Cleveland @ San Francisco preview

Last Meeting ( Jun 24, 2011 ) Cleveland 3, San Francisco 4

THE STORY: Talk about bad nights. The Cleveland Indians had one Friday against the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park. First baseman Carlos Santana committed two errors in the sixth inning, which led to three unearned runs in a 4-3 loss, but that wasn't even close to the worst news. Right fielder Shin-Soo Choo will miss at least six weeks with a broken left thumb suffered when he was hit by a Jonathan Sanchez pitch in the fourth inning. The Giants, who know a thing or about injuries to key players, have won three straight and are 6-1 in interleague play. The teams continue their three-game series Saturday at AT&T Park.

TV: 4:10 p.m. ET, Fox

PITCHING MATCHUP: Indians RH Justin Masterson (5-5, 3.18 ERA) vs. Giants RH Matt Cain (6-4, 3.44 ERA)

Even Masterson might have a tough time remembering his last win. The righthander hasn't had a victory since April 26, a span of 10 starts. Masterson began the season 5-0, but his own inconsistency and a lack of run support have kept him out of the win column. He'll be making his first career appearance against the Giants.

Cain is in his best stretch of the season, going 3-0 with a 2.43 ERA in his last four starts. He pitched well enough to win Sunday against Oakland, but ended up with a no-decision, despite allowing one run on three hits with no walks in seven innings. He lost his only career appearance against Cleveland, allowing four runs in five innings in 2008.

ABOUT THE INDIANS (40-34): Cleveland's lineup suffered another blow with Choo's injury. Although he has struggled most of the season, he was batting .370 in his last eight games and had been putting together better at-bats. With Choo out until at least mid-August, the Indians will turn to Shelley Duncan, Austin Kearns and Travis Buck. Duncan and Buck were just called up from the minors while Kearns has two RBIs in 91 at-bats. That's far from an ideal situation for any team, especially one that's fighting for first place.

ABOUT THE GIANTS (42-34): San Francisco is the best example of how much good pitching can mean to a team. While the Giants' offense is one of the worst in baseball, their pitching has kept them in contention. San Francisco is third in the National League in team ERA and has held opponents to a .234 batting average. The pitchers are also among the league leaders in strikeouts. The consistency from the pitching staff is even more impressive considering the offense has been so unproductive, a situation that doesn't look like it will change.

FINAL PITCH: Good luck to Indians manager Manny Acta trying to come up with a lineup for the remaining eight games in NL parks without Choo and designated hitter Travis Hafner. Maybe he can find a pitcher who can hit.