GDT: 9/24/10 - DET (77-75) VS MIN (92-60) - 7:05 p.m. ET

Pair of aces set to clash in Motown opener

By Alden Gonzalez / MLB.com

The Twins claimed one of four postseason spots on Tuesday night, but they know their regular-season work is still not finished.

Minnesota's next mission: Securing home-field advantage.

It's a goal the Twins moved one step closer to accomplishing on Wednesday -- when they beat the Indians, 5-1, at Target Field -- and one they'll continue to pursue after a Thursday off-day, when they venture on a six-game road trip that begins with a three-game weekend series against the Tigers.

Last year, the Twins beat the Tigers in Game No. 163 at The Metrodome to win the tiebreaker game and head to the postseason. Now, they'll play the Tigers with the chance of eventually owning the American League's best record.

After three consecutive wins, Minnesota's record is 92-60. So, heading into Wednesday night's slate of games, the Twins sat a half-game back of the Yankees, while two games in front of the Rays and eight better than the Rangers.

If the regular season ended right now, the Twins would host the Rays in the first round. But there are still 10 telling games left, and they know they must keep fighting.

"It could make a big difference," Twins outfielder Denard Span said. "We've always played well at home. When you are going against New York or Tampa, we know they are tough teams. I think we'll definitely feel a lot more confident knowing that we have the home-field advantage against those teams."

Friday's matchup at Comerica Park will feature each team's respective ace: Francisco Liriano for the Twins, and Justin Verlander for the Tigers.

Twins manager Ron Gardenhire announced Wednesday that Liriano will start Game 1 of the playoffs for the Twins, and for good reason. The left-hander is a legitimate AL Comeback Player of the Year contender, thanks to a 14-8 record and a 3.44 ERA after a rough 2009 season.

"Liriano has been throwing good, and you split up the lefties," Gardenhire said about the order, which has right-hander Carl Pavano second and left-hander Brian Duensing third. "So you put Pav right in the middle of it. Liriano has been winging it pretty good."

The Twins, in the midst of their first 90-win season since 2006, own baseball's best record since the All-Star break (46-18) and are 16-4 in September. They are 9-6 against the Tigers this season.

Twins: Bullpen has been lights-out
Minnesota's bullpen has allowed just three earned runs in its last 35 1/3 innings (good for a 0.77 ERA). Since Sept. 3, that bullpen has posted a 2.35 ERA and the club has gone 15-2 in games in which the relief corps has been deployed.

The Twins came into Wednesday's game with the lowest bullpen ERA in the AL.

Tigers: Verlander looks to finish strong
After giving up three runs in a complete game during his previous start against the White Sox, Verlander now sports a 2.25 ERA in his past three starts and is seemingly in the midst of another solid finish.

With one more victory, the 27-year-old right-hander would notch 18 on the year for the third time in five full seasons.

Worth noting
Twins catcher Joe Mauer said after Tuesday's game that he had not received a cortisone shot in his sore left knee, but that still may happen in order to treat the inflammation. Mauer is still considered day-to-day and would likely miss 4-5 games if he were to get the shot.

... The Tigers have won 49 games at home this season, two wins shy of the Comerica Park record of 51 set in 2009.

... Detroit starting pitchers have tossed a quality start in 14 of their last 18 games at Comerica Park dating to Aug. 10, posting an 11-3 record and a 2.54 ERA during that span.

... With one more run scored, Austin Jackson would become the ninth player in Major League history since 1901 to accumulate 100 runs scored, 170 hits, 30 doubles, 10 triples and 20 stolen bases in a rookie season.



Pitching matchup

TIGERS: RHP Justin Verlander (17-8, 3.46 ERA)
Verlander went the distance against the White Sox last Saturday to reach 17 wins for the fourth time in five seasons. A win Friday would earn him his third 18-win season in four years. All of those featured strong finishes.

TWINS: LHP Francisco Liriano (14-8, 3.44 ERA)
Liriano fell victim to a bad first inning in his eighth loss of the season Sunday to Oakland. He gave up three first-inning runs and five runs total over just five innings. Liriano yielded seven hits, one walk and recorded only two strikeouts.


RECENT RESULTS: The Tigers knocked off the Royals 4-2 on Wednesday night, the club’s fifth win in its last six games. Max Scherzer (12-10) fanned eight batters as he blanked the Royals over 7.2 innings of work to earn the win for Detroit. Brennan Boesch doubled and drove in two runs for the Tigers. The Tigers continue their final homestand of the season with the first game of a three-game series against Minnesota this evening. Detroit hits the road on Monday for the club’s final trip of the season to Cleveland and Baltimore.

HOME SWEET HOME: The Tigers continue a six-game homestand this evening against the Twins at Comerica Park, where the club has posted a 12-5 record in the club’s last 17 games. The Tigers are batting .300 (176x587) with 99 runs scored, 34 doubles, three triples and 12 home runs during the 17-game stretch. Detroit pitchers have compiled a 2.69 ERA (157.0IP/47ER) during the stretch.

CENTRAL FOCUS: The Tigers continue a 12-game stretch this evening versus Minnesota in which all of the club’s games are against opponents from the American League’s Central Division. Detroit has posted an 18-7 record in the last 25 games against the division after the club compiled a 17-24 record in the first 41 games against the division this season.

LOOKING FOR A RECORD: The Tigers have won 49 games at home this season, two wins shy of matching the Comerica Park record of 51 wins, established in 2009.

GETTING A GOOD START AT HOME: Tigers starting pitchers have recorded a quality start in 14 of the club’s last 18 games at Comerica Park dating back to August 10. Club starters have compiled an 11-3 record and 2.54 ERA (124.0IP/35ER) during the stretch.

OFFENSE ON THE UPTICK: Tigers hitters are batting .281 (329x1172) with 189 runs scored, 62 doubles, nine triples and 33 home runs over the club’s last 32 games dating back to August 19. Detroit leads all American League clubs with a .281 batting average, 189 runs scored, 329 hits and 62 doubles during that stretch.

FIRST DUO WITH 175-OR-MORE STRIKEOUTS SINCE 1974: Max Scherzer fanned eight batters on Wednesday against Kansas City to bring his season total of strikeouts to 181, giving the Tigers their first duo of pitchers with a 175-or-more strikeouts in a season since 1974. Scherzer joined Justin Verlander (198 strikeouts) to become the first Tigers duo to do so since Mickey Lolich (202 strikeouts) and Joe Coleman (177 strikeouts) accomplished the feat during the 1974 season.

JACKSON CLOSING IN ON RARE ROOKIE TERRITORY: With one more run scored, Austin Jackson would become just the ninth player in major league history since 1901 to collect at least 100 runs scored, 170 hits, 30 doubles, 10 triples and 20 stolen bases as a rookie. Jackson would join Joe Jackson (1911), Roy Johnson (1929), Evar Swanson (1929), Barney McCosky (1939), Minnie Minoso (1951), Juan Samuel (1984), Nomar Garciaparra (1997) and Hanley Ramirez (2006) in accomplishing the feat.

SCHERZER’S BEEN TREMENDOUS IN FIRST SEASON WITH CLUB: Max Scherzer fanned eight batters on Wednesday night versus Kansas City to bring his season total to 181 strikeouts as he earned his 12th win of the season. He became just the third pitcher in Tigers history to record at least 12 wins and 180 strikeouts in his first season with the club, joining “Wild Bill” Donovan in 1903 (17-16, 187 SO) and Joe Coleman in 1971 (20-9, 236 SO). (Source: Elias Sports Bureau)

RABURN ON A ROLL: Ryan Raburn enters tonight’s game hitting .342 (55x161) with 14 doubles, 12 home runs and 34 RBI over his last 42 games dating back to August 5. He is second among all American League players with 26 extra-base hits and a .652 slugging percentage during the stretch, while he is tied for second with 14 doubles, 12 home runs and 34 RBI, tied for fourth with 55 hits and is fifth with a .342 batting average.

TIGERS PITCHING STAFF HEADED TOWARDS 1,000 STRIKEOUTS: The Tigers enter tonight’s game versus Minnesota with 990 strikeouts this season, 10 strikeouts shy of recording 1,000 strikeouts in a single season for the 11th time in franchise history. The 1968 Tigers hold the franchise record with 1,115 strikeouts.

CABRERA APPROACHES AL RECORD FOR INTENTIONAL WALKS: Miguel Cabrera enters tonight’s game versus Minnesota with 31 intentional walks to lead the American League. With three more intentional walks, Cabrera would match Ted Williams’ American League record of 34 intentional walks during the 1957 season. Intentional walks first became a recognized statistic in Major League Baseball during the 1955 season.

JACKSON PILING UP THE RUNS: Austin Jackson has scored 30 runs over his last 31 games and he leads all American League rookies with 99 runs scored this season. With one more run scored, Jackson will become just the sixth rookie in Tigers history to score at least 100 runs and the first since Barney McCosky scored 120 runs in 1939.

INJURY UPDATE:
• RHP Zach Miner (Partial tear in right elbow, 60-day DL on March 26, Had successful Tommy John surgery May 28, Out for Season),
• LHP Bobby Seay (Torn rotator cuff, 60-day DL on March 26, surgery on September 15, Out for Season),
• OF Magglio Ordonez (right ankle fracture, 15-day DL on July 25, Had surgery surgery Aug. 25, Out for Season),
• INF Danny Worth (bruised left heel, 15-day DL on August 4, Out for Season),
• RHP Joel Zumaya (non-displaced fracture of the olecranon, 60-day DL on June 29, Underwent elbow surgery July 12, Out for Season).
• Carlos Guillen (Bruised left knee, 15-day DL on August 23, Out for Season)


Out for Season



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Up next (Probable Pitchers)


• Saturday, September 25,
TIGERS (RHP Jeremy Bonderman (8-9, 4.92 ERA)) VS TWINS (RHP Carl Pavano (17-11, 3.60 ERA)), 7:05 p.m. ET (FS-D HD / AM 1270 & 97.1 FM)

• Sunday, September 26,
TIGERS (RHP Rick Porcello (9-11, 5.22 ERA)) VS TWINS (LHP Brian Duensing (10-2, 2.19 ERA)), 1:05 p.m. ET (FS-D HD / AM 1270 & 97.1 FM)

STARTING LINEUPS:

Minnesota AVG
Span, CF .266
Hudson, O, 2B .273
Kubel, DH .252
Cuddyer, 1B .272
Young, D, LF .299
Valencia, 3B .332
Morales, J, C .273
Revere, RF .200
Casilla, A, SS .279
Totals .277

Detroit AVG
Jackson, A, CF .298
Sizemore, 2B .230
Raburn, LF .273
Cabrera, M, 1B .326
Peralta, J, SS .249
Wells, C, RF .348
Boesch, DH .266
Inge, 3B .251
Laird, C .207
Totals .269