The Tigers are nearly automatic when Michael Fulmer is on the mound. Fulmer is 9-2 with a 2.42 ERA across 17 starts this year. The last time he was one the mound, he allowed just one run on five hits in 6.2 innings of action to lead Detroit to a 2-1 win over the White Sox on August 3. For those keeping count, that’s the seventh-straight win of Detroit with Fulmer as the Tigers’ starter.
That streak began when Seattle beat the Mariners, coincidentally, back on June 22 with Fulmer yielding an earned run on three hits in 4.1 innings of action.
Over at the other side, the Mariners look for Hisashi Iwakuma to handle Detroit’s hitters. Iwakuma is no lightweight when dealing at home, as he has a 7-2 record and a 3.86 ERA in 10 starts at Safeco Field thus far this season.
Both teams are capable of racking up a bundle of runs on any given name, but we’ll give Detroit the slight edge. The Tigers are fifth in the league in batting average (.268), eighth in on-base percentage (.329), and fifth in slugging (.440).
Furthermore, Detroit’s hitters are more experienced in facing Iwakuma than the Mariners against Fulmer. The Tigers have a collective batting average of .375 BA opposite Iwakuma. Miguel Cabrera is 4-for-10 with a pair of homers and three RBI in his career versus the M’s righty.
