Justin Verlander will take the hill Sunday as the Detroit Tigers try to salvage a split in their four-game series with the Oakland Athletics.
Detroit won the series opener but have since dropped two straight. Saturday's was especially tough to stomach. Starter Doug Fister was lights out through six, but the bullpen coughed up a few runs -- too much to overcome for an offense that still has had a tendency to sleepwalk lately.
Verlander has been on-point all season. He is 3-1 with a 2.63 ERA and 48 strikeouts in 51.1 innings. Maybe most impressive is the 0.94 WHIP, which is third in the AL among qualified pitchers.
He'll be going up against Jarrod Parker, who is 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA. The 23-year-old Parker has pitched into the seventh inning in each of his three starts and has yet to give up more than one run.
First pitch is slated for 4:05 ET.
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