garko.

B:2 S:2 O:1 -
Josh Anderson singles on a line drive to right fielder Shin-Soo Choo.

B:1 S:2 O:3 - Placido Polanco grounds into double
play, shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera to first baseman Ryan Garko. Josh
Anderson out at 2nd.

4-0

Bottom Half

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Pitcher Change: Fernando Rodney replaces Joel Zumaya.

B:1 S:1 O:0 -
Victor Martinez singles on a soft fly ball to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

B:1 S:3 O:1 -
Shin-Soo Choo swinging.

B:4 S:1 O:1 -
Mark DeRosa walks. Victor Martinez to 2nd.

B:4 S:1 O:1 -
Coaching visit to mound.

B:1 S:3 O:2 -
David Dellucci swinging.

B:3 S:1 O:3 -
Ryan Garko grounds into a force out, shortstop Ramon Santiago to second baseman Placido Polanco. Mark DeRosa out at 2nd.

Back to Back Shut Outs!!!!

WIN 4-0

May 9, 2009

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Detroit	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	2	0		4	8	0
Cleveland	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	7	0

Detroit AB- R- H- RBI- BB- SO- LOB -AVG- Anderson, J, LF 4 0 1 0 1 0 1 .327 Polanco, 2B 4 0 1 0 1 1 3 .271 Thomas, RF 4 0 0 0 0 1 3 .333 Cabrera, M, DH 4 1 2 0 0 0 1 .389 Granderson, CF 2 1 1 0 2 1 1 .256 Larish, 1B 3 2 1 1 1 0 3 .190 Inge, 3B 3 0 1 1 0 1 2 .278 Laird, C 4 0 0 1 0 2 2 .224 Santiago, SS 3 0 1 1 1 1 0 .262 Totals 31 4 8 4 6 7 16 BATTING 3B: Larish (1, Betancourt). TB: Anderson, J; Polanco; Cabrera, M 2; Granderson; Larish 3; Inge; Santiago. RBI: Laird (7), Santiago (13), Larish (2), Inge (20). 2-out RBI: Santiago; Larish; Inge. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Cabrera, M; Thomas; Polanco. S: Inge. GIDP: Inge; Polanco. Team RISP: 2-for-8. Team LOB: 7. BASERUNNING SB: Thomas (1, 2nd base off Carmona/Martinez). CS: Granderson (1, 2nd base by Carmona/Martinez). FIELDING DP: (Inge-Polanco). Cleveland AB- R- H- RBI- BB- SO- LOB- AVG Sizemore, CF 4 0 1 0 0 2 2 .227 Cabrera, SS 4 0 0 0 0 2 2 .315 Martinez, C 4 0 1 0 0 1 0 .385 Choo, RF 3 0 2 0 1 1 1 .275 DeRosa, 3B 3 0 1 0 1 0 2 .246 Dellucci, DH 4 0 0 0 0 1 6 .259 Garko, 1B 4 0 0 0 0 0 4 .278 Francisco, LF 3 0 1 0 0 1 0 .247 Valbuena, 2B 3 0 1 0 0 1 1 .200 Totals 32 0 7 0 2 9 18 BATTING 2B: Choo (7, Jackson), Valbuena (2, Zumaya). TB: Sizemore; Martinez; Choo 3; DeRosa; Francisco; Valbuena 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Cabrera 2; Dellucci; Garko. Team RISP: 0-for-9. Team LOB: 7. BASERUNNING SB: Francisco (5, 2nd base off Jackson/Laird). CS: Sizemore (5, 2nd base by Jackson/Laird). FIELDING DP: 2 (DeRosa-Valbuena-Garko, Cabrera-Garko). Detroit IP-- H- R- ER- BB- SO- HR- ERA Jackson (W, 2-2) 7.0 5 0 0 1 7 0 2.60 Zumaya 1.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 Rodney 1.0 1 0 0 1 2 0 4.09 Cleveland IP-- H- R- ER- BB- SO- HR- ERA Carmona (L, 1-4) 6.2 4 2 2 6 4 0 5.57 Betancourt 1.1 3 2 2 0 3 0 5.51 Wood 1.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 6.55 Pitches-strikes: Jackson 102-69, Zumaya 15-11, Rodney 22-12, Carmona 112-61, Betancourt 29-21, Wood 11-8. Groundouts-flyouts: Jackson 4-8, Zumaya 2-1, Rodney 1-0, Carmona 11-4, Betancourt 0-1, Wood 3-0. Batters faced: Jackson 25, Zumaya 4, Rodney 5, Carmona 28, Betancourt 7, Wood 3. Inherited runners-scored: Betancourt 2-0. Umpires: HP: Brian O'Nora. 1B: Fieldin Culbreth. 2B: Chad Fairchild. 3B: Jim Wolf. Weather: 55 degrees, overcast. Wind: 12 mph, L to R. T: 3:07. Att: 33,640. May 9, 2009 Box score official statistics approved by Major League Baseball Office of the Commissioner