O's game blog: It's Tillman against Scherzer in Game 1

The Orioles' long wait for the playoffs is finally over. They are hosting the Detroit Tigers today in Game 1 of the American League Division Series. These clubs have never met in the postseason. The Orioles won the AL East, going 96-66, including a mark of 50-31 at home. The Tigers won the AL Central, going 90-72, including a mark of 45-36 on the road. The O's pitchers have the task of trying to contain a Detroit offense that led the AL in batting average (.277), OBP (.331) and slugging (.426) and ranked second in runs scored (757). The Tigers have some power, as they tied for fourth in the league with 155 homers, and some speed, ranking fourth with 106 steals. On the mound tonight, Chris Tillman (13-6, 3.34 ERA) pitches against 2013 AL Cy Young Award Winner Max Scherzer (18-5, 3.15 ERA). Tillman went 1-0 with a 1.08 ERA in one start this year against Detroit and is 3-0 with a 3.58 ERA in six career starts against the Tigers. Scherzer, who did not face the O's in 2014, is 3-1 with a 3.92 ERA in six career starts versus Baltimore. He is 1-0 with an ERA of 4.95 in three career starts at Camden Yards. Scherzer, who went 3-0 with a 2.48 ERA in five September starts, tied for first in the AL in wins and is third in strikeouts, fifth in winning percentage and ninth in ERA. Tillman tied for the major league lead with a career-high 34 starts, also posting a career-high 207 1/3 innings and 21 quality starts. He has recorded consecutive 200-inning seasons, the first Oriole to do that since Jeremy Guthrie turned in three straight from 2009-11. Tillman's 38 wins since 2012 are tied for 11th in the AL and his 3.42 ERA in that time is 15th-best. Detroit went 9-3 in Scherzer's last 12 starts. The Orioles went 11-1 in Tillman's last 12. Scherzer scouting report: 55 percent - fastballs 21 percent - changeups 14 percent - sliders 10 percent - curveballs Average velocity is 92.8 mph Tillman scouting report: 64 percent - fastballs 18 percent - curveballs 13 percent - changeups 5 percent - sliders Average velocity is 90.7 mph This series features five of the top 19 batters in the league this season when hitting with runners in scoring position: * Miguel Cabrera - seventh at .336 * Victor Martinez - 10th at .326 * Ian Kinsler - 13th at .322 * Adam Jones - 14th at .320 * J.J. Hardy - 19th at .315