The MLB lines list the Tigers as favorites by the slimmest of margins at -115 while the Indians are at -105. The total is 9.5.

The Detroit Tigers (16-13, 7-10 away) are currently in second place in the AL Central but have lost a little ground on division-leading Minnesota after being swept by them earlier in the week. They are trying to avoid their first four-game losing streak of the season.

Detroit has hit the ball very well this season, leading the league with a .280 team batting average. Two major contributors to their strong batting average are first basemen Miguel Cabrera (.372) and centerfielder Austin Jackson (.369), who rank first and second in batting average in the AL. Rookie catcher Alex Avila has stepped up in place of injured starter Gerald Laird, batting .556 over the past four games with two homers on Wednesday.

The Cleveland Indians were swept earlier in the week at home by the Toronto Blue Jays. Combined with a loss in the final game of the previous series, Cleveland has now lost four straight home games. They will try to avoid their second five-game losing streak of the season Friday night.

The Indians offense has struggled to produce hits and power numbers. They are 11th in the AL in batting average and have the second-lowest team OPS. Right fielder Shin-Soo Choo, who has been one of the few productive offensive players for the Indians, has struggled over their most recent losing streak, batting 4-16 over the last four games (bringing his season average down from .318 to .307).

Jeremy Bonderman (1-1, 5.74 ERA) will start for the Tigers. He will look for his first win since his first start of the season against the Indians on April 10. He’s 4-1 with a .371 ERA in his last seven starts against the Indians.

Cleveland counters by starting David Huff (1-4, 4.60 ERA). He will hope for better run support – his run support average of 2.59 is among the lowest in the AL. He started against the Tigers earlier in the season on April 9 and gave up four runs and six hits in a 5-2 loss. Fortunately for left-handed Huff, the Tigers are hitting .242 against lefthanders (well below their league-leading overall average of .280).

Detroit Tigers at Cleveland Indians – MLB Betting Preview by MLB Baseball Previews

The Mariners are -180 MLB money line favorites over the +160 Tigers and the over/under is 7.

Detroit will be starting right-handed Jeremy Bonderman (1-0, 1.80 ERA). Bonderman was a pleasant surprise for the Tigers in his first start, earning his first win in nearly two years against the Cleveland Indians. He allowed one run and one hit in five innings. It was the only win this season for the Tigers that did not require a comeback.

Felix Hernandez (0-0, 3.29 ERA) is scheduled to start for the Seattle Mariners. Hernandez, who won 19 games in 2009, is making his third start of the season. With the exception of a few control problems in the season opener, he has been stellar. He has suffered from low run support, getting a total of just four runs from his offense. The right hander has been dominant against Detroit, winning his last five consecutive decisions and allowing just one home run in over 50 innings.

Fortunately for Hernandez, Seattle’s offense began to show some signs of life recently. They came up with 11 hits in a 4-2 victor of the Oakland A’s on Wednesday. They were particularly impressive in pressure situations – all four runs were scored with two outs.

Unfortunately for Hernandez, Detroit employs two of the few players in baseball who have had success against him. Tigers LF Johnny Damon is 8-15 (.615) against the ace and 1B Miguel Cabrera is 6-11 (.545) against him.

The Detroit Tigers are currently a half game out of first place in the AL Central. The first place Minnesota Twins host the Kansas City Royals earlier in the evening. The Mariners, after a slow start, are in third place in the AL West. They will attempt to build from the momentum from winning two out of three games in their most recent series with the division leading Oakland A’s.

Detroit Tigers at Seattle Mariners – MLB Betting Preview by MLB Baseball Previews