Series Preview: Cleveland Indians look to tame surprising Tigers

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After being swept by the Cubs in a quick two-game set, the Cleveland Indians will travel to Detroit to take on the surprising Tigers for a three-game series in Motown.

It’s been a rough week for manager Terry Francona and the Cleveland Indians as they were forced to send both Zach Plesac and Mike Clevinger into quarantine after they failed to abide by social distancing rules. This was followed by the Tribe being swept aside in a two-game series by the Chicago Cubs placing them tied for third in the American League Central.

Looking to rebound, the Indians will travel to the Motor City to take on the Detroit Tigers for a three-game series this weekend.

The Tigers have lost at least 98 games each of the past three seasons’ but are off to a shockingly hot start in 2020 as they currently sit a game and a half behind the Minnesota Twins for first place in the AL with a 9-7 record.

If the season were to end today, the Tigers would be in the postseason for the first time since 2014 while the Indians are tied with the Chicago White Sox for the final AL Wildcard spot and sit two games behind the Twins for the AL Central lead.

Can Cleveland slow down the surprising Tigers and improve their position in the playoff picture? Here’s a closer look at what’s ahead for the Indians in Detroit this weekend.

CLEVELAND, OH – JULY 12: Pitcher Aaron Civale #43 of the Cleveland Indians delivers a pitch in the second inning of an intrasquad game during summer workouts at Progressive Field on July 12, 2020 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Ron Schwane/Getty Images) /

Friday Aug. 14, 7:10 p.m. EST

Probable Pitchers: Aaron Civale (1-2, 2.84 ERA) vs. Ivan Nova (1-0, 5.74 ERA)

The Indians and Tigers will kick off their three-game set Friday with the Tribe sending right-hander Aaron Civale to the mound to face off with 33-year-old veteran Ivan Nova.

Civale will be making his fourth start of the season Friday and is coming off a strong outing against the White Sox that saw him toss seven innings of one-run ball and strike out five despite taking his second loss of the season. Opposing hitters are batting just .236 against the Indians right-hander in 2020.

The start will be Civale’s third against the Tigers of his career as in 2019, he earned a pair of victories against Detroit, including tossing 7.2 innings of one-run ball on September 18th.

The only Tiger to have much success against the right-hander is outfielder Victor Reyes who is batting .400 with an RBI in five at-bats.

Nova will be making his fourth start in a Tiger uniform after joining the team this past offseason. Despite an ERA near six, Nova has yet to lose this season and is coming off a strong outing against the Cincinnati Reds that saw him toss five innings of three-run ball. He is 3-3 lifetime in seven starts against Cleveland with an ERA of 4.22.

Nine Indians have career batting averages above .300 against Nova, including Carlos Santana, who is batting .368 with a home run in 19 at-bats, Cesar Hernandez, who is batting .357 in 14 at-bats and the newly activated Tyler Naquin who is batting .375 with a home run in eight at-bats.

MINNEAPOLIS, MN – JULY 30: Shane Bieber #57 of the Cleveland Indians pitches against the Minnesota Twins on July 30, 2020 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Brace Hemmelgarn/Minnesota Twins/Getty Images) /

Saturday Aug. 15, 6:10 p.m. EST

Probable Pitchers: Shane Bieber (3-0, 1.63 ERA) vs. Spencer Turnbull (2-0, 2.00 ERA)

The Indians will send their ace to the mound in game two of the three-game set Saturday as Shane Bieber will matchup with Detroit right-hander Spencer Turnbull.

Bieber is the early AL Cy-Young Award favorite as he is a perfect 3-0 in four starts so far this season while holding opposing hitters to a .191 batting average. He last pitched on August 9 and tossed six innings of three-run ball while striking out eight against the White Sox in what was his worst start of the season-to-date.

Despite this, Bieber has struck out at least eight batters in each of his first four starts of the season, including striking out 14 on opening day against the Royals and 13 against the Twins on July 30.

No current Tiger has hit a home run off the Indians ace and the only two batters hitting .300 or better against him are Miguel Cabrera and Grayson Greiner, who are both batting .333 in six at-bats.

Turnbull has been among the best pitchers in baseball at missing bats so far this season as he has posted an impressive 30% whiff rate when throwing his fastball.

He will be making his fourth start of the year Saturday after earning a victory over the Pirates in his most recent start that saw him toss seven innings of one-run ball.

While no current Indians have taken the Tigers right-hander deep, several have posted strong numbers against him such as Santana, who is batting .467 in 15 at-bats against Turnbull, Jose Ramirez whose batting .367 in 11 at-bats and Oscar Mercado who is batting .357 with six RBI’s.

CLEVELAND, OH – JULY 13: Starting pitcher Adam Plutko #45 of the Cleveland Indians delivers a pitch in the first inning of an intrasquad game during summer workouts at Progressive Field on July 13, 2020 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Ron Schwane/Getty Images) /

Sunday Aug. 16 1:10 p.m. EST

Probable Pitchers: Adam Plutko (1-1, 2.45 ERA) vs. Michael Fulmer (0-0, 6.35 ERA)

Adam Plutko will take the ball for the Indians in the series finale Sunday, fresh off a strong outing against the Cubs as he started in place of the quarantined Clevinger.

Despite taking a loss, the right-hander tossed four innings of one-run ball against Chicago while striking out two batters.

On the season, Plutko has made two starts as he earned a victory over the White Sox on July 28. He also made one relief appearance as he tossed a scoreless inning out of the bullpen against the Reds on August 6.

Four different Tigers have hit home runs off Plutko, including Cabrera, Dawel Lugo, Jeimer Candelario and Christian Stewart.

Both Candelario and Stewart are batting .286 lifetime against Plutko in seven at-bats while Lugo is batting .500 in six opportunities.

Plutko will face off against Tigers right-hander and 2016 AL Rookie of the Year Award Winner Micheal Fulmer.

The 27 year-old allowed four earned runs and three home runs to the Royals in his season debut on July 28 but was much better in his second start that saw him throw three-scoreless innings against the White Sox.

Several Indians have had great success off Fulmer in the past, including Naquin, who is batting .625 in eight at-bats, Francisco Lindor, who has smashed two home runs in 18 at-bats, and Sandy Leon who is batting .429 in seven at-bats.

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