The Los Angeles Angels and Detroit Tigers have nothing to play for heading down the stretch of the 2008 MLB season, as the Angels have a giant lead in the American League West, while the Tigers are out of postseason contention after being the preseason favorites to at least contend for the pennant. The two will wrap up a three-game set at Comerica Park on Thursday afternoon with a pitching matchup that features the age-old battle of youth versus experience.
Los Angeles Angels at Detroit Tigers – 1:05 PM ET
Ervin Santana (14-5, 3.31) has been somewhat overshadowed by the depth of the Los Angeles rotation, but the 25-year-old has been having a season that would place him at the top of most rotations in the majors. Santana had another solid outing in a 3-1 home win over Texas, scattering a run on five hits over eight strong innings, while fanning seven with a single walk. This ended a streak of three consecutive no-decisions for the young righthander, and he has now not lost a decision in six starts. Santana has won both of his starts against the Tigers in 2008, posting an ERA of 2.93.
Kenny Rogers (9-12, 5.23) is still searching for his tenth win of the season after allowing six runs for the second straight outing in a 13-3 loss at home to Kansas City. The 43-year-old southpaw lasted six innings, giving up eight hits, including three long-balls. Rogers’ past two starts (ironically, both have been against the Royals) have been awful, quite frankly, as he has allowed 12 runs on 16 hits over 12 innings, to go with four homers, eight strikeouts and six walks. This may be Rogers’ last stand as a professional pitcher, because he is not the type of player to sit around and watch his skills decline. The 20-year veteran pitched very well in his lone start against the Angels this season, tossing a five-hit shutout over seven innings, only to watch the Tigers fall 1-0 in Los Angeles.
The Angels took the first game of this series 5-4 on Tuesday thanks to a ninth-inning sacrifice fly by Mark Teixeira, and the Tigers will have a lot of work to do to overcome Santana, who has a sparkling 9-2 record on the road. Rogers will need to equal his last performance against the Angels to give the Tigers a chance in this one.
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