Texas at Detroit

The Tigers are heating up, and as we saw last night, the Rangers bats aren't nearly as potent on the road as they are at home. Justin Verlander has awakened from a 1+ year slump to emerge as the pitcher we saw dominating American League hitters in '07. Verlander has pitched to a 1.21 ERA in his last four starts striking out 44 in just 29 innings. Hairston has pitched well for the Rangers of late, but he will be up against a lineup that finished seventh in baseball against left-hand pitching a year ago, and averaged 5.2 runs a game. The Tigers have picked up right where they left off and are assaulting southpaws to the tune of an even more impressive 5.4 runs per game this year. Verlander has it going, and the Tigers’ bats are more potent than the Rangers on the road, especially against an unproven lefty. The Tigers get the call.