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Armando Galarraga is not overly concerned with his slow start this spring.

Galarraga allowed three runs — all earned — in three innings while the Detroit Tigers topped the Toronto Blue Jays 10-7 on Monday. His spring training earned-run average jumped to 11.57.

“They got some hits, but they were mostly ground balls that found holes,” Galarraga said. “I reckon I am doing well, a lot better than last year.”

Miguel Cabrera hit his first homer of spring training and Scott Sizemore and Brennan Boesch also went deep for Detroit.

Galarraga won 13 games in 2008 and pitched in the home opener last year. He started the 2009 season 3-0, but he felt some discomfort in his right arm and was hit hard and often the rest of the way. Galarraga said he tried to pitch through the discomfort, but the effort only hurt his pitching motion.

“My arm wasn’t going through the way it should have been,” Galarraga said. “This spring, everything has been consistent. I feel like I am back to normal.”

Galarraga might be back to normal, but he is in a group of pitchers looking to fill the last two spots in the Tigers rotation. Only Justin Verlander and Rick Porcello have spots locked up, and newcomer Max Scherzer could get the third spot.

Jeremy Bonderman, who missed most of last season with an arm injury, likely has the fourth spot if he’s healthy, so that leaves Galarraga, Nate Robertson and Dontrelle Willis competing for the final spot.

Galarraga said he knows the numbers game is working its way through spring training and, after a 6-10 season with a 5.64 ERA, he doesn’t have any guarantees.

“My ERA might look high, but I’ve only pitched seven innings this spring,” Galarraga said. “I don’t look at my ERA after seven innings.

“I look at it after 100 innings. That’s when you see where you are.”

Tigers manager Jim Leyland said it’s too early to make any decisions but that he has concerns about Galarraga.

“He threw the ball fine, but his command is inconsistent. He needs to control his breaking ball,” Leyland said.

Jacob Turner continued his strong start for the Tigers as he extended his scoreless innings streak to five with two shutout innings.

Toronto starter Marc Rzepczynski also struggled in the wind that whipped through Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland, Fla. He allowed three earned runs in four innings and struck out four.

“He had a hard time turning it over,” Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston said. “It was a tough day for everyone out there.”

The Tigers scored three runs in the bottom of the first on the homers by Sizemore and Cabrera, but Toronto evened it with three in the third inning. Galarraga had a wild pitch to allow Brad Emaus to score and tie the game.

Toronto scored in the sixth on a two-run homer by Brian Dopirak, but the Tigers evened it in the bottom of the inning. Toronto went back ahead with two in the seventh, but the Tigers broke it open in the bottom of the eighth with four runs, capped off by a bases-loaded double by Brent Dlugach.

Voting is open to determine 5 finalists in Kraft Hockeyville 2010. (CBC Sports)

Twelve communities have reached the knockout phase in the Kraft Hockeyville 2010 contest.

Ron MacLean and Cassie Campbell-Pascall of CBC’s Hockey Night In Canada revealed the dozen hockey-crazed communities during Monday’s broadcast, selected from more than 12,500 submissions.

Each entrant lobbied to convey their community’s exceptional spirit, originality and passion for hockey.

The 12 communities are:

Canadians can vote for their favourite community online at CBCSports.ca/hockeyville, by phone at 1-866-533-8066, or by texting “vote” + the community name to 111888. Texting is capped at 25 texts per day per mobile number at a cost of 15 cents per text.

Votes received from outside these three official mechanisms will not qualify, and sponsors retain the discretionary right to disqualify any vote deemed to be fraudulent.

CBC’s Hockey Night In Canada will recap the Top 12 on March 20, and voting ends March 21 at 11:59 p.m. ET. Five finalists will be announced March 27 on CBC’s Hockey Night In Canada, with voting resuming to determine which community will be crowned Kraft Hockeyville 2010.

On April 3, representatives from Kraft Hockeyville and Hockey Night In Canada personalities will report live from each of the Top 5 communities, and announce the winner.

The community crowned Kraft Hockeyville 2010 receives an NHL pre-season game, played in the local arena, and $100,000 in arena upgrades.

The other four finalists receive $25,000 in arena upgrades from Kraft Canada.

The previous winners were: Terrace, B.C. (2009); Roberval, Que. (2008); North Bay, Ont. (2007); and Salmon River, N.S. (2006).

Follow Kraft Hockeyville 2010 on Facebook and Twitter and receive insider updates and view videos.

Avalanche search experts prepare to head to the site on Sunday. (Canadian Press)

The B.C. government is reconsidering regulations for snowmobilers after the weekend’s deadly avalanche near Revelstoke.

B.C. Tourism Minister Kevin Krueger said Monday that his ministry was looking at possible changes to new regulations announced in November 2009 that were to be phased in over the next two years.

The regulations — covering all motorized off-road riding equipment such as snowmobiles and all-terrain vehicles — include new licensing and insurance requirements.

Krueger’s comments came after two men were killed and more than 30 were injured when a wall of snow came down on about 200 snowmobile enthusiasts who were in the backcountry area known as Turbo Bowl for the annual Huge Iron Shoot-Out snowmobile event on Saturday.

Kurtis Reynolds of Strathmore and Shay Snortland of Lacombe, both 33, were killed when the slide hit the group watching the event from the valley below the slope.

Three people remained in hospital with serious injuries Monday.

An avalanche expert will investigate what caused the massive slide, estimated to be up to 150 metres wide and 10 metres deep.

Police consider charges

Police believe everyone who was in the area has been accounted for, and they are now considering whether charges of negligence should be laid.

An overhead shot shows some of the snowmobiles involved in the avalanche near Revelstoke, B.C., on Saturday. (CBC)

Cpl. Dan Moskaluk said he was particularly concerned some parents brought children as young as seven years of age to the event, despite repeated warnings from avalanche officials of the high risk of slides in the area.

One 12-year-ancient boy suffered a serious cut to his face after being caught in the avalanche, but it is not clear how many children were involved.

Many participants paid up to $25 to a Revelstoke snowmobile group to use trails to access the area, but the unsanctioned event was reportedly organized by a Calgary man.

Machines and debris recovered

Helicopter crews continued Monday to remove snowmobiles and debris from the hill, Moskaluk said.

A hurt snowmobile is recovered from the avalanche site. (Canadian Press)

Having less debris on the hill would make it simpler for a dog to search, but police also want to discourage people from returning to the area to reclaim their machines.

Many of the snowmobiles caught in the slide cost tens of thousands of dollars, and their owners were waiting to see if the RCMP would glide them out.

Jeremy Lefleur of Golden said he was on his $13,000 machine at the bottom of Turbo Hill when the avalanche came down and buried it in the snow.

“It’s hopefully hellied out, but it could still be buried out there .… If it’s gone, it’s gone. At least it’s not my life.”

The cost of the search and rescue effort has not yet been released.

Justin Trudeau opposes regulation

Liberal MP Justin Trudeau lost his brother to a B.C. back-country avalanche, but the son of late prime minister Pierre Trudeau said Monday he opposes anything that impinges on Canadians’ ability to delight in their country’s wild spaces.

“There should be absolutely no limiting access to the back country for Canadians,” said Trudeau, who taught in a B.C. private school before becoming a Quebec MP.

“I reckon our right to go play outside in the wilderness is something that should not be the business of government.”

Michel Trudeau died in 1998 when he was swept into Kokanee Lake by an avalanche while on a back-country ski excursion. His body was never found.

High-markers trigger slide: witnesses

Witnesses said Saturday’s avalanche was triggered at about 3:30 p.m. PT after snowmobilers in the event started high-marking — the practice of racing up the side of the mountain to see who can go the highest.

Participant Derek Blair said many of those involved were aware of the risks.

“Certainly there was discussion. When we had gone up, we knew it was perilous. It’s a pretty extreme place for riding,” said Blair.

B.C. Solicitor General Kash Heed flew over the site of the avalanche on Sunday and said it’s fortunate more people weren’t killed.

Heed said the provincial government is looking at ways to make the backcountry safer, but remained unwilling to impose restrictions on backcountry use. In B.C. no licence is required to operate a snowmobile.

“As we go forward we will determine what we can do to make this safer,” said Heed.

Six people have been killed by avalanches this winter in B.C., but in the winter of 2008-09, 24 avalanche-related deaths were recorded on mountains in the province, making it the worst season on record.

Five of those deaths involved skiers and snowboarders. A total of 19 snowmobilers died in 11 separate avalanches. One incident, in Sparwood, B.C., claimed eight lives alone.

The British Columbia Coroners Service found that in many of the accidents, individuals involved underestimated the avalanche risk.

With files from The Canadian Press