GDT: 9/5/09 - DET (73-61) at TB (72-62) - 7:08 p.m. ET

ST. PETERSBURG -- Saturday was supposed to be Armando Galarraga's day of rest after making a precautionary start in the Minor Leagues.

But the 27-year-old right-hander took an alternate route in his rehab assignment, one that avoided a Friday start in Toledo, Ohio, and brought him to St. Petersburg, where he'll try to tame a playoff-hungry Rays team in the second of a three-game set.

Galarraga hasn't pitched since Aug. 22 because of right elbow inflammation that knocked him out his last time on a Major League mound. But Jarrod Washburn's left knee needed a break, and even though Galarraga was supposed to be starting for Triple-A Toledo one day earlier, he will jump right into a Major League lineup, instead.

And he has no problems with that.

"My arm feels good. I've been working with my legs and everything," Galarraga said. "I threw two bullpens that were pretty good. I'm happy to throw."

While saying the arm is perfectly fine, Galarraga doesn't know how it will react if he goes deep into the ballgame, saying he wonders how his muscles will respond if his arm tightens up. The Tigers haven't announced any set pitch count for Galarraga, though they'll be closely monitoring their starter.

But Galarraga is confident that all he needed was a little bit of rest.

"When your muscles get weak, you can't do anything," Galarraga said. "You can't go to the gym and work out because you're going to make it more weak. So you just have to get rest. That's the only thing. When I got an MRI, the doctor said, 'You need some rest.'"

And rest he'll get.

Galarraga will be going on 13 days worth of it on Saturday. When getting at least six days in between starts for his career, his ERA is 3.35 in eight outings. And in two starts against the Rays, he's 1-0 with a 3.68 ERA -- including one run in seven innings during his only appearance at Tropicana Field.

So even though it wasn't what the Tigers had originally planned, things look rather favorable.

"You can't say it's worked out the way that we hoped it would work out," pitching coach Rick Knapp said, "but he's healthy, and we're optimistic that he'll be able to pitch and do well, give us a chance to win the game.

"The main thing is that the swelling had gone down, and the swelling is not a factor now. Hopefully it was just a little bump in the road and we can move on."

Galarraga has certainly moved on since giving up eight runs on 11 hits in 5 2/3 innings to the Indians on Aug. 2. Since then, he's posted a 3.86 ERA and has given up just four earned runs in his last 11 1/3 innings.

But the question for Galarraga all year has been whether he can prolong good stretches.

"He's kind of had an up-and-down sort of a year," Knapp said. "He'll string together three starts, and then he'll have three bad starts, then he'll put together three or four more. The main thing we've been trying to get him to do most of the season is to just work a little bit quicker pace. Try not to be walking around the mound. Get the ball, throw the ball. Get it, throw it. Don't think too much."


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Pitching matchup

DET: RHP Armando Galarraga (6-10, 5.05 ERA)
Galarraga, pitching on 13 days rest, got the no-decision against the Athletics on Aug. 22, giving up two runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out three in 6 2/3 innings. The 27-year-old has 10 quality starts in 24 outings this year.

TB: RHP James Shields (9-10, 3.86 ERA)
Shields, who has received little run support all season, benefited greatly in his last start from a six-run outburst by his teammates in the first inning. The right-hander then shifted into even more of a strike-throwing mode than he normally employs. By the time he was lifted after the seventh, he had allowed four earned runs on 10 hits en route to picking up his ninth win of the season. While facing the Tigers in the same week can always be a dangerous proposition, Shields has historically pitched well at Tropicana Field, where he is 23-14 with a 3.27 ERA in 57 career starts.

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Tidbits

... The Tigers' Justin Verlander and the Rays' Jeff Niemann were selected No. 2 and No. 4 overall, respectively, in the 2004 First-Year Player Draft. The right-handers have gone head-to-head twice in a span of five days, with Verlander winning both matchups. In the matchups, Verlander has given up four runs in 16 innings and Niemann has given up three runs in 14 2/3 frames.
... Tigers manager Jim Leyland said he's going to slowly work Jeremy Bonderman back in the mix by first putting him in less-meaningful situations to "get his feet wet." The 26-year-old right-hander has spent most of August on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Toledo and has been limited to just one Major League start because of shoulder problems.
... After Fu-Te Ni got a blown save after giving up two runs in a third of an inning on Thursday, Leyland said he spoke to the left-hander from Taiwan. "I said [through an interpreter], 'I don't want to see you hang your head when we just won a game,'" Leyland recalled. "'You're not going to do the job every time. Don't feel bad about it. We won the game.' He got the message. I didn't want him down. I don't want him to feel like he let somebody down."
... The Tigers have homered in nine of their last 10 games, totaling 13 long balls in that stretch.

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Up next (Probable Pitchers)

• Sunday: Tigers (Edwin Jackson, 11-6, 3.09 ERA) at Rays (Wade Davis, 0-0, 0.00 ERA), 1:38 p.m. ET
• Monday: Off-day
• Tuesday: Tigers (Rick Porcello, 12-8, 4.18 ERA) at Royals (Brian Bannister, 7-12, 4.73 ERA), 8:10 p.m. ET

STARTING LINEUPS:

Detroit AVG
:curtis: Granderson, CF .256
:placido: Polanco, 2B .273
Guillen, C, LF .249
Cabrera, M, 1B .339
:huff: Huff, A, DH .245
Ordonez, RF .279
Inge, 3B .232
Avila, C .308
Santiago, SS .259

Tampa Bay AVG
Bartlett, SS .335
Crawford, LF .306
Zobrist, RF .283
Pena, C, 1B .228
Burrell, DH .238
Longoria, 3B .277
Iwamura, 2B .298
Zaun, C .267
Perez, F, CF .333

Inning 1
Top Half

B:0 S:0 O:1 - Curtis Granderson grounds out to first baseman Carlos Pena.

B:1 S:0 O:1 - Placido Polanco homers (10) on a fly ball to left center field.
DET 1, TB 0


B:2 S:2 O:2 - Carlos Guillen flies out to left fielder Carl Crawford.

B:0 S:1 O:3 - Miguel Cabrera flies out to left fielder Carl Crawford.

DET 1, TB 0 after .5 inning

Bottom Half

B:2 S:1 O:0 -
Jason Bartlett singles on a line drive to left fielder Carlos Guillen.

B:4 S:2 O:0 -
Carl Crawford walks. Jason Bartlett to 2nd.

B:1 S:1 O:1 - Ben Zobrist grounds into a force out,
first baseman Miguel Cabrera to shortstop Ramon Santiago. Jason
Bartlett to 3rd. Carl Crawford out at 2nd. Ben Zobrist to 1st.

B:4 S:1 O:1 - Carlos Pena walks. Ben Zobrist to 2nd.

B:1 S:1 O:2 - Pat Burrell out on a sacrifice fly to center fielder Curtis Granderson. Jason Bartlett scores. Ben Zobrist to 3rd.
DET 1, TB 1


B:0 S:0 O:2 - Evan Longoria homers (27) on a line drive to left field. Ben Zobrist scores. Carlos Pena scores.
TB 4, DET 1

B:0 S:1 O:3 - Akinori Iwamura grounds out, second baseman Placido Polanco to first baseman Miguel Cabrera.

TB 4, DET 1 after 1 inning

Inning 2
Top Half

B:2 S:2 O:1 -
Aubrey Huff grounds out, second baseman Akinori Iwamura to first baseman Carlos Pena.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Magglio Ordonez grounds out, shortstop Jason Bartlett to first baseman Carlos Pena.

B:1 S:2 O:3 -
Brandon Inge flies out to center fielder Fernando Perez.

TB 4, DET 1 after 1.5 innings

Bottom Half

B:3 S:1 O:1 -
Gregg Zaun flies out to right fielder Magglio Ordonez.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Fernando Perez bunt grounds out, pitcher Armando Galarraga to first baseman Miguel Cabrera.

B:3 S:3 O:3 -
Jason Bartlett called out on .

TB 4, DET 1 after 2 innings

Inning 3
Top Half

B:1 S:2 O:1 -
Alex Avila grounds out, third baseman Evan Longoria to first baseman Carlos Pena.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Ramon Santiago doubles (6) on a fly ball to center fielder Fernando Perez.

B:4 S:1 O:1 -
Curtis Granderson walks.

B:0 S:1 O:2 -
Placido Polanco flies out to left fielder Carl Crawford.

B:0 S:0 O:2 - Carlos Guillen triples (2) on a line
drive to center fielder Fernando Perez. Ramon Santiago scores. Curtis
Granderson scores. TB 4, DET 3



B:3 S:3 O:3 -
Miguel Cabrera on foul tip.

TB 4, DET 3 after 2.5 innings

Bottom Half

B:4 S:2 O:0 -
Carl Crawford walks.

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Ben Zobrist singles on a ground ball to right fielder Magglio Ordonez. Carl Crawford to 3rd.


B:1 S:1 O:0 -
Carlos Pena singles on a line drive to right fielder Magglio Ordonez. Carl Crawford scores. Ben Zobrist to 3rd.
TB 5, DET 3

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

B:3 S:2 O:1 -
Pat Burrell out on a sacrifice fly to left fielder Carlos Guillen. Ben Zobrist scores.
TB 6, DET 3

B:3 S:2 O:1 - Coaching visit to mound.

B:0 S:0 O:1 - Pitcher Change: Eddie Bonine replaces Armando Galarraga.


B:3 S:2 O:3 - Evan Longoria grounds into double play,
third baseman Brandon Inge to second baseman Placido Polanco to first
baseman Miguel Cabrera. Carlos Pena out at 2nd.

TB 6, DET 3 after 3 innings

Inning 4
Top Half

B:3 S:2 O:1 -
Aubrey Huff lines out to center fielder Fernando Perez.

B:2 S:2 O:1 -
Magglio Ordonez doubles (18) on a line drive to right fielder Ben Zobrist.


B:1 S:2 O:2 -
Brandon Inge lines out to left fielder Carl Crawford.

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

TB 6, DET 3 after 3.5 innings

Bottom Half

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Akinori Iwamura doubles (14) on a line drive to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

B:0 S:1 O:1 -
Gregg Zaun grounds out, third baseman Brandon Inge to first baseman Miguel Cabrera.


B:1 S:3 O:2 -
Fernando Perez called out on .


B:1 S:2 O:3 -
Jason Bartlett grounds out, shortstop Ramon Santiago to first baseman Miguel Cabrera.

TB 6, DET 3 after 4 innings

Inning 5
Top Half

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

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Curtis Granderson grounds out, second baseman Akinori Iwamura to first baseman Carlos Pena.

B:3 S:1 O:3 -
Placido Polanco flies out to right fielder Ben Zobrist.

TB 6, DET 3 after 4.5 innings

Bottom Half

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Pitcher Change: Fu-Te Ni replaces Eddie Bonine.


B:1 S:1 O:1 -
Carl Crawford flies out to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

B:4 S:0 O:1 -
Ben Zobrist walks.

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

B:2 S:3 O:2 -
Coaching visit to mound.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Pitcher Change: Jeremy Bonderman replaces Fu-Te Ni.


B:0 S:1 O:2 -
With Pat Burrell batting, Ben Zobrist steals (16) 2nd base.

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

TB 6, DET 3 after 5 innings

Inning 6
Top Half

B:2 S:3 O:1 -
Carlos Guillen swinging.

B:2 S:1 O:1 -
Miguel Cabrera singles on a soft line drive to center fielder Fernando Perez.

B:2 S:1 O:3 -
Aubrey Huff grounds into double play, third baseman Evan Longoria to first baseman Carlos Pena. Miguel Cabrera out at 2nd.

TB 6, DET 3 after 5.5 innings

Bottom Half

B:1 S:3 O:1 -
Evan Longoria called out on .


B:2 S:0 O:2 -
Akinori Iwamura grounds out, second baseman Placido Polanco to first baseman Miguel Cabrera.

B:1 S:0 O:3 -
Gregg Zaun flies out to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

TB 6, DET 3 after 6 innings

Inning 7
Top Half

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Magglio Ordonez singles on a line drive to left fielder Carl Crawford.

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

B:2 S:0 O:1 -
Alex Avila homers (4) on a fly ball to right field. Magglio Ordonez scores.
TB 6, DET 5


B:0 S:1 O:1 -
Ramon Santiago singles on a ground ball to center fielder Fernando Perez.

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

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Offensive Substitution: Pinch runner Wilkin Ramirez replaces Ramon Santiago.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Pitcher Change: Randy Choate replaces James Shields.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Offensive Substitution: Pinch hitter Ryan Raburn replaces Curtis Granderson.


B:4 S:2 O:1 -
Ryan Raburn walks. Wilkin Ramirez to 2nd.

B:4 S:2 O:1 -
Coaching visit to mound.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Pitcher Change: Grant Balfour replaces Randy Choate.

B:0 S:1 O:1 -
Placido Polanco singles on a ground ball to center fielder Fernando Perez. Wilkin Ramirez scores. Ryan Raburn to 3rd.
DET 6, TB 6

B:2 S:2 O:3 - Carlos Guillen grounds into double play,
second baseman Akinori Iwamura to shortstop Jason Bartlett to first
baseman Carlos Pena. Placido Polanco out at 2nd.

DET 6, TB 6 after 6.5 innings

Bottom Half

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Ryan Raburn remains in the game as the center fielder.

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Defensive Substitution: Adam Everett replaces Wilkin Ramirez, batting 9th, playing shortstop.

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Fernando Perez singles on a bunt ground ball to pitcher Jeremy Bonderman.

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


B:3 S:1 O:1 -
With Jason Bartlett batting, Fernando Perez caught stealing 2nd base, catcher Alex Avila to second baseman Placido Polanco.


B:4 S:2 O:1 -
Jason Bartlett walks.

B:4 S:2 O:1 -
Coaching visit to mound.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Pitcher Change: Bobby Seay replaces Jeremy Bonderman.

B:0 S:1 O:1 -
Carl Crawford hit by pitch. Jason Bartlett to 2nd.


B:2 S:2 O:2 -
Ben Zobrist flies out to center fielder Ryan Raburn.


B:2 S:0 O:3 -
Carlos Pena pops out to third baseman Brandon Inge in foul territory.

DET 6, TB 6 after 7 innings