ARMANDO GALARRAGA - RH PITCHER - #58 - (2008-present)

PERSONAL/MISCELLANEOUS

Resides in Caracas, VZ during the off-season.

• Actively involved with Tigers Dreams Come True and he participated in the Tigers Winter Caravan.


MINOR LEAGUE HIGHLIGHTS

Signed by Montreal as a non-drafted free agent on October 31, 1998.


Made his professional debut with the Venezuelan Summer League Expos in 1999.


Assigned to the Venezuelan Summer League Expos for the second straight season in 2000.


Pitched primarily in relief for the Gulf Coast League Expos in 2001, tying for fourth on the staff with 14 appearances.


Assigned to the Gulf Coast League Expos in 2002 -- started two games before missing the remainder of the season after landing on the disabled list on July 24 with right elbow inflammation and soreness.


Limited to five starts during an injury rehab assignment with the Gulf Coast League Expos during the 2003 season as he continued his recovery from “Tommy John” surgery.


Third on the staff at Single A Savannah with 19 games started during the 2004 season.

• Tied for fifth in the South Atlantic League with two complete games.


2005 Highlights

Split the 2005 season between Single A Potomac and Double A Harrisburg in the Washington Nationals organization.

• Assigned to Potomac to begin the season -- selected to the Carolina League’s mid-season all-star squad, but he was unable to participate in the league’s all-star game after he was promoted to Harrisburg on July 1.

• Fired a three-hit shutout on July 19 versus Trenton -- tied for the Eastern League lead with the one shutout...earned Eastern League Pitcher of the Week honors for July 18-24 following his efforts against Trenton.

• Acquired by the Rangers from the Nationals in a four-player deal on December 12.

• Named the seventh-best prospect in both the Carolina League and Rangers organization following the season by Baseball America.


2006 Highlights

Limited to 18 starts in his four stops in the Rangers organization during the 2006 season.

• Began the season with Frisco -- forced to the disabled list on May 27 with a right elbow strain after nine starts.

• Started six games during two separate injury rehab stints with the Arizona League Rangers...started one game with Single A Spokane on August 21, before being reinstated from the disabled list on August 23.

• Had his option transferred to Single A Bakersfield on August 24.

• Named the 15th-best prospect in the Rangers organization following the season by Baseball America.


2007 HIGHLIGHTS

Saw action with Double A Frisco and Triple A Oklahoma in the Texas Rangers organization, before joining the Rangers in September for his first major league action.

• Began the season with Frisco -- tied for the lead in the Texas League with two shutouts, while he tied for second with two complete games and finished fourth with 114 strikeouts.

• Second among all Texas League starters with 8.09 strikeouts per nine innings.

• Had his option transferred to Oklahoma on May 21 -- started one game before returning to Frisco the next day.

• Tabbed the Texas League Pitcher of the Week for July 2-9 -- finished 1-1 with a 1.80 ERA (15.0IP/3ER) in two starts.

• Finished 3-1 with a 1.58 ERA (40.0IP/7ER) in six starts during July -- third in the Texas League with a 1.58 ERA.

• Had his option transferred to Oklahoma on August 15 -- posted a 2-1 record and 3.38 ERA (18.2IP/7ER) in three starts during August.

• Tossed a two-hit shutout in the first game of a doubleheader on August 25 at Nashville -- tied for second in the Pacific Coast League with the one shutout.

• Had his option transferred back to Frisco on September 4 -- did not pitch before being recalled by the Rangers from Frisco on September 12.

• Made his major league debut on September 15, tossing a scoreless inning of relief at Oakland.

• Named the 30th-best prospect in the Rangers organization following the season by Baseball America.


MAJOR LEAGUE HIGHLIGHTS

2008 Highlights

Topped all American League rookie pitchers with 13 wins and 126 strikeouts during his first season with the Tigers in 2008 as he was tabbed the Detroit Sports Broadcasters' Association Tigers Rookie of the Year.

• third among league rookies with a 3.73 ERA.

• Second in the American League with a .226 batting average against and 7.66 hits per nine innings.

• fourth in the league with 28 home runs allowed.

• Fanned 126 batters, the second-most by a rookie pitcher in Tigers history -- marked the most strikeouts in franchise history by a rookie righthanded pitcher.

• Became the eighth native of Venezuela to pitch for the Tigers, joining Yorman Bazardo, Oscar Henriquez, Wilfredo Ledezma, Felipe Lira, Urbano Lugo, Ugueth Urbina and Lino Urdaneta.

• he became the fifth pitcher from Venezuela to start a game for Detroit, joining Bazardo, Ledezma, Lira and Lugo.

• Recalled by the Tigers from Triple A Toledo on April 16 -- earned his first major league win that evening, fanning six batters as he allowed two runs in 6.2 innings at Cleveland.

• Tabbed the Tigers Pitcher of the Month for April after compiling a 2-0 record and 1.50 ERA (18.0IP/3ER) in three starts.

• Limited Arizona to one hit in six innings of work on May 17 to earn the win -- it marked the second time in 2008 that he held an opponent to one hit while working at least six innings (other, April 16 at Cleveland).

• he became the lone Tigers rookie pitcher to limit opponents to one hit while tossing at least six innings in a start twice during the same season since at least 1956.

• Posted a four-game winning streak May 28-June 18, compiling a 2.10 ERA (30.0IP/7ER) over the five-outing stretch (four starts).

• Earned Tigers Pitcher of the Month honors for the second straight month in May after posting a 2-2 record and 4.55 ERA (31.2IP/16ER) in five starts.

• Matched a career high with three innings of relief on June 3 at Oakland.

• Posted a 3-0 record and 3.34 ERA (32.1IP/12ER) in six outings (five starts) during June.

• Carried a perfect game through six innings on July 23 at Kansas City before surrendering a single to David DeJesus to lead off the seventh inning -- established a career high with seven strikeouts in the outing.

• equaled the high with seven strikeouts on August 31 versus Kansas City.

• Compiled a career-high five-game winning streak July 23-August 19, posting a 2.54 ERA (39.0IP/11ER) over the six start stretch.

• Garnered Tigers Pitcher of the Month honors for July after finishing the month with a 2-2 record and 3.23 ERA (30.2IP/11ER) in five starts -- 12th in the American League with a 3.23 ERA during July.

• Finished 3-0 with a 2.66 ERA (40.2IP/12ER) in six starts during August to earn Tigers Pitcher of the Month honors -- ninth in the American League with a 2.66 ERA during August.

• Compiled an 8-4 record and 3.36 ERA (99.0IP/37ER) in 17 outings (15 starts) on the road -- 10th in the American League with a 3.36 ERA on the road.

• finished 5-3 with a 4.18 ERA (79.2IP/37ER) in 13 starts at Comerica Park.

• Limited righthanded batters to a .174 batting average (52x299) -- tops among American League pitchers.

• lefties hit .267 (100x374) with Galarraga on the mound.

• Opponents hit .222 (28x126) against him with runners in scoring position.


2009 Highlights

Started 25 games for the Tigers in 2009 in his second season with the club, before being sent to the bullpen for the remainder of the season in September.

• Established a career high with eight strikeouts on April 10 versus Texas.

• Earned Tigers Pitcher of the Month honors for April after posting a 3-0 record and 1.85 ERA (24.1IP/5ER) in four starts -- tied for fourth in the American League with three wins during the month.

• Suffered the loss in seven straight decisions over a nine-start stretch May 1-June 13, marking a career-long losing streak -- compiled a 7.54 ERA (45.1IP/38ER) over the nine-start stretch.

• Earned the win on June 30 at Oakland in spite of matching a career high with six walks in the outing -- he became the first Tigers pitcher to issue six walks in a game and earn the victory since Jeremy Bonderman did so in a 3-2 win over Oakland at Comerica Park on August 7, 2003.

• Posted a 1-1 record and 2.36 ERA (26.2IP/7ER) over a four-start stretch June 30-July 22.

• Compiled a 3.29 ERA (27.1IP/10ER) in four starts during July.

• Optioned to Triple A Toledo by the Tigers on August 26 -- did not appear in a game with the Mud Hens before being recalled by the Tigers on September 5.

• Righthanded batters hit .257 (70x272) against him.

• lefties batted .309 (88x285) with Galarraga on the mound.

• Compiled a 5-8 record and 5.09 ERA (99.0IP/56ER) in 18 starts prior to the all-star break.

• finished 1-2 with a 6.85 ERA (44.2IP/34ER) in 11 games (seven starts) following the all-star break.

Thursday, April 17, 2008
Tigers 13, Indians 2
Unknown Galarraga pitches gem for Tigers
Offense stays hot with 30 runs in past three games.
Lynn Henning / The Detroit News

CLEVELAND
-- No, it has not been an easy April to explain for a Tigers team that already has had its share of theatrical tragedy and comedy this month, all courtesy of some crazy baseball games.

The stagecraft continued Wednesday night at Progressive Field, at least for Tigers fans who saw a pitcher whose name they barely knew, Armando Galarraga, join with a suddenly angry bunch of Tigers hitters to blow away the Cleveland Indians, 13-2.

The Tigers got five RBIs and four hits, including a two-run homer, from the awakening Miguel Cabrera, and five more RBIs from Edgar Renteria, who hit his first grand slam since joining Detroit.

"I'm always careful not to make excuses, but I think a lot of baseball is mental," said Tigers manager Jim Leyland, whose team has suddenly won three consecutive games and is 5-10 on the season -- a record identical to the reigning Central Division champions, the Indians. "And I think the last two days, the weather being better (67 degrees at game time) has helped.

"Players are zeroed-in better. Our players today were all happy when they got to the ballpark. It was beautiful."

The same might have been said for Galarraga's performance.

Filling in for the injured Dontrelle Willis, Galarraga during one dizzying stretch put down 17 Indians batters in a row.

A 26-year-old right-hander, who only a few days ago was in the same place he has spent most of his baseball career -- in the minor leagues, acted as if he was in a hurry not only to join Detroit's rotation, but to get busy celebrating his first big-league victory.

He threw only 81 pitches during 6 2/3 innings, and did not throw his 20th ball until the next-to-the-last pitch he threw in the sixth inning.

He threw steady strikes and a steady blend of fastballs with mixed-speed breaking pitches that kept the Indians off stride and out of rhythm.

"I was working all off-season on location, location, location," said Galarraga, a Venezuela native who came to the Tigers from Texas in a February trade for minor-league outfielder Michael Hernandez. "In my mind was location. I didn't want to walk anybody. I tried to be in the strike zone and attack."

Leyland, who never met a strike he didn't like, at least from one of his pitchers, was in rapture afterward.

"He pounded the strike zone," Leyland said, counting down the reasons Galarraga was able to dominate a scary Indians team Wednesday.

"Number one, he was very good," Leyland said, giving Galarraga his due.

"Number two, they (the Indians) had never seen him before. He got away with some pitches early in the game. But some of the pitches he got away with late in the game he'd have gotten away with on any night."

The Tigers after falling all over themselves trying to score runs through the first 13 days of April, have now scored 30 runs in their past three games.
They had 17 hits Wednesday night, including four by Cabrera (batting .364 in his last eight games) and three more from Renteria (.300 on the season)

Although they were down, 1-0, in the first, Cleveland's lead lasted only two batters into the second. After a leadoff walk to Magglio Ordonez, Cabrera flicked his wrists at an outside fastball from Sabathia and hoisted it into the right-field seats for his second home run in consecutive at-bats, dating to Tuesday night's game.

At that point, it was the Tigers' party, exclusively.

Indians starter C.C. Sabathia, who has been in a horns-locked duel with the Indians front office over a new contract, did himself no favors Wednesday as he moves, week by week, closer to free agency at the end of this season.

He was torched for nine runs on eight hits and five walks in four innings of work so tortured that it's a wonder the 17,644 fans on hand Wednesday didn't cry rather than boo.

But they booed. They booed Sabathia when he walked three consecutive batters in the fifth, just ahead of Renteria's grand slam, a 400-foot blast to deep left-center.

They booed Indians relievers Tom Mastny and Craig Breslow, as well, when they walked four Tigers batters in the seventh to score a run.

If it seemed to the Tigers if this was reminiscent of Comerica Park a week or two ago, it was.

But that was another era as far as Leyland's team is concerned. That was then. This is now. And the Tigers have decided at last that their star-studded show must go on.

04/16/2008 10:20 PM ET

Box >

Galarraga more than aided in first start
Renteria's grand slam puts it away as young righty lasts seven
By Jason Beck / MLB.com

CLEVELAND -- Jim Leyland no longer has to wait to see what the Tigers look like when they're in sync. The Tigers, in turn, no longer have to look up at every other team in the division.

While Armando Galarraga kept the Indians flustered in his first Tigers start, Detroit's offense didn't wait until the late innings to give him run support. Miguel Cabrera had his first monster game in a Tiger uniform, going 3-for-5 with five RBIs, and Edgar Renteria's grand slam paced a seven-run fifth inning en route to a 13-2 Tigers romp Wednesday night at Progressive Field.

Judging by the standings, the first meeting of the season between the Tigers and Tribe was not the clash of American League Central behemoths that was expected coming into the year. Looking at the field, however, Detroit looked for the first time this season like the team it was projected to be.It wasn't a late-inning comeback, but a near-complete game of domination with which the Tigers extended their winning streak to three.

The victory moved Detroit into a tie with Cleveland, albeit for fourth place in the division. The way the Tigers are playing so far this week, though, they could make up ground at a pace similar to how they've been scoring runs lately.

The Tigers built their winning streak with back-to-back eighth-inning comebacks the previous two nights to beat Minnesota at Comerica Park. Wednesday's big inning was the fifth, and they were already ahead on Cabrera's two-run home run and RBI single before the rally put the game away.

Eight consecutive Tigers reached base safely in the inning before Cleveland recorded the first out. The first three all reached on walks from C.C. Sabathia before Cabrera slapped a two-run single through the middle. Carlos Guillen's ensuing single re-loaded the bases for Renteria, who drove Sabathia's first-pitch fastball 400 feet into the left-field seats for his fifth career grand slam.

Not even a meeting with a longtime nemesis could shake Sabathia from his early-season struggles. The left-hander gave up nine runs on eight hits in four-plus innings, walking five and striking out just one.

Instead, Galarraga got the best of the unlikely matchup after being called up to replace an injured Dontrelle Willis in Detroit's rotation. The 26-year-old Venezuelan recovered from David Dellucci's first-inning solo homer to retire Cleveland's next 17 batters in order. A pair of hit-by-pitches eventually knocked him out in the seventh, but he was well on his way to his first Major League victory. He threw 56 of his 81 pitches for strikes while fanning six over 6 2/3 innings.

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

04/21/2008 3:42 PM ET

Box >

Galarraga strong in second start
Backed by four-run second, Tigers rookie shuts down Jays
By Gregor Chisholm / Special to MLB.com

TORONTO -- The Tigers used another strong performance from rookie right-hander Armando Galarraga on Monday afternoon to end a two-game losing streak and pick up a 5-1 victory over the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre.

Galarraga, who is filling in for injured left-hander Dontrelle Willis, tossed 5 1/3 scoreless innings en route to his second victory of the season.

Galarraga (2-0) retired the Blue Jays in order for the first two innings of the game, but he ran into some trouble during the third and managed to pitch his way out of it. With runners on the corners and just one out, Galarraga forced Jays shortstop David Eckstein to pop out to shallow left field, which kept Gregg Zaun on third base. Two batters later, Galarraga got second baseman Aaron Hill to weakly ground out to short and end the frame without a run allowed.

One inning later, Galarraga was pitching with the bases loaded and one out. But after a strikeout and a groundout, the 26-year-old once again escaped a jam without having surrendered a run.

Detroit (7-13) did most of its offensive damage in the top of the second inning. Second baseman Ryan Raburn hit a two-run single with the bases loaded to put the Tigers in front, 2-0. Three batters later, Raburn was brought home on an RBI single by catcher Ivan Rodriguez that gave Detroit a commanding four-run lead that it would never relinquish. Shortstop Edgar Renteria added a solo home run in the top of the sixth to round out the scoring for the Tigers.

Gregor Chisholm is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

04/26/2008 8:51 PM ET

Box >

Galarraga flirts with no-no in Tigers' win
Starter takes bid into sixth; Detroit scores three in seventh
By Scott McNeish / MLB.com

DETROIT -- Armando Galarraga's first Major League start came last September for the Rangers against the Angels. It didn't go so well. But Saturday's outing against them did.

Galarraga continued to shine in his third start this season since being recalled from Triple-A Toledo two weeks ago. He kept the powerful Angels hitless through 5 2/3 innings and helped the Tigers to a 6-4 win before a sellout crowd of 42,068 at Comerica Park.

The Tigers have now won nine of their last 13 games, and Galarraga has been in the middle of three of those wins.

In Detroit's most recent victory, Galarraga allowed three runs -- one earned -- on three hits and two walks in six innings. He pitched out of a bases-loaded jam in the first, and then retired 15 straight hitters before Angels slugger Vladimir Guerrero wrecked his no-hit bid with a triple in the sixth.

Though he surrendered three runs that tied the game in the seventh, Tigers manager Jim Leyland praised his young right-hander for giving the team a chance to win, which it did thanks to three runs in the bottom of the seventh.

"This was the best I've seen him pitch," Leyland said. "I thought this was the best stuff he's had out of the three games."

That says a lot, considering he gave up two runs on one hit in 6 2/3 innings in his first start against the Indians, and then no runs on three hits in 5 1/3 innings vs. the Blue Jays.

"Everything is going real good for me," Galarraga said. "I feel real good, real confident."

Galarraga's start on Saturday came just hours after injured starter Dontrelle Willis threw a simulated game against three Detroit hitters. Willis pitched well enough to earn Minor League rehab starts. So, the question becomes, when Willis returns from a hyperextended knee, what happens to Galarraga?

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it," Leyland said.

Galarraga didn't show much interest in the question either.

"That is not my decision," he said. "My decision is to go do my job, do the best I can, and make it a tough decision for them."

He did his job well on Saturday against, ironically enough, the only team that has seen him before this season. The Angels roughed him up last September and knocked him out of the game in the fifth with a four-run inning.

In that game, Galarraga no-hit the Angels through four. He took it a bit further this time.

But it didn't look like a special day in the first. Ten of Galarraga's first 13 pitches were balls. Two walks and a fielding error by Edgar Renteria loaded the bases with two outs for Garret Anderson. Galarraga buckled down and struck Anderson out looking to end the inning.

Magglio Ordonez doubled in a run in the bottom of the first, and Placido Polanco singled to make it 3-0 in the fifth. With the lead, Galarraga put it in cruise control. Of the 15 straight batters he retired, 10 grounded out.

"To get the ball on the ground like he did tells you the ball is sinking and has good movement on it," Leyland said.

The Angels were more impressed by Galarraga's offspeed pitches and ability to spot his sinker.

"He had a good slider, put the ball where he wanted it," Angels outfielder Torii Hunter said. "Righties were like 0-for-24 [0-for-27 actually] until a man called Vladimir Guerrero got hold of one."

The Angels stranded Guerrero at third, but they came through with three runs in the next inning to tie the game. Hunter led the inning off by bunting to Galarraga, who threw the ball past first baseman Miguel Cabrera and into the stands. Maicer Izturis doubled in two runs, and Chone Figgins tied the game with a single.

With that, Galarraga's day ended, and he received a standing ovation from the blue-and-orange speckled crowd.

"In the second, third, fourth, fifth, I felt better than the first," Galarraga said. "I tried to be aggressive and locate my fastball, and I think I did pretty good."

Guerrero's double in the eighth was the 2,000th of his career.

Aquillino Lopez, who earned the win, and Denny Bautista relieved Galarraga and held the Angels to just one more run in the next two innings, giving Detroit's offense the opportunity to score three runs on three hits in the seventh to take the lead for good. A fielder's choice by Gary Sheffield, another RBI double by Ordonez and a sacrifice fly from Jacque Jones were the big hits.

Galarraga didn't earn the win, but that's not to say he didn't provide a much-needed component to get the Tigers back to their recent winning ways.

"He certainly pitched well enough to win today, but we're not into all that," Leyland said. "We're into the team winning. But he certainly did his part [Saturday]. He did a great job. He pitched very, very well."

Scott McNeish is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Saturday, April 26, 2008
Tigers 6, Angels 4
Tigers break out with three in the seventh
Eric Lacy / The Detroit News

DETROIT -- Once the Detroit Lions made a draft-day trade and the Red Wings beat up on the Avalanche, it was the Tigers' turn Saturday to create some buzz.

And they didn't disappoint before a reported sellout crowd of 42,068 at Comerica Park, cruising to a 6-4 victory after a three-run seventh inning against one of the league's best teams.

Another strong outing from right-hander Armando Galarraga, a triple and double from a now-healthy Curtis Granderson and a Todd Jones save capped a triumph over the Los Angeles Angels.

There's no doubt that Jim Leyland is pleased with his team's recent progress in the standings because he finally has a group that looks more like the one he planned for in spring training.

"Everybody has their issues," said Leyland, referring to injuries and everything else that has caused this team to struggle. "We don't complain about it. We're obviously a good ballclub that's starting to play better."

A close second to Galarraga's efforts was the workmanlike way Granderson, Magglio Ordonez and Placido Polanco put the game out of reach with timely hitting.

News that Polanco, Dontrelle Willis and Gary Sheffield are all getting closer to being pain-free at the same time made this day even better for the franchise.

Polanco went 2-of-4 with two RBIs, Sheffield added a run on a fielder's choice and both played key roles in the pivotal seventh, which saw the Angels pay the price for two walks and an error.

Sheffield, like the rest of this squad, plans to keep grinding toward a more respectable record. Detroit is now a step closer to .500 with a mark of 11-14.

That means no letting up at the plate for Sheffield, known as one of the hardest hitters in the game.

"Everybody knows what to expect now," he said. "Anytime you have high expectations for the season, guys press a bit. And I'm sure we did a little bit, but now we're playing relaxed baseball."

Galarraga didn't allow a hit until Vladimir Guerrero tripled with two outs in the sixth -- the first hit Galarraga's allowed by a right-handed batter this season.

Aquilino Lopez (2-0) earned the win for the Tigers, while Darren O'Day (0-1) took the loss.

Dustin Moseley started for the Angels and gave up three runs off six hits in five innings.

Tied 3-3 after six, Granderson's leadoff triple kicked off the barrage, which saw he, Polanco and Sheffield score off O'Day.

Sheffield reached on a fielder's choice courtesy of an error at second that scored Granderson. An Ordonez double scored Polanco. Jacque Jones' sacrifice fly to left with one out advanced Sheffield.

The Angels got three of their four runs in the seventh, including a two-run double from Maicer Izturis.

"I think we're getting close," said Leyland about his team, less than two weeks away from a big home series against New York and Boston. "We're just doing what teams do.

"We're starting to get back to a little more normalcy than it's been and that's a good feeling."

Sunday night's game is a matchup between Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander (1-3, 5.93 ERA) and Jered Weaver (1-3, 4.50 ERA). First pitch for the game, on ESPN, is set for 8:09.

You can reach Eric Lacy at eric.lacy@detnews.com.

Fred Ferreira, a longtime baseball scout, has a saying when it comes to evaluating young players: I grade them from the handshake on.

He takes it as a sign of maturity when a teenager grips his hand firmly and looks him in the eye. Ferreira said he believes the intangibles matter, and he appears to be correct: The handshake test has helped him sign nearly 50 eventual major leaguers.

Armando Galarraga, the most unexpected contributor to the Tigers' rotation this year, is one of them.

Galarraga was 16 when Ferreira met him at a 1998 tryout in Venezuela. He was tall -- 6-foot-2 or 6-foot-3, Galarraga believes -- and so skinny that it was hard to tell whether he would fill out. But he looked the part, with good frame and loose arm action.

And it certainly helped that Galarraga gave Ferreira a genuine handshake.

"I saw his big hands," Ferreira recalled, in a telephone interview last week, "and I said, 'This kid's going to have a chance.' "

If only Galarraga had known what a good first impression he had made. By his own admission, he was "really scared" that day. He remembers throwing his fastballs at 83 and 84 m.p.h.

"There were so many people there," Galarraga said. "I was a pitcher who didn't throw really hard. I thought they weren't even going to see me."

Instead, he stood out. By stepping onto the mound, he reinforced what Ferreira's intuition had told him.

Ferreira, who was then scouting for the Montreal Expos, signed Galarraga soon afterward. And with that, Galarraga's long odyssey through the minors had begun.

He spent seven years in the Expos' organization, including one season after the franchise moved to Washington. He was sidetracked by ligament-replacement surgery on his right elbow and started only seven games between the 2002 and 2003 seasons.

He was shipped to Texas in December 2005, but the health woes followed. He spent three months of the following season on the disabled list -- elbow trouble.

"The worst things a player can go through," Galarraga said, when asked about the injuries. "It's horrible. You want to compete."

Despite all the hardships over nearly a decade in the minors, Galarraga had some good fortune, too: He met his future wife, Kristen, while playing for the Class A Savannah (Ga.) Sand Gnats in 2004. (The couple married this year.)

Galarraga finally reached the majors as a September call-up with the Rangers last year, but he was not a big part of their future plans. They removed him from their 40-man roster in late January -- one day before his wedding.

Tigers officials were intrigued when they saw his name on the transaction wires. President/general manager Dave Dombrowski said the team's scouts had turned in prospect reports on him for several years. Dick Egan, known for his expertise in evaluating pitchers, had been the most recent to do so.

Dombrowski decided to follow up with the Rangers. Shortly before spring training -- while Galarraga was still on his honeymoon -- the Tigers acquired him for minor league outfielder Michael Hernandez.

At the end of an off-season remembered for the major trades, the Tigers had made a minor one. And it has paid dividends, at least in the short term.

"That's why it pays to have good scouts," Dombrowski said. "You don't have to be a big-name player to be productive."

At the time, Galarraga had pitched in only three games. So far, though, he has been a revelation in the midst of the Tigers' sub-.500 start. He was promoted after Dontrelle Willis was placed on the disabled list and quickly became the first Tiger to win two games this year.

"Pretty remarkable," closer Todd Jones said.

Brandon Inge said he has been impressed with Galarraga's ability to throw strikes with his fastball, breaking ball and change-up. Nate Robertson, a fellow starter, has admired his fluid mechanics.

And Ferreira is proud to see another of his players reach the big leagues -- even if he had begun to worry if Galarraga's luck was ever going to turn.

"I wondered," said Ferreira, who now operates a Florida baseball academy. "It was a little slower than I expected, but that does happen with certain players.

"Some players turn it on quick and then fizzle. Some take longer. You're just happy that somebody has the patience to wait it out. In many cases, guys are sent home because the rosters are full."

"At least Armando didn't get caught up in that numbers game."

When Willis returns, Galarraga could be affected by the push and pull of a 25-man roster. Or, he may do this year what Zach Miner did in 2006: arrive by way of a first-half call-up, fill in for an injured starter, and pitch well enough to stay in the majors for the rest of the year.

Meanwhile, Galarraga has kept a relatively low profile in the clubhouse.

That is, when he's not fooling teammates with his mind-bending magic tricks.

Galarraga said he was 16 when he first learned the magic tricks from a friend in Venezuela. He has read books on the subject to learn more about the craft.

Apparently, he's pretty good.

"Houdini," Willis said.

"David Blaine stuff," Inge said.

Willis was one of Galarraga's victims during spring training. And he's still amazed by what happened.

Willis recalled how, during one particular trick, Galarraga held several aces in his hand. The missing ace was presumably nowhere to be found ... until Galarraga told Willis to check the pair of pants hanging in his locker.

He reached into a pocket -- and there it was.

"I had him do it again, and I watched him," Willis said, smiling at the memory. "Cards kept pulling out of my pocket."

"He wouldn't show me how. I guess that's a true magician."

When asked to explain how that ace ended up in Willis' pocket, Galarraga smiled and said, "It's magic. I don't say my secrets."

Especially over the past two weeks, though, Willis has been more impressed by Galarraga's pitching than his trickery.

"He's been a big pick-me-up for this ballclub," Willis said last week. "We got along great in spring training, especially after the card tricks. He's got a good personality, and he's enjoying it. It was good to see him get his first big league win -- and his second."