| Name |
Armando Galarraga |
| Height |
|
| Naionality |
Venezuelan |
| Date of Birth |
15-January-1982 |
| Place of Birth |
Venezuela |
| Famous for |
Basketball Player |
Armando Galarraga is a Venezuelan professional baseball pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball. Armando Galarraga made his Major League Baseball debut with the Texas Rangers on September 15, 2007. On June 2, 2010, while playing for the Detroit Tigers, he was deprived of a perfect game by an incorrect call made by umpire Jim Joyce in the top of the ninth inning with two outs.
He originally signed as a free agent with the Montreal Expos on October 31, 1998. He was acquired by the Texas Rangers from the Washington Nationals as part of the deal that sent Alfonso Soriano to the Nationals in 2005. Armando Galarraga made his major league debut on September 15, 2007 against the Oakland Athletics. He entered the game in the eighth inning, and pitched a scoreless inning. He allowed no hits and one base on balls. On February 5, 2008, Galarraga was traded to the Detroit Tigers for Michael Hernandez, an outfielder that had spent the last season playing for the AA Erie Seawolves. As a minor league call up for the injured Dontrelle Willis, Galarraga earned his first career win April 16, 2008 in a 13–2 victory over the Cleveland Indians. On June 13, 2008 Galarraga pitched seven shutout innings in a 5–0 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers. He finished the 2008 campaign with a 13–7 record, a 3.73 ERA, and 126 strikeouts in 178⅔ innings. Additionally, he placed fifth in AL rookie of the year balloting. When batters did hit the ball against him, they only managed a .237 batting average on balls in play, the lowest in the major leagues. Galarraga threw sliders 38.9% of the time in 2008, more than any other starting pitcher in the majors.
On April 10, 2009, Galarraga pitched the home opener at Comerica Park. Tigers manager Jim Leyland said Galarraga deserved to pitch Opening Day after having an impressive 2008 season. The Tigers won the game 15–2, which included a grand slam by Miguel Cabrera. On April 29, prior to a game against the New York Yankees, Galarraga received his 2008 Tigers Rookie of the Year award from the Detroit Sports Broadcasters Association.
