The set-up: The Tigers caught some attention by taking two of three from both AL-leading Houston and the New York Yankees before opening a four-game series at Camden Yards by beating the Orioles on Thursday and Friday. Detroit entered the weekend having won six of eight and on a season-high-tying four-game wining streak but it came to a crashing halt as Baltimore hit three HRs in a 5-2 Saturday win and five more in Sunday's 12-3 victory. The Tigers are now 8 1/2 games back of Cleveland in the AL Central and six games behind Kansas City for the second wild-card spot. Over in the NL Central, Pittsburgh was able to creep within 4 1/2 games of the first-place Cubs with Sunday's 5-4 victory over San Diego, as newcomer Sean Rodriguez belted a walk-off solo HR in the 12th inning a day after being acquired from Atlanta. The Pirates recorded their 15th consecutive win when scoring at least four runs. The two teams play two at PNC Park in Pittsburgh before shifting to Detroit's Comerica Park for two games in a home-and-home setup.

The pitching matchup: Jordan Zimmermann (7-8 & 5.35 ERA) takes the mound for Detroit and rookie Trevor Williams (4-4 & 4.47 ERA) will get the nod for Pittsburgh. Zimmermann missed out on an opportunity to record his first shutout of the season on Wednesday due to a rain delay of more than three hours in New York but settled for the victory after allowing six hits across seven scoreless innings. He has turned in three quality starts in four tries since the All Star break and has not walked a batter in any of those three efforts. Zimmermann notched his only win in three career starts versus the Pirates last season, tossing six scoreless innings in Pittsburgh on April 14 (he's 1-2 with a 4.00 ERA). Williams settled for another no-decision his last time out, allowing two runs on six hits over 5 1/3 innings (Pirates lost 5-2 to the Reds this past Wednesday). It marked his 10th no-decision in 16 starts this season (Pirates are 7-9). Williams is 1-0 with a 3.42 ERA in four starts since the All-Star break (Pirates are 2-2) and makes his first-ever career start against the Tigers..

The pick: Yes, Detroit has won nine of its past 15 road games, after starting the season with a 15-28 (.349) record away from Comerica Park. However, trusting Zimmermann away from home is a dangerous proposition. He was a solid part of Washington's rotation for years but injuries limited him to just 18 starts last year with the Tigers, when he went 9-7 with a 4.87 ERA. He's been healthier in 2017 but his ERA is a career-worst 5.35 and he's allowed 142 hits in 119.1 innings. On the road, his ERA is 5.95 and his WHIP is 1.65, while the Tigers have lost nine of his 12 starts. Make Pittsburgh a 10* play.