Rick Porcello (5-3, 3.55) vs.
Kyle Davies (2-3, 4.78), 2:10 p.m. EST
The Tigers ran into the buzzsaw that is Zack Greinke last night, but a win this afternoon would give Detroit the series and send them out with a four-game lead over the Royals in the AL Central.
Kyle Davies seemed to be exposed as less than a top-tier starter the last time he faced the Tigers, who tagged him for seven runs and eight hits (two of them homers) in 5.1 innings. And he's only won one of his five starts since then. But Davies has also been victimized by the Royals' lineup in his past three games, getting just five runs of support. In those games, he allowed six runs in 19 innings.
Rick Porcello has won four straight starts, giving up just three runs in 24 innings. And with a win today, he'd join some rather exclusive company. According to MLB.com, no pitcher 20 years old or younger has won five in a row since Dwight Gooden in 1985. But one of his three losses came against the Royals, who scored five runs (four earned) against him in five innings at Kauffman Stadium.
Josh Anderson leads off for the Tigers, with Curtis Granderson batting fifth. Hopefully, it works better today than it did on Sunday. Here are your starting lineups.