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Tigers-Indians Preview

May 9, 2009 - 4:05 AM By ANTHONY GIORNALISTA STATS Senior Writer

Detroit (14-13) at Cleveland (11-18), 7:05 p.m. EDT

One run is all the Detroit Tigers needed to win their last game. Edwin Jackson is certainly deserving of much more support than that.

The Tigers look to finally give Jackson some runs to work with in the middle game of their series with the Cleveland Indians on Saturday night.

Detroit (15-13) has been getting better efforts from its rotation recently, with starters going 6-4 with a 3.10 ERA in their last 12 games. In this series' opener, Justin Verlander pitched a two-hitter to lead the Tigers to a 1-0 win on Friday.

Jackson (1-2, 3.08 ERA) has been Detroit's most consistent starter but has gotten just eight runs to work with in six outings. This will be his fourth start on the road, where he is 1-1 with a 1.80 ERA.

The right-hander, though, is coming off his worst start of 2009, allowing five runs and seven hits in six innings in a 7-2 loss to Minnesota on Monday.

Jackson is 1-1 with a 3.08 ERA in four starts and one relief appearance against Cleveland, which got just one chance with a runner in scoring position in the opener.

Despite winning, Detroit remains in an offensive slump, scoring three runs or fewer in four of its last five contests. The Tigers entered this series following a 6-0 loss to the Chicago White Sox on Thursday.

Manager Jim Leyland said Magglio Ordonez, who has been the designated hitter for three straight games, may get Saturday off. Leyland plans on loading the lineup with left-handed hitters against Indians right-hander Fausto Carmona (1-3, 6.11).

Carmona has given up four runs or more in five of his six starts. On Monday, he allowed four runs and eight hits in 6 2-3 innings before Cleveland (11-9) rallied to beat Toronto 9-7 in 12 innings.

Carmona is 6-2 with a 3.57 ERA in nine starts and three relief appearances against the Tigers. He's never lost at home to Detroit, going 3-0 with a 3.41 ERA in six appearances with five starts.

Jhonny Peralta will likely be behind Carmona at shortstop after getting Friday off. He's in an 8-for-63 (.127) slump and batting .210 this year after hitting .276 and setting career highs with 23 home runs, 89 RBIs and 104 runs in 2008.

Peralta is 1 for 15 with six strikeouts in his last four home games against the Tigers.

Center fielder Grady Sizemore has also been struggling for the Indians, who will be trying to bounce back after being shut out for the second time this season. He went hitless in four at-bats Friday and is 3 for 24 (.125) in his last five games.

"When you are struggling, the game does everything it can to beat you down," said Cleveland manager Eric Wedge, whose team has lost five of its last seven.