Poor End in Detroit, Good(ish) Start in Tampa Bay

Yeah, I'm a day late on the Tigers/Sox game from Wednesday, but there's not much about that affair I want to relive. Sometimes you just lose, and it looks like Wednesday's series ender in Detroit was just one of those games.

It'd be easy to pin that loss on another tough day at the plate for the Sox, but I don't think that paints the whole story. Armando Galarraga is just a good pitcher, and it's time people start realizing that. The more dissapointing aspect of that 9-0 loss was Jose's collapse toward the end of his outing, however, I remain optimistic. After his first two starts last year, Jose was 0-1 with a 6.17 ERA, with a .340 BAA in 11.2 IP. This year, he is 0-2 with a 6.97 ERA and has a .267 BAA in 10.2 IP. In 2008, he went 6-2 over his next 10 starts, posting a 2.19 ERA and holding opposing teams to a .191 BAA in 70 innings until arm problems started affecting him in early June. I think he just needs some time to work this out.

I don't have much else to say about that game, so I'll leave you with this good piece from South Side Sox, especially focus on the part about Jose's forkball. I've noticed he doesn't seem to be throwing it much so far this year. In fact the only thing he's been doing has been dropping his arm down for some reason, because every time he does it seems like he lays a fastball right in someone's wheelhouse.

WEDNESDAY: Tribune recap \ Sun-Times recap \ MLB.com Wrap \ B-R.com Box Score & PBP

I'll update this post later today with some thoughts on yesterdy's win. Check back!