GDT: 4/15/09 - DET (4-4) VS CWS (4-3) - 1:05 p.m. ET

DETROIT -- The last time Armando Galarraga faced the White Sox, he was pitching in relief in Detroit's final game last season and looking wild. He's had plenty of time to prepare for Chicago's power hitters this time, which is good news for Jim Leyland.

Four White Sox home runs in Monday's 10-6 Tigers loss exposed the same weakness Tigers pitching has had against Chicago for some time. And after Galarraga mixed and matched his pitches to keep the Rangers off-balance at Comerica Park last Friday, Leyland would love to see an encore.

"We definitely have to do a better job of keeping them in the park, there's no question about that," Leyland said Tuesday morning. "That's what they do very well. They've got a power-packed lineup there with [Jim] Thome and [Paul] Konerko and [Jermaine] Dye. You've got to keep them in the park and you've got to keep the other guys off the bases."

When Galarraga is at his best, he's certainly capable of limiting hitters. His ratio of 7.657 hits per nine innings last year was the second best among American League starters. At the same time, though, his 28 home runs allowed marked the second-highest total in the league.

None of those homers came against the White Sox. In fact, none of his hits did, either. His only appearance against the Sox was that relief appearance, a one-batter meeting with Dye that included two wild pitches, allowing Dewayne Wise to come around from second and score the tying run before Dye's walk put the go-ahead run on base.

Galarraga admittedly came out with too much energy for that relief appearance. As a starter, his history suggests a much more collected repertoire.

Beneath that calm demeanor, however, lies a very driven second-year pitcher. While Leyland and others try to emphasize not to raise unrealistic expectations for Galarraga, he thinks he can significantly improve on last year.

"I need to prove to myself that I can do better," he said after his home-opening win. "Last year, I won 13. This year, I can win 17. And next year, I can win 20. Keep going and do better and better every day."

How driven is Galarraga these days? After holding Texas to a lone run over seven innings Friday, he was upset that he gave up the run, especially on a bloop hit.

His skill Friday was in keeping Rangers hitters off-balance, mixing fastballs, sliders and sinkers in unexpected counts and getting a surprising number of swings and misses. That could be crucial against the White Sox and a lineup in which veteran hitters have done a skillful job of anticipating what opponents will throw them in certain counts.

"When they were waiting for a sinker, I threw a slider," Galarraga said of the Rangers. "When they were waiting for a slider, I threw a sinker at the knees. If I see something else, I throw a changeup. I threw three pitches really well."

Pitching matchup

DET: RHP Armando Galarraga (1-0, 1.29 ERA)
Any questions on whether last year's Tigers surprise story has the capability to repeat or better his breakout 2008 season seemingly were answered Friday, when Galarraga dominated the previously scorching Rangers offense for seven innings of one-run ball. His eight strikeouts marked a career high, and the Rangers that did hit the ball never made good contact, limited to five singles and a slew of groundouts. He ended up being the perfect starter for the always-intense home opener in Detroit, and he'll close out the opening homestand against the only division opponent he didn't start against last year.

CWS: RHP Jose Contreras (0-1, 7.20 ERA)
It certainly wasn't a dominant effort for Contreras in his first start since rupturing his left Achilles tendon back on Aug. 9, 2008. But the Twins didn't exactly crush the right-hander, a performance somewhere in between that was somewhat expected from the veteran. Contreras gave up four earned runs on seven hits, including Joe Crede's home run, over five innings. He walked three, struck out three and threw 86 pitches. But most importantly, Contreras felt healthy after his first regular-season test. Contreras has an 8-8 lifetime record against Detroit and a 4-4 mark at Comerica Park.

Tidbits
... The Tigers will have a moment of silence and a video tribute before the game for former pitching great Mark Fidrych, who passed away unexpectedly Monday at age 54.
... Placido Polanco needs two games to tie Germany Schaefer for eighth place on the Tigers' all-time list for games at second base.
... Carlos Guillen could end up as the designated hitter again as the Tigers try to protect his sore right Achilles tendon. Guillen is 16-for-40 (.400) lifetime against Contreras with three home runs, nine RBIs, 10 walks and only one strikeout.

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Up next
• Thursday: Off-day
• Friday: Tigers (Justin Verlander, 0-1, 9.35 ERA) at Mariners (Felix Hernandez, 1-0, 4.15 ERA), 10:10 p.m. ET
• Saturday: Tigers (Edwin Jackson, 0-0, 3.38 ERA) at Mariners (Erik Bedard, 1-0, 2.03 ERA), 9:10 p.m. ET

lineups

Chi White Sox
Lillibridge, 2B
Fields, 3B
Quentin, LF
Thome, DH
Dye, RF
Konerko, 1B
Pierzynski, C
Ramirez, SS
Anderson, B, CF


Detroit
Granderson, CF
Polanco, 2B
Ordonez, RF
Cabrera, M, 1B
Guillen, DH
Laird, C
Inge, 3B
Anderson, J, LF
Santiago, SS

Inning 1
Top Half

B:3 S:2 O:1 -
Brent Lillibridge pops out to second baseman Placido Polanco.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Josh Fields triples (1) on a fly ball to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

B:2 S:3 O:2 -
Carlos Quentin swinging.

B:0 S:3 O:3 -
Jim Thome called out on .

Bottom Half

B:1 S:1 O:1 -
Curtis Granderson grounds out to first baseman Paul Konerko.

B:0 S:1 O:2 -
Placido Polanco grounds out, pitcher Jose Contreras to first baseman Paul Konerko.

B:2 S:3 O:3 -
Magglio Ordonez called out on .

0-0

Inning 2
Top Half

B:1 S:1 O:0 -
Jermaine Dye singles on a line drive to left fielder Josh Anderson.

B:0 S:1 O:1 -
Paul Konerko flies out to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
A. J. Pierzynski lines out to second baseman Placido Polanco.

B:1 S:2 O:3 -
Alexei Ramirez flies out to left fielder Josh Anderson.

0-0

Bottom Half

B:2 S:1 O:1 - flies out to center fielder Brian Anderson.

B:2 S:0 O:2 - flies out to right fielder Jermaine Dye.

B:2 S:3 O:3 - swinging.

0-0 after 2 innings

Inning 3
Top Half

B:4 S:1 O:0 -
Brian Anderson walks.

B:2 S:2 O:1 - With Brent Lillibridge batting, Brian
Anderson caught stealing 2nd base, catcher Gerald Laird to second
baseman Placido Polanco.

B:2 S:2 O:2 -
Brent Lillibridge flies out to left fielder Josh Anderson.

B:3 S:2 O:3 -
Josh Fields grounds out, third baseman Brandon Inge to first baseman Miguel Cabrera.

Great throw by

0-0

Bottom Half

B:1 S:1 O:0 -
Brandon Inge singles on a ground ball to center fielder Brian Anderson.

B:2 S:0 O:0 -
Josh Anderson doubles (2) on a line drive to second baseman Brent Lillibridge. Brandon Inge to 3rd.

B:0 S:3 O:1 -
Ramon Santiago swinging.

B:1 S:1 O:2 -
Curtis Granderson pops out to third baseman Josh Fields in foul territory.

B:2 S:1 O:3 -
Placido Polanco grounds out, third baseman Josh Fields to first baseman Paul Konerko.

0-0 after 3 innings

Inning 4
Top Half

B:1 S:2 O:1 -
Carlos Quentin grounds out, shortstop Ramon Santiago to first baseman Miguel Cabrera.

B:1 S:1 O:2 -
Jim Thome lines out to left fielder Josh Anderson.

B:3 S:2 O:3 -
Jermaine Dye grounds out, first baseman Miguel Cabrera to pitcher Armando Galarraga.

0-0

Bottom Half

B:1 S:0 O:1 -
Magglio Ordonez flies out to center fielder Brian Anderson.

B:2 S:1 O:1 -
Miguel Cabrera reaches on fielding error by pitcher Jose Contreras.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Carlos Guillen flies out to center fielder Brian Anderson.

B:2 S:0 O:2 -
With Gerald Laird batting, Miguel Cabrera steals (1) 2nd base.

B:2 S:2 O:3 -
Gerald Laird flies out to center fielder Brian Anderson.

0-0 after 4 innings

Inning 5
Top Half

B:1 S:2 O:0 -
Paul Konerko singles on a ground ball to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

B:1 S:1 O:0 -
A. J. Pierzynski singles on a ground ball to right fielder Magglio Ordonez. Paul Konerko to 2nd.

B:2 S:1 O:1 - Alexei Ramirez grounds out, first
baseman Miguel Cabrera to pitcher Armando Galarraga. Paul Konerko to
3rd. A. J. Pierzynski to 2nd.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Coaching visit to mound.

B:2 S:3 O:2 -
Brian Anderson swinging.

B:2 S:2 O:3 -
Brent Lillibridge flies out to right fielder Magglio Ordonez.

0-0

Bottom Half

B:2 S:3 O:1 -
Brandon Inge swinging.

B:4 S:2 O:1 -
Josh Anderson walks.

B:1 S:0 O:1 -
With Ramon Santiago batting, Josh Anderson steals (1) 2nd base.

B:4 S:1 O:1 -
Ramon Santiago walks.

B:2 S:1 O:2 - Curtis Granderson grounds into a force
out, first baseman Paul Konerko to shortstop Alexei Ramirez. Josh
Anderson to 3rd. Ramon Santiago out at 2nd. Curtis Granderson to 1st.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Coaching visit to mound.


B:1 S:2 O:2 - Placido Polanco doubles (4) on a fly
ball to center fielder Brian Anderson. Josh Anderson scores. Curtis
Granderson scores.

B:0 S:0 O:3 -
Magglio Ordonez flies out to center fielder Brian Anderson.

2-0 after 5 innings

Inning 6
Top Half

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Josh Fields flies out to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

B:2 S:2 O:2 -
Carlos Quentin pops out to third baseman Brandon Inge.

B:3 S:3 O:3 -
Jim Thome called out on strikes.

Bottom Half

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Miguel Cabrera homers (4) on a line drive to left field.

B:1 S:1 O:1 -
Carlos Guillen grounds out, first baseman Paul Konerko to pitcher Jose Contreras.

B:0 S:2 O:1 -
Gerald Laird singles on a ground ball to left fielder Carlos Quentin.

B:3 S:1 O:1 -
Brandon Inge reaches on fielding error by third baseman Josh Fields. Gerald Laird to 2nd.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Coaching visit to mound.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Pitcher Change: Clayton Richard replaces Jose Contreras.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Josh Anderson singles on a bunt ground ball to pitcher Clayton Richard. Gerald Laird to 3rd. Brandon Inge to 2nd.

B:0 S:1 O:1 - Ramon Santiago singles on a ground ball
to left fielder Carlos Quentin. Gerald Laird scores. Brandon Inge
scores. Josh Anderson to 3rd.

B:2 S:0 O:2 -
Curtis Granderson pops out to first baseman Paul Konerko in foul territory.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Coaching visit to mound.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Pitcher Change: Mike MacDougal replaces Clayton Richard.

B:1 S:1 O:3 -
Placido Polanco flies out to right fielder Jermaine Dye.

5-0 after 6 innings

Inning 7
Top Half

B:2 S:3 O:1 -
Jermaine Dye swinging.

B:4 S:1 O:1 -
Paul Konerko walks.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Coaching visit to mound.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Pitcher Change: Bobby Seay replaces Armando Galarraga.

B:3 S:1 O:3 - A. J. Pierzynski grounds into double
play, second baseman Placido Polanco to shortstop Ramon Santiago to
first baseman Miguel Cabrera. Paul Konerko out at 2nd.

5-0

Bottom Half

B:4 S:2 O:0 -
Magglio Ordonez walks.

B:2 S:1 O:0 -
With Miguel Cabrera batting, wild pitch by Mike MacDougal, Magglio Ordonez to 2nd.

B:2 S:2 O:0 -
Miguel Cabrera singles on a ground ball to center fielder Brian Anderson. Magglio Ordonez scores.

B:0 S:1 O:2 - Carlos Guillen grounds into double play,
first baseman Paul Konerko to shortstop Alexei Ramirez to pitcher Mike
MacDougal. Miguel Cabrera out at 2nd.

B:1 S:1 O:3 -
Gerald Laird flies out to right fielder Jermaine Dye.(almost a home run)

6-0 after 7 innings

Inning 8
Top Half

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Pitcher Change: Ryan Perry replaces Bobby Seay.


B:2 S:1 O:1 -
Alexei Ramirez pops out to second baseman Placido Polanco.

B:1 S:0 O:2 -
Brian Anderson grounds out, second baseman Placido Polanco to first baseman Miguel Cabrera.

B:4 S:2 O:2 -
Brent Lillibridge walks.

B:1 S:0 O:2 -
With Josh Fields batting, wild pitch by Ryan Perry, Brent Lillibridge to 2nd.

B:2 S:1 O:2 -
With Josh Fields batting, wild pitch by Ryan Perry, Brent Lillibridge to 3rd.

B:2 S:3 O:3 -
Josh Fields swinging.

6-0

Bottom Half

B:1 S:1 O:1 -
Brandon Inge grounds out, second baseman Brent Lillibridge to first baseman Paul Konerko.

B:4 S:1 O:1 -
Josh Anderson walks.

B:2 S:0 O:1 -
With Ramon Santiago batting, wild pitch by Mike MacDougal, Josh Anderson to 2nd.

B:4 S:0 O:1 -
Ramon Santiago walks.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Coaching visit to mound.

B:0 S:1 O:1 -
Curtis Granderson singles on a line drive to right fielder Jermaine Dye. Josh Anderson scores. Ramon Santiago to 3rd.

B:2 S:1 O:2 - Placido Polanco grounds out, pitcher
Mike MacDougal to shortstop Alexei Ramirez to first baseman Paul
Konerko. Ramon Santiago scores. Curtis Granderson to 2nd.

B:3 S:2 O:2 -
Magglio Ordonez singles on a line drive to left fielder Carlos Quentin. Curtis Granderson scores.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Coaching visit to mound.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Pitcher Change: D. J. Carrasco replaces Mike MacDougal.

B:2 S:1 O:2 -
Miguel Cabrera singles on a line drive to right fielder Jermaine Dye. Magglio Ordonez to 2nd.

B:3 S:1 O:3 -
Carlos Guillen pops out to shortstop Alexei Ramirez.

9-0 after 8 innings

Inning 9
Top Half

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Pitcher Change: Fernando Rodney replaces Ryan Perry.

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Offensive Substitution: Pinch hitter Jerry Owens replaces Carlos Quentin.

B:1 S:0 O:1 -
Jerry Owens flies out to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Offensive Substitution: Pinch hitter Wilson Betemit replaces Jim Thome.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Wilson Betemit grounds out, shortstop Ramon Santiago to first baseman Miguel Cabrera.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Offensive Substitution: Pinch hitter Corky Miller replaces Jermaine Dye.

B:2 S:3 O:3 -
Corky Miller swinging.

WIN 9-0

April 15, 2009

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Chi White Sox	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	4	2
Detroit	0	0	0	0	2	3	1	3	X		9	11	0

Chi White Sox AB- R- H- RBI- BB- SO- LOB -AVG- Lillibridge, 2B 3 0 0 0 1 0 2 .077 Fields, 3B 4 0 1 0 0 1 1 .308 Quentin, LF 3 0 0 0 0 1 1 .296 --a-Owens, PH 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 Thome, DH 3 0 0 0 0 2 1 .192 --b-Betemit, PH-DH 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .167 Dye, RF 3 0 1 0 0 1 0 .367 --c-Miller, PH 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .400 Konerko, 1B 2 0 1 0 1 0 1 .357 Pierzynski, C 3 0 1 0 0 0 2 .200 Ramirez, SS 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 .143 Anderson, B, CF 2 0 0 0 1 1 2 .125 Totals 29 0 4 0 3 7 13 a-Flied out for Quentin in the 9th. b-Grounded out for Thome in the 9th. c-Struck out for Dye in the 9th. BATTING 3B: Fields (1, Galarraga). TB: Fields 3; Dye; Konerko; Pierzynski. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Thome; Lillibridge 2; Fields. GIDP: Pierzynski. Team RISP: 0-for-6. Team LOB: 5. BASERUNNING CS: Anderson, B (1, 2nd base by Galarraga/Laird). FIELDING E: Contreras (2, fielding), Fields (2, fielding). DP: (Konerko-Ramirez-MacDougal).		Detroit AB- R- H- RBI- BB- SO- LOB- AVG Granderson, CF 5 2 1 1 0 0 6 .205 Polanco, 2B 5 0 1 3 0 0 5 .314 Ordonez, RF 4 1 1 1 1 1 1 .273 Cabrera, M, 1B 5 1 3 2 0 0 0 .486 Guillen, DH 5 0 0 0 0 0 4 .167 Laird, C 4 1 1 0 0 1 1 .308 Inge, 3B 4 1 1 0 0 1 0 .267 Anderson, J, LF 2 2 2 0 2 0 0 .308 Santiago, SS 2 1 1 2 2 1 2 .400 Totals 36 9 11 9 5 4 19 BATTING 2B: Anderson, J (2, Contreras), Polanco (4, Contreras). HR: Cabrera, M (4, 6th inning off Contreras, 0 on, 0 out). TB: Granderson; Polanco 2; Ordonez; Cabrera, M 6; Laird; Inge; Anderson, J 3; Santiago. RBI: Polanco 3 (6), Cabrera, M 2 (12), Santiago 2 (5), Granderson (6), Ordonez (4). 2-out RBI: Polanco 2; Ordonez. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Polanco 3; Laird; Ordonez; Guillen. GIDP: Guillen. Team RISP: 6-for-16. Team LOB: 8. BASERUNNING SB: Anderson, J (1, 2nd base off Contreras/Pierzynski), Cabrera, M (1, 2nd base off Contreras/Pierzynski). FIELDING DP: (Polanco-Santiago-Cabrera, M).
Chi White Sox IP-- H- R- ER- BB- SO- HR- ERA Contreras (L, 0-2) 5.1 5 5 4 2 4 1 6.97 Richard 0.1 2 0 0 0 0 0 5.40 MacDougal 2.0 3 4 4 3 0 0 12.46 Carrasco 0.1 1 0 0 0 0 0 6.75		Detroit IP-- H- R- ER- BB- SO- HR- ERA Galarraga (W, 2-0) 6.1 4 0 0 2 5 0 0.68 Seay 0.2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 Perry 1.0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0.00 Rodney 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.00
WP: MacDougal 2, Perry 2. Pitches-strikes: Contreras 96-59, Richard 6-4, MacDougal 45-23, Carrasco 9-4, Galarraga 110-70, Seay 5-2, Perry 18-9, Rodney 10-7. Groundouts-flyouts: Contreras 5-7, Richard 0-1, MacDougal 4-2, Carrasco 0-1, Galarraga 4-9, Seay 2-0, Perry 1-1, Rodney 1-1. Batters faced: Contreras 25, Richard 3, MacDougal 11, Carrasco 2, Galarraga 24, Seay 1, Perry 4, Rodney 3. Inherited runners-scored: Richard 2-2, MacDougal 2-0, Carrasco 1-0, Seay 1-0. Umpires: HP: Ed Hickox. 1B: Jerry Crawford. 2B: Tom Hallion. 3B: Phil Cuzzi. Weather: 49 degrees, cloudy. Wind: 10 mph, Out to RF. T: 3:03. Att: 20,212. April 15, 2009