Tigers trying to stay afloat

Tigers trying to stay afloat

Indians hope to continue their downward spiral

Associated Press - 7/29/08

http://tinyurl.com/648gwo


Armando Galarraga flirted with perfection the last time he took the
mound.

The Detroit Tigers hope their talented rookie is simply good enough to
help them bounce back from a disappointing loss as they continue a
road series with the Cleveland Indians on Tuesday night.

Since replacing injured and ineffective Dontrelle Willis in the
Detroit rotation, Galarraga (8-4, 3.27 ERA) has been a pleasant
surprise for the Tigers (53-52), who lost 5-0 at Cleveland on Monday.

In his last outing, Galarraga took a perfect game into the seventh
inning before Kansas City's David DeJesus singled in Detroit's 7-1 win
over the Royals on Wednesday.

"If it was the eighth or ninth, yes, but six innings is too early to
think about (a perfect game or no-hitter)," said Galarraga, who
allowed a run and three hits in seven innings. "I was (upset) a little
bit."

The right-hander, who is coming off his first win in four July starts,
is 2-0 with a 2.92 ERA against Cleveland this season.

"He feels like he belongs here," manager Jim Leyland told the Tigers'
official Web site. "He has a good presence about him. I expect him to
do well."

Galarraga looks to help the Tigers rebound from their third loss in
four games as they opened their 10-game road trip by being shut out
for an AL-leading 11th time.

"We did look a little flat. I don't mean not hustling or not trying,"
Leyland said. "We had a long trip coming out of the break. We went
home for a big emotional series and lost two of three (to Chicago).
This didn't surprise me."

Curtis Granderson had two of the four hits for Detroit, which remained
6½ games back of the AL Central-leading Chicago White Sox, who fell to
second-place Minnesota on Monday.

"One team can go on a five-game losing streak and another can go on a
five-game winning streak," Leyland said. "I think this team knows
what's at stake."

Granderson is batting .367 (11-for-30) during his seven game hitting
streak and .304 (7-for-23) against Cleveland this season.

Miguel Cabrera, meanwhile, went 0-for-4 on Monday but is batting .395
(15-for-3 with four homers and 14 RBIs in nine games versus the
Indians in 2008.

Jhonny Peralta drove in two runs, while Asdrubal Cabrera and Kelly
Shoppach homered Monday for Cleveland, which won for the second time
in six games. Peralta is hitting .381 (8-for-21) with five RBIs in his
last five contests and has driven in six runs in his last four games
versus the Tigers.

Former Tiger Matt Ginter (1-1, 2.45) will make his third straight for
Cleveland. He allowed three runs and seven hits in six innings of a
3-2 loss to the Los Angeles Angels last Tuesday.

"He gave us an opportunity to win," manager Eric Wedge told the
Indians' official Web site. "That's about all you can ask for."

The right-hander, who was placed in the rotation after Aaron Laffey
was demoted to Triple-A Buffalo, appeared in 14 games for Detroit in
2005. He is 0-0 with a 1.80 ERA in five career relief outings versus
the Tigers, and will make his first start against them Tuesday.


--




- Scott Smith: scott.smith.RemoveThis@iphouse.com
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/choppersmith