The Detroit Tigers (10-2) have the best record in the MLB and will host the New York Yankees (6-6) on Monday night. The first matchup of the four-game set will feature veteran pitchers Alfredo Simon and CC Sabathia.
Detroit is second in the MLB in both runs scored (68) and ERA (2.61) through their first 12 games and clearly has not lost a step following the departures of Max Scherzer, Torii Hunter and Austin Jackson. General manager Dave Dombrowski did a good job of filling various voids by acquiring Simon, fellow starter Shane Greene and outfielder Yoenis Cespedes, all of whom have been significant contributors thus far.
Simon will take the mound tonight at 7:05 p.m. ET for his third start of the season. The right-hander is 2-0 with a 2.03 ERA and 0.825 WHIP in his first two starts (13 1/3 innings) against the Cleveland Indians and Pittsburgh Pirates. He had a career campaign in 2014 with the Cincinnati Reds in his first full season as a starter and finished 15-10 with a 3.44 ERA and 1.207 WHIP in 32 starts.
He'll face the Yankees, who rank fifth in runs scored (64) and have really turned on the offensive production in their past two series against the Baltimore Orioles and Tampa Bay Rays. Slugger Alex Rodriguez is batting .316/.447/.711 with 10 runs scored, 4 home runs and 11 RBIs in the team's first 12 games, including a 4-for-10 effort with six runs scored, two home runs and four RBIs over the weekend against the Rays.
But all eyes will be on Sabathia, who is 0-2 with a 5.68 ERA and 1.263 WHIP in his first two starts (12 2/3 innings) this season. He'll face another top offense on Monday night after being knocked around by the division-rival Toronto Blue Jays (top offense in MLB) and Baltimore Orioles (eighth ranked offense). New York received some assurance regarding Masahiro Tanaka over the weekend when he shut down the Rays on Saturday, giving up just two hits and striking out eight over seven scoreless innings.
They'll need a similar performance from Sabathia if they hope to have any faith in the top of their starting rotation at this point in the season. The left-hander has made just 10 starts since 2013 because he was forced to undergo season-ending knee surgery last May. He owns a 17-19 record with a 4.91 ERA in his last 42 outings.
He's faced the Tigers 36 times in his career and is 19-12 with a 4.29 ERA and 1.27 WHIP in 230 2/3 innings while Simon is 0-3 with a 5.25 ERA and 1.583 WHIP in seven career games (four starts) against the Yankees.
Check out the live stream for tonight's game here as well as the live radio broadcast here (if you're a Tigers fan) or here (if you're a Yankees fan).
