The Red Sox are back at Fenway Park to start a four-game series with the Tigers. This follows a day off after a six-game road trip.
The Sox are coming off a 9-5 victory over the Twins, which allowed them to avoid a sweep and finish their road trip at 3-3. Meanwhile, the Detroit team has won six in a row, including Thursday’s 10-9 walk-off win over the Royals. That was Detroit’s third-straight victory by one run.
Pitching Matchups for the Series Opener
Ranger Suarez is slated to start the opener for the Sox. In his last outing, the lefthander allowed just three hits and struck out six in six shutout innings against the Cardinals, contributing to a 7-1 victory at St. Louis.
Manager Alex Cora said, “He moved the ball around. It seems like his arm was a lot quicker than the first two (starts). It tells me he feels better.”
Detroit will counter with righthander Casey Mize. Mize earned his first win of the season last Saturday, pitching 5⅔ innings and allowing one run in a victory over the Miami Marlins.
Tigers and Red Sox Lineups
Here are the expected lineups for tonight’s game:
TIGERS (10-9): Torres 2B, McGonigle SS, Jones DH, Dingler C, Vierling LF, Pérez RF, Torkelson 1B, Lee 3B, Báez CF.
Pitching: RHP Casey Mize (1-1, 3.94 ERA)
RED SOX (7-11): Anthony DH, Contreras 1B, Abreu RF, Story SS, Duran LF, Rafaela CF, Mayer 2B, Durbin 3B, Wong C.
Pitching: LHP Ranger Suarez (1-1, 5.02 ERA)
Past Performances Against Opposing Pitchers
Here’s a look at how the Tigers have fared against Suarez:
- Javier Báez 1-2
- Dillon Dingler 0-3
- Riley Greene 1-6
- Jahmai Jones 0-3
- Wenceel Pérez 3-5
- Jake Rogers 1-3
- Spencer Torkelson 0-3
- Gleyber Torres 1-4
- Matt Vierling 1-6
And here’s how the Red Sox have performed against Mize:
- Wilyer Abreu 2-6
- Willson Contreras 1-2
- Jarren Duran 3-11
- Isiah Kiner-Falefa 3-8
- Carlos Narváez 0-2
- Ceddanne Rafaela 1-6
- Trevor Story 0-3
- Connor Wong 2-3
- Masataka Yoshida 3-3
Additional Notes
Suarez has made starts against Detroit for the Phillies in each of the last two seasons, going 0-1 with a 3.46 ERA across a combined 13 innings.
Mize is 0-1 with a 3.95 ERA in five career starts against the Red Sox. He struck out eight in a 6⅓-inning road no-decision on Sept. 26 of last season.
The Red Sox are currently 29th in MLB with 12 home runs, ahead of only the Giants, who have just nine.
The pitching matchups for the rest of the series are: Saturday: LHP Tarik Skubal vs. RHP Brayan Bello; Sunday: LHP Framber Valdez vs. LHP Garrett Crochet; Monday (11 a.m. Patriots Day game): RHP Jack Flaherty vs. RHP Sonny Gray.