AL: CLEVELAND (51-33) at DETROIT (48-34) <h3>Verlander, Sabathia battle for All-Star supremacy</h3> Cleveland (51-33) at Detroit (48-34) 1:05 pm EDT DETROIT (Ticker) -- Justin Verlander will get another chance toimpress his manager enough to get the starting nod in Tuesday'sAll-Star Game. C.C. Sabathia will be attempting to do the same. The two All-Stars starters will square off Thursday when theDetroit Tigers host the Cleveland Indians in the finale of theirthree-game series. Verlander (9-3, 3.18 ERA) has the built-in advantage of playingfor the man who will ultimately make the decision of who shouldstart, Detroit manager Jim Leyland. The 24-year-old righthander had his worst outing of the seasonagainst Sabathia and the Indians on May 31, yielding seven runsand eight hits in five innings to take a loss. Verlander alsostruggled in his last outing when he allowed six runs in fiveinnings against the Minnesota Twins in a matchup againstreigning American League Cy Young winner Johan Santana. Sabathia (12-2, 3.20) has been rock solid all season. The burlylefthander will be looking to increase his major league-leadingwin total to 13. He beat the Tigers in back-to-back starts on May 26 and May 31,and owns a 12-7 career mark against his division rivals. In his last start, Sabathia allowed three runs - two earned -and six hits with eight strikeouts in seven innings of an 8-6victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. It was his thirdstraight winning outing. Leyland will likely choose his starter from a group thatincludes the two men starting here on Thursday along withBoston's Josh Beckett, Oakland's Dan Haren, Santana, and theAngels' John Lackey. Detroit picked up a win on Wednesday, 6-4, behind five-plusstrong innings by Kenny Rogers. The win snapped the Indians'six-game winning streak.
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">CLEVELAND AT DETROIT -- LINEUPS CLEVELAND DETROIT AVG HR RBI AVG HR RBI Grady Sizemore CF .283 14 45 Curtis Granderson CF .284 11 42 Casey Blake 3B .271 12 43 Placido Polanco 2B .330 2 37 Victor Martinez C .322 14 64 Gary Sheffield DH .295 19 53 Travis Hafner DH .257 14 54 Magglio Ordonez RF .365 13 68 Jhonny Peralta SS .280 14 49 Carlos Guillen SS .328 12 61 Ryan Garko 1B .294 9 30 Ivan Rodriguez C .282 8 45 Trot Nixon RF .244 2 25 Marcus Thames 1B .235 8 22 Ben Francisco LF .500 3 5 Craig Monroe LF .219 9 41 Josh Barfield 2B .257 2 37 Brandon Inge 3B .247 11 40 C.C. Sabathia LHP (12-2, 3.20) Justin Verlander RHP (9-3, 3.18)</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">AL AT DETROIT WARMUPS: CLE - C.C. SABATHIA (12-2, 3.20) DET - JUSTIN VERLANDER (9-3, 3.18) UMPIRES: HP - DOUG EDDINGS 1B - DANA DEMUTH 2B - DERRYL COUSINS 3B - KERWIN DANLEY WEATHER: 80 Degrees, partly cloudy WIND: 2 mph, in from right</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">AL AT DETROIT STARTING BATS: CLE - C.C. SABATHIA AND VICTOR MARTINEZ DET - JUSTIN VERLANDER AND IVAN RODRIGUEZ DUE UP FOR CLEVELAND: G SIZEMORE (.283, 14 HR, 45 RBI) C BLAKE (.271, 12 HR, 43 RBI) V MARTINEZ (.322, 14 HR, 64 RBI)</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">AL AT DETROIT - SCORING UPDATE SOLO HOME RUN BY VICTOR MARTINEZ (15) TO RIGHT WITH 2 OUT IN THE 1ST OFF JUSTIN VERLANDER. CURRENT SCORE: CLEVELAND 1, DETROIT 0 DUE UP FOR CLEVELAND: T HAFNER (.257, 14 HR, 54 RBI)</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">AL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - CLEVELAND 1 1 1 0 DETROIT 0 0 0 (BOT 1) CURRENT PITCHERS: CLE - C.C. SABATHIA DET - JUSTIN VERLANDER DUE UP FOR DETROIT: C GRANDERSON (.284, 11 HR, 42 RBI) P POLANCO (.330, 2 HR, 37 RBI) G SHEFFIELD (.295, 19 HR, 53 RBI)</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">CLEVELAND (1) VS DETROIT (0) - MID 1ST - IN PROGRESS CLEVELAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg G Sizemore cf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .282 C Blake 3b 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .270 V Martinez c 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 .324 T Hafner dh 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .256 J Peralta ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .280 R Garko 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .294 T Nixon rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .244 B Francisco lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 J Barfield 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .257 Totals 4 1 1 1 0 1 0 BATTING: HR - V Martinez (15, 1st inning off J Verlander 0 on, 2 Out). RBI - V Martinez (65). 2-out RBI - V Martinez. Team LOB - 0. DETROIT ab r h rbi bb so lob avg C Granderson cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .284 P Polanco 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .330 G Sheffield dh 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .295 M Ordonez rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .365 C Guillen ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .328 I Rodriguez c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .282 M Thames 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .235 C Monroe lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .219 B Inge 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .247 Totals 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 BATTING: Team LOB - 0. ---------------------------------------------------- CLEVELAND - 1 -- 1 DETROIT - -- 0 ---------------------------------------------------- CLEVELAND ip h r er bb so hr era C Sabathia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3.20 DETROIT ip h r er bb so hr era J Verlander 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 3.23 Pitches-strikes: J Verlander 11-9. Ground balls-fly balls: J Verlander 0-2. Batters faced: J Verlander 4. UMPIRES: HP--Doug Eddings. 1B--Dana Demuth. 2B--Derryl Cousins. 3B--Kerwin Danley. Weather: 81 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 2 mph, in from right.</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">AL CLEVELAND AT DETROIT NOTE: CLEVELAND CATCHER VICTOR MARTINEZ EXTENDED HIS HITTING STREAK TO 10 GAMES WITH A HOME RUN IN THE FIRST INNING.</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">AL AT DETROIT CONFIRMED STARTERS: CLE - C.C. SABATHIA DET - JUSTIN VERLANDER</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">AL AT DETROIT - SCORING UPDATE SOLO HOME RUN BY PLACIDO POLANCO (3) TO LEFT WITH 1 OUT IN THE 1ST OFF C.C. SABATHIA. CURRENT SCORE: CLEVELAND 1, DETROIT 1 DUE UP FOR DETROIT: G SHEFFIELD (.295, 19 HR, 53 RBI)</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">AL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - CLEVELAND 1 1 1 0 DETROIT 1 1 2 0 (TOP 2) CURRENT PITCHERS: CLE - C.C. SABATHIA DET - JUSTIN VERLANDER DUE UP FOR CLEVELAND: J PERALTA (.280, 14 HR, 49 RBI) R GARKO (.294, 9 HR, 30 RBI) T NIXON (.244, 2 HR, 25 RBI)</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">CLEVELAND (1) VS DETROIT (1) - END 1ST - IN PROGRESS CLEVELAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg G Sizemore cf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .282 C Blake 3b 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .270 V Martinez c 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 .324 T Hafner dh 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .256 J Peralta ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .280 R Garko 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .294 T Nixon rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .244 B Francisco lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 J Barfield 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .257 Totals 4 1 1 1 0 1 0 BATTING: HR - V Martinez (15, 1st inning off J Verlander 0 on, 2 Out). RBI - V Martinez (65). 2-out RBI - V Martinez. Team LOB - 0. DETROIT ab r h rbi bb so lob avg C Granderson cf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .283 P Polanco 2b 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 .332 G Sheffield dh 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .297 M Ordonez rf 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .364 C Guillen ss 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .327 I Rodriguez c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .282 M Thames 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .235 C Monroe lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .219 B Inge 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .247 Totals 5 1 2 1 0 1 2 BATTING: HR - P Polanco (3, 1st inning off C Sabathia 0 on, 1 Out). RBI - P Polanco (38). Team LOB - 1. ---------------------------------------------------- CLEVELAND - 1 -- 1 DETROIT - 1 -- 1 ---------------------------------------------------- CLEVELAND ip h r er bb so hr era C Sabathia 1 2 1 1 0 1 1 3.25 DETROIT ip h r er bb so hr era J Verlander 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 3.23 Pitches-strikes: C Sabathia 20-12; J Verlander 11-9. Ground balls-fly balls: C Sabathia 0-2; J Verlander 0-2. Batters faced: C Sabathia 5; J Verlander 4. UMPIRES: HP--Doug Eddings. 1B--Dana Demuth. 2B--Derryl Cousins. 3B--Kerwin Danley. Weather: 81 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 2 mph, in from right.</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">AL AT DETROIT - SCORING UPDATE WILD PITCH BY JUSTIN VERLANDER ALLOWED RYAN GARKO TO SCORE. SITUATION: 1 RUN IN, NONE ON, 2 OUT CURRENT SCORE: CLEVELAND 2 DETROIT 1 TOP, 2ND DUE UP FOR CLEVELAND: B FRANCISCO (.500, 0-FOR-0)</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">AL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - CLEVELAND 1 1 2 3 0 DETROIT 1 1 2 1 (BOT 2) CURRENT PITCHERS: CLE - C.C. SABATHIA DET - JUSTIN VERLANDER DUE UP FOR DETROIT: I RODRIGUEZ (.282, 8 HR, 45 RBI) M THAMES (.235, 8 HR, 22 RBI) C MONROE (.219, 9 HR, 41 RBI)</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">CLEVELAND (2) VS DETROIT (1) - MID 2ND - IN PROGRESS CLEVELAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg G Sizemore cf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .282 C Blake 3b 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .270 V Martinez c 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 .324 T Hafner dh 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .256 J Peralta ss 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .279 R Garko 1b 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .297 T Nixon rf 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .243 B Francisco lf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .529 J Barfield 2b 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .256 Totals 9 2 3 1 0 1 2 BATTING: HR - V Martinez (15, 1st inning off J Verlander 0 on, 2 Out). RBI - V Martinez (65). 2-out RBI - V Martinez. Team LOB - 1. DETROIT ab r h rbi bb so lob avg C Granderson cf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .283 P Polanco 2b 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 .332 G Sheffield dh 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .297 M Ordonez rf 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .364 C Guillen ss 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .327 I Rodriguez c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .282 M Thames 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .235 C Monroe lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .219 B Inge 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .247 Totals 5 1 2 1 0 1 2 BATTING: HR - P Polanco (3, 1st inning off C Sabathia 0 on, 1 Out). RBI - P Polanco (38). Team LOB - 1. FIELDING: E - C Guillen (14, throw). ---------------------------------------------------- CLEVELAND - 11 -- 2 DETROIT - 1 -- 1 ---------------------------------------------------- CLEVELAND ip h r er bb so hr era C Sabathia 1 2 1 1 0 1 1 3.25 DETROIT ip h r er bb so hr era J Verlander 2 3 2 2 0 1 1 3.29 WP - J Verlander. Pitches-strikes: C Sabathia 20-12; J Verlander 32-23. Ground balls-fly balls: C Sabathia 0-2; J Verlander 1-4. Batters faced: C Sabathia 5; J Verlander 9. UMPIRES: HP--Doug Eddings. 1B--Dana Demuth. 2B--Derryl Cousins. 3B--Kerwin Danley. Weather: 81 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 2 mph, in from right.</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">AL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - CLEVELAND 1 1 2 3 0 DETROIT 1 0 1 3 1 (TOP 3) CURRENT PITCHERS: CLE - C.C. SABATHIA DET - JUSTIN VERLANDER DUE UP FOR CLEVELAND: G SIZEMORE (.282, 0-FOR-1) C BLAKE (.270, 0-FOR-1) V MARTINEZ (.324, 1-FOR-1, HR, RBI)</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">CLEVELAND (2) VS DETROIT (1) - END 2ND - IN PROGRESS CLEVELAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg G Sizemore cf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .282 C Blake 3b 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .270 V Martinez c 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 .324 T Hafner dh 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .256 J Peralta ss 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .279 R Garko 1b 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .297 T Nixon rf 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .243 B Francisco lf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .529 J Barfield 2b 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .256 Totals 9 2 3 1 0 1 2 BATTING: HR - V Martinez (15, 1st inning off J Verlander 0 on, 2 Out). RBI - V Martinez (65). 2-out RBI - V Martinez. Team LOB - 1. DETROIT ab r h rbi bb so lob avg C Granderson cf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .283 P Polanco 2b 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 .332 G Sheffield dh 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .297 M Ordonez rf 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .364 C Guillen ss 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .327 I Rodriguez c 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .281 M Thames 1b 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .242 C Monroe lf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .218 B Inge 3b 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .246 Totals 9 1 3 1 0 2 3 BATTING: 2B - M Thames (6, C Sabathia). HR - P Polanco (3, 1st inning off C Sabathia 0 on, 1 Out). RBI - P Polanco (38). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - B Inge 1. Team LOB - 2. FIELDING: E - C Guillen (14, throw). ---------------------------------------------------- CLEVELAND - 11 -- 2 DETROIT - 10 -- 1 ---------------------------------------------------- CLEVELAND ip h r er bb so hr era C Sabathia 2 3 1 1 0 2 1 3.22 DETROIT ip h r er bb so hr era J Verlander 2 3 2 1 0 1 1 3.20 WP - J Verlander. Pitches-strikes: C Sabathia 31-19; J Verlander 32-23. Ground balls-fly balls: C Sabathia 0-4; J Verlander 1-4. Batters faced: C Sabathia 9; J Verlander 9. UMPIRES: HP--Doug Eddings. 1B--Dana Demuth. 2B--Derryl Cousins. 3B--Kerwin Danley. Weather: 81 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 2 mph, in from right.</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">AL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - CLEVELAND 1 1 0 2 3 0 DETROIT 1 0 1 3 1 (BOT 3) CURRENT PITCHERS: CLE - C.C. SABATHIA DET - JUSTIN VERLANDER DUE UP FOR DETROIT: C GRANDERSON (.283, 0-FOR-1) P POLANCO (.332, 1-FOR-1, HR, RBI) G SHEFFIELD (.297, 1-FOR-1)</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">CLEVELAND (2) VS DETROIT (1) - MID 3RD - IN PROGRESS CLEVELAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg G Sizemore cf 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .281 C Blake 3b 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .270 V Martinez c 2 1 1 1 0 0 1 .323 T Hafner dh 2 0 0 0 0 2 1 .255 J Peralta ss 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .279 R Garko 1b 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .297 T Nixon rf 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .243 B Francisco lf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .529 J Barfield 2b 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .256 Totals 12 2 3 1 0 2 4 BATTING: HR - V Martinez (15, 1st inning off J Verlander 0 on, 2 Out). RBI - V Martinez (65). 2-out RBI - V Martinez. Team LOB - 2. DETROIT ab r h rbi bb so lob avg C Granderson cf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .283 P Polanco 2b 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 .332 G Sheffield dh 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .297 M Ordonez rf 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .364 C Guillen ss 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .327 I Rodriguez c 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .281 M Thames 1b 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .242 C Monroe lf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .218 B Inge 3b 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .246 Totals 9 1 3 1 0 2 3 BATTING: 2B - M Thames (6, C Sabathia). HR - P Polanco (3, 1st inning off C Sabathia 0 on, 1 Out). RBI - P Polanco (38). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - B Inge 1. Team LOB - 2. FIELDING: E - C Guillen (14, throw). ---------------------------------------------------- CLEVELAND - 110 -- 2 DETROIT - 10 -- 1 ---------------------------------------------------- CLEVELAND ip h r er bb so hr era C Sabathia 2 3 1 1 0 2 1 3.22 DETROIT ip h r er bb so hr era J Verlander 3 3 2 1 0 2 1 3.17 WP - J Verlander. HBP - C Blake (by J Verlander). Pitches-strikes: C Sabathia 31-19; J Verlander 50-33. Ground balls-fly balls: C Sabathia 0-4; J Verlander 1-6. Batters faced: C Sabathia 9; J Verlander 13. UMPIRES: HP--Doug Eddings. 1B--Dana Demuth. 2B--Derryl Cousins. 3B--Kerwin Danley. Weather: 81 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 2 mph, in from right.</div>
AL: CLEVELAND at DETROIT <div class="pre">AL AT DETROIT - SCORING UPDATE SACRIFICE FLY BY GARY SHEFFIELD SCORED CURTIS GRANDERSON. SITUATION: 1 RUN IN, P POLANCO ON SECOND, 1 OUT CURRENT SCORE: CLEVELAND 2 DETROIT 2 BOTTOM, 3RD DUE UP FOR DETROIT: M ORDONEZ (.364, 0-FOR-1)</div>
