Cubs-Tigers Preview

With Miguel Cabrera and the rest of the offense back on track, the Detroit Tigers are on the verge of their longest winning streak since the season's opening week.

Given the numbers he's put up against the Chicago Cubs, Cabrera may be able to help the Tigers close out this two-game series Wednesday night with their fourth straight victory.

Detroit batted .214 with three home runs while averaging 2.8 runs during an eight-game losing streak that was the team's longest since September 2005. Since then, however, the club has hit .363 with three homers while totaling 19 runs in three consecutive victories.

The Tigers (31-28) also snapped a five-game home slide with Tuesday's 6-0 win. They haven't run off four straight victories since a 6-0 start.

After hitting an uncharacteristic .231 over his previous 11 games, Cabrera went 3 for 3 with an RBI Tuesday. He's reached base in 27 consecutive games and is batting .438 during a 13-game home hitting streak.

The two-time AL MVP hasn't faced the Cubs often, but he's hitting .364 with 11 home runs and 41 RBIs in his last 42 games against them.

Jake Arrieta went 1-1 with a 3.71 ERA in three starts versus Detroit while he was with Baltimore. He yielded five runs and 10 hits over 4 2-3 innings in a 5-1 road loss in his most recent meeting in June 2013.

Cabrera is 3 for 9 when facing Arrieta (5-4, 3.04 ERA), homering in the last contest.

The Cubs (30-26) hope to bounce back and finish above .500 on this nine-game road swing. They're also looking to avoid their fourth straight loss in Detroit and 11th in 12 meetings overall.

After allowing 10 runs over 13 innings in his previous two starts, Arrieta got back on track Thursday when he gave up one run and struck out eight over six in a 2-1 win at Washington.

"I was able to throw (my curveball) in the middle, but underneath the zone, at will for the most part to give the appearance of a belt-high fastball," he told MLB's official website.

Detroit's Shane Greene (4-5, 5.40) has posted an 11.57 ERA in losing his last three starts after going 1-0 with a 1.40 mark in his previous three. The right-hander surrendered six runs - four earned - and eight hits over 4 1-3 innings in Thursday's 7-5 home loss to Oakland.

"It is a performance game, so we need him to get back where he was a couple of games ago, getting the ball down and getting ground balls," manager Brad Ausmus said.

Greene will get his first look at a Cubs team that scattered eight hits in the opener. Starlin Castro led the way with two, but Anthony Rizzo went 0 for 3 to end his career-high hitting streak at 12 games.

The Cubs rank in baseball's bottom half with a 3.65 bullpen ERA, but added some depth Tuesday by signing Rafael Soriano to a minor league contract. Soriano had 32 saves and a 3.19 ERA with Washington last season.