GDT: 7/29/11 - DET (55-50) VS LAA (58-48) - 7:05 p.m. ET ---
VS ---
Detroit Tigers VS Los Angeles AngelsFriday, July 29, 2011
Comerica Park, Detroit, MI
Game Time - 7:05 p.m. EDT REMEMBERING SPARKYThe Tigers are wearing a patch on their right
sleeves this season in the shape of a home
plate emblazoned with the name SPARKY, to
honor Hall of Fame manager Sparky
Anderson who passed away on November 4,
2010. Anderson’s number 11 was retired
in a pre-game ceremony on June 26.
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Preview Young starters to face off for Angels, TigersBy Cash Kruth / MLB.com | 7/28/2011 5:14 PM ET
The premier pitching showdown everybody's waiting for in Detroit doesn't happen until Sunday, but Friday's game between two strong youngsters should serve as an enticing primer.
The Angels' Tyler Chatwood faces Detroit's Rick Porcello on Friday in the second of a four-game set, as Chatwood looks to give the Halos their fourth consecutive win.
While most rookies struggle on the road, Chatwood doesn't seem to have gotten that memo, as he will be gunning for his fourth straight win away from home. The 21-year-old right-hander has posted a 0.92 ERA over that span, blanking his opponents twice. In all, he's 4-1 with a 3.21 ERA in eight road outings.
"I'm focusing on trusting my stuff and pounding the strike zone with quality pitches," said Chatwood, who allowed two unearned runs against the Tigers in a July 6 no-decision. "I know I have to keep the walks down, in order to bring my pitch count down and get deeper in games."
Like Chatwood, Porcello also will look to continue his recent success. The 22-year-old righty has won his past four starts, owning a 3.33 ERA over that stretch and working into the sixth inning in each.
Porcello defeated the Twins in his last outing, allowing two runs in six innings.
"Aggressive in the strike zone is more what I was today," Porcello said afterward. "There were a couple of at-bats where I fell behind some guys. That leadoff walk in the fourth kind of hurt us, but for the most part, Victor [Martinez] called a great game, and we were pretty effective."
Angels: Power show• Prior to Thursday's game, manager Mike Scioscia said his team's bats needed to wake up.
"The bottom line is, we need to do better offensively," Scioscia said. "Manufacturing runs is important to us. I think we have terrific team speed."
Instead, the Angels responded with power, as Rookie of the Year candidate Mark Trumbo led the way, amassing five RBIs while falling just a single short of the cycle, and Peter Bourjos hit two doubles a day after snapping an 0-for-10 streak.
• Reliever Scott Downs' 12 1/3 scoreless-inning streak ended on an eighth-inning solo home run by Detroit's Wilson Betemit on Thursday.
Tigers: Avila should be backAll-Star catcher Alex Avila got the day off on Thursday and should return on Friday. He's been getting hit by foul balls frequently, and manager Jim Leyland wanted to give him a rest.
"Alex is beat up," Leyland said. "He's caught a lot of games and probably gets hit more than any catcher I've seen with foul balls. I've never seen anything like it."
• Thursday marked the one-year anniversary of shortstop Jhonny Peralta's trade to the Tigers. Since his arrival, Peralta is hitting .295 with 24 home runs.
Worth noting• Porcello is 2-1 with a 7.40 ERA in four career starts against the Angels.
• Miguel Cabrera is hitting .341 with 45 doubles, a triple, 31 homers and 121 RBIs in 140 career games against the American League West.
• Angels designated hitter Bobby Abreu is one run shy of 1,400 for his career.
Tigers: RHP Rick Porcello (10-6, 4.67 ERA)Porcello is hot in the month of July, as he earned his 10th victory of the season, his fourth straight, in a 5-2 victory over the Twins on Sunday. Porcello threw 93 pitches over six innings, giving up two earned runs.
Angels: RHP Tyler Chatwood (6-6, 3.64 ERA)Chatwood's efforts to pound the strike zone and not be too fine paid off in Baltimore, where he went seven innings without walking a man in claiming a victory on Sunday. The rookie needs to trust his first-class stuff.
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Tiger's MLB Game Notes
Game InformationRESCHEDULED GAMES: The following is the information on the rescheduled Tigers games postponed at Comerica Park this season:
-
Thursday, September 1 versus Kansas City at 1:05 p.m. (rescheduled from May 15)
INJURY UPDATE: •
RHP Joel Zumaya (right elbow olecranon fracture surgery,
60-day disabled list on March 30).
•
LHP Brad Thomas (left elbow inflammation,
60-day DL on May 11)
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To track MLB play-by-play, to help post GDT outcomes: http://m.mlb.com/scores/On the Internet MLB.TV Gameday Audio•
Gameday•
Official Press Pass game notesOn television •
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Direct TV Extra Innings ScheduleOn radio•
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XM Channel Schedule______________________________________
Up next (Probable Pitchers) • Saturday, July 30: Tigers (LHP
Duane Below (0-1, 4.66 ERA))
VS Angels (RHP
Dan Haren (10-6, 3.01 ERA)),
4:10 p.m. ET (FOX / WXYT 97.1 FM & 1270 AM)• Sunday, July 31: Tigers (RHP
Justin Verlander (14-5, 2.34 ERA))
VS Angels (RHP
Jered Weaver (14-4, 1.79 ERA)),
4:10 p.m. ET (FS-D HD / WXYT 97.1 FM & 1270 AM)