Can’t decide.

• Given the Tigers’ suddenly porous rotation, don’t they at least have to consider throwing Jeremy Bonderman out there to start? Even if he goes only four innings or so, at least he’s capable and experienced. I’d take him over the current version of Armando Galarraga.

• And why not start Zach Miner? Jim Leyland says he’s “too valuable” in the bullpen but I just don’t buy that one.

• Rob Neyer digs a little deeper into Curtis Granderson’s woes and asks an important question:
  

  With the Tigers likely to face both CC Sabathia and Andy Pettitte in a Division Series next month, I wonder if Jim Leyland will have the guts to bench Granderson in two of the first three games.

  What do you think? Will he?

• Kurt tweeted about this late last night and it doesn’t sound good for Jarrod Washburn, does it? As the Fungo’s Doug Hill noted shortly after Washburn’s arrival, Dave Dombrowski’s record for acquiring veteran pitchers via trade has been questionable at best.

• I get more bummed about the Ernie Harwell situation everyday.

• Repeating myself: Good for Magglio.

Finally, here’s a heaping helping of Tigers birthdays for today: Chris Pittaro (48), Scott Medvin (48), Mickey Tettleton (49) and Vito Valentinetti (81)

• 7-5, Tied for 1st Place in A.L. Central with Chicago and Kansas City
• Streak: W2
• Home Record: 4-1
• Road Record: 3-4

Streaks:

• Last 10 Games: 7-3
• Last 5 Games: 3-2

Who’s Hot from the Past Week:

• Josh Anderson: .545 avg., .615 OBP, .818 SLG, 4 RBI, 2 SB
• Miguel Cabrera: .455 avg., .478 OBP, .591 SLG, 10 H, 1 HR, 2 RBI
• Gerald Laird: .400 avg., .500 OBP, .400 SLG
• Magglio Ordonez: .353 avg., .522 OBP, .353 SLG

Who’s Not:

• Carlos Guillen: .190 avg., .261 OBP, .190 SLG
• Placido Polanco: .182 avg., .250 OBP, .364 SLG
• Curtis Granderson: .174 avg., .240 OBP, .174 SLG

Up Next: Angels

• Today: Off Day
• Tuesday: Armando Galarraga (2-0, 0.68) vs. RHP Jered Weaver (1-1, 3.09)
• Wednesday: Justin Verlander (0-2, 7.88) vs. LHP Joe Saunders (2-1, 2.18)
• Thursday: Edwin Jackson (1-0, 2.14) vs RHP Dustin Moseley (1-0, 4.30)

Tigers vs. Angels

• All-Time Record: 297-275
• All-Time at Los Angeles: 137-150
• All-Time at Detroit: 160-125
• All-time at Comerica Park: 14-23

• 4-3, 1st Place in A.L. Central, .5 games ahead of Chicago
• Streak: W3
• Home Record: 3-0 / Road Record: 1-3

Who’s Hot:

• Miguel Cabrera: .520 avg., .586 OBP, .960 SLG, 3 HR, 10 RBI
• Placido Polanco: .346, .393 OBP, .462 SLG
• Gerald Laird: .318, .400 OBP, .455 SLG
• Brandon Inge: .304, .448 OBP, .870 SLG, 4 HR, 7 RBI

Who’s Not:

• Carlos Guillen:.182, .345 OBP, .273 SLG
• Adam Everett: .238*, .333 OBP, .286 SLG
• Curtis Granderson: .241, .281 OBP, .483 SLG

*Though, wouldn’t we all be happy with .238 for the season from Everett?

Up Next: White Sox

• Today: Zach Miner vs. Gavin Floyd
• Tomorrow: Rick Porcello (0-1, 7.20) vs. John Danks (0-0, 0.00)
• Wednesday: Armando Galarraga (1-0, 1.29) vs. Jose Contreras (0-1, 7.20)

Tigers vs. White Sox

• All-Time Record: 990-979-15
• All-Time at Home: 523-458-5
• All-Time at Comerica Park: 32-49
• All-Time at Chicago: 467-521-10

Great day today! The weather was nice. Not perfect, but a lot better than anticipated. And I’ve definitely seen worse.

Didn’t make it inside for the player introductions, so I didn’t hear what kind of reception Lyon received. The first pitch ceremony was nice. It was nice NOT to see the usual local politicians and the ritual booing that accompanies them.

Bummed that I missed the George Kell tribute, but there was just so much going on outside the park. There really is nothing like Opening Day around here.

Nice moment for Nick Adenhart. Tragic story, and so senseless.

Okay, enough with the appetizers, let’s get to the meat:

Galarraga: Doesn’t look like he’s planning on any sophomore slump. Seven strikeouts, and the run he gave up was a result of three bloop hits.

Perry: Didn’t look as sharp today. Command wasn’t there.

Cabrera: If the Tigers stay in contention, Miggy will be in the running for MVP. He is simply one of the best hitters in MLB. It is scary how well and how hard he is hitting the ball.

The whole offense: Did exactly what this team needs to do, which is punish mediocre pitching. Nice to see them taking a few walks. That game was actually cruising along before the bottom of the 7th.

Granderson: Way to work a walk after an 0-2 count! Two years ago, he’s carrying his bat back to the dugout.

Inge: How about getting those throws up a little?

Laird: Nice triple! With Sardinha’s three-bagger last year, the Tigers have cornered the market on most unlikely triples hitters.

Texas bullpen: Back to the drawing board, Rangers braintrust. Five straight walks! Ouch!

This was a typical Tigers-Rangers game (with a little less Rangers offense than I’m used to seeing), with plenty of runs, and a lengthy time of game.

All in all, a great Opening Day. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go file my scorecard and read my new Tigers yearbook.

• Height: 6′ 4″ | Weight: 180
• 2008 Stats: 13-7, 3.73

On April 15, 2008, the Tigers summoned Armando Galarraga from Toledo for what most presumed was a short-term stint for the rookie right-hander. He made his Tigers debut on April 16 in Cleveland – a period when the Tigers desperately needed wins – and tossed a gem: 6.2 innings pitched, one hit, two runs, no walks and six strikeouts. At that time, little did the Tigers know how significant Galarraga’s impact would be.

In 30 appearances (28 starts), he posted a 13-7 record with a 3.73 ERA in 178.2 IP — and became the de facto staff ace. For his effort, Galarraga ranked fifth in the American Rookie of the Year voting. His recipe for success in 2008 was simple: throw strikes early and often – nearly 70 percent of his first-pitch fastballs were strikes – and nibble at the outside corners. Another ingredient: dominate right-handed hitters; they batted a meager .174 off Galarraga – nearly 90 points less than lefty hitters.

If the Tigers’ pitching staff is to rebound collectively in 2009, it will depend on an encore performance by Galarraga. And if top-line starters Verlander and Bonderman return to form, the Tigers will boast a dynamic rotation that few A.L. Central teams can match.

Other birthdays:

• George Cappuzzello, 55
• Mike Marshall, 65
• Steve Gromek, he was born (1920) and died (2002) on Jan. 15.

Learn more about these three in a post from Jan. 15, 2007.

Whether it was Dontrelle Willis‘ sudden inability to throw strikes or Justin Verlander’s season of wild inconsistency or merely the bullpen’s tendency to do just about everything wrong, the pitching was Public Enemy No. 1 at Comerica Park and 13 other American League parks (not to mention parks across the N.L. West).

One final look at the Tigers pitching woes:

• Team ERA: 4.91 — 12th in A.L.; 27th in MLB
• Strikeouts: 991 — 11th / 25th
• Walks: 644 — 13th / 27th
• Blown Saves: 26

Oh, what the hay, let’s take a quick look at how the rotation fared:

• Verlander: 11-17, 4.84 ERA, one (and the Tigers’ only) complete game
• Armando Galarraga: 13-7, 3.73
• Kenny Rogers: 9-13, 5.70
• Nate Robertson: 7-11, 6.35
• Jeremy Bonderman: 3-4, 4.29
• Willis: 0-2, 9.38

Yep. Ugly.

But thankfully the 2008 season — and soon this list — is over and done with.

But there was one — if only one — story that made Tigers fans hopeful and it came as a result of a under-the-radar trade with the Texas Rangers on Feb. 5. The Tigers acquired Armando Galarraga for nonroster OF Michael Hernandez. Sweet trade.

On April 12, the Tigers put Dontrelle Willis on the DL and three days later they summoned Galarraga from Toledo. He made his Tigers debut on April 16 in Cleveland and threw an absolute gem when the Tigers flat-out needed wins: 6.2 IP, one hit, two runs, no walks and six strikeouts.

At that time, little did the Tigers know how big Galarraga’s impact would be compared to Willis’. In 30 appearances (28 starts), the 6 ft. 4 in. righty posted a 13-7 record with a 3.73 ERA in 178.2 innings pitched — and became the de facto staff ace. For his effort, Galarraga earned the Tigers Rookie of the Year honor and ranked fifth in the American Rookie of the Year voting.

So, though it might’ve felt like it, all was not lost in 2008. Thanks to Armando Galarraga.

If you’re looking for a positive outlook to end your week, look elsewhere. Here’s a taste:

Aside from a younger, more athletic band of glove men, the Tigers need about a half-dozen new pitchers. Verlander and Galarraga figure to anchor a rotation that’s woefully shorthanded, with lefties Dontrelle Willis, Kenny Rogers and Nate Robertson turning into pumpkins and Jeremy Bonderman now more of a perennial injury risk than a future frontline starter. The bullpen is no better, with Todd Jones retired, Joel Zumaya and Fernando Rodney fighting to regain their lost command, and journeyman Aquilino Lopez the best of the 2008 bunch.

Now that hurts.

The Score: Royals 7 – Tigers 3

The Gist: The Tigers got off to a fast start but the Royals decided not to lose their eighth straight on Sunday and scored seven unanswered runs off Tigers starter Kenny Rogers. Recently banished Nate Robertson pitched two-thirds of scoreless, hitless relief (huzzah!). Placido Polanco had three hits and two RBI and took a five-point edge over Magglio Ordonez for the team batting lead.

The Quote: “What should have been a good game for us turned into a not-so good game.” – Jim Leyland

The Stat: 8. The number of games under .500 that Rogers, Justin Verlander, Jeremy Bonderman and Robertson find themselves. In contrast, Armando Galarraga is eight games over. Ugliness.

Up Next: Indians @ Tigers:

• Monday: Armando Galarraga (12-4, 3.17) vs. Zach Jackson (0-0, 5.17)
• Tuesday: Chris Lambert (0-0, -.–) vs. Cliff Lee (18-2, 2.43)
• Wednesday: Justin Verlander (10-13, 4.42) vs. Fausto Carmona (6-5, 4.40)

Granted, it’s hard not to think about Jurrjens when Edgar Renteria makes an error, lofts another can of corn to left field or otherwise leaves runners stranded. But the reasons — at the moment they made the deal — Detroit sent Jurrjens (and outfielder Gorkys Hernandez) to Atlanta were a) the Tigers needed an upgrade at shortstop (stop laughing), and b) the organization was pitching rich. Also, there were some concerns about Jurrjens durability.

Bottom line: This trade made perfect sense at the time, less sense when Andrew Miller, et al, were shipped to Florida, and no sense when the Tigers find themselves two games under .500 in late August.

It’s too early to say whether Galarraga will be a Jurrjens — or vice versa — but knowing that the former’s likely to be a mainstay on the Tigers staff for the foreseeable future makes watching Jurrjens on TBS a bit more palatable.

The Score: Tigers 8 – Rangers 7

The Gist: Gary Sheffield hit his 493rd career jack and went 3 for 5, and Curtis Granderson drove in four as the Tigers escaped with an 8-7 win in Arlington. Kenny Rogers eeked out a win thanks to two four-run outbursts by his teammates in the seventh and eighth. (And Rogers struck out seven in his six innings…usually a sign of impending doom. But not on Monday.) Kyle Farnsworth, a model of consistently sub-optimal pitching since his return to Detroit, made it too interesting in the eighth but Fernando Rodney pitched not awfully and sealed the deal.

The Quote: “[I]t would be the biggest mistake of his life if he goes on the mound hoping to show the Rangers something. That’s high school [stuff].” — Jim Leyland on Tuesday’s starter and former Rangers farmhand Armando Galarraga.

The Stat: 12. The number of errors by Edgar Renteria so far this season. He leads all A.L. Central shortstops in flubs — but not by much. Orlando Cabrera and Jhonny Peralta each have 11. The Twins’ trio of Adam Everett, Nick Punto and Brendan Harris average about six. KC’s Tony Pena (8) and Mike Aviles (6) roundout the Central.

Up Next: Tigers @ Rangers

Armando Galarraga (11-4, 3.11) vs. Vincente Padilla (12-6, 4.85)

The Score: Tigers 8 – Indians 5

The Gist: Armando Galarraga is to the Indians as Paul Byrd is to the Tigers. Well, not quite, but Galarraga beat the Tribe for the third time this year, Tigers hitters were spared batting practice and turned it on, you know, during a game. But back to Galarraga: three runs over 5.1 innings to earn his ninth win of the year — more than Justin Verlander, folks. (For now.) Brandon Inge stroked three hits including a two-run homer and a double. Miguel Cabrera also went yard as he, Placido Polanco, Carlos Guillen and Matt Joyce collected two hits apiece.

The Quote: “We keep winning, we can come in at 6:15 every night for all I care. The guys liked it, so we’ll have a little fun with it and keep them fresh at the same time.” — Jim Leyland on the Tigers skipping BP on Tuesday night.

The Stat: 20. The combined number of balls thrown by Freddy Dolsi and Fernando Rodney — out of a total of 36. Both threw 18 pitches, eight of them strikes. Sigh.

Up Next: Tigers @ Indians

Nate Robertson (6-8, 5.63) vs. Cliff Lee (14-2, 2.29)

The Score: Orioles 7 – Tigers 4

The Gist: Armando Galarraga gave up two, two-strike home runs and Bobby Seay refused to throw anything but a breaking ball to Luke Scott and the Tigers fell back to the .500 mark. The Tigers weren’t suffering from a lack of baserunners. In fact, they had bases loaded with one out in the third, among other stranded-runner situations. Speaking of stranded runners, Placido Polanco had five; Magglio Ordonez six. On the plus side, Pudge Rodriguez went 4 for 4 with a two-runner homer. Did we mention Bobby Seay? Oh, Bobby…

The Quote: “What do I have to do to get called up?!” — What I imagine lefty Clay Rapada says every time Seay has an outing like Friday’s.

The Stat: 0. The number of walks allowed by Galarraga. Darned impressive for someone on a staff full of generous pitchers.

Up Next: Tigers @ Orioles

Nate Robertson (6-9, 5.26) vs. Daniel Cabrera (6-5, 4.33)

Triple digits returned to the desert on Sunday — a mere 104. Today the temps approached 110.

Big whoop. If you can’t handle the heat, don’t dish out The Non Sequiturs.

Or something like that.

• Charley Steiner spoke with national baseball writer Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune this morning on XM and Rogers’ parting shot regarding the Tigers was stinging at best, dripping in reality at worst:
  

  “The Tigers have a better chance of finishing last than finishing first.”

  Yowza. (Check out Rogers’ power poll here.)

• Happy 31st Birthday to Brandon Inge. I’ve come around to the Inge-at-Third line of thinking and believe it’ll happen at the All Star Break. How all the pieces fall into — or out of — is anyone’s guess.

• I’m overdue for a game recap of the Tigers game from Sunday but will offer a short one here. Randy Johnson was totally beatable — they hit the ball hard off the gimpy southpaw all game long. But when you walk the number-eight hitter to face Johnson at the plate and proceed to walk him as Nate Robertson did, you’re not going to beat anyone.

• Speaking of the Diamondbacks, I finally got to see why they’re beating ever team in sight these days. However, if the Tigers had had Joel Zumaya or Fernando Rodney to come in and blaze some heat when Jeremy Bonderman and Robertson faltered, maybe… Oh, what’s the use?

• It would seem pretty obvious for Freddy Dolsi to be sent back to Erie when Dontrelle Willis is activated soonly, but what happens when or if Zumaya and Rodney return? Methinks that if Zach Miner’s ERA is still over eight, he’ll be sent out. One thing would seem fairly certain: Armando Galarraga stays.

Finally, Happy Birthday also to one-season Tiger Luis Salazar. He played 130 games in 1988 and hit .270 with 12 homers. (And wore number 12.) Salazar turns 52 today.

The Gist: Armando Galarraga threw a gem, Matt Joyce went deep and the Tigers eeked out a one-run victory, 3-2 over flame-throwing D’backs rookie Max Scherzer. It wasn’t a lot of offense, but the Tigers got enough and were able to overcome some untimely walks issued from the bullpen. The play of the game, at least from our view from section 112 at Chase Field, was Pudge Rodriguez’s coaxing the D’backs into a double play with the old “let-the-pop-fly-drop.” Orlando Hudson didn’t run on the pop-up and was likely treated to an earful from Arizona bench coach and baserunning instructor Kirk Gibson.

The Quote: “He actually reminds me a little bit of Jim Northrup.” — Jim Leyland on Joyce.

The Stat: 1. Saturday night’s win was the Tigers’ first in 2008 when they scored fewer than five runs.

The Gist: The Tigers couldn’t hit Tim Wakefield, though it wasn’t for a lack of trying. The lack of plate discipline arrived just in time to send the Tigers to a 5-0 loss to the Red Sox. That’s five in a row, if you’re counting. And my man, Tigers starter Nate Robertson? Oof.

The Quote: “I think the main thing is to not lose sight of how good we are.” — Jim Leyland

The Stat: 2. The pathetic number of hits the Tigers mustered against Wakefield.

Up Next: Red Sox at Tigers

Armando Galarraga (2-1, 1.88) vs. Clay Buchholz (2-2, 3.71)

Individual Batting Leaders (minimum 20 games, my totally subjective criteria)

• Average: Carlos Guillen, .321
• Home Runs: Miguel Cabrera, Magglio Ordonez, 5
• RBI: Cabrera/Ordonez, 19
• OBP: Guillen, .414
• OPS: Guillen, .938
• SLG: Guillen, .524
• SB: Guillen, Pudge Rodriguez, Gary Sheffield, 3

Individual Pitching Leaders

• Wins: Five pitchers tied with two each – Jeremy Bonderman, Armando Galarraga, Aquilino Lopez, Clay Rapada, Kenny Rogers
• ERA
  • Starter: Galarraga, 1.50
  • Reliever: Rapada, 0.00
• Saves: Todd Jones, 5
• Strikeouts
  • Starter: Nate Robertson, 24
  • Reliever: Lopez, 14

Team Rankings

• Team Batting: .267, fourth in American League (ninth in majors)
• Team Pitching: 4.88 ERA, 13th in A.L. (28th in majors)
• Team Fielding: .984, seventh in A.L. (tied for 13th in majors)

And now the random stuff: Tigers Day-by-Day Record

• Monday: 2-1
• Tuesday: 3-1
• Wednesday: 4-1
• Thursday: 1-3
• Friday: 2-2
• Saturday: 1-3
• Sunday: 0-4

The Gist: Armando Galarraga continues to wow and the Tigers’ Curtis Granderson, Placido Polanco and Magglio Ordoñez each knocked two hits in a 6-4 win over the Angels. Galarraga took a no-hitter into the sixth but ended up without a decision. He allowed three runs (one earned), three hits and two walks in six-plus innings. Aquilino Lopez, who’s been nothing short of nails so far this year — try a 0.49 ERA — got the W.

The Quote: “We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.” — Jim Leyland on the fate of Galarraga when Dontrelle Willis comes off the DL.

The Stat: 102.4%. That’s how full Comerica Park was on Saturday for a 3:30 p.m. start time that coincided with the Wings/Avalanche game at Joe Louis.

Up Next: Angels at Tigers

Justin Verlander (1-3, 5.93) vs. Jered Weaver (1-3, 4.95)

The Gist: While he wasn’t as sharp as his Tigers debut in Cleveland last week, Armando Galarraga gave the Tigers another solid outing in the finale at SkyDome — or whatever — 5-1, to earn a split against the Blue Jays. The bullpen was superb though Todd Jones allowed a ninth-inning home run, of course, to spoil the shutout. Ryan Raburn knocked in two runs in the Tigers’ three-run second, and Edgar Renteria hit another homer, a solo shot in the sixth.

The Quote: “If we were really going good like we thought we would be at this time and went to Cleveland and Toronto and came home [3-3], we’d be pretty happy. But with our record the way it is, it doesn’t look too good.” — Jim Leyland, in the Tigers.com game story.

The Stat: .667 – Pudge Rodriguez’s average in the four-gamer in Toronto. Here’s his line: Friday, 3 for 3; Saturday: 3 for 3; Sunday: 0 for 4; Today: 4 for 5. And what do you know? Pudge is now hitting .271 for the season.

Up Next: Rangers at Tigers

Justin Verlander (0-3, 7.03) vs. Vicente Padilla (2-1, 3.12)