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Thames homers twice, Galarraga shines in Tigers' win

May 29, 2008 - 5:40 AM ANAHEIM, California (Ticker) -- Marcus Thames and the high-powered Detroit Tigers' offense provided plenty of run support as rookie Armando Galarraga enjoyed his best career outing.

Thames blasted a pair of two-run homers to back the 25-year-old Galarraga as the Tigers cruised to a 6-2 victory over the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on Wednesday.

It did not take long for Thames to get the offense rolling. He sparked a three-run rally in the opening inning with his first homer of the night, hammering a 2-2 offering from Angels starter Joe Saunders (8-2) over the left field wall.

"(Thames) got some big hits for us, and I'm going to start playing Marcus more," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "He deserves an opportunity."

Thames struck again in the fifth, blasting Saunders' first pitch into the center field stands for his fifth home run of the season to give the Tigers a 5-0 bulge.

"Just tried to focus and get good pitches to hit," Thames said. "I don't get much playing time, so I just go out and give it my all."

The 31-year-old Thames' first multi-homer performance since September 23 helped Detroit snap a three-game losing streak.

"I got some changeups to hit and just saw the ball out over the plate and got enough to hit them out," Thames said. "It was good to get runs on the board to help the team get a win."

It also provided more than enough breathing room for Galarraga (4-2), who gave up two runs and four hits with three walks and four strikeouts in 8 1/3 frames. He was just two outs away from recording the first complete game of the season by a Tiger.

"I pitched pretty good tonight and had my sinker and slider working for me," Galarraga said. "I just wanted to be aggressive against them since I knew they were struggling with their offense."

Galarraga, who had never even pitched seven complete innings in his young major league career, also induced three double plays. As a result, the Angels were not able to get a runner to second base until Maicer Izturis' two-run homer in the ninth ended Galarraga's shutout bid.

"I'm disappointed I didn't go the distance, but we got the win," Galarraga said. "I made a mistake with my slider and they hit a home run."

After Izturis' blast, Todd Jones retired the final two batters to secure the win as Detroit avoided the three-game sweep.

"We took two games and won the series from a very good team," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "They are team that's going to make some noise and be one of the top teams in the league."

Saunders, who was seeking his third straight win, had his worst outing of the campaign. He allowed five runs and seven hits with a walk and five strikeouts in five innings.

"I felt like I pitched a good game," Saunders said. "They just hit some good pitches, and I just have to tip my hat to them."