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Tigers-Dodgers Preview

May 21, 2010 - 6:30 AM By MIKE LIPKA STATS Writer

Detroit (24-17) at Los Angeles (23-18), 10:10 p.m. EDT

The Los Angeles Dodgers have recovered from their slow start to win 10 of their last 11, and another victory Friday night may move them into a tie for first place.

The Detroit Tigers are already there.

Back-to-back wins to begin their road trip have given the Tigers a share of the AL Central lead, and they'll hope Dontrelle Willis can calm his control problems in the series opener at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers (23-18) spotted some of their rivals an early lead in the NL West, the division Los Angeles has won each of the last two years. But some brilliant pitching has brought manager Joe Torre's club quickly back into the race.

After allowing three or fewer runs in each victory during the nine-game winning streak that was snapped by San Diego on Wednesday, the Dodgers pulled back within a game of the first-place Padres by beating them 4-1 on Thursday.

Friday's starter Chad Billingsley (4-2, 4.03 ERA) earned two wins during the streak, and the right-hander is coming off his best outing of 2010 after holding San Diego to four hits in 7 1-3 innings of a 1-0 win Sunday.

"He was great," Torre said. "He was so comfortable to watch for me. He had a good tempo all game. He didn't try to rush himself."

Billingsley has never faced the Tigers, and his counterpart may wish he had less experience against the Dodgers. Willis went 1-5 with a 6.93 ERA in seven starts against Los Angeles while a member of the Florida Marlins.

Willis (1-1, 4.68) has battled major issues with wildness since joining Detroit. He hoped to have those problems under control after walking three or fewer in each of his first five starts, but he walked seven and allowed four runs in 3 1-3 innings Saturday night against Boston.

The Tigers (24-17) still won that game 7-6 in 12 innings, and the team has won four of five to tie Minnesota for the division lead. Detroit began a seven-game West Coast swing with consecutive victories in Oakland.

Miguel Cabrera broke out of an 0-for-12 slump with a two-run home run in the fifth inning of Thursday's 5-2 win, pulling him into a tie with injured Los Angeles outfielder Andre Ethier for the major league lead with 38 RBIs.

A hot start from a pair of rookie outfielders has also helped Detroit's offense. Austin Jackson is batting .329, and Los Angeles-area native Brennan Boesch is hitting .354 with 19 RBIs in his first 22 major league games despite going 0 for 7 in his last two contests.

"The moment I decided I wanted to be a big leaguer," Boesch told the Tigers' official website, "I was sitting in the stands in Dodger Stadium. It's kind of come full circle that way."

This will be the Tigers' second series at Dodger Stadium, where they dropped two of three from June 6-8, 2005. Detroit swept Los Angeles at home from June 13-15, 2008.

The Dodgers have won six of eight at home despite a bevy of injuries. Ethier and Rafael Furcal remain on the disabled list, and Manny Ramirez has missed the last two games nursing a sore toe.

Catcher Russell Martin has helped pick up the slack, extending his career-best hitting streak to 15 games with a double Thursday.