After a comeback victory in Game 4 that evened up the series to two games apiece, the Oakland A's will look to pull out a third straight victory against the Detroit Tigers at the Oakland Coliseum.

However, the task will not be an easy one as they'll have to get past Justin Verlander (17-8, 2.64 ERA), who is widely considered the best pitcher in the Major Leagues. Oakland will combat by sending righty Jarrod Parker (13-8, 3.47 ERA) to the hill.

In the 2012 season, Tigers' ace pitcher has been lights out against the A's with a 0.69 ERA in two starts (which doesn't include the postseason). The Oakland hitters have hit a measly .167 in 122 at-bats against the hurler.

In Game1 of the ALDS, the 29-year-old only gave up one run and surrendered three hits while striking out 11 against Oakland.

In order to keep themselves in the ball game against Verlander the A's hitters must be selective at the plate and force the workhorse to throw strikes. If the offense falls behind in their counts early then it will be very difficult for Oakland to build any momentum at all as the flame-thrower is known to get better as the ball game progresses.

Although he didn't perform as well as Verlander in Game 1, Parker was indeed efficient against Detroit. The 23-year-old gave up seven hits and three runs over 6 1/3 innings pitched.

During the regular season, the youngster didn't have much experience against the Tigers, only facing them once. However, he did hold the club to two runs and six hits in 5 2/3 innings. Interesting to note, Parker's ERA at home (2.61) is nearly two runs lower than it is in his road starts (4.54).

CLICK HERE to watch the Detroit Tigers vs. Oakland Athletics in Game 5 of the ALDS. Coverage will begin at 6:30 p.m. PT.

Tags: mlb