Preview Roundups
August 12, 2014
Arizona at Cleveland 7:05 PM ET
The Cleveland Indians attempt to remain in the hunt for a playoff spot when they begin a brief two-game interleague series against the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday. Cleveland stayed within striking distance of a postseason berth by posting a pair of victories after beginning its five-game road trip with three straight losses. The Indians received strong pitching over the weekend, outscoring the New York Yankees 7-1 in the triumphs and coming within one out of back-to-back shutouts.
NY Yankees at Baltimore 7:05 PM ET
Fresh off his best start as a major leaguer, Shane Greene looks to silence the scorching Baltimore Orioles when the New York Yankees continue their three-game road series on Tuesday. The 25-year-old rookie tossed eight scoreless innings in Thursday's win over Detroit in lowering his opponents average to .229 through seven career appearances (six starts). That marked the second career scoreless start for Greene, who also blanked the Orioles over 7 1/3 frames back on July 12.
Detroit at Pittsburgh 7:05 PM ET
A starting rotation that was being mentioned among the best of all time less than two weeks ago is suddenly in tatters as the Detroit Tigers attempt to halt a three-game slide against the host Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday. Justin Verlander left the series opener with a shoulder injury three days after Anibal Sanchez was hurt in his start. The Tigers have dropped six of eight overall to fall a half-game behind first-place Kansas City in the American League Central.
Boston at Cincinnati 7:10 PM ET
The Boston Red Sox managed 10 hits over 28 innings in two games this weekend and somehow managed to come out with a win. The Cincinnati Reds, who host the Red Sox in the opener of a two-game interleague series Tuesday, are familiar with offensive droughts but are hanging around the edges of the National League Central and NL wild-card races. The Reds have won four of six to draw within 5 1/2 games of the first-place Milwaukee Brewers in the Central.
LA Dodgers at Atlanta 7:10 PM ET
The Los Angeles Dodgers’ rotation gets plenty of attention thanks to the likes of Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke, but 33-year-old Dan Haren keeps winning without the fanfare. Haren takes the mound Tuesday as the visiting Dodgers play the second of four games against the Atlanta Braves, and his next victory will give him double digits in the win column for the 10th consecutive season. Los Angeles took advantage of shaky Atlanta defense and anemic offense to capture Monday's series opener 6-2.
St. Louis at Miami 7:10 PM ET
Adam Wainwright looks to become the first 15-game winner in the majors when the visiting St. Louis Cardinals aim to even their three-game series with the Miami Marlins on Tuesday. The Cardinals need Wainwright to play stopper after losing four of their last six to slip out of the top spot in the National League wild-card standings. Miami has won three of its last four games and leads the season series 3-1.
Washington at NY Mets 7:10 PM ET
Although the Washington Nationals haven’t enjoyed an overwhelming amount of success against the National League East as a whole, they have done a number on the New York Mets. The Nationals, who hold a four-game lead in the East entering the first of three games in New York on Tuesday, are a combined 18-19 versus division rivals Atlanta, Miami and Philadelphia. However, Washington has won each of its three series against the Mets in 2014 while prevailing in seven of the nine meetings overall.
Milwaukee at Chi. Cubs 8:05 PM ET
Wily Peralta aims to become the first 15-game winner in the majors - unless St. Louis' Adam Wainwright beats him to it Tuesday - but he will have to do it against an opponent that has beaten him twice this season. Peralta and the visiting Milwaukee Brewers look for a second straight win over the Chicago Cubs to open their four-game set. Milwaukee hopes to pad its 2 1/2-game lead over Pittsburgh in the National League Central.
Tampa Bay at Texas 8:05 PM ET
The Tampa Bay Rays continue to stay in contention for a playoff berth with strong pitching despite the trade of ace David Price, allowing three or fewer runs in seven straight contests. Jeremy Hellickson tries to keep that going when the Rays visit the Texas Rangers on Tuesday for the second of a four-game set. Drew Smyly, acquired in a deal for Price on July 31, pitched 7 2/3 scoreless innings in the series-opening 7-0 win and Hellickson looks to improve his 0-3 mark against Texas.
Minnesota at Houston 8:10 PM ET
The Minnesota Twins are making roster moves to set themselves up for the future, and Joe Mauer’s healthy return is one of the keys. Mauer returned from more than a month on the disabled list with a big game Monday and will try to give the Twins another triumph when they visit the Houston Astros for the second of a three-game series Tuesday. The Astros have been building for the future for years, and are seeing some of the advances despite piling up losses.
Oakland at Kansas City 8:10 PM ET
The Kansas City Royals were on a mission to overtake the Detroit Tigers in the American League Central and not even baseball's best team could slow their charge. Kansas City moved into first place in the division Monday and will go for its ninth consecutive victory against the visiting Oakland Athletics on Tuesday. "You want to be in first place. Our goal was to get back to first place," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "Now our goal is to stay in first place."
Philadelphia at LA Angels 10:05 PM ET
Josh Hamilton has good reason to believe he’ll break out of his 1-for-24 slump Tuesday when the Los Angeles Angels begin a two-game set against the visiting Philadelphia Phillies. The Angels outfielder is 6-for-11 with three home runs in his career against Jerome Williams, who is making his Phillies debut after being claimed off waivers from Texas on Sunday. Philadelphia has lost seven in a row against the Angels, who are 3 1/2 games back of first-place Oakland in the American League West.
Colorado at San Diego 10:10 PM ET
The San Diego Padres may not be at the top of the division but they are playing like one of the better teams in baseball of late. The Padres will look for their eighth win in 10 games when they host the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday. San Diego (55-62) is seven games under .500 overall but has been on fire since the All-Star break thanks to strong pitching and an offense that has added exciting new pieces.
Toronto at Seattle 10:10 PM ET
The Seattle Mariners look to extend their stretch of sensational pitching when they host the Toronto Blue Jays on Tuesday in the middle contest of a three-game series. The Mariners beat up on the Blue Jays 11-1 in the series opener, taking advantage of a club that had played 19 innings the previous day before flying to the West Coast. Seattle improved to 7-3 in August and has not allowed more than three runs in any game this month - the longest such streak in the majors this season.
Chi. White Sox at San Francisco 10:15 PM ET
The San Francisco Giants are letting the Los Angeles Dodgers get away from them in the race for the National League West. The Giants will try to snap a four-game slide and keep some pressure on the Dodgers when they host the Chicago White Sox in the opener of a two-game interleague series on Tuesday. The White Sox are losers of seven of their last nine and spent the weekend helping out another postseason hopeful by dropping three of four at Seattle.