The Detroit Tigers return home this weekend following a winning road trip that brought the team’s 2024 season record back up to the .500 mark. They split a four-game series with the Boston Red Sox before taking two of three from the defending World Series champions, the Texas Rangers.
The Motor City Kitties now face the Milwaukee Brewers for a three-game set starting on Friday night to open up a six-game homestand. The Brew Crew are currently the cream of the crop in the National League Central division, holding a 5.5-game lead over the second-place Chicago Cubs coming into play; meanwhile, the Tigers are fourth in the AL Central which has been surprisingly strong so far.
Below is a look at who Detroit has lined up for the next three days, while all of Milwaukee’s projected starters remain unannounced.
Detroit Tigers (31-31) at Milwaukee Brewers (36-26)
Times (ET): Friday: 6:40 p.m.; Saturday: 4:10 p.m.; Sunday: 1:40 p.m.
Place: Comerica Park, Detroit, Michigan
SB Nation Site: Brew Crew Ball
Media: Bally Sports Detroit, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network
Game 63 Pitching Matchup
| Player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
| Olson | 61.2 | 20.6 | 7.9 | 3.20 | -0.2 |
| TBD | – | – | – | – | – |
Game 63: RHP Reese Olson (1-6, 2.48 ERA) vs TBA
Olson had one of his worst games of the season last time out against the Boston Red Sox, getting tagged for five runs on six hits (two home runs) and one walk while striking out five over 5 1⁄3 frames. The 24-year-old is nonetheless still putting up some impressive numbers during his sophomore campaign, though he does still have a few glaring weaknesses.
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Baseball Savant
Game 64 Pitching Matchup
| Player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
| Mize | 53.2 | 15.9 | 6.7 | 4.13 | 1.3 |
| TBD | – | – | – | – | – |
Game 64: RHP Casey Mize (1-3, 4.70 ERA) vs TBA
After a very solid stretch for Mize to start the season — recovering from an almost two-year layoff, I might add — he has struggled in his last three starts. Stretching over just 10 innings, the 27-year-old was battered to the tune of 22 hits (two home runs) with six walks and strikeouts, amounting to a 9.90 ERA and 6.34 FIP. Yuck.
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Baseball Savant
Game 65 Pitching Matchup
| Player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
| Skubal | 73.0 | 30.5 | 4.6 | 2.25 | 0.5 |
| TBD | – | – | – | – | – |
Game 65: LHP Tarik Skubal (7-1, 1.97 ERA) vs TBA
Following what was ostensibly Skubal’s worst start of the 2024 campaign a few games ago has been an absolutely electric two-start stretch. The 27-year-old put together a pair of quality starts, allowing 10 hits (one home run) and three walks while striking out 14 in 13 innings. That was good enough for a 0.69 ERA and 2.68 FIP.
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Baseball Savant
Series Outlook: Getting Mize, Olson back on track
Without knowing who the Brew Crew intended to send out to the mound this weekend it is difficult to gauge the daily and overall matchup. However, it is of paramount importance that Olson has a strong bounce-back effort and Mize finds some course correction for his wayward ways. On offense, it does not look good for the Olde English D as Milwaukee ranks fourth in the majors in OPS (.738) thanks to a slash line consisting of a .254 batting average (fifth), .330 on-base percentage (third) and .408 slugging (eighth). The visitors are not too shabby on the bump either, ranking tenth in ERA (3.75) but a more mediocre team WHIP of 1.27 (16th) and .242 batting average against (18th).