It looks like the Pirates are going to have three sellouts with Jim Leyland and the Detroit Tigers coming to town for the weekend. Tonight it's A.J. Burnett (7-2, 3.52) vs. Doug Fister (1-3, 2.68) at 7:05 at PNC Park. Burnett is trying to become the first Pirates pitcher to win seven consecutive starts since Dock Ellis won eight in a row in 1974. Fister is coming off a 6 IP, 3H, 0R, 1BB, 6K performance his last time out, when he picked up his only win over the year against the Colorado Rockies.
The Pirates and Tigers met three times at Comerica Park a month ago and the Tigers won two of three, with Burnett getting the only win for the Bucs. Since the Sunday loss in Motown the Bucs are 17-10.
Jose Tabata sits tonight. The lineup for the Pirates:
Alex Presley LF
Neil Walker 2B
Andrew McCutchen CF
Garrett Jones RF
Casey McGehee 1B
Pedro Alvarez 3B
Rod Barajas C
Clint Barmes SS
A.J. Burnett P
This is one of only three chances to see Prince in Pittsburgh this year. Beast Mode.
Leyland's card:
Austin Jackson CF
Quintin Berry RF
Miguel Cabrera 3B
Prince Fielder 1B
Delmon Young LF
Alex Avila C
Jhonny Peralta SS
Ramon Santiago 2B
Doug Fister P
UPDATE by Charlie: As nifty as some of the matchups against the Twins were, these three games against the Tigers should be tough. This one, Fister against Burnett, is the easiest. After that, it's Max Scherzer and Brad Lincoln. Then there's Justin Verlander and Kevin Correia, which is probably the worst matchup the Pirates have had all year. If the Pirates can get one out of three here, I can live with that.