Go west

The Tigers go to Anaheim for a two-game West Coast swing. Mike Maroth faces Jered Weaver in tonight’s contest.

Detroit is 3-0 in Maroth’s starts this year, even though Maroth has been inconsistent, at best. He doesn’t throw hard or strikeout many batters, so he usually gives up his share of hits, but this year opponents are batting .328 against him. Still, Maroth missed most of last year because of elbow surgery, so he might just need a little more time to put it all together. He was the Tigers best pitcher last April. Weaver has made only one start this year because of bicep tendonitis.

Tomorrow, the snake-bitten Jeremy Bonderman faces Kelvim Escobar. Bonderman has been brilliant, especially when he gets past the first inning. Escobar will be coming off the DL to pitch Tuesday. Normally, I’d say this gives the Tigers an edge, but Escobar is 8-0 with a 2.10 ERA in his career vs. Detroit.