Boston Red Sox v Detroit Tigers: ALCS Game 3 Info
Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
Winner of pivotal Game 3 takes series lead.
A Big Papi grand slam and a Jerrod Saltalamacchia single (on a pitch clearly out of the strike zone, for the record) brought Fenway back to life and gave the Boston Red Sox a come from behind 6-5 win in Game 2 of the ALCS. Now, can the Red Sox corral that momentum as they head into Detroit? Would the day off in between games curtail that momentum?
Not sure, but I know who awaits them…Justin Verlander.
Time, Venue, TV and Radio Info
Date: Tuesday, October 15th
Start Time: 4:00 PM EST
Location: Detroit, Michigan
Venue: Comerica Park
TV Info: FOX
Radio Info: ESPN Radio, 97.1 The Ticket (DET), WEEI 93.7 (BOS)
Live Stream: MLB.tv or the MLB at Bat 12 App.
Starting Pitchers
Boston – The Red Sox will put the ball in the hands of John Lackey (10-13, 3.52 ERA, 1.157 WHIP) for Game 3. While the record isn’t overlay impressive, Lackey has rebounded nicely after missing all of 2012 due to Tommy John. You notice three things immediately upon looking at some numbers: allowing fewer hits, walking less opponents and striking out more opponents.
While Lackey got the win in Game 2 of the ALDS, he wasn’t treated kindly by the Tampa Bay Rays and their bats. In that game, Lackey hurled only 5.1 innings. He served up seven hits and allowed four runs, all earned.
But he does have some success against the Tigers, going 6-3 with an ERA of 3.86 and a WHIP of 1.322 in his 12 starts. Comerica Park has been a little kind to him: 4-1, 3.83 ERA, 1.400 WHIP in 6 of those 12 starts against Detroit.
Lackey v Tigers batters
| Player | PA | AB | H | HR | RBI | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Torii Hunter | 61 | 56 | 13 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 11 | .232 | .295 | .375 | .670 |
| Victor Martinez | 34 | 29 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | .379 | .471 | .414 | .884 |
| Jhonny Peralta | 33 | 31 | 11 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 8 | .355 | .364 | .387 | .751 |
| Omar Infante | 15 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | .214 | .267 | .357 | .624 |
| Miguel Cabrera | 13 | 12 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | .333 | .385 | .667 | 1.051 |
| Alex Avila | 9 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | .000 | .222 | .000 | .222 |
| Prince Fielder | 9 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .444 | .444 | .667 | 1.111 |
| Ramon Santiago | 9 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | .222 | .222 | .556 | .778 |
| Austin Jackson | 8 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .375 | .375 | .500 | .875 |
| Andy Dirks | 6 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | .400 | .500 | .800 | 1.300 |
| Don Kelly | 6 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .333 | .333 | .333 | .667 |
| Brayan Pena | 6 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .500 | .500 | .667 | 1.167 |
| Jose Iglesias | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .333 | .333 | .667 | 1.000 |
| Total | 212 | 195 | 59 | 4 | 17 | 12 | 40 | .303 | .354 | .436 | .790 |
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 10/15/2013.
Detroit – Justin Verlander (13-12, 3.46 ERA, 1.315 WHIP) will see if he can continue he awesome postseason performance. In his two ALDS appearances, all he did was go 15 innings and allow only six hits and 2 walks. Over that span, he whiffed 21 Oakland Athletics.
This won’t be the same lineup he’s facing in the Red Sox, but whatever Verlander was lacking during the regular season has been found. But Boston hasn’t been too kind to the 2011 MVP and AL Cy Young winner. In Verlander’s 11 starts against Boston, he is 3-4 with an ERA of 3.63 and WHIP of 1.197.
Verlander v Red Sox batters
| Player | PA | AB | H | HR | RBI | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Ortiz | 30 | 27 | 10 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 8 | .370 | .433 | .741 | 1.174 |
| Mike Napoli | 28 | 23 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 5 | .304 | .429 | .435 | .863 |
| Jacoby Ellsbury | 26 | 22 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 1 | .227 | .269 | .318 | .587 |
| Dustin Pedroia | 19 | 18 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | .056 | .105 | .056 | .161 |
| Stephen Drew | 16 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | .200 | .250 | .267 | .517 |
| Jarrod Saltalamacchia | 15 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | .133 | .133 | .133 | .267 |
| Jonny Gomes | 13 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | .000 | .231 | .000 | .231 |
| Mike Carp | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | .000 | .167 | .000 | .167 |
| Shane Victorino | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Daniel Nava | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | .333 | .500 | .667 | 1.167 |
| Will Middlebrooks | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .500 | .500 | .500 | 1.000 |
| Total | 165 | 145 | 30 | 3 | 15 | 17 | 43 | .207 | .285 | .324 | .609 |
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 10/15/2013.
Starting Lineups
| Red Sox | Tigers | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Jacoby Ellsbury (L) CF | 1. Austin Jackson (R) CF | |
| 2. Shane Victorino (S) RF | 2. Torii Hunter (R) RF | |
| 3. Dustin Pedroia (R) 2B | 3. Miguel Cabrera (R) 3B | |
| 4. David Ortiz (L) DH | 4. Prince Fielder (L) 1B | |
| 5. Mike Napoli (R) 1B | 5. Victor Martinez (S) DH | |
| 6. Jarrod Saltalamacchia (S) C | 6. Jhonny Peralta (R) SS | |
| 7. Jonny Gomes (R) LF | 7. Alex Avila (L) C | |
| 8. Stephen Drew (L) SS | 8. Omar Infante (R) 2B | |
| 9. Will Middlebrooks (R) 3B | 9. Andy Dirks (L) LF |