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Tigers-Royals Preview

May 25, 2009 - 11:35 PM By SANTOSH VENKATARAMAN STATS Senior Writer

Detroit (24-18) at Kansas City (22-22), 8:10 p.m. EDT

While Zack Greinke has been the talk of baseball for his amazing success in the early season, his opponent on the mound Tuesday night has also been turning heads recently.

Runs could be at a premium when Greinke and the Kansas City Royals try to prevent Edwin Jackson from winning a fourth straight start for the Detroit Tigers.

Greinke (7-1, 0.82 ERA) was dominant in winning his first six starts, but Kansas City (22-23) has lost two of the last three times he has taken the mound. He did not get a decision for the first time Thursday when he yielded two runs over six innings in an 8-3 loss to Cleveland.

While it has taken his sixth season for Greinke to consistently showcase some of his vast potential, Jackson (4-2, 2.55) is showing signs of doing the same in his seventh year in the majors. After two mediocre seasons with Tampa Bay, Jackson has emerged with the lowest ERA of Detroit's rotation in 2009.

He improved to 3-0 with a 1.64 ERA in his last three outings Thursday when he allowed three runs over eight innings in a 4-3 victory against Texas. Jackson threw a career-high 132 pitches, and completed the eighth inning after a visit to the mound by manager Jim Leyland.

"He's a warrior," Leyland said. "I felt like he deserved to be out there."

Jackson is 2-1 with a 4.96 ERA in three career starts versus Kansas City.

Greinke, meanwhile, has yet to allow a homer, continues to lead the majors in ERA and has gone 19 straight innings versus Detroit (25-18) without allowing an earned run. He is seeking his second win over the Tigers this year after pitching a three-hitter April 24 in a 6-1 victory.

The right-hander is 8-4 with a 3.04 ERA in 15 career starts against Detroit, and has held the Tigers' Magglio Ordonez and Curtis Granderson in check. Ordonez is 4 for 31 (.129) against Greinke and Granderson is 4 for 25 (.160).

Four of Greinke's wins this season have followed losses by the Royals, who were beaten 13-1 to open this series Monday.

Detroit pounded out 19 hits to end a three-game road slide Monday as Miguel Cabrera had four hits and three RBIs and Granderson added three hits. The outburst came in support of Justin Verlander, who pitched seven scoreless innings.

Since losing to Greinke on April 24, the Tigers have won three straight against the Royals by scoring 25 runs.

Kansas City has scored 12 runs in losing five of its last six games. The Royals avoided their third shutout in four days on David DeJesus' RBI single in the eighth inning.

"It's been a bad day at work," Royals manager Trey Hillman said Monday after being ejected in the eighth by home plate umpire Paul Emmel.

Several key Royals are slumping. Leadoff hitter Coco Crisp is 4 for 22 in his last six games, Mark Teahen is 1 for 22 with nine strikeouts in the same span and Mike Jacobs is 3 for 16 in his last five games.