GDT: 8/25/09 - DET (66-58) AT LAA (74-49) - 10:05 p.m. ET

DETROIT -- One of the many things Tigers manager Jim Leyland admires about his Angels counterpart, Mike Scioscia, is his willingness to send runners without being overly concerned about the consequences. Now, Leyland wants his pitchers to not obsess over Angels runners, either.

That's one of the many challenges the Tigers face in this showdown of division leaders with the American League West-topping Angels. And it's something Leyland made a point to alert his pitchers entering the three-game set.

"I think when you play these guys, you have to concentrate on the running game, but you can't let it distract you," Leyland said.

It's a tricky balance pitchers must strike, Leyland admitted, but it's a trap into which many opposing hurlers have fallen. Fortunately for the Tigers, their starter Tuesday has a pretty good familiarity with it.

Before Jarrod Washburn came over from the Mariners at the July 31 Trade Deadline, before he even signed with Seattle as a free agent after the 2005 season, he was a key piece of the Angels rotation. He has lost four times at Angel Stadium in as many years since, but he hasn't allowed much of anything in the running game.

Not only has the left-handed Washburn not allowed a stolen base in four starts with the Tigers, he hasn't allowed one since May 7, and he has allowed just three in seven attempts all season. Part of it comes from working with a good group of catchers in Seattle as well as Detroit. The other part comes from a good job at holding runners, which one would expect from a veteran left-hander.

Given that, Washburn should be able to strike the balance. Quieting an Angels lineup that can score runs in a hurry, as they did in Monday's series opener to nearly erase a 10-run deficit, is another challenge.

"You can't forget about it, obviously, because they're going to run," Leyland said. "We already know that. But you can't be caught in between. I think that's what happens sometimes. I think against a whole team that runs, they get caught in between, worrying about them so much that they lose concentration to the hitters. So we're going to try to guard against this. We're going to pay attention to the running game, but we're going to hopefully not get totally distracted by it."

That's where catchers Gerald Laird and Alex Avila come into the equation. Laird leads AL catchers by throwing out better than 42 percent (26-of-63) of would-be basestealers against him this year, including 14 of the last 26 brave souls to try it. He threw out Kendry Morales trying to steal third on Saturday.

Avila has thrown out just one of seven attempted basestealers since the Tigers called him up, but he threw out 44 percent (34-of-78) while at Double-A Erie this season.

"All I tell them is to just focus on the hitter, give me a chance [to throw anybody out], and that's it," Laird said. "Don't have to be super fast. Just give me a chance to throw them out. That's all you can ask. Make your pitch."

An even better strategy would be to keep the speedsters off the basepaths.

"It's hard to do, but if you keep Figgins and Aybar off the bases, you have a good chance to beat them," Laird said. "Those are the guys that create all the movement. They always have guys in motion. That's how they beat guys. They've got double steals going. Scioscia's a good manager, and he does a good job putting his guys in motion. But for the most part, if you keep those guys off the bases, you have a good chance of beating these guys."

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Pitching matchup

DET: LHP Jarrod Washburn (8-7, 3.18 ERA)
After making his first four starts for the Tigers at Comerica Park, Washburn gets to take the mound on the road for the first time in three weeks. But even this start is probably going to feel like home, because he pitched the first seven years of his Major League career for the Angels. He is 30-37 for his career at Angel Stadium, but four of those losses came during his past four seasons with the Mariners. Of greater concern are his four starts as a Tiger, during which he has given up 17 earned runs on 24 hits in 25 1/3 innings.

LAA: RHP John Lackey (8-6, 4.00 ERA)
Lackey endured his worst outing in six weeks on Thursday night in Cleveland, getting hammered for six earned runs on six hits and four walks in 5 1/3 innings, and striking out three. It was the first time in seven starts, since a July 7 loss to the Rangers, in which he'd yielded more than three earned runs in a game and failed to pitch into the seventh inning. Lackey is seeking win No. 100, a plateau reached by only four Angels pitchers: Nolan Ryan, Frank Tanana, Mike Witt and Chuck Finley. Lackey is 6-0 with a 3.31 ERA in eight career starts against the Tigers. He's 4-4 with a 3.83 ERA at home this season.

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Tidbits

... Aubrey Huff is 2-for-30 for his career against Lackey.
... Jeremy Bonderman appears ready for a September callup after hitting 95 mph on his fastball on Sunday in a rehab relief appearance for Triple-A Toledo. Bonderman pitched two scoreless innings on one hit with three strikeouts against Louisville. He has five scoreless innings with six strikeouts in his last three outings.
... Leyland said he has not yet decided whether to keep his rotation in order after Thursday's scheduled off-day or skip a starter. When asked if that decision could depend on whether they need an extra reliever, Leyland said it could.
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Up next (Probable Pitchers)

• Wednesday: Tigers (Edwin Jackson, 10-5, 2.86 ERA) at Angels (Joe Saunders, 9-7, 5.33 ERA), 3:35 p.m. ET
• Thursday: Off-day
• Friday: Tigers (Armando Galarraga, 6-10, 5.05 ERA) vs. Rays (Matt Garza, 7-8, 3.74 ERA), 7:05 p.m. ET

this is a scary matchup......let's go boys. get it together.

Last night they said the Angels are having to win by getting runs because their pitching staff is a mess.

It showed last night.

i'm glad they won, but it still concerns me cause the Angles are one of the teams batting better than the Tigers percentagewise....
let's hope this is a morale booster for the Tigers, too cause the halos are a good team.

our pitchers are at their best tonight!!!

need to bomb away!

GO TIGERS

SERIOUS TIGER PICTURE HAS WON ALL HIS GAMES SO FAR, DON'T FAIL US NOW!!!

Inning 1
Top Half

B:2 S:3 O:1 -
Curtis Granderson swinging.

Whoo Avila!

B:2 S:1 O:1 -
Placido Polanco singles on a line drive to left fielder Juan Rivera.


B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Magglio Ordonez doubles (17) on a ground ball to right fielder Bobby Abreu. Placido Polanco to 3rd.

Let's go Miggy! Don't stop your hot streak now!

let's hope I'm not a jynx!

B:1 S:2 O:2 - Miguel Cabrera grounds out, second
baseman Howard Kendrick to first baseman Robb Quinlan. Placido Polanco
scores. Magglio Ordonez to 3rd.
DET 1, LAA 0

Well, an RBI is ok, not quite what I was anticipating.

B:3 S:3 O:3 -
Aubrey Huff swinging, catcher Jeff Mathis to first baseman Robb Quinlan.

DET 1, LAA 0 after .5 inning

Bottom Half

B:1 S:0 O:0 -
Chone Figgins singles on a ground ball to left fielder Carlos Guillen.

Course Huff's gonna K.

B:3 S:2 O:1 -
Bobby Abreu flies out to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

B:4 S:1 O:1 -
Torii Hunter walks. Chone Figgins to 2nd.

B:1 S:1 O:3 - Vladimir Guerrero grounds into double
play, third baseman Brandon Inge to second baseman Placido Polanco to
first baseman Miguel Cabrera. Torii Hunter out at 2nd.

DET 1, LAA 0 after 1 inning

Inning 2
Top Half


B:2 S:2 O:1 -
Carlos Guillen grounds out, third baseman Chone Figgins to first baseman Robb Quinlan.

B:2 S:1 O:2 -
Alex Avila grounds out to first baseman Robb Quinlan.

B:1 S:2 O:2 -
Brandon Inge singles on a line drive to right fielder Bobby Abreu.

B:1 S:1 O:2 - Ramon Santiago singles on a line drive
to pitcher John Lackey. Ramon Santiago to 2nd. Brandon Inge advances to
3rd, on throwing error by pitcher John Lackey.

B:3 S:3 O:3 -
Curtis Granderson swinging.

DET 1, LAA 0 after 1.5 innings

Bottom Half

B:3 S:2 O:0 -
Juan Rivera singles on a line drive to left fielder Carlos Guillen.

B:1 S:0 O:0 -
Erick Aybar singles on a soft fly ball to center fielder Curtis Granderson. Juan Rivera to 2nd.

B:2 S:0 O:0 -
Howard Kendrick homers (8) on a fly ball to center field. Juan Rivera scores. Erick Aybar scores.
LAA 3, DET 1

I want French back, Wash is burning us!


B:1 S:1 O:1 -
Robb Quinlan grounds out to pitcher Jarrod Washburn.

B:1 S:0 O:2 -
Jeff Mathis flies out to left fielder Carlos Guillen.


B:2 S:1 O:3 -
Chone Figgins flies out to right fielder Magglio Ordonez.

LAA 3, DET 1 after 2 innings

Inning 3
Top Half

:placido: grounds out

lines out

singles