Halos Host Tigers
Ervin Santana jumped out to a quick start this season and seemed to have put last season’s struggles behind him, but he’s struggled in his last three starts.
Santana, looking to bounce back from back-to-back losses, takes the mound on Tuesday as the AL West-leading Los Angeles Angels continue a three-game series against the Detroit Tigers.
Oddsmakers from Sportsbook.com have made Los Angeles –126 money line favorites (MLB Odds) for tonight’s game, the over/under has been set at 9 total runs (Matchup). Current public betting information shows that 54% of bets for this game have been placed on Detroit +116 (View MLB Bet Percentages).
Following a disappointing 2007 season in which he went 7-14, was briefly sent to the minors and finished with a career-high 5.76 ERA, Santana (6-2, 3.24 ERA) won his first six decisions over seven starts this year. The right-hander had a 2.02 ERA during that stretch, showing signs of the pitcher that won 16 games in 2006, but since pitching a shutout against the Royals on May 5, Santana has not been as sharp, going 0-2 with a 6.62 ERA over his last three outings.
He allowed four runs and nine hits in six innings on Thursday against Toronto, striking out seven in the 4-3 loss.
"I’m healthy, like I was before," Santana said. "I just have to keep pitching. That’s it."
Santana is 3-2 with a 5.46 ERA in five career starts against the Tigers (21-30). He beat them on April 25 by allowing three runs in 6 1-3 innings in a 4-3 victory at Comerica Park. Santana is 2-0 with a 0.64 ERA in two starts against the Tigers in Anaheim.
The Angels are looking for Santana to continue a stretch of strong pitching by the starting rotation. Since May 18, their starters are 5-2 with a 2.25 ERA. The last four have pitched into the eighth inning, including Jon Garland, who went 7 1-3 innings on Monday, allowing four hits in a 1-0, 12-inning win.
Detroit’s Kenny Rogers also pitched well, going seven innings while allowing five hits, but reliever Bobby Seay walked Garret Anderson on four pitches with the bases loaded to force in the winning run.
"That was a walk-off win, and we’ll take it," Los Angeles manager Mike Scioscia said with a smile. "We’ve been having trouble scoring the past 15-20 games, and our pitching has kept us in games."
The Angels, who have won six of their last eight, stranded a season-high 15 runners on Monday. Their offense has been held to three or fewer runs in six of the last seven games, and they are just 1-for-28 with runners in scoring position in the last four, including 0-for-12 on Monday.
Detroit felt its offense might be coming around after averaging 10.6 runs during a 4-1 stretch from May 20-24, but it managed just five hits and went 0-for-12 with runners in scoring position on Monday after losing 6-1 to the Twins on Sunday.
The Tigers have been shut out a major league-leading eight times this season, including four times this month.
Jeremy Bonderman (3-4, 4.58) takes the mound for Detroit on Tuesday, looking to win consecutive starts for the first time this season. The right-hander allowed two runs and eight hits in six innings against Seattle on Thursday in a 9-2 win.
Bonderman is 3-3 with a 4.97 ERA in nine career starts against the Angels. He is 2-2 with a 6.21 ERA in six starts in Anaheim.
Did you like this article? Subscribe to our Baseball news feed for the fastest updates delivered right to you – Click here to Subscribe