Tigers Video

Galarraga shuts down the Sox

2010 Interleague preview

Dodgers Video

Ely strikes out eight

Ely's strong start

When the Detroit Tigers visit Los Angeles for the second game of a three-game Interleague series, two right-handers with eyes on keeping their roles in the starting rotation will take the hill against each other. The result could go a long way toward determining who continues on the path to Major League success.

For Galarraga, who was one of Tigers manager Jim Leyland's first cuts out of Spring Training, his last outing was supposed to be a spot start, but it turned into a two-start audition that continues Saturday. Galarraga was good, holding the powerful Boston lineup to a run on three hits over 5 2/3 innings and retiring 10 Red Sox in a row at one point.

Galarraga struck out five and showed the aggressiveness that he seemed to lack for much of last year, partly due to a forearm injury.

"Today, I got the win," Galarraga said after Sunday's 5-1 victory over the Red Sox, "but I don't feel super happy, because I know I can be a lot better."

Leyland, on the other hand, was duly impressed, saying, "If he pitches like that, he can pitch in the big leagues."

Meanwhile, Ely has been one of the reasons the Dodgers have been hot of late.

The rookie right-hander has only made four Major League starts, but his last one was another dandy. He went seven innings and allowed one run on five hits while striking out a career-high eight batters in a win over Houston.

The key? Throwing strikes.

Ely didn't walk a batter and has now faced a Major League-best 84 consecutive hitters without allowing a free pass. For the season, he's struck out 25 and walked three in 25 2/3 innings.

"The second you go out there and think, 'OK, I got to pitch good because my job's on the line,' you put doubt in your head that doesn't need to be there," Ely said. "If you just go out thinking, 'OK, well, I'm going to do what I do every single time,' it seems to work out a little bit better. You can't doubt yourself or try to put too much pressure on."

Tigers: Damon a go for Saturday
Leyland said outfielder Johnny Damon will be in the starting lineup Saturday, which will mean a day on the bench for either Brennan Boesch or Magglio Ordonez. ... Leyland also said right-hander Max Scherzer will make at least one more start for Triple-A Toledo. ... Galarraga is 4-2 with a 4.61 ERA in Interleague Play over the past two seasons, including seven scoreless innings against the Dodgers two years ago at Comerica Park.

Dodgers: Martin can extend streak
Catcher Russell Martin took Friday off but will be back in the lineup Saturday with a chance to extend his career-best hitting streak to 16 games. He's batted .305 (18-for-59) during the 15-game span, which is the longest active streak in baseball and the longest for a Dodgers player since Orlando Hudson hit safely in 17 straight from May 9-27 last year. Martin is tied with Damon for the second-longest hitting streak in the Majors this season, two shy of Jorge Cantu's Major League-best 17-game hitting streak. ... The Dodgers' win Friday night was their 100th all-time in Interleague Play. They're now 100-110 overall. They went 9-9 vs. the American League last year.

Worth noting
Tigers infielder Carlos Guillen is expected to start his rehab assignment for Toledo on Saturday. Guillen has taken ground balls at second base during infield practice the past three days. ... Dodgers outfielder Garret Anderson is tied for 16th all-time with 37 homers, ranks fourth with 244 hits and is eighth with 132 RBIs in 199 career Interleague games with the Angels and Braves. He also ranks fourth with 69 multi-hit games in Interleague Play.