(746 miles)From the CoPa

Stating the Obvious

2011-07-01T19:18:00.002-04:00

If it wasn't apparent by the over a year between posts, I guess I'll just make it official. Life has me having nary a minute to myself, yet along any time to write down thoughts about the Tigers. I rarely have time to fill out a tweet (gratuitous Twitter plug: @jason_d_price ) so it's the end of the road for this little blog of mine. Thanks again to anyone who visited this little piece of the internet, see you around. Go Tigers!

First Quarter Grades

2010-05-21T21:49:00.000-04:00

With schools letting out (well at least down here in Georgia) and with the Tigers finishing up the first fourth of the schedule, I figured I take a look back and do the cliched assigning grades post.

As a whole the Tigers sit 3 at 24-17 and in a first place tie with the Twins. Pretty good considering that at any given time almost half of the Tiger line-up is comprised of rookies. Its also helps that some players have seemingly returned to the form they were in 2006 to compliment the young guns. So let's break it down position by position and grade the first quarter

Catchers: Position grade D-

Alex Avila - One of the aforementioned rookies, although he had a bit of a taste of the big leagues at the end of the season last year. In fact he has had just as many at-bats last year as he has in this season. The problem is has 10 less hits, which drops the average over 100 points. The one saving grace has been the defense where he has thrown out 60% of runners trying to steal. Grade: D

Gerald Laird - Gerald has been one of the most disappointing players on the year. He is fighting with Adam Everett with the dishonor of being the worst hitter on the team. Add to that a terrible he's only throw out 8 of 17 baserunners, and it's tough to give Gerald a passing grade
Grade: F

Infield: Position Grade C

Miguel Cabrera - The MVP of the Tigers, and almost certainly in the top 3 for AL MVP at this point. In a bit of a slump lately, but he was absolutely killing the ball in April. It's not just the stats, it's the timing of the hits. There was a point in April where everyone of his home runs either tied the game or gave the Tigers the lead. The only thing keeping him from the A+ is the 5 errors (2nd on the team).
Grade: A

Adam Everett - If it weren't for the struggles from the guys behind the plate Adam Everett would be the worst hitter in the line-up. With a couple guys in the rotation that have National League experience, you might be tempted to use the DH on Everett. Good glove aside, it's hard to make a case why he should be in the line-up even in a platoon situation
Grade: D

Brandon Inge - With Inge you know what your getting, a good glove,numerous check swing strikeouts, and an occasional home run. The 34 K's to 33 hits is a little disheartening, but he seems to be the only non-Venezuelan on the team that can hit for power.
Grade: C-

Ramon Santiago - While we keep hearing Ramon is best used in a platoon situation only, looking at the other options its hard to make a case that he shouldn't be starting full time.
Grade: B

Scott Sizemore - Sizemore has looked like a rookie from day one, and asking him to fill the shoes of Placido Polanco didn't help matters any. Currently down in Toledo, I think he still comes back and contributes to the team this year
Grade: F

Danny Worth - The stopgap at second until the Carlos Guillen Experiment takes over. Worth's first MLB hit was a infield hit that also resulted in his first MLB RBI, so he's got that going for him...
Grade: Incomplete

Outfield: Position Grade B

Brennan Boesch - Wow. I doubt he'll keep hitting like this, but let's all enjoy the ride. Almost half of his hits are for extra bases (14 of 29). Raburnesque in the outfield at times, but smashing the hell out of the ball behind the plate will keep him in the line-up
Grade: B+

Johnny Damon - Has done everything you'd expect from Johnny Damon. He gets on base and lets the big boys drive him in. He's even gotten 2(!) outfield assists
Grade: A

Carlos Guillen - Putting him in with the outfielders, but he will spend the rest of the year at 2nd. Well at least until he gets injured again. Was actually hitting the ball well before the trip to the DL. The Tigers need his bat if only to get one of the crappier ones (looking at you Everett) out.
Grade: DL Incomplete

Austin Jackson - Yes he strikes out a lot, and his incredible luck is starting to have balls find gloves instead of gaps, but he's making people forget Curtis Granderson something I never would have believed 3 months ago
Grade: B

Don Kelly - Average in almost everyone. Almost forgettable, which is a good thing of your a reserve
Grade: C

Magglio Ordonez - Picking up where he left off the end of last season. An second only to Cabrera in all the batting categories. More importantly though he's got some of the power back. A healthy Magglio in the 3 spot is a beautiful thing
Grade: A

Ryan Raburn - Can't hit, can't field, can't be in Detroit.
Grade: F

Casper Wells - Probably just keeping a spot on the bench warm for Raburn if he figures out how to hit. But very capable of pulling a Boesch and making it hard to send back down
Grade: Incomplete

Starting Pitching: Position grade C

Jeremy Bonderman - Lucky for Bondo the steaming turd he put out there in Cleveland was rained out keeping his streak of quality starts alive. His stats are a bit skewed by the 10 run game in Seattle, but as a 4th starter he's been all you can ask for. Well I would like to see him pitch into the 6 and 7th innings more, but it's looking like Bondo's back
Grade: C+

Armando Galarraga - Last year's opening day starter, opened this season in Toledo. He did what he needed to do down there and was the first one to get the call when the Tigers needed a start. Pitched well enough, and picked up a win. I'd like to see him duplicate that
Grade: Incomplete

Rick Porcello - I hate calling it a sophomore slump, but Rick has been not very good. Minus the seven shutout innings against the Yankees, Rick's given up at least 5 hits in all of his other starts. In 5 of his 8 starts he's allowed four or more runs. If Armando can keep it up, Rick might have a couple weeks in Toledo ahead of him to sort things out
Grade: D

Max Scherzer - Something isn't right with Max, and he's in a Mud Hen jersey right now to figure that out. The first start down there was promising, and I hope he gets back up if only to see his creepy two different colored eye stare
Grade: F

Justin Verlander - Oh Justin, why can't you pitch in April like you pitch the other months. That April was a D, but he's been an ace in May
Grade: B

Dontrelle Willis - For a stretch there in April, Dontrelle was *gulp* the Tigers best starter. That's a bit of an indictment for the rest of the rotation, but let's not sell Dontrelle's rebound year short. He's not going to be in the discussion for the Cy Young, but if the Tigers can get 6 innings out of him every fifth day, well then that's a million times better then I thought they would get out of him the least few seasons.
Grade: C

Bullpen: Position Grade A

Eddie Bonine - Has honed his knuckleball and it's been really an effective change of pace arm with the 90+ heat that the rest of the bullpen can provide.
Grade: B

Phil Coke - The man of a thousand hairstyles, he kind of reminds me of Todd Jones, except talented. Only has allowed runs in 3 of his 18 games.
Grade: B+

Fu-Ti Ni - The answer to the question "How do you pronounce LOOGY?" in Mandarin...or Cantonese, I really don't know what they speak in Taiwan.
Grade: C

Ryan Perry -For some reason I thought Ryan was having a worse year than he is. I much just be catching him when he's walking someone. But looking at the stats its the strikeout to end the threat that I'm missing
Grade: B+

Brad Thomas - So I may have him a dingofucker, or implied that he molests koalas, but all kidding aside he hasn't been half bad the last few appearances. Still who can resist a good toilet flushing the other way joke
Grade: C

Jose Valverde - He may be crazy, in fact I'm pretty confident that's the case, but I will take the Jose Valverde Dance Party, over the Rodneycoaster everyday
Grade: A

Joel Zumaya - When you don't walk a guy until your 13th game, and strike out 23 in that same time frame, you get an A
Grade: A

So there you have it. And now we have the Tigers heading out of a very difficult part of the schedule into Inter-League play, which they have used in the past to catapult themselves ahead of the pack in the standings. 41 down 121(well hopefully just 121) to go.

Ernie Harwell 1918-2010

2010-05-04T20:35:00.002-04:00

I really don't know what to say. I don't know why but losing Ernie, feels like losing a family member. I don't know if listening to him during my formative years is the reason that I love baseball so much, but I'm sure it didn't hurt. He wasn't just a great announcer he was a great human being. The baseball world and the world in general is a little less friendlier today.

One Month Down

2010-05-01T23:50:00.000-04:00

24 Games in the books, and one month into the season the Tigers sit at 14-10 and a game ans a half back of the Twins in the AL Central. Looking around the AL that record is good enough for 4th behind the aforementioned Twins, red-hot Rays, and as always the Yankees. Pretty good, considering that the Tigers are dead last in the AL in starters ERA. Added to that, they had a hellacious 11 game West Coast trip in the middle of the month, in a span of their current 20 games in a row without an off-day. So what's going right so far for the Tigers to have them off to their best record on May 1st since 2006?

Austin Jackson - The consensus was Austin Jackson would be in the running for AL rookie of the year. I don;t know if anyone expected him to win the award in April. Austin leads the majors in hits. That's for everybody not just rookies. Yes, there are the strikeouts and the lack of power, but getting on base and making outstanding plays in the field.

Miguel Cabrera - If Austin Jackson won the ROY for April, Miguel Cabrera won the MVP. All of his 5 home runs have either tied the game, or put the Tigers in the lead. He's also batting .483 with RISP, which has helped him lead the Majors in RBI.

Dontrelle Willis - Yes, Dontrelle Willis. With the trade of Nate Robertson in the waning days of spring training, the Tigers pretty much said Dontrelle's our #5 guy and we've thrown away the safety net. All Dontrelle did is go out and arguably be the Tigers best pitcher in April. 3 of his 4 starts were quality starts, with his best coming earlier this week against the Twins. Now talk this all with a grain of salt, as last year ace in April is now in Toledo (Armando Galarraga).

The Bullpen - While the starters haven't been quite up to expectations, the Bullpen has been pulling in more than their share. The Tigers Bullpen leads the Majors in wins and ERA.

New Additions - Phil Coke, leads the team in wins and has been solid in the set-up role in the pen. Jose Valverde after blown his first save, allowed only two hits the rest of the month. Papa Grande, now has the lowest ERA on the team. Max Scherzer is tied with Willis for the lead in quality starts, and is 2nd to Verlander in strikeouts. Johnny Damon has kept up the tradition of the productive 2 spot established by the departed Placido Polanco.

Tiger Bats - The Tigers have the best team batting average in the Majors. They lead or are in the top five in the following: hits (1), doubles (1), runs (5), OBP (1), and OPS (4). They are also getting the big hit when its needed. 6 of the 14 wins the Tigers were trailing after 6 innings.

May started off with some more late inning heroics as Johnny Damon hit his first home run of the year to win the game earlier today in the walk off fashion. This month the big series keep on coming. First its a visit to the Twins, then they host the Yankees and Red Sox back to back. Then its back out west for a mini 9 game road trip, before coming home to host Oakland. Hopefully we'll still be talking about the Tigers in the same favorable tones.

Week 1: In Review

2010-04-11T23:33:00.002-04:00

The one thing I don't like about the beginning of baseball season is the multitude of day games. Well it didn't bother me so much when I was unemployed, but now that I work for an employer with an impenetrable web filter, it does get on the nerves. The only way to follow along with the Tigers is to keep refreshing MLB.com on my phone.

I do appreciate the free preview of Extra Innings, and was able to DVR a few games including the Home Opener. The trick was getting home to watch it without the ending being spoiled. Last year's blow out was given away from a phone call from my dad. With family at game, and the added risk of unintentionally running across the score, the phone was shut off. Then I had to survive dinner at a bar. It must have looked weird to others, when I kept putting my hands over my eyes every time the score crawl popped up.

DVR helped over the weekend too, since it was probably one of the last weekends in Georgia before the weather turns from delightful to oppressively hot, I spent most of the weekend fighting clouds of pollen in the north Georgia countryside. I did make the mistake of not adjusting the time, so the recording stopped just as Carlos Guillen made Sunday's game a one run game in the ninth. A mad scramble to the computer confirmed the comeback was completed with a 9-8 victory on a wild pitch.

The win Sunday put the Tigers at 5-1 for the young season. 4 of those five wins the Tigers were trailing a good part of the game. Not the way you would plan it, but first place is first place. So let's take a look at the weeks that was.

The Good:
Magglio Ordonez - Maggs' hot bat from the end of last season has carried over the start of 2010. 12 for 26 with some power as well.

Miguel Cabrera - staking an early claim for the AL MVP, with a 12 for 23 week and a pair of clutch home runs in the KC series

Jeremy Bonderman & Dontrelle Willis - Yes it is only one start in for the both of them. I don't expect the same results each time they go out, but the fact both off them appear healthy and can pitch decent bodes well for the back of the rotation

Joel Zumaya - speaking of pitchers returning to form, Joel was lights out in 3.2 innings pitched this week. Allowing only two baserunners and striking out 2, and picking up the win on the season opener

The Bad:
Justin Verlander - 10 runs on 11 hits in his first two outings. Cause for concern? Well JV gave up 21 runs on 27 hits in his first four starts last year. He settled down and shut out the Yankees, for 8 innings to pick up his first win in his last start in April. And it turned out pretty good for him, so lets back away from the panic buttons for now

Jose Valverde - "Papa Grande" was anything but in his first week as a Tiger. A rocky yet scoreless 9th in the first game of the season, followed by a blown save to give the Tigers their only loss of the year so far.

Gerald Laird - Finally picked up his first hit of the year Sunday. Had a bit of an issue defensively with allowing 5 stolen bases in the KC series

The Odds and Ends:
- The Tigers scored 21 of their 35 runs in the 7th inning or later
- Miguel Cabrera and Magglio Ordonez are the only Tigers to have home runs
- Justin Verlander has walked as many (4) and Bonderman and Willis combined
- Both times the Tigers forced an opposing pitcher to blow a save, they were trying to get a 4 out save
- Max Scherzer, Phil Coke, and Joel Zumaya are the only Tiger pitchers to not have a run credited to them

The Week Ahead:

The Royals come in for three, and the Tigers avoid Greinke. Then the Tigers head out West for 11 straight. Get the caffeine ready, because if this week taught us anything, it's that it's not over until the 27th out.

Opening Day 2010

2010-04-05T21:42:00.002-04:00

I can't believe this is my 3rd Opening Day in Georgia. It seems like yesterday I was watching Fernando Rodney blow the game in the 10th inning and lose to the Blue Jays. For the second year in a row, I was stuck at work constantly updating MLB.com on my phone.

Lucky for me, I was able to hear from the 6th inning on thanks to the XM in my car. Not so lucky for the Kansas City bullpen. As I was inching along I-75 on my way home, Ramon Colon and Robinson Tejada were handing the game over to the Tigers pitch by pitch.

As for the big story going into the game, Justin Verlander vs. Zack Greinke, the two Cy Young contenders were pretty well matched. The only difference is Verlander's bad inning scored two runs, while Greinke's only allowed one.

The rookies for the Tigers played big parts, as they will need to do throughout the season. Scott Sizemore's walk in the 7th opened the floodgates for the 6 run inning. Austin Jackson drove Sizemore in on his first hit in the Majors, and saved a run with a perfect throw to home to keep the score 8-4 in the bottom of the same inning.

First game of the year and a win. Good start for the 2010 Tigers

Some more thoughts:

What I liked:
- 8 Hits from the 2-5 hitters
- Forcing KC to go to the bullpen, after making Greinke throw 96 pitches in 6 innings.
- Part of that was Austin Jackson seeing 15 pitches in his 3 at-bats, and Sizemore seeing 12 in 2
- Joel Zumaya with a 1-2-3 inning
- 8 runs on 12 hits

What I didn't like:
- Jose Valverde Rodneying up the 9th inning
- Brandon Inge's 5 men left of base
- A home run to Yuniesky Betancourt?
- Jason Kendall's fuglyness
- Billy Butler cementing his Tiger Killer status

Ready For The Seaon

2010-04-03T14:00:00.000-04:00

Well I figured I'd check in, if only for the benefit of those Asian spammers who will have a new comment section to terrorize. Not sure how regular the posting will be as the season starts as the weekends are the only real time I have more than 15 spare minutes to post. We'll see how it goes. As for that soon to be starting season, here's my take on all things Tiger.

Austin Jackson, Scott Sizemore and...Jimmy Howard?

To update the non-hockey fans, Jimmy Howard is the rookie goalie who has literally saved the Red Wings playoff hopes. Though, at 26 he's not a fresh off the farm newbie. The same can be said of Jackson and Sizemore who, like Howard, were biding their time in the minors while the logjam of talent in front of them (Chris Osgood, Dominik Hasek, Placido Polanco, and the Millionaires Club that is the Yankee outfield) cleared out. The slight difference being, unlike Howard, Jackson and Sizemore are asked to start from the get go. My point? Well, after being thrown in after Osgood struggled to open the year, Howard took over. After a few shaky starts he found his rhythm and is one of the favorites to win rookie of the year. I think a large part of that was the fact he wasn't 20 year old thrown to the wolves. He had talent and a veteran team in front of him, that let him do his thing. I think Jackson and Sizemore have the same type of opportunity with the Tigers.

Miguel Cabrera, Detroit's Superman

Like Superman, he had an issue with alcohol that served as kryptonite over the final series of last season. 0 for 11 and a ride in a Police car over that weekend, brought Miguel's off-field behavior into question. This offseason he vowed not to put him self in that kind of situation, and swore off the sauce. Will this make a more focused Miguel in 2010? I think so, and pitchers in the Al Central should be more than a little scared.

The Dontrelle Leap Of Faith

Actually its a bit more than a leap. Its a Evel Knievel rocketcar over Snake River Canyon kind of leap. The back-up plan is now wearing a Marlin uniform, so it's sink or swim for Dontrelle. A bit of hyperbole for a guy that's only supposed to be the 5th starter, perhaps? Maybe, but the D-Train's Tiger history is full of derailments. His spring that earned him the 5th spot, is a little hard to read. Yes he had 13 K's, but he walked 12. He's had 4 scoreless outings, but gave up 5 in 4 innings in his last outing. I really don't know what we'll see out of Dontrelle, i want him to do well but history shows that may be asking for to much.

Dave Dombrowski's Wild, Wacky, Offseason

The roster is finally set, thanks to the aforementioned trade of Nate Robertson. It was an offseason that left many a Tiger fan (including myself) scratching their heads. It saw veteran fan favorites leave in favor for youth, only to have other veterans brought in. Players were let go due to cost, then free agents were brought in with big paydays. Are the Tigers a better team than the 2009 version? I'm not sure. Are they worse? That I really don't know either. Talk has been about the money the Tigers will have off the books after this year, but if the Tigers aren't contenders this year, the 2009 Winter of Discontent will come back to haunt DD.

What I'm Thinking

Coming into Spring Training, I still thought the Twins were the team to beat. Joe Nathan's injury leveled the playing field a little. This Tiger team is a team of "ifs". If Jeremy Bonderman and Dontrelle Willis don't implode...If Austin Jackson and Scott Sizemore don't play like rookies...if Magglio hits the whole year like he hit in September...if the bullpen can reproduce results like the 2006 bullpen...if the team can avoid a rash of injuries...then maybe the Tigers will win their first division title since 1987

Farewell Curtis, Edwin We Hardly Knew Ye

2009-12-08T18:46:00.002-05:00

Well that didn't take long...

Part of me is sad to see Curtis go. I only own two jerseys, one of them being a Granderson jersey (the other a Zetterberg jersey) so it is a little disheartening to see it go the way of an Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl Champs t-shirts. The trade would be easier to take if he was a raging a-hole *cough*Sheff*cough*. But he seemed like a genuinely nice guy, who cared a lot about things bigger than baseball. The team will miss Curtis, but the city of Detroit will miss him as well. As for Edwin, well thanks for that good first half...and, um, well shouting at the Red Sox after the Porcello-Youlikis incident was pretty cool.

The analytical part of me however, really likes this trade. Max Scherzer is a year younger, had comparable stats to Jackson, and a much longer friendlier contract (which means more money for JV and 2011). Scherzer is the only given commodity. The other three players are young with a nice upside. Phil Coke looks to be a lefty setup man. If the last two months of 09 are any indication of what he'll do this year, people in Detroit will be very happy. Daniel Schlereth is another lefty pitcher who was a former first round pick for the Diamondbacks, and (sense a pattern here?) can strike people out. While Schlereth is a bright prospect who will most likely be pitching in Erie or Toledo. The key for the trade seems to be centerfielder Austin Jackson. He was listed as the 27th best prospect in the minors last winter. As a point of reference breakout rookies Tommy Hanson and Elvis Andrus were 24th and 21st respectively. Unfortunately for him, he may need to make an immediate impact to take the sting of losing Granderson away from Detroit fans. Maybe a signing or a trade (Marlon Byrd and Mike Cameron are jobless right now...) will give him a season or two to develop further and take the pressure off of replacing a beloved player.

For what it's worth, I don't think this will be the last move the Tigers will make, in fact I hope its not as there still are some glaring issues with the team (closer, left field, scoring runs). But to me this move might sting now, but it built for success in the long run.

Winter Hibernation

2009-12-07T19:02:00.000-05:00

Like a the bear, I'm peeking out and seeing what's going on around me this offseason.

On the plus side I have a job that keeps me very busy. On the downside that leaves me very little time to check in on the Tigers. Other then a quick glance at some sites I really haven't had much time to breakdown some of the stories this offseason. So on that note I have some question that I'll leave out that that (I hope) will be answered by Spring Traning:

Will Edwin Jackson still be a Tiger?
Will Curtis Granderson still be a Tiger?
Will the Tigers trade the entire team to the AL East and field a team of laminated Fatheads as a cost-cutting measure?
Will Scott Sizemore be able to fill the huge batting helmet left behind by Placido Polanco?
Who will be the closer for the Tigers in 2010?
What freak of nature occurrence will happen to a newly healthy Joel Zumaya?
~~Who will be the shortstop for the Tigers in 2010?~~ Adam Everett was re-signed in between my lunchtime writing and my drive home
How long will Carlos Guillen actually play leftfield?
Will there be an under-the-radar deal pulled by Dave Dombrowski?
Who will be the the online whipping boy for the Tigers if Rodney and Everett leave town ?
Will Dontrelle Willis ever pitch again?
Will a big contract guy get Sheff'd before the season begins?

Some of these will probably be answered in the next few days, some maybe in the next few hours (looking at you Edwin Jackson). If big news breaks, I just might have to break out of my slumber again.

Playoffs??? What Do You Mean Playoffs???

2009-10-07T12:26:00.001-04:00

The MLB playoffs kick off today, unfortunately without the Tigers who had a kick to the nether regions of their own to deal with last night. So with the Tigers out, the question is who do you root for (provided you can stomach a Tigerless playoff)? So here's cases for and against all 8 teams.

Minnesota Twins
Hate them for: Nick Punto, the damn Metrodome, and that fact that they just won't die
Root for: AL Central loyalty, their fans are pretty cool, the underdog factor

New York Yankees
Hate them for: They're the Yankees, do I really need to list things?
Root for: Revenge for the Twins beating the Tigers I guess...uh...Derek Jeter's from Michigan, right?

Boston Red Sox
Hate them for: Being the only group of fans more obnoxious than Yankee fans, Kevin Youkilis, months of smug Bill Simmons columns if they win
Root for: Fenway Park to collapse. There is nothing redeemable about this team

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Hate them for: The fact the official team name is "The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim", the Rally Monkey, Vlad Guerrero's pine tard helmet
Root for: Winning for Nick Adenhart, a Red Sox loss.

Philadelphia Phillies
Hate them for: Winning last year, Philly fans
Root for: Ryan Howard seems like a cool guy, the potential reappearance of Pedro Martinez's little person.

Colorado Rockies
Hate them for: Wearing purple, the good chance their fans are also Avalanche and Bronco fans
Root for: Todd Helton to finally win the big one, the fact their best pitcher is named Ubaldo.

St. Louis Cardinals
Hate them for: the way media slobs over them for having the "best fans", the stupid Budweiser song, Joe Buck
Root for: Albert Pujols, and the fact Jim Leyland is probably rooting for them too

Los Angeles Dodgers
Hate them for: Manny being a cheater, employing Jeff Weaver, the fact that dumb Randy Newman song will be played ad nauseam during their games
Root for: Gratuitous screen shots of superfan Alyssa Milano

So there they are pick your side. Me I'm just hoping for some good games
As for how the playoffs are going to turn out, here's my thoughts:

Twins vs. Yankees
Yankees in 4
I don't think there's anyway the Twins can win today after last night's brutal 12 innings. The Twins won't go out without a fight, but the Yankee bats are just too much

Angels vs. Red Sox
Angels in 5
Both teams are pretty equal, but I just think the way the Angels seem to fly around the basepaths at home will be the difference in game 5

Phillies vs. Rockies
Phillies in 4
As long as the Phillies keep it out of Brad Lidge's hands they should be able to out hit the Rockies

Cardinals vs. Dodgers
Cardinals in 4
This may go 5, but the fact the Dodgers may have to beat Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright 2 out of 4 times makes me pick the Cards

ALCS
Yankees over Angels in 6
I think the Yankee starters are a little better than the Angels, and Mariano Rivera is light years ahead of Brian Fuentes

NLCS
Phillies over Cardinals in 7
Other than Pujols and Holliday there really isn't a dangerous bat in the Cards lineup. While the Cards may have the best 2 pitchers in the NL, Philly's rotation is a bit deeper and that will make the difference in a 7 games series

World Series
Yankees over Phillies in 6
It's going to be a bunch of 7-6 games, and it's going to come down to who can get the last three outs. Rivera vs Lidge. My money's on Mariano.

Damn

2009-10-06T21:47:00.002-04:00

One of the greatest games I have ever seen. Too bad about the outcome. I've lost 3 pounds sweating, and I'm sure most of my hair has turned gray. Good luck the Twins

Game 163: The Biggest Game Of The Year

2009-10-06T10:23:00.000-04:00

Some stuff went down these past few days. Some good (Justin Verlander), some bad (Miguel Cabrera). But like Mark McGwire said, I'm not here to talk about the past.

I'm here to talk about the biggest game for the Tigers this season. They face the Twins today in Satan's Butthole (aka the Metrodome), with most people expecting the Twins to win. Well I for one think 83 games is way too many for the Metrodump and think the Tigers can make it be the last one played there.

If the Tigers do these things victory is assured:

1) Score first, preferably in the first inning. A big first inning would theoretically take the crowd out of the game and let Kid Rick focus on just pitching, not trying to win the game singlehandedly.

2) Work the pitch counts. Other than Joe Nathan, no one on the Twins is an all-world pitcher. Make them throw tons of pitches, get them tired, and drive their mistakes into the stands.

3) No free baserunners. There will be a decent number of ground balls. The Tigers can't afford to allow the turf to beat them.

4). Miguel must atone. He let his team, his fans, and his city down this weekend. A key hit or two would do a lot more for his image than a form letter apology

5) Assume Joe Nathan will be out in the 8th inning. So they need to have a lead by the 7th.

6). Hits from the bottom of the order. If the 7-8-9 hitter drive in runs, the Tigers will win.

7) Last one is a simple one. Play better baseball than the Twins. Any one team can beat the other team on any given day. The Washington Nationals won a series against the Yankees this year. It doesn't matter where the game is, top to bottom the Tigers are a better team than the Twins. If the team that showed up on Sunday shows up today...bring on the Yankees.

Thank god for DVR as I won't get out of work until 5:30, and thanks to Atlanta traffic at my house around 6:30. Regardless of what happens tonight I hope to have a playoff preview up tonight. I'm really looking forward to typing up a Tigers-Yankees preview.

Theme Song for Game 162

2009-10-04T12:09:00.001-04:00

Game 161 Recap

2009-10-03T22:11:00.002-04:00

The Tigers are slowly killing me. Need to win tomorrow. That's all I got.

Game 158 Recap

2009-09-30T22:11:00.003-04:00

Another big game, another big win for the Tigers. The 2009 Tigers, exactly the opposite of the 2008 version.

Eddie Bonine, the September call-up, the 4 option for a starter behind Jarrod Washburn, Armando Galarraga, and Nate Robertson, had himself another great game on the mound for the Tigers tonight. His 3rd start in September (4th of the year 9th of his career) was the magic one, as Bonine picked up his first career win. It wasn't easy though, as the Twins had him on the ropes in the first. Down 2-0 with the bases loaded, Bonine got a huge play from Placido Polanco to turn a double play and end the inning. He allowed only 4 more Twins to reach base in the next four innings and had himself another great start in a pressure packed situation.

Last time out Bonine was out of luck as he drew Jake Peavy to try to outpitch. This time he went up against a guy that had been pitching like a Cy Young winner against the Tigers. This time they figured him out. It all started with a pair of singles from Miguel Cabrera and Magglio Ordonez. Carlos Guillen drew a five pitch walk and the bases were loaded for Brandon Inge. Inge continued his hot hitting from yesterday, by driving a double to the gap in left center which brought in two. Ramon Santiago drove in Inge and Guillen with a single to center and the Tigers took the lead and never looked back.

The Tigers had the bases loaded again in the 5th. Miguel Cabrera at the bat, one pitch weak pop out. Here we go squandering again, right? Wrong. Magglio Ordonez took his first pitch and drove it deeper in the same part of the field that Inge's when for a bases clearing double, making the game 7-2. Zach Miner took over for Bonine, and while he wasn't as dominant as he was yesterday afternoon, he didn't allow a run to score in 2.1 innings pitched. Brandon Lyon bounced back from his wild performance yesterday (Closer mentality...hint, hint Mr. Dombrowski) as he struck out both batters he faced with runners at 1st and 2nd to end the 8th. Fernando Rodney showed he can in fact pitch a 1-2-3 inning to end the game.

A fact blurbed on "Baseball Tonight", no team has ever come back from 3 games back with 4 to go. The Tigers win tomorrow and they win the AL Central for the first time. Go do it Tigers.

Tigers 7 Twins 2
W: Bonine (1-1)
L: Pavano (13-12)

Tigers Record
W - L
85 - 73
1st Place AL Central (3 games ahead of Minnesota)

MAGIC NUMBER: 2

Games 156 & 157

2009-09-30T12:30:00.000-04:00

I spent all of the first game, trapped at work and wearing down my phone's battery for updates. After Lyon's performance my phone was almost the third wild pitch of the afternoon. As if the stress of month-end wasn't enough, the work day ended with the Tigers clinging on to a minuscule one game lead in the AL Central.

I spent most of the second game vomiting uncontrollably. It could of been from the fish I had at lunch. But more than likely it was caused by Nick Punto.

All in all yesterday was two games that kicked started my emotions into playoff mode. I nervous, agitated, surly, and I love it.

Tonight, dual Tiger killers are in effect. Carl Pavano is on the mound and the game is on ESPN. Maybe they will cancel each other out. And I think karma owes Eddie Bonine his first win anyway.

Game 153 Recap

2009-09-26T22:02:00.003-04:00

Down 5-0 after four innings, and only one hit to show for their efforts. Same old Tigers, right?

Wrong.

After 4 innings of domination the Tigers figured out Freddy Garcia. It started with a Miguel Cabrera solo home run. 5-1. Miggy struck again with a 2 run single in the 6th, 5-3. Then in the 7th the Tigers broke it open. With Carlos Guillen and Gerald Laird aboard, Adam Everett singled, 5-4. Then Curtis Granderson singled, 5-5. Placido Polanco, single, 6-5. Magglio Ordonez (now hitting .297 by the way), single 7-4. The Tigers never looked back. They added 5 more runs over the next two innings on their way to a 12-5 victory.

Ozzie Guillen will be grumpy tonight, and that warms my heart.

This is why the Tigers are going to the playoffs. Yes, I know there are 8 games left and the lead is "only" 2. The bottom line is when this Tiger team absolutely, positively needs to win, they do it. Worst case scenario, the Twins come into town behind only one game. They will not lose that series. Still, I would not be opposed to a 3 game lead when that series start. Go Zack Greinke!!!

Tigers 12 White Sox 5
W: Figaro (2-1)
L: Garcia (2-4)

Tigers Record
W - L
83 - 71
1st Place AL Central (2 games ahead of Minnesota)

Game 151

2009-09-23T22:09:00.002-04:00

Now that's a little bit more like it. It's about time this first place Tiger team, treated a last place team like they are supposed to. And for one Tiger hitters attacked a struggling pitcher instead of making him look like a Cy Young candidate.

Justin Masterson faced the Tigers back on August 1st. He pitched 3 scoreless innings and gave up only 2 hits. In the first four batters he faced tonight he gave up 3 hits and allowed a run to score. The Tigers scored four runs in the first which would turn out to be enough to win the game, but thankfully they didn't stop there. Every Tiger starter recorded at least one hit, with most of the damage done by the Venezuelan Power Station of Miguel Cabrera and Carlos Guillen. Miggy went 2 for 4 with 3 RBI, and Carlos was 3 for 4 with 2 home runs which helped him drive in 4. 11 runs on 15 hits, makes for a pretty enjoyable night watching the Tigers.

Rick Porcello was spotted 4 runs, before he took the mound. He seemed eager to give those runs right back as he loaded the bases on two hits and a walk after recording the first out. A Travis Hafner ground ball scored a run, but got an out. And Luis Valbuena hit a ground ball of his own to end the inning with Porcello relatively unscathed. He would go one to give up 4 more hits and walk two, but there were no runs scored and he was pulled after the 5th with the game well in hand at 9-1.

As for the bullpen it was a tale of two innings for Ryan Perry. He took over in the 6th and struck out the side. In the 7th he gave up two runs on two hits and a walk. Zach Miner, Jeremy Bonderman, and Fu-Te Ni combined to close out the game with little resistance from the Indians.

Tomorrow, Justin Verlander is on the mound, and the Tigers have a chance to break out the brooms and pick up a half game on the idle Twins. Unfortunately the Twins did some sweeping of their own closing out a sweep of the White Sox tonight. I can only hope the Sox will be as welcoming as they were to the Twins, and as the Indians have been so far to the Tigers.

Tigers 11 Indians 3
W: Porcello (14-9)
L: Masterson (4-9)

Tigers Record
W - L
81 - 70
1st Place AL Central (2.5 games ahead of Minnesota)

Game 150 Recap

2009-09-22T22:19:00.002-04:00

Remain calm...ALL IS WELL!!!!!!!!!

Little crazy around here, with work, family obligations, and that whole widespread flooding of northern Georgia thing. When I last left the Tigers they were 4.5 games ahead of Minnesota, then all Hell broke loose and the Tigers September of 2009 was on the verge of being mentioned in the same breath as the September of the 2007 Mets and other epic collapses. Then Nate Robertson of all people keeps the Tigers from getting swept and possible saves the season.

A Minnesota win and a Tigers off day yesterday cuts the Tiger lead to 2.5 games. Edwin Jackson and his new tip-free delivery took the mound. Edwin was not the Mr. Jackson of the 1st half. He scattered 7 hits and gave up 3 walks. But the most important number, runs, was a big zero. Pitching one both sides seemed to suffer from a questionable strike zone from home plate ump Paul Schrieber. 12 walks in all. A Brandon Lyon bases loaded walk was the only run the Indians could manage. The Tigers were a little luckier with their bats.

Ryan Raburn started the scoring with a solo home run in the third, a few moments removed from gunning down the Indians first attempt at a run with a perfect throw to Gerald Laird from left field. Then nothing until Miguel Cabrera hit a double to left field to drive in a run, and Marcus Thames followed with a sac fly (made possible by a nice slide by Clete Thomas) to give the Tigers a few insurance runs.

In came Fernando Rodney. Pitcher with some control issues. Umpire with a errant grasp on a strike zone. Recipe for disaster right? Nope. 2 quick outs, the obligatory base runner, then a groundout and the game was over. Unfortunately, the White Sox could not cooperate to help the Tigers increase the Central lead, but nonetheless the Tigers are one win closer to the playoffs.

Tigers 3 Indians 1
W: Jackson (13-7)
L: Laffey (7-7)
S: Rodney (34)

Tigers Record
W - L
80 - 70
1st Place AL Central (2.5 games ahead of Minnesota)

Thank You Ernie

2009-09-16T22:14:00.002-04:00

- You know the life and times of Ernie Harwell could be capsuled I think in two famous quotations, one from a left handed, the New York Yankee pitcher and the other one from a right handed English poet. The Yankee pitcher, Lefty Gomez, once said, "I'd rather be lucky than good. " And the poet, Alfred Lord Tennyson, once wrote in his epic poem Ulysses, "I am a part of all that I have met." Well, I know that I'm a lot luckier than I'm good. I've been lucky to broadcast some great events and to broadcast the exploits of some great players.

When I went to Brooklyn in 1948 Jackie Robinson was at the height of his brilliant career. With the Giants I broadcast the debut of Hall of Famer Willie Mays. When I went to Baltimore the great Brooks Robinson came along to replace my good friend George Kell at third base. Kind in my 22 years at Detroit it's been a distinct privilege to watch the day by day consistency of Hall of Famer Al Kaline. Yes, it's lucky that I've been there and I've been at some events too. I want to tell you about one that Ralph mentioned Bobby Thomson's home run October 3^rd. I felt a little sorry for my Giant broadcasting partner that day, Russ Hodges. Ole' Russ is going to be stuck on the radio, there were five radio broadcasts and I was gonna' be on coast to coast TV and I thought that I had the plum assignment. Well, as you remember it turned out quite differently. Russ Hodges' record became the most famous sports broadcast of all time, television, no instant replay, no recordings in those days, and only Mrs. Harwell knows that I did the telecast of Bobby Thomson's home run. When I got home that night after the telecast she said to me, she said, ''You know Ernie when they turned the camera on you after that home run I saw you with that stunned look on your face, and the only other time I had ever seen it was when we were married and when the kids were born.”

That other saying, I'm a part of all that I have met, I think that would have to begin with my wonderful parents back in Atlanta when I was a youngster five years old I was tongue tied. They didn't have much money, but they spent what they had sending me to speech teachers to overcome the handicap. I know that a lot of you people who have heard me on the radio probably still think I'm tongue tied, but through the grace of God officially I'm not tongue tied any more. Also I'm a part of the people that I've worked with in baseball that have been so great to me, Mr. Earl Mann of Atlanta, who gave me my first baseball broadcasting job. Mr. Branch Rickey at Brooklyn, Mr. Horace Stoneham of the Giants, Mr. Jerry Hoffberger in Baltimore and my present boss, here's too the greatest ever, Mr. John Fetzer and Mr. Jim Campbell. I'm also a part of the partners that I've worked with and there have been so many great ones, beginning with Red Barber and Connie Desmond at Brooklyn and continuing on to my present partner WJR's Paul Carey.

But most of all, I'm a part of you people out there who have listened to me, because especially you people in Michigan, you Tiger fans, you've given me so much warmth, so much affection and so much love. I know that this is an award that's supposed to be for my contribution to baseball, but let me say this I've given a lot less to baseball than it's given to me and the greatest gift that I received from baseball is the way that the people in the game have responded to me with their warmth and with their friendship. Yes, it's better to be lucky than good and I'm glad that I'm a part of all that I have met. We're all here with a common bond today. I think we're all here because we love baseball.

Back in 1955, Ralph referred to this, I sat down and wrote a little definition of baseball to express my feelings about this greatest game of all. And I know that a lot of things have changed since then. Especially in this strike filled year but my feelings about the game are still the same as they were back then and I think that maybe yours are too. And I'd like to close out my remarks for the next couple of minutes with your indulgence to see if your definition of baseball agrees with mine.

Baseball is the President tossing out the first ball of the season and a scrubby schoolboy playing catch with his dad on a Mississippi farm. A tall, thin old man waving a scorecard from the corner of his dugout. That's baseball. And so is the big, fat guy with a bulbous nose running home one of his 714 home runs.

There's a man in Mobile who remembers that Honus Wagner hit a triple in Pittsburgh forty-six years ago. That's baseball. So is the scout reporting that a sixteen year old pitcher in Cheyenne is a coming Walter Johnson. Baseball is a spirited race of man against man, reflex against reflex. A game of inches. Every skill is measured. Every heroic, every failing is seen and cheered, or booed. And then becomes a statistic.

In baseball democracy shines its clearest. The only race that matters is the race to the bag. The creed is the rulebook. Color merely something to distinguish one team's uniform from another.

Baseball is a rookie. His experience no bigger than the lump in his throat as he begins fulfillment of his dream. It's a veteran too, a tired old man of thirty-five hoping that those aching muscles can pull him through another sweltering August and September. Nicknames are baseball, names like Zeke and Pie and Kiki and Home Run and Cracker and Dizzy and Dazzy.

Baseball is the cool, clear eyes of Rogers Hornsby. The flashing spikes of Ty Cobb, an over aged pixie named Rabbit Marranville.

Baseball just a came as simple as a ball and bat. Yet, as complex as the American spirit it symbolizes. A sport, a business and sometimes almost even a religion.

Why the fairy tale of Willie Mays making a brilliant World's Series catch. And then dashing off to play stick ball in the street with his teenage pals. That's baseball. So is the husky voice of a doomed Lou Gerhig saying., "I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of this earth.”

Baseball is cigar smoke, hot roasted peanuts, The Sporting News, ladies day, "Down in Front", Take Me Out To The Ballgame, and the Star Spangled Banner.

Baseball is a tongue tied kid from Georgia growing up to be an announcer and praising the Lord for showing him the way to Cooperstown. This is a game for America. Still a game for America, this baseball! Thank you.

- From Ernie Harwell's Hall of Fame induction speech August 2nd, 1981

3 Up and 3 Down

2009-09-10T19:34:00.004-04:00

Back in town, fully rested after a lot of driving on a long weekend that seemed way to short. So how did the Tigers do?

The weekend was very good. A sweep over the defending AL champions, the Tampa Bay Rays. Home runs were hit, games were exciting, balls were chucked at reporters. In hindsight, maybe that wasn't so impressive, as Tampa has dropped 11 of it's last 14. The three straight come from behind victories might have lulled the Tigers into a false sense of security.

The last place Kansas City Royals, are doing what they did in 2006. Making the September of the Detroit Tigers a little less fun. Maybe it was the Curse of Marc Lancaster for Fernando's throw. The magic created against the Tampa bullpen, was left in Florida as the Tigers were only able to score 3 runs in 11.1 innings against the vaunted Royal bullpen. Bruce Chen was the only Royal the Tigers were able tear up, of course that is a feeling than many of team have felt.

So all in all a .500 road trip. While the result is not at all half bad, the way they got to it was kind of disappointing. 7 at home and a good change to at least keep the AL central lead the same going into next weekend's huge series in Minnesota.

9 Things

2009-09-02T21:14:00.003-04:00

So a busy past couple of days, personal and professionally, have kept me away. Now a trip up to Michigan for Labor Day weekend will keep me away for another couple of days. So I decided to make an actual non-game recap post of things I've seen or have been on my mind this season. 9 seems like the perfect number for baseball. So here I go in no particular order.

1) While Miguel Cabrera is without a doubt the team MVP. A good case can be made for Placido Polanco. His bat has been below his career averages this year, but when the offense has been clicking Polly's been in the thick of it. In game in which Placido has scored a run, by my count (which may or may not be accurate)the Tigers are 38-12. It seems simple enough. If Polly gets on base, it's a good chance the Tigers win

2) I still cannot figure out why the Twins in second place scare the crap out of me. Maybe it's flashbacks to 2006. Maybe its the fact that the way this team just will not die, is like Michael Myers, Jason Voorhies, and Freddy Krueger rolled into one. Joe Nathan looking human today was a relief, but I wont be able to sleep at night until the Tigers lead in the Central is greater then the amount of games remaining.

3) I didn't except Jarrod Washburn and Aubrey Huff to be a Cy Young candidate and a triple crown threat. But I expected a little bit more than a 6.81 ERA and .145 batting average. Solid Septembers from the both of you, please.

4) One thing about Magglio's contract, and other contract related issues. If the Tigers make the playoffs, and get at least 4 home games and it's paid for. My math figures average ticket price is around $100, times 4 sellouts of 44,000. That's $17.6 million, and that's not including merchandise, parking, etc. I know that it's not that simple and everything isn't pure profit. My point is if the Tigers win, they will make money. The City of Detroit is struggling. Mike Illich is not. If the Tigers win, he will sign the checks with a smile.

5) I've grown a bit weary of constant criticism of fringe players on the team. I've heard way much consternation about Adam Everett's bat. What are you really expecting from someone batting ninth? He's hitting .244, his career average is .245. The same with the fielding stats. Any offense he can provide is great. Yeah the Tigers don't have the world's greatest offense. That really didn't get them far last year.

6) 32 pitchers have recorded at least 10 saves or more in the Major Leagues. No one is perfect, but there are 3 with one blown save. Mariano Rivera, Huston Street, and...wait for it...Fernando Rodney. We all know that if the game's not on the line things can get dicey. Even when the game is on the line things can get dicey. 31 times out of 32 the job has been done. Sure who wouldn't like a guy who does it like Rivera, but those guys are few and far between. Here's a stat to repeat in your head next time Nando takes the mound: No closer has induced more groundouts then Fernando. His 80 edges Chad Qualls by one, in third is Rivera with 69. So have faith when that baserunner reaches, odds are that the double play is coming.

7) I would really like to see Nate Robertson and Armando Galarraga bounce back. Nate had a promising start last Saturday. Armando's final rehab start is in Toledo tomorrow. If both can pitch at a high level, the Tigers could drop one into the rotation and use the other to spell Rick Porcello, or the apparently aching Jarrod Washburn. A healthy, rested starting rotation will go a long way down the stretch and into the playoffs

8) If Jair Jurrgens wasn't traded for Edgar Renteria, he would have been in the Cabrera deal. Let it go people. I for one am happy he's in Atlanta. I've seen him pitch in person as many times down here as I did when he was in Detroit.

9) Meaningful baseball in September. Welcome back. We've missed you. Go ahead make yourself comfortable. We've got a futon you can sleep on. Better yet, I'll take the futon. You're a guest, please stay as long as you like. Those jerks in Chicago don't know how to treat you. And have you been to Minnesota in October? Brrrrr. Stay here, I'll throw a couple brats on the grill. We've got some catching up to do.

So there it you go. Tigers 10 games above .500 and 4.5 ahead in the AL Central on the 2nd day of September. Pretty damn good if you ask me. Everyone have a safe holiday weekend, and I'll see you in about a week. Go Tigers!

Game 127

2009-08-28T22:30:00.002-04:00

Tigers were back at home, but bats were still working like they were against the Angels.

All the damage today was provided by the bottom 3 in the order. Brandon Inge started things with a solo HR in the second. Right after the home run, Gerald Laird was plunked by Tampa starter Matt Garza. Laird got his revenge in the 4th. 2 walks and a Inge single had the bases loaded for Gerald. Gabe Gross decided to use the Copa outfield as a slip-n-slide, and a Laird line drive to right turned into a 2 run double. Adam Everett followed that with a double of his own to left. Curtis Granderson drove in Everett with a double of his own and the Tigers had a 6-0 lead.

Rick Porcello used that run support to pick up his 11th win of the season. Porcello broke the 100 pitch mark for the first time all season. Fu Te Ni, and Brandon Lyon combined to pitch a perfect 3.1 innings, leaving Bobby Seay to work out some kinks in the 9th. Sadly he did not as he gave up a home run to Gabe Kapler and a single to BJ Upton before giving way to Fernando Rodney. Fernando fought through the rain to record the final out and preserve the win for the Tigers

The return of Nate Robertson occurs in front of a National (well 1/3 of the nation) audience. I will have to miss out on the game for 2 reasons. First, since there is an NL East team playing that is what will be on my local broadcast. Secondly, and most importantly, my wife and I will be celebrating our First Anniversary. The pennant race will be taking a back seat for the rest of the weekend. I would appreciate breaking the 10 games above .500 bubble a great present.

Tigers 6 Rays 2
W: Porcello (11-9)
L: Garza (7-9)

Tigers Record
W - L
68 - 59
1st Place AL Central (4.5 games ahead of Minnesota)

West Coast Trip

2009-08-22T12:33:00.003-04:00

I'm might be able to stay up and watch the games with the 10 pm start times. But after 8 hours of sleep, the details of the game are a little fuzzy. Especially when you add to that I had a weird dream (nightmare actually) that the Tigers blew a 14 run lead in extra innings. I had to scramble to the computer to confirm the Tigers did win last night. Stupid brain trying to trick me. Although Ryan Raburn hitting two home runs in a game is still a little hard to belive as well. My point is blogging will be sparse (well more sparse than usual) until the Tigers return to the Eastern Time zone

Games 119 & 120

2009-08-20T21:16:00.002-04:00

Game 119

When your offense struggles against Felix Hernandez it isn't fun to watch, but at least it's understandable. When your offense struggles against Ian Snell it is even less fun to watch, and it's inexcusable. One bad inning from Justin Verlander, and the game was over.

Tigers 1 Mariners 3
W: Snell (3-9)
L: Verlander (13-7)
S: Aardsma (28)

Game 120

It started out same old story, just a different day. Bottom of the 4th, Tigers down 4, and they only had one hit at this point. But Ryan Raburn lead the inning off with a solo home run, and Brandon Inge added one of his own two batters later. The Tigers had a bit of life as they cut the lead in half. Unfortunatly the Mariners answered back with two solo shots of their own in the 6th inning and the lead was back to four.

In the bottom of the sixth, the Tigers had Seattle starter Ben Howland-Smith on the ropes. A double and two walks had the bases loaded. Then the rains came. How would the Tigers respond to the delay and a solid bullpen? An RBI groundout from Aubrey Huff, and a 2 RBI single from St. Avila and the Tigers were within one.

While Jarrod Washburn struggled, the bullpen was stellar. Two perfect innings from Zach Miner, and one thrown in from Bobby Seay gave the Tiger bats a chance to win it. They came close in the 8th, with runners on first and second with one out. Unfortunately lightning could not strike twice for Avila, as he lined out. Placido Polanco followed that with a weak popout to end the inning. In came David Aardsma, fifth in the AL in saves. In to face him was the pinch hitter Carlos Guillen. Carlos did what he does best, battled his way through the entire at bat. Seven pitches and he was at first with a walk. Ryan Raburn tried to bunt him to second, but ended up popping out the catcher. Miguel Cabrera did the job and then some with a double down the line. The Mariners walked Magglio to set-up the double play. Brandon Inge did not oblige. He hit it deep enough to score Guillen on a sac fly (aided by a poor catch by Johjima at the plate). That misplay put the winning run 90 feet away for Clete Thomas. Clete had a Gullien-esque at bat fouling off pitches and fighting to a full count after falling behind 1-2. The 8th pitch (Aardsma's 27th) was in a place Rod Allen calls "The Happy Zone". Clete lined it past Russell Branyan for a base hit, giving the Tigers the win.

So crappy middle game aside, it's a series win for the Tigers. A series win with two comebacks against one of the better bullpens in the Majors. Now to a West Coast swing, and insomnia for Tigers fans for the next 6 games. Maybe they'll remember to put the bats on the plane this time.

Tigers 7 Mariners 6
W: Seay (4-2)
L: Aardsma (3-5)

Tigers Record
W - L
64 - 56

1st Place AL Central (2.5 games ahead of Chicago)

Game 118

2009-08-18T22:20:00.002-04:00

Once again the Tigers had themselves in a pitching duel, with Kid Rick Porcello facing off against King Felix Hernandez. Hernandez allowed one run on five hits, while striking out 9. At least this time a struggling offense was due to a top flight pitcher, not someone of Carl Pavano's caliber

Porcello gave up a lead off hit to Ichiro, then promptly retired the next 13 in order. Not to be outshines by King Felix, 7 of those were strikeouts. He ran into some trouble in the 6th, and left the game with the bases loaded. In came the other rookie in the rotation, and ended the inning with a harmless fly out after 2 pitches. He went on to pitch another inning before being pulled after a lead off single in the 8th. In came Bobby Seay, and it was not pretty. Seay gave up two runs (one was credited to Perry) and here we go again...

St. Avila will have none of that. He led off the 8th with a solo shot that landed in the Seattle bullpen. Ramon Santiago, pinch hitting for Adam Everett, followed that with a single. After Curtis Granderson fouled out, Placido Polanco reached on a ball that might have been the inning ending double play. Might have being the key phrase, it wasn't due to an error by the shortstop. Add a Carlos Guillen walk later, the bases were full for Miguel Cabrera. Line drive, Tigers have the lead.

Fernando Rodney did his thing, but finally struck out Jose Lopez on the 12th pitch of the at bat, with the tying run on second base. And thanks to a little help from the Royals, the lead in the Central grows.

Tigers 5 Mariners 3
W: Seay (3-2)
L: Lowe (1-6)
S: Rodney (25)

Tigers Record
W - L
63 - 55
1st Place AL Central (3 games ahead of Chicago)

Game 115

2009-08-14T22:16:00.003-04:00

Jason Karnuth has been avenged. Brandon Inge's walk-off home run, at a reasonable hour none the less, off Ramon Colon gave the Tigers the 1-0 victory. But the real story of the game was the pitching duel between Zach Grienke and Jarrod Washburn.

The Jarrod Washburn the Tigers traded for finally arrived on the mound today. He had a no hitter going into the 5th inning until some idiot jinxed him. Washburn had his best start since, well since he pitched against the Tigers on the 23rd of July. He pitched 8 innings for the 3rd time this year. All three of those starts he did not allow a run.

Zack Greinke was just as good, if not better than Washburn. He pitched his best game since facing the Rangers on the 24th of July. He struck out 7 and only allowed 3 hits in 7 innings pitched. But he could only make it into the 7th inning, and the game was turned over to the bullpens. Brandon Lyon was perfect, Ramon Colon was not.

By the way...is there anybody pitching better than Brandon Lyon since June 1st? Since the month of May ended Lyon has pitched 34 innings. In those innings he has 28 K's, with only 3 runs allowed on 16 hits and 10 walks. His ERA has shrunk from 6.43 to 2.95. He picked up his 5 win in the time frame due to his perfect 9th inning.

JV stellar start, JarWash stellar start. Mr. Edwin Jackson, you're next.

Tigers 1 Royals 0
W: Lyon (6-4)
L: Colon (1-2)

Tigers Record
W - L
61 - 54
1st Place AL Central (3 games ahead of Chicago)

4 Days in Boston

2009-08-13T20:10:00.003-04:00

It started with a gut punch, turned into a brawl, devolved into a butt kicking, and ended with a statement. 3 losses and yet the Tigers still sit 2.5 games ahead in first place heading into a 6 game home stand.

It was a series with a bunch of what ifs. What if Zach Miner pitched like he did yesterday on Monday. What if Kevin Youkilis didn't charge the mound, or for that matter Brian O'Nora issues a warning on the pitch inside to Victor Martinez. What if the Tigers didn't leave men on base on Monday. What if Jim Leyland pinch hit for Adam Everett. What if Armando Galarraga took some Robitussin Tuesday night. 3 losses, but 2 of those showed moments where the Tigers played like a team that could contend in October.

We did learn something else, Justin Verlander must be an illegitimate son of Jack Morris sans moustache. 8 innings of "here it is, you are not hitting it" dominance. 8 strikeouts, one walk and four hits. 123 pitches total. The last 2 hit triple digits. Once again, when the Tigers needed a win, needed a starter to go deep, needed an emotional boost, Justin Verlander delivered. There's not a pitcher in the majors that I would rather have pitching for my team come playoff time.

1 of 4 in Boston. Not good, but luckily for the Tigers their division foes were more that happy to stay put, as they both lost their series as well. In comes Kansas City, and let's hope they behave like the Royals of May and June of 09, not the Royals of September of 06.

My Thoughts on Kevin Youkilis

2009-08-11T22:25:00.003-04:00

Game 111

2009-08-10T22:48:00.002-04:00

A reeling Boston team desperate not to drop their 7th game in a row, and the game being televised on ESPN this game had tough luck for the Tigers written all over it.

Edwin Jackson was never really on, and the Tigers were down early. To their credit they fought back and eventually tied it in the 7th inning. Only to give the lead away in the bottom of the inning. A total gut punch of a game.

Tigers 5 Red Sox 6
W: Ramirez (6-3)
L: Miner (5-2)
S: Papelbon (28)

Tigers Record
W - L
59 - 52
1st Place AL Central (2.5 ahead of Chicago)

Game 110

2009-08-09T23:11:00.003-04:00

Yesterday I was taking in a Rome Braves game, the Class A farm team for the Braves. They won, the Tigers didn't, so let's move on to today's game

The Twins took a 3-0 lead into the bottom of the 4th punctuated by back to back home runs to straight away centerfield. Those deep blasts tearing up shrubbery must have awakened the dormant Tigers offense, as they stormed back in the bottom of the inning. Marcus Thames started it off with a solo shot to lead it off. The next three pitches were singles for Miggy, Maggs, and Guillen to load the bases. Brandon Inge added a sac fly, and Gerald Laird (possibly inspired by the new guy's offensive prowess) tied the game with a double. Ramon Santiago grounded out, but to the right side of the infield and that allowed Maggs to score and gave the Tigers the lead

One inning later Miguel Cabrera added some more runs with a 2 run homer after Placido Polanco led off the inning with one of his patented two strike hits. Miggy seems to have gotten his power stroke back, but I would argue just as important to the Tigers resurgent offense is Placido Polanco. He is on a 12 game hitting streak, hitting .396 in that time. He was 3 for 5 today with that 3rd hit being a RBI single to give the Tigers back the lead in the 8th.

Then TBS went out and jinxed save opportunity Fernando. He got Mauer and Morneau out to start the 9th. Good thing too, as Michael Cuddyer went yard for the second time today. The insurance run Clete Thomas provided in the 8th paid off. And with a big barehanded assist from Brandon Inge, Fernando Rodney was able to close out the game and the series win.

A series win from Cleveland over the White Sox and the Tigers regain a 3 game lead in the Central. Good thing too, because I do not have a good feeling about going into Fenway to face a Red Sox team that lost 6 straight. Added to that, the game is on ESPN, which has brought nothing but suckitude from the Tigers. Poor Edwin Jackson.

Tigers 8 Twins 7
W: Lyon (5-4)
L: Guerrier (5-1)
S: Rodney (23)

Tigers Record
W - L
59 - 51
1st Place AL Central (3 games ahead of Chicago)

Game 108

2009-08-07T23:17:00.002-04:00

Alex Avila is the talk of Tigertown, after adding 4 RBI and a home run to his resume after a RBI double in his MLB debut yesterday. After a start like this, Gerald Laird would be wise to teach him the art of defense very, very, slowly to protect his own job security.

Avila's two run homer followed Miguel Cabrera's 3 run shot to open the scoring for the Tigers in the first. Hmm...the Tigers score a lot of runs and the 1-2 guys in the order go 7 for 10. Strange isn't it? I'm sure 7 of the 15 hits being those of the extra base variety helped run the score up as well. and hey another rookie pitcher that wasn't able to shut down the Tigers. Maybe the Tigers are finally figuring out pitchers under the age of 24.

And it's a good thing the score was run up, because as quick as the runs were put on the board. Tigers pitchers seemed determined to give them right back. Armando Galarraga led the way allowing 4 runs on 8 hits and 5 walks. All of the damage was in the first two innings, partly due to the 4 free passes issued by Armando. Ryan Perry was hit or miss almost literally. he gave up 2 runs on 4 hits, and struck out 3 in 2 innings of work. Brandon Lyon's redemption song added another chorus as he pitched a perfect 1-2-3 8th. Then non-save Fernando happened. Happened all over the place. When all was said and done the Tigers held on to win it. Todd Jones used to say something to the effect of "If you don't the way I do things, get up go make a sandwich, when you come back it will be done one way or the other" regarding his "relief" appearances. Someone needs to translate that to Spanish for Fernando to repeat.

Oh yeah, thank you Cleveland for sticking to other teams in the Central, and helping the Tigers expand their lead. Let's hope Carl Pavano left his magic against the Tigers by Lake Erie.

Tigers 10 Twins 8
W: Galarraga (6-10)
L: Swarzak (3-5)

Tigers Record
W - L
58 - 50
1st Place AL Central (3 games ahead of Chicago)

Agreement Reached

2009-08-06T21:59:00.002-04:00

Sunday I set forth a list of demands for this Tiger team to accomplish by today. Let's see how they did:

4 Runs a game - 5, 2, 4, and 7 for and average of 4.5. Well done offense.

3 Extra Base hits a game - 14 total for the series. Cabrera who I called out hit .400 with 3 extra base hits and 4 RBI.

JV complete game - almost, and since Edwin Jackson pitched into the 9th yesterday, I'm going to give it to them

No runs surrendered by the pen - The pen gave up 3 in nine innings, but when it counted they were perfect, so I'll give this one to them as well

Granderson to drive in some runs - I singled out Granderson, but my point was get some 2 out RBI. I think 12 2 out RBI in the series will work

Win 3 games - Locked it up this afternoon.

Whether it was the home cooking or three rookie starting pitchers against them on the mound, the Tigers acted like a first place team. The lead in the Central stays the same, and Minnesota comes into town this weekend. Keep it going Tigers, I want to keep watching

Strike Update

2009-08-05T11:08:00.000-04:00

After a good first day of negotiations Monday, talks fell apart last night.

Spirits were high Monday as The Tigers had come close to fulfilling all requirements, but Tuesday had them pulling everything they had put forth Monday off the table. Both sides now sit at exactly the same point they were when the strike began late Sunday.

The Tigers are pulling out all the stops, reshuffling staff, and doing what the can to end this by Thursday. Today's talks figure to be key, as if they are not a step forward, the strike could continue into September.

The Weekend In Cleveland

2009-08-02T15:36:00.002-04:00

That's it. Only one win against the team that traded away it's best hitter and pitcher, and it took 12 innings to get that win. I refuse to watch a team with only 3 series wins in its last 11. A team that turns Carl Pavano into Cy Young. So I am on strike due to unfair watching conditions.

You have another last place team coming in for 4 games here are my list of demands:

- At least 4 runs in every game. Baltimore's team ERA is 4.88. This should happen

- 3 extra base hits a game as a team. I'm looking at you Singuel Cabrera.

- A Justin Verlander complete game. This is more to help my next demand happen.

- No runs given up by the bullpen. JV's going the distance tomorrow, you will be rested. No excuses for sucking

- Curtis Granderson to not strike out when runners are on base. If he does the next community service he does should be in a batting cage

- Win 3 of 4 games. You call yourself a first place, act like it. Beat up on a last place team

Until my demands are met I refuse to be subjected to below average baseball from the Detroit Tigers.

Game 100

2009-07-29T22:54:00.002-04:00

That's great guys. 13 runs on 19 hits. I still would feel safer that night's like this would be more regular with an Adam Dunn or Luke Scott in left field.

Justin Verlander did had a bad inning the 5th, giving up 3 runs on 4 hits. Good thing for him he had a seven run lead to work with entering the inning. Outside of the fifth, he was filthy. JV tied a career high in strikeouts with 13, and had only 2 hits in the other six innings he pitched.

Also having great games were Curtis Granderson, who started off the game with a home run for the second night in a row. He added another 2 run homer in the 2nd. Miguel Cabrera broke out of his singles habit, and had a RBI double and a 3 run home run. His 4 RBI tonight almost doubled his RBI count for the month, giving him a grand total of 10 for July. Poor Magglio was the only Tiger starter held hitless.

Gerald Laird had only one hit, but single-handily got his way around the basepaths to score, in a good show of hustle that's been lacking on this Tiger team the past few days. He blooped a pop fly that Josh Hamilton could not quite get to, and hauled ass to get to second. He saw third base was there for the taking and stole third without a throw. Then, with perfect timing (and the help of an off-target throw) Laird scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Adam Everett. While it was the 9th run the Tigers score, it was a big one after the Rangers crawled back into the game after their 3 run 5th. The bounce back after their opponents have a big inning, is something that's been missing the past few weeks.

So the Tigers get the offense clicking just in time to get on a plane and a day off tomorrow. The lingering question will be, will there be any new Tigers in uniform when they take the field Friday night vs. Cleveland

Tigers 13 Rangers 5
W: Verlander (12-5)
L: Feldman (9-7)

Tigers Record
W - L
53 - 47
1st Place AL Central (2 games ahead of Minnesota)

Game 98

2009-07-27T23:06:00.002-04:00

Dave Dombrowski, white courtesy phone. GM Dave Dombrowski, white courtesy phone.

I would hope the hours from now until Friday, are spent looking for a bat.

1 for 8 with RISP is not going to cut it in September.

At least the White Sox lost

Tigers 2 Rangers 5
W: Hunter (3-1)
L: Galarraga (5-9)
S: Wilson (11)
Tigers Record
W - L
52 - 46
1st Place AL Central (2 games ahead of Chicago)

Game 97

2009-07-26T22:46:00.003-04:00

So the next time ESPN wants to put the Tigers on national TV, they should politely decline. At least they scored a run as opposed to the 11-0 back on April 28th.

Rick Porcello pitched 3.1 strong innings, the problem was the White Sox scored all 5 runs in the first two it which he was kinda terrible. It also didn't help that the run support usually provided was no where to be found. Getting an early trip on the trip to Texas perhaps. Irregardless of how Porcello pitched, mustering up 5 singles is rarely going to win games. On the plus side two of those singles belonged to Magglio Ordonez. Yes were at the point where I'm happy Magglio goes 2 for 4.

So the White Sox avoided the sweep. Tigers still hold the division, and head to Texas and Cleveland before returning home to face Baltimore. The Sox go to Minnesota then host the Yankees and the Angels.

Tigers 1 White Sox 5
W: Richard (4-3)
L: Porcello (9-7)

Tigers Record
W - L
52 - 45
1st Place AL Central (2 games ahead of Chicago)

Game 96

2009-07-25T21:26:00.003-04:00

To paraphrase LL: Don't call it a comeback, they've been in first place for months.

Ok, it was a comeback...A HUUUGGGGE comeback.

It started off good, with run support for Edwin Jackson of all people, with a 2 run first inning. And it would figure that the game the Tigers give E-Jax some runs to work with an he has one of his worst starts of the season. Good news for the Tigers, even a bad start for Jackson was still a quality start.

The White Sox took the lead in the 5th and it seems a case of sqanderitis had set in. Curtis Granderson had a runner at 3rd with 2 outs in the 7th, but lined out to end the inning. In the 8th Carlos Guillen followed a 2 out walk by Miguel Cabrera with looking at strike three to end the inning. So here it was 3 outs left and Bobby Jenks and his career 20 saves vs. the Tigers to look forward to. A strikeout by Ryan Raburn started off the inning, no surprise there. Then Brandon Inge took the first pitch he saw to left field his hobbled knee replaced by Adam Everett and the rally was on. Marcus Thames pinch hitting for Gerald Laird followed with a lucky broken bat single which gets runners on the corners with one out. I say lucky because if the bat doesn't break it's more than likely a routine line out to right field. Ramon Santiago got it in the air, but not out of the infield for the second out. Up again was Curtis Granderson. This time he delivered. A double down the line and it's a tie ballgame. Placido Polanco was unable to end it, as he lined out to end the ninth.

In came Fernando Rodney. He gets Jim Thome to strike out, but allows Paul Konerko to reach on a walk. Up now is A.J. Pierzynski. The insufferable douche was 4 for 4 with an RBI in the game so far. One pitch from Rodney, two outs was the result, and to the bottom of the 10th we go.

Clete Thomas and Miguel Cabrera both singled to lead off the inning. Up comes Carlos Guillen. 6 pitches later a hit up the middle and the game is over. I don't want to say "he's back" just yet, but it's not going to take much more convincing after these past two games. And speaking of impressive since returning, big tip of the cap to Ryan Perry. 4.2 innings, one hit 4 K's since being recalled from the minors. See Joel that's how it's done

On the the nightcap on ESPN tomorrow night, with each team's young stud pitcher on the mound. I wasn't expecting a chance for the sweep, but I'll take it.

Tigers 4 White Sox 3 (10 innings)
W: Rodney (1-2)
L: Carrasco (3-1)

Tigers Record
W - L
52 - 44
1st Place AL Central (3 games ahead of Chicago)

Games 94 & 95

2009-07-24T22:00:00.002-04:00

Doubleheader!!!

What a difference 24 hours makes.

Justin Verlander has a set of huge brass balls. He's quickly turning into the second coming of Jack Morris. I would need to see him get a couple more wins in the postseason for the transformation is deemed complete. He took the mound and wasn't going to leave the game up to anyone else. A little wild at times (4 walks and loading the bases on 3 singles with no outs in the 9th), but he dialed in when he needed it. After getting a huge double play for the first two outs in the 9th, he was clocked at 100 mph on his 125th pitch. Two pitches and a ground ball later. Game one was over with a Tiger victory.

Now while Verlander was not about to let the bullpen give the game away for him, there was that issue of run support which has been a sticky issue as of late. The power might not have been there (only 2 of the ten hits were for extra bases), but the hits were timely. 3 for 9 with RISP, and two of the runs via sacrifice. The clutch hitting from the bottom of the order that put the Tigers in first returned today to give them the outright lead back in the AL Central.

As for the nightcap and to extend that lead, things started out kind of dicey with a Jim Thome bomb to open the scoring. Carlos Guillen showed he might be the bat the Tigers are missing, by answering back with a home run of his own in the bottom of the 2nd. Jermaine Dye answered in the top of the 3rd with a 2 run shot to put the Sox back up 3-1. In the 5th the Tigers fired back with 2 singles from Marcus Thames and Brandon Inge to lead off the inning. Dusty Ryan of the .156 batting average, lucked one into centerfield to drive one run in. Curtis Granderson drew a walk and the bases were loaded for Placido Polanco. Polanco hit one up the middle far enough to beat out an double play attempt and the score was tied. Polanco also started the rally in the 8th with a one out single. Magglio Ordonez followed with a double down the line. Miguel Cabrera was walked to load the bases. All you need is a deep fly ball, right? Unfortunately pinch-hitter Ryan Raburn was not successful. But the problem with loading the bases, is that the pitcher has no room for error. Matt Thornton made a mistake by throwing his 13th pitch of the inning outside the strike zone for a bases loaded walk.

Fernando Rodney worst two pitches were the first two to Paul Konerko. After starting out 2-0, he rebounded to strike out Konerko, Chris Getz, and got Gordon Beckham to bend one back to the mound to end the game. Rodney would not have had this chance had Bobby Seay pulled his head out of his rear mid 7th inning. Seay had runners on 2nd and 3rd with one out. Seay must have been thankful for the free out as he gave the next two batters strikeouts to end the inning. Round of applause for Eddie Bonine, as well for pitching a pretty good game. Too bad he couldn't get the win before heading back to Toledo.

So 2 games into the 4 for the weekend are in the win column for the Tigers. Two national (well national for the Midwest tomorrow afternoon) games to go. For Edwin Jackson's sake the Tigers had better score some runs tomorrow, or he may choke some out out on the dugout

Game 1
Tigers 5 White Sox 1
W: Verlander (11-5)
L: Contreras (4-9)

Game 2
Tigers 4 White Sox 3
W: Lyon (4-4)
L: Linebrink (2-5)
S: Rodney (21)

Tigers Record
W - L
51 - 44
1st Place AL Central (2 games ahead of Chicago)

Game 93

2009-07-23T20:11:00.002-04:00

Yeah it happened again.

If the Tigers are too lazy to come up with runs, then I'm too lazy to try to come up with a new way to describe the same old thing.

Game 92

2009-07-22T22:10:00.002-04:00

The Armando Galarraga on the mound tonight looked like the Armando Galarraga of last season and this April. Unfortunately for him the offense and bullpen supporting him was the same old song.

The Tigers held the Mariners to two hits. It just happened to be one of those was a home run with a man on base. Edwin Jackson and Justin Verlander were probably the first ones to give Galarraga a shoulder to cry one.

The Tigers had their best chance in the first inning with runners on first and third with no outs. Whether it was Felix Hernandez's skill or the Tigers offensive ineptitude the ending the inning scoreless is anyone's guess.

Miguel Cabrera extended his hitting streak to 17 games. Great. Now let's see about getting some guys on base for him to get a RBI streak going.

So another game, another way to lose. Worst of all Tampa's bullpen couldn't hold a lead either, and now the White Sox are breathing down the Tigers necks with 4 huge games looming this weekend. Gulp.

Tigers 1 Mariners 2
W: Hernandez (11-3)
L: Seay (1-2)
S: Aardsma (23)

Tigers Record
W - L
49 - 43
1st Place AL Central (1 game ahead of Chicago)

Game 91

2009-07-21T23:11:00.002-04:00

The Tigers must have left their bats at home, as they busted out 9 runs on 11 hits. Unfortunately the pitching must have missed a connecting flight from New York, as Seattle made it close scoring 7 of their own.

The big shot of the game was the Magglio Ordonez grand slam in the first inning. That put the Tigers up 5-1. A sign of a possible turn around for Maggs? I'd be a little more convinced if the next two times he put the ball in play, it would leave the infield. The rest of the team hit well, with only Marcus Thames and Adam Everett held hitless. Good news, Miguel Cabrera was 3 for 3, had a Home Run and was inches away from a 2nd on his double in the 8th. Bad News, that solo shot was only Cabrera's 5th RBI in July.

As for the 16 day layoff for Rick Porcello, it didn't seem to help that much. He did strikeout 4, but allowed 5 runs for the 3rd straight start. As for the bullpen, the mistakes they made ended up over the wall. Fortunately no one was on base when these mistakes happened.

Maggs slam was the first of seven home runs to leave the field tonight. And there were a couple just hit foul, and to the warning track that could have made the total in the double digits. So the Tigers have 3 straight pitching duels in a Yankee Stadium that's been a launching pad all year. The AL leader in ERA comes into town and its a slugfest...yeah that makes perfect sense for the 2009 season

Good luck running up the score tomorrow vs. Felix Hernandez. Felix has struck out 58 and allowed only 11 runs in his past eight starts...no pressure Armando

Tigers 9 Mariners 7
W: Porcello (9-6)
L: Olson (3-4)
S: Rodney (20)

Tigers Record
W - L
49 - 42
1st Place AL Central (2 games ahead of Chicago)

Catching Up

2009-07-20T13:43:00.000-04:00

Yeah about that midseason review...

With family in town the past week time has been scarce to even watch a Tiger game(the only baseball I've seen in the past few days was the Braves game I went to on Friday), let alone sit down and write my thoughts on something.

Blogging was a lot easier when your family is in another state and you're unemployed.

Judging by the mood around the blogosphere this morning, maybe its for the best I didn't see any of games over the weekend. Still in first place...for now.

My All-Star Break

2009-07-14T11:23:00.000-04:00

Taking some time off as my parents are in town. And anybody who gives me a new TV as a house warming gift will get my full attention. Only wish I could have seen Inge hit a home run or two in crystal clear Hi-def. Well there's always tonight.

I am trying to get a half assed mid-season review in but considering game recaps are a challenge, don't hold your breath. So if I don't get the big one done here's a miniature one:

First place? Yay!

Fingers crossed we can still say that in October.

Game 85

2009-07-11T11:37:00.002-04:00

A little late with this, but WE DID IT!!!!!

Not only did Brandon Inge win the final vote, he's going to be a participant in the Home Run Derby. Pretty cool for a guy that was sulking on the bench at the beginning of the 08 season.

As for yesterday's game, see what happens when you give Edwin Jackson run support? A Gerald Laird double and Josh Anderson single drove in all the runs Edwin Jackson would need. It was a good thing Jackson was on, because Anderson's 2 RBI single was the last hit the Tigers would get against Cliff Lee.

It seems the Tigers had passed their squandering ways (insert blanket joke here) to the Indians. They were 0 for 9 with RISP and as a team stranded 10 men on base, with the lone run coming on a Ryan Garko solo HR in the 5th. On the other hand, two of the three Tiger hits against Cliff Lee drove in runs, and Marcus Thames added a 2 run HR after Placido Polanco walk in the 8th.

The bullpen wasn't perfect, but it got the job done. Which has been the case more often than not this year. Maybe the biggest break was Joel Zumaya being taken out after 2 pitches in the 8th. Bobby Seay completed the walk added one more of his own, and had runners at 2nd and 3rd with only one out. He then struck out Shin Soo Choo, and made Travis Hafner fly out to avert the crisis. Fernando Rodney did what he normally does in a non-save situation. Gave fans of the opposing team hope, before finally shutting the door.

Today it's Armando Galarraga, who's been pitching well lately, vs. Carl Pavano who has not. Let's not get ahead of ourselves, Pavano's win win was against the Tigers after previously allowing 19 runs in his starts prior to meeting the Tigers

Tigers 5 Indians 1
W: Jackson (7-4)
L: Lee (4-9)

Tigers Record
W - L
47 - 38
1st Place AL Central (3.5 games ahead of Chicago)

Game 84

2009-07-08T22:11:00.003-04:00

Only one way to keep him in 1st...

VOTE INGE...AND VICTORINO

Just like last night's game, on paper, Grienke vs. French seemed like a huge mismatch. Fortunately for the Tigers games are not played on paper.

The Tigers jumped out quick on Greinke, scoring more runs (3) in the first two innings, than they had in previous 18. It was only 3 the Tigers would score all game, but the pitching staff would make it stick.

Jim Leyland let Luke French stick around long enough this time to pick up the win. But the real key is the solid bullpen work tonight. Fu-Ne Ti took over with a runner on base, got a double play to end the inning. Brandon Lyon was the Lyon that was supposed to challenge for the closer position this spring, as he struck out the only 2 batters he faced. In came Fernando Rodney, coming off of 48 pitches over the last two nights. He sat down the side 1-2-3 striking out the last two outs and is 19 for 19 in save opportunities.

So a series win, and a off day awaiting the struggling Cleveland Indians. An off day you should be spending sending one more Tiger to the All-Star Game

Tigers 3 Royals 1
W: French (1-0)
L: Greinke (10-5)
S: Rodney (19)

Tigers Record
W - L
46 - 38
1st Place AL Central (2 games ahead of Chicago)

Game 83

2009-07-07T23:22:00.003-04:00

Before we get to the recap...

DO IT NOW

As for the game, Justin Verlander vs. Bruce Chen, you would think advantage Tigers right? Well you obviously haven't been watching Tiger baseball this year. Things were looking bleak for the Tigers after the top of the 3rd inning. Verlander's pitch count was entering the 50s and the Tigers trailed 3-1. Luckily Placido Polanco flexed some muscle and the score was tied 3-3. I don't have the time or the patience for the research, but I'd wager the Tigers record when Polanco drives in a run is a good one.

Then in the 5th inning Bruce Chen turned back into the Bruce Chen we know and love. A Polanco RBI single and a Marcus Thames 3 run home run, put the Tigers ahead 7-3. The Royals clawed back with 2 in the 6th, but Polanco struck again in the bottom of the sixth to give the Tigers back the 3 run lead.

The bullpen was far from perfect. 3 hits and 3 walks in 3 innings. But the most important stat of all, runs allowed was frozen at zero, allowing Fernando Rodney to pick up his 18 save, and securing the win for the Tigers.

Tomorrow it's Luke French vs. Zack Greinke. For once I would like the pitcher who's not supposed to win be the one in the Old English D

Tigers 8 Royals 5
W: Verlander (9-4)
L: Chen (0-3)
S: Rodney (18)

Tigers Record
W - L
45 - 38
1st Place AL Central (2 games ahead of Chicago)

Game 82

2009-07-06T22:12:00.002-04:00

First if you haven't done so go and...VOTE INGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So with the holiday weekend and family in town, i was able to take a nice relaxing weekend away from the team that has given me several a gray hair this year. I come back and get double pants poopings by Zumaya and Rodney. Ah, to be a Tiger fan.

The good news:
Armando Galarraga pitched his best game since Opening Day. He went 7 innings for only the 4th time all season, striking out 7 and allowing one run on five hits. Armando was in line for the win until the aforementioned bullpen snafu. Ryan Raburn did his best to secure victory for the Tigers. His solo HR put the Tigers in the lead in the 6th, and tied the game in the 8th.

The bad news:
C'mon Joel, Willie Friggin Bloomquist??? The worst part of the loss was that noted facepuncher Ramon Colon got the win. Tiger bats were not without blame. They wasted 5 walks by starter Gil Meche, and were 0-4 with RISP. Hitting into 3 double plays. Do. Not. Want.

The question now is, will the Tigers add Bruce Chen to the list of less than mediocre pitchers who have shut them down. Or will they treat him like the AAAA pitcher he is.

Tigers 3 Royals 4
W: Colon (1-0)
L: Rodney (0-2)
S: Soria (13)

Tigers Record
W - L
44 - 38
1st Place AL Central (1.5 games ahead of Minnesota)

Games 75 & 76

2009-06-30T23:20:00.001-04:00

bad migraines and a west coast trip had me sidelined the past few days. Will be back up after tomorrow's game

Game 74

2009-06-27T23:08:00.002-04:00

Thinking the game started at 7 Central time, I decided to get one more game in for Tiger Woods '10 for the Wii. I tune in at 8:05...I decided to go back to playing Tiger Woods.

I feel good about my decision.

Game 73

2009-06-26T23:13:00.003-04:00

Ah well, they can't win them all. Still 4 games up in the Central and 9 over .500

But...Joel Zumaya, really?

2 pitches in the 7th, then 28 before getting yanked in the 8th...really?

An 8 pitch walk to Darin Erstad. Erstad and his whopping .147 average...really?

Walking the bases loaded, then walking in the tying run...really?

Joel, if you're not careful, you'll be entering Robertsonville.

Tigers 4 Astros 5
W: Sampson (4-0)
L: Zumaya (3-2)
S: Hawkins (10)

Tigers Record
W - L
41 - 32
1st Place AL Central (4 games ahead of Minnesota)

Game 72

2009-06-25T19:04:00.003-04:00

Game 72, or "How Magglio Got His Groove Back"

It started off shaky for Armando Galarraga, giving up 3 runs on a home run in the bottom of the first. But he recovered to only allow 4 more hits, and one run in the next five innings. And with a little help from Magglio Ordonez first home run in...well I can't count that high, I was a Communications major; Armando was able to pick up his first win in 11 starts.

Also joining Maggs in the run producing department, were Ramon Santiago who had a 2 run home run of his own, and Ryan Raburn, who should get some looks from NL Central teams after the way he tore up Cubs pitching this series.

And what would a close Tiger win be without a nail-biting save from Fernando Rodney. Rodney gave up a home run in his second pitch of the 9th. Fernando bounced back to strikeout the next two hitters, but then gave up a double to put the tying run on 2nd. Pinch hitter Geovany Soto entered the game, and was sent packing after striking out to end the game.

A second sweep and 7 in a row and on to Houston.

Tigers 6 Cubs 5
W: Galarraga (4-7)
L: Liily (7-5)
S: Rodney (16)

Tigers Record
W - L
41 - 31
1st Place Al Central (5 games ahead of Minnesota)

Game 71

2009-06-24T22:49:00.003-04:00

Fernando Rodney made the margin of error thinner then most Tigers fans would like to see, but got the job done (maybe with a little help from an expanded strike zone) to close out the game.

1 for 15. That was what the Cubs did with runners in scoring position tonight. 3 innings the Cubs had the bases loaded, and only managed 2 runs. Cubs pitchers gave those two runs back to the Tigers with two bases loaded walks.

The big story of the pre-game was Magglio's freshly trimmed cranium. Did it work? Well 2 for 4 and no GIDP is certainly a step in the right direction. Let's try for a double tomorrow Maggs.

6 in a row, looking for another sweep, a season high 9 games about .500...good time to be a Tiger fan.

Tigers 5 Cubs 3
W: Miner (5-1)
L: Harden (4-4)
S: Rodney (15)

Tigers Record
W - L
40 - 31
1st Place AL Central (5 games ahead of Minnesota)

Game 70

2009-06-23T21:52:00.002-04:00

He's starting to grow on me...

I take back anything bad I've ever said about Ryan Raburn...for now. His walk-off 2 run home run, was the third time the Tigers erased a Cub lead, and gave the Tigers their 5th straight win.

Much like Sunday's game this 2009 team looks to be playing to win until the 27th out. Last year's team you got the feeling that the attitude (looking at you Pudge and Sheff) was one of "Here we go again" instead "Let's get it back" anytime the Tigers lost a late lead.

Not lost in this should be the great games pitched by both Edwin Jackson and Carlos Zambrano. Their lines were pretty similar, with Jackson in line for the win when he left the game. Jackson did not get the win, because for some reason Joel Zumaya decided it would be fun to place a changeup over the middle of the plate. Micah Hoffpauir promptly deposited it into the bleachers in right to put Zambrano in line for the win.

Ryan Raburn hit the home run, but if not for Don Kelly's 9 pitch walk to start the inning. I had no idea who Don Kelly was before his call up, but he's really impressed me with his patience at the plate. And how fitting that someone just as maligned as Raburn in the first few months (who am I kidding he's still pretty maligned), Brandon Lyon gets the win for this one.

Tigers 5 Cubs 4
W: Lyon (3-3)
L: Gregg (2-2)

Tigers Record
W - L
39 - 31
1st Place AL Central (4 games ahead of Minnesota)

Games 68 & 69

2009-06-21T21:11:00.002-04:00

Yesterday MLB decided that I should watch the Mets-Rays and that was it. Mother Nature had other ideas and while it was raining in New York, I was treated to the debut of Alfredo Figaro. All things considered not a bad performance picking up his first carerr victory, and in my mind it immediately places him ahead of Armando Galarraga on the depth chart. Ryan Perry, well that's another story. June has not been kind to the rookie as he surrendered runs in his third straight appearance. His ERA in June and Robertsonian 9.00.

While the bullpen surrendered runs, the bats put them on the board. The heart of the order came up big with Cabrera, Thames, and Kelly going 9 for 14 and driving in in four. Josh Anderson also had a nice day going 3 for 4 and driving in two. Placido Polanco hit his 3rd HR of the season and passed the "on hiatus" Magglio Ordonez on the season total list.

As for today's game it was a battle of the aces, with Justin Verlander going up against Yovanni Gallardo. Verlander gave up a HR on the second batter of the game. He pretty much held the Brewer bats in check allowing only 3 more hits until Craig Counsell lead off the 8th with a home run. All in all he struck out 8 and allowed more than 1 run for the first time at home all season.

At first it looked like it might be another hard luck loss for a Tiger pitcher, as Gallardo was shutting down the recently potent Tiger offense. The Tigers did not get their first hit until a leadoff single by Miguel Cabrera in the 4th. They threatened in the 5th, with runners on 2nd and 3rd with 2 outs, but were unable to cash in. Again in the 6th the Tigers had a opportunity, with 2 on and 2 out, this time Brandon Inge knocked one of the few mistakes Gallardo made all day deep into the left field seats.

That would be all the runs the Tigers needed. Fernando Rodney recorded his 2nd perfect 9th inning in a row, after the near horror show of Thursday night. The Tigers pick-up the sweep and another game on Minnesota heading into tomorrow;s off day

Game 68
Tigers 9 Brewers 5
W: Figaro (1-0)
L: Bush (3-4)

Game 69
Tigers 3 Brewers 2
W: Verlander (8-3)
L: Gallardo (7-4)
S: Rodney (14)

Tigers Record
W - L
38 - 31
1st Place AL Central (4 games ahead of Minnesota)

Game 67

2009-06-20T00:40:00.002-04:00

Billy Mays knows the power of Marcus Thames

The day started with news that had cigarette shops in the area cheering. It ended not with the typical Friday Night Fireworks, but with a light show from Mother Nature and explosions from Tiger bats.

Armando Galarraga struggled. Zach Miner did not. Why is Zach coming out of the bullpen again? A rain delay forced Armando out, which is probably for the best since Brewer bats would have probably done the same thing with more damage to the scoreboard.

Video review gave Miguel Cabrera a home run, and took one away from recently recalled Dusty Ryan. Both calls looked to be the right one. Marcus Thames has no need for close calls as he hit two home runs that probably caused the rain by tearing through a cloud. I think an even bigger story than the power outburst, is that 7 of the 10 runs were driven in with 2 outs. The lack of the big 2 out hit was a big reason for the losing skid this previous week.

Strains of "The Barber of Seville" should fill the CoPa tomorrow as Alfredo Figaro takes the mound for his MLB debut. I would love to watch it, but since it's one of the Fox 4pm games, I will more than likely be stuck watching whatever NL East team is playing. Stupid MLB Blackout rules, not letting me watch games on my computer.

Tigers 10 Brewers 4 (7 innings)
W: Miner (4-1)
L: Looper (5-4)

Tigers Record
W - L
36 - 31
1st Place AL Central (2 games ahead of Minnesota)

Game 66

2009-06-18T22:54:00.002-04:00

So this is what a win looks like. With the current losing streak, and my being offshore, the last Tiger win that I witnessed was May 31st. Yikes.

Speaking of yikes, Fernando Rodney damn near gave the game away. Walking the bases loaded in the top of the ninth, putting the winning run at the plate, Rodney got a pitch over the plate and tricked Rick Ankiel into hitting into the game ending double play. Maybe Ankiel was having flashbacks of his own control issues, felt sorry for Rodney and bailed him out.

Look what we have here, more than 3 runs scored! The first three batters reached base, and the Tigers plated 4 in the Top of the first. Rick Porcello struggled at times, but that 4 run cushion was all he needed to pick up his team leading 8th win.

While Rodney had an unexcellent adventure in the 9th. Bobby Seay and Brandon Lyon (really?!?) pitched great in relief. The duo combined for only 2 baserunners in the 2.1 innings the pitched, and struck out 3.

Now Prince Fielder and the NL Central leading Brewers come into Detroit fresh off a sweep of Cleveland. A sweep in which they scored 30 runs. And the first two pitchers they face are Armando Galarraga, and a AA player making his MLB Debut...oh boy.

Tigers 6 Cardinals 3
W: Porcello (8-4)
L: Pineiro (5-8)
S: Rodney (13)

Tigers Record
W - L
35 - 31
1st Place AL Central (2 games ahead of Minnesota)

Game 65

2009-06-17T23:13:00.002-04:00

The Tiger's Rally Car

Unlike the quick mercy killing of last night, tonight's game played out like a slow drawn out death.

And hey, wouldn't you know it, another bases loaded walk for a Tiger Pitcher. Zumaya's walk ended up being the run the Cards needed to stay ahead of the Tigers. Edwin Jackson gets saddled with the loss, which is unfair as he pitched well enough.

Curtis Granderson, Miguel Cabrera, and Brandon Inge seem to be the only Tigers able to hit it out of the infield lately, as they combined for 7 of the Tigers 9 hits. Is anyone else concerned that Adam Everett has as many home runs as Magglio right now? Even sadder for Maggs, with that number being 2.

Yet somehow the Tigers are managing to stay ahead in the monkey humping a football of a division called the AL Central. Let's hope Porcello is Italian for stopper, or this could be a loooong weekend for the Tigers.

Tigers 3 Cardinals 4
W: Wellenmeyer (6-6)
L: Jackson (6-4)
S: Franklin (16)

Tigers Record
W - L
34 - 31
1st Place AL Central (2 games ahead of Minnesota)

Game 64

2009-06-16T22:51:00.001-04:00

Verlander struggled. Runners left on base. Nate Robertson.

I'm going to go look at my vacation photos, and think of happier times.

While I Was Out

2009-06-15T21:57:00.004-04:00

Monday's tougher when you've spent the last week lounging on the beach

A week without the Internet isn't as tough as I thought it would be...especially when you're surrounded with view like the ones above.

When I left Jeremy Bonderman was hurt, Dontrelle Willis couldn't find the strikezone, and the offense was struggling. I guess I didn't miss much. Even better is the fact the lead in first has actually grown. If only the city of Pittsburgh hadn't wreaked havoc on Detroit teams, last week would have been 100% awesome.

So on to St. Louis, and to continued domination for Justin Verlander

Game 53

2009-06-05T22:41:00.005-04:00

On a boat. On a boat...

I'll be leaving for Puerto Rico this weekend, as my wife and will be on a cruise around the Caribbean. Judging by the way the Tigers have been playing, maybe its for the best I'll be taking a vacation from them as well.

Another anemic performance from the bats, making a guy having a subpar season so far (Ervin Santana) look super. Maybe Santana and Zach Grienke (7 runs on 9 hits tonight) swapped bodies like in some wacky 80's movie starring Kirk Cameron.

Justin Verlander played the part of Tiger Tourniquet, stopping the bleeding with 8 innings of shutout baseball. But Fernando Rodney came in and blowed it up real good. Give the Tigers credit for not quitting, as the tying run was 90 feet away, but Curtis Granderson couldn't drive him in.

So off to vacation I go, hoping to still see the Tigers in first when I return.

Tigers 1 Angels 2
W: Santana (1-2)
L: Rodney (0-1)
S: Fuentes (15)

Tigers Record:
W - L
28 - 25
1st Place AL Central (2 games ahead of Minnesota)

Game 52

2009-06-04T19:02:00.002-04:00

D-Train, D-railed

Was that Dontrelle's last game in a Tigers uniform? He did have 2 good innings, but that 3rd inning...well the only thing that kept the string of expletives from flying out, was that I was at work.

At least the Tigers have Verlander and Jackson pitching the next two games, right?

Tigers 3 Red Sox 6
W: Wakefield (7-3)
L: Willis (1-3)
S: Papelbon (14)

Tigers Record:
W - L
28 - 24
1st Place AL Central

Games 50 & 51

2009-06-03T23:17:00.002-04:00

Strange past two games for the Tigers offense. Last night 1 run on 9 hits. Tonight 5 runs on 3 hits.

Last night the culprit was double plays, and going 2 for 11 with RISP that did them in. Tonight it was Josh Beckett who held them hitless until the 7th. Only a couple walks and 3 errors let the Tigers get some runs in.

As for the pitching the past two games, yesterday Rick Porcello and Ryan Perry looked like rookies. Porcello's win streak came to an end, while Perry walked 3 in a about an innings work. Tonight Armando Galarraga wasn't terrible, but he really didn't make a case to stay in the rotation when Jeremy Bonderman returns Monday. My guess is that Monday's double header will be Armando's last start, barring injury or the Tigers shutting down Porcello later in the year.

In the series finale, its Wakefield vs. Willis. Wakefield has either been lights out or blown out this year, with his May being the latter. Let's hope for the Tigers and Dontrelle that remains the case.

Tigers 1 Red Sox 5
W: Matsuzaka (1-3)
L: Porcello (6-4)

Tigers 5 Red Sox 10
W: Beckett (6-2)
L: Galarraga (3-6)

Tigers Record:
W - L
28 - 23
1st Place AL Central (3.5 games ahead of Minnesota & Chicago)

Game 49

2009-05-31T16:21:00.002-04:00

No Miguel Cabrera, no Placido Polanco, no problem.

Newly appointed Clean-up hitter Curtis Granderson provided all the run support Edwin Jackson needed with his solo home run in the 4th. Jackson was once again outstanding, with his 2 hits, 7 K performance. Jackson retired the first 11 batters in order, and did not allow the other hit until a lead-off double to Ty Wigginton in the 8th. Most astonishing was the neutralization of Tiger Killer Luke Scott. He was 0-3 with 2 strikeouts. Fernando Rodney did his thing. Allowed a base-runner, but got three outs for his 10th save of the year. It also gave the Tigers their Major League leading 7th shutout.

Road trip over with a record of 4-3. Might not have been pretty in the first two games, but it ended well. Back home to a day off then the Red Sox

Tigers 3 Orioles 0
W: Jackson (5-3)
L: Berken (1-1)
S: Rodney (10)

Tigers Record:
W - L
30 - 19
1st Place AL Central (4 games ahead of Chicago)

Game 48

2009-05-30T22:03:00.002-04:00

I still hate Luke Scott.

But my love for Clete Thomas is growing by the day

Justin Verlander had his worst game in May, which is still better than most pitchers best days. Gave up 3 runs and struck out 5. In May JV lowered his ERA 2 full runs in his 6 starts in May, while striking out 56 along the way. He got out of a big bases loaded jam in the 5th, but was unable to avoid the Tiger Killing Juggernaut that is Luke Scott, and the game was tied in the 6th.

Enter Clete, who lead off the 7th with a solo home run, his second of the game. The 2 home runs tonight doubled his career total to 4. Thanks to some shoddy fielding the Tigers added two insurance runs in the 8th. They were not needed due to the bullpen doing its job. Joel Zumaya was the real hero. He recorded 4 outs (2 by strikeout with one of those being Luke Scott) on 12 pitches, all strikes. I think the Joel of 06 is back. Fernando Rodney started out giving up a single. That runner never got past 2nd, as Rodney sat down the next three to end the game, and the Tigers losing streak. And with KC and Minnesota losing, the Central lead grows, with Chicago now the team in second.

Tigers 6 Orioles 3
W: Verlander (6-3)
L: Albers (0-2)
S: Rodney (9)

Tigers Record:
W - L
27 - 21
1st Place AL Central (4 Games ahead of Chicago)

Games 46 & 47

2009-05-29T23:32:00.002-04:00

I really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, hate Luke Scott

Tigers 3 Luke Scott 9

Game 45

2009-05-27T20:29:00.003-04:00

Whatever Zach Grienke is to Tiger bats, Kyle Davies is the polar opposite. Davies was rung up for 8 runs (though 3 were unearned) and 10 hits this afternoon. Just slightly worse then the 7 runs and 8 hits he gave up a little over a month ago when he faced the Tigers. When Polanco goes yard on you, then you know you got pwned, as the kids would say.

The benefactor of the offense was Rick Porcello, who rolled to his team leading 6th win of the season. Porcello gave up two runs on four hits in a nice easy 6 inning 82 pitch performance. Seay, Zumaya, and Rodney closed out the remainder of the game without issue to wrap up the game and the series victory for the Tigers. Onward to Baltimore and hope of a smooth Galarraga start

Tigers 8 Royals 3
W: Porcello (6-3)
L: Davies (2-4)

Tigers Record:
W - L
26 - 19
1st place AL Central (4 Games ahead of Kansas City)

Game 44

2009-05-26T22:40:00.003-04:00

Zach Grienke is really good. If not for Roy Halladay, he'd be the runaway favorite for AL Cy Young after 2 months. Right now, unless you're lucky, you're not beating him. The only loss he has was a 1-0 decision to the Angels, where he was out dueled by Joe Saunders. When you have two throwing errors by your pitcher, you can figure out it's probably not going to go your team's way that evening.

Still, as a whole, Kansas City does not frighten me. They're in the bottom third in the Majors in practically all the offensive categories. Yes, they do have Grienke. They also have Kyle Farnsworth, Horacio Ramirez, Sidney Ponson, Ron Mahay, and Kyle Davies. There are 3 pitchers on the Royals staff with an ERA worse than Brandon Lyon.

As for the Tigers tonight, well you cant mount a rally on what you can't hit. Yes Robertson and Lyon didn't help matters by expanding the Royal lead. The way Greinke was pitching I would rather have them serve up the runs today, and have Perry, Zumaya and Rodney ready to go tomorrow afternoon. Now it the bats are cold against a guy they lit up for 7 runs last time out, then you get a little worried

Tigers 1 Royals 6
W: Grienke (8-1)
L: Jackson (4-3)

Tigers Record:
W - L
25 - 19
1st Place AL Central (3 games ahead of Kansas City)

Memorial Day Weekend

2009-05-26T12:43:00.000-04:00

Busy weekend in these parts. Not much time for the Tigers for me. But its always nice to see the Tigers improve on their division lead.

Friday, I was dragged to commencements for the high school my wife works at. Spent the first part of the night amazed at the amount of weird looking babies in the crowd around me. Spent the latter part of the night trying to convince the bartender to turn on the end of the Red Wings game. While Rick Porcello was the winner, I came up on the short end of the stick that night.

Saturday and Sunday were spent in Atlanta with In-Laws. Probably for the best I wasn't following along, as keeping track of two losses to the Rockies would have made me an unpleasant dinner guest.

I did catch the first 6 innings of yesterday's demolition of the Royals before I went out to a BBQ. Good to see the bats working again, though I doubt that will be the case tonight with Zach Greinke on the mound. Facing him will be Edwin Jackson who's a neighbor of Greinke's in the ERA leaderboard. Should be fun to watch.

Games 38 & 39

2009-05-21T19:12:00.000-04:00

SIX PACK!!!!!!!

I'm getting spoiled. Justin Verlander struck out 8, allowed only 1 run on 3 hits, and yet I think he still could have done better. However I don't think I'm out of line believing that the bullpen was not as good as it could have been. Brandon Lyon and Joel Zumaya allowed Texas to chip away at the lead. It did not matter, because Fernando Rodney pitched a perfect 9th to clinch the Tigers 5th win in a row.

Anyone else think Ryan Raburn might be getting a "random" test soon? He went deep yesterday. Joining him in the Shrubbery Club, was Wilkin Ramirez getting his 1st MLB home run on his first MLB hit,and Clete Thomas this afternoon. Matt Joyce who?

Speaking of Matt Joyce, that guy we got for him took the mound today. Edwin Jackson was a little wild today with 5 walks. He got into a jam in the 8th and watched his lead evaporate as Nelson Cruz tied the game with a double with Jackson one strike away from ending the inning. An uncontested steal, and a walk later Edwin Jackson was facing runners at the corners and 128 on the pitch count. Jim Leyland left him out there, as to say "you got yourself into this mess, fix it.", and 4 pitches later he had his 7th strikeout and chance for his offense to get him the win.

Kevin Millwood was in that same situation with 2 on in the bottom of the 8th. Ron Washington stuck with his ace. Unfortunately for Millwood, he needed to get Miguel Cabrera out. Cabrera took the first pitch he saw to centerfield and the Tigers had the lead, and Jackson was in line for the win, it was Rodneytime. Obviously felling bored, after retiring 16 straight batter, Fernando decided to kick it up a notch. He allowed the tying run 90 feet from home, and the go-ahead run on first. Rodney got Michael Young to hit the groundball, and Placido Polanco and Adam Everett did their thing to turn the 4-6-3 double play and give the Tigers the sweep and their 6th win in a row.

And in come the strug-gel-ing Colorado Rockies. They're tied for the worst record in the major leagues, they dropped 2 of 3 to the Pittsburgh Pirates last weekend, and are coming off of getting curb-stomped the past two days by the Atlanta Braves (23rd in the Majors in runs scored). Oh yeah then there's This Guy coming back to a bullpen near you. Should be a fun weekend...and you better get a win Armando

Game 38
Tigers 5 Rangers 3
W: Verlander (4-2)
L: Harrison (4-3)
S: Rodney (7)

Game 39
Tigers 4 Rangers 3
W: Jackson (4-2)
L: Millwood (4-4)
S: Rodney (8)

Tigers Record:
W - L
23 - 16
1st Place AL Central (3 Games ahead of Kansas City)

Game 37

2009-05-19T21:45:00.006-04:00

My 1st adventure in terrible MSPaint art

Well there you are Dontrelle Willis of 2005, we've been looking for you. No runs, one hit, two walks, and 5 strikeouts. I was not expecting this kind of performance from the DTrain, especially with the hot hitting Rangers coming into town. I guess the CoPa has some sort of kryptonite that neutralizes Rangers bats.

While Dontrelle (deservedly so) will get all the attention, let's not forget the bullpen was the opposite of what it was his last start. Bobby Seay, Brandon Lyon, Joel Zumaya, and Fernando Rodney closed out the remaining 2.2 innings, without allowing anyone to reach base.

Everyone in the line-up had a hit except DH Jeff Larish, who still contributed and RBI via sac fly. Of those 10 hits, only 2 were for extra bases with Miguel Cabrera and The Natural Ramon Santiago both having a double a piece. It's hard to complain about 9 left on base when a 2 out RBI single in the first is all that was needed for the victory.

Tigers 4 Rangers 0
W: Willis (1-0)
L: McCarthy (3-2)

Tigers Record
W - L
21 - 16
1st Place AL Central (1.5 ahead of KC)

My Weekend In The D

2009-05-18T20:47:00.003-04:00

Yay fireworks!!!

Missed the bullpen implosion on Thursday, but that was made better by the Red Wings taking the Ducks out later that night.

Missed the offensive explosion Friday, but then again I missed many things due to an open bar.

I was there for Rick Porcello's gem and the fireworks during the game and the post-game ones as pictured above.

I watched the Tigers claw their way back from a 6-0 hole to complete another weekend sweep.
And I sat today wondering what the hell is wrong with Armando Galarraga.

I'm not alone in this one, as Mack Ave Tigers ponders the same question. He gives up 5 runs the entire month of April, and in May he's giving up at least 5 per start. The main thing is that pitches he was throwing for strikes in April are now being put into play. So with Jeremy Bonderman in my neck of the woods, Armando needs to figure it out, or he'll end up in Robertsonville.

The D-Train Road to Redemption (or Perdition) faces it next stop as the first place Tigers face the first place Rangers in the next series...that is a sentence I never thought I would be typing nearing the end of May.

Game 32

2009-05-14T00:50:00.002-04:00

Good thing the only thing I have to do tomorrow is get on a plane...because, wow, what a game, I don't know if my heart will be able to take Wings-Ducks Game 7 tomorrow.

Dontrelle Willis' debut. 24 Runs on 31 hits. A Jim Leyland eruption. Two Tiger comebacks. Moonshots by Miguel Cabrera and Jeff Larish. A go-ahead balk. And Joe F'N Crede.

Brandon Lyon's going to take some heat for the loss, but should he? The walk off grand slam was Lyon's 60th pitch. Maybe I'm just too tired to be angry right now.

So here's to you Justin Verlander, Tiger Nation turns it's tired eyes to you

Back in the D this weekend, will be in attendance for Saturday's game. Will try to get some good photos

Tigers 10 Twins 14 (13 innings)
W: Crain (2-1)
L: Lyon (1-3)

Tigers Record:
W - L
17 - 15

Game 28

2009-05-08T21:24:00.002-04:00

Apparently all the Tigers need is Justin Verlander and Curtis Granderson.

Verlander went the distance for the complete game shutout, all while striking out 11 and allowing only 2 hits. His second strong performance in a row, and if anybody doubts Rick Knapp was a good hire, these last two starts by JV speak volumes about Knapp.

Ok I lied, Verlander actually gave up a 3rd hit. It was a HR to Grady Sizemore that went over the fence in centerfield. Now here's where this Curtis Granderson fella comes in. A perfectly timed leap, and the walk-off home run turned into the 2nd out in the 9th. Granderson also scored the only run of the game. A 4 pitch walk, a stolen base (aided by a terrible throw by Kelly Shoppach), the patented runner-advancing Polanco groundball, and a double-clutch on a groundball to 2nd and Granderson had scored. Poor Cliff Lee.

Tigers 1 Indians 0
W: Verlander (3-2)
L: Lee (1-5)

Tigers Record:
W - L
15 - 13

Game 27

2009-05-07T22:04:00.002-04:00

Rain Delayed, and coming off of a 9-0 whipping of the Twins...Mark Buerhle takes a perfect game into the 7th inning. At least they were shutdown by a guy who is pitching well this year.

Armando Galarraga didn't do the Tigers any favors pulling a Bonderman in the first. He surrendered 5 runs on 2 walks and 3 hits. He settled down and only allowed three more hits in the next five innings he pitched.

So once again, Tiger fans sit scratching their heads after another Jekyll and Hyde performance. Expect another pitcher's duel tomorrow with Verlander adn Cliff Lee

Tigers 0 White Sox 6
W: Buerhle (5-0)
L: Galarraga (3-2)

Tigers Record:
W - L
14 - 13

Game 26

2009-05-05T22:02:00.000-04:00

Out with the old and in with the new. Carlos Guillen to the DL, enter Clete Thomas. And what an entrance. 3 for 4, two runs driven in, and a home run shy of the cycle. Another guy, one leg short of the cycle, Miguel Cabrera who was without the triple. Miguel found that bat with all the pop that he had earlier this season as he went 3 for 4, driving in 4. Two of those on a deep shot to left field. Oh yeah, there was this little thing about a new line-up, as Jim Leyland threw the kids into the mix. The biggest move was the placing of Josh Anderson into the lead-off spot, and Curtis Granderson to 5th. After putting up 9 runs on 11 hits, the debut was a success. Though I don't think I'm alone in thinking Granderson would be better suited to 3rd, and moving Clete further down if/when Magglio gets his power stroke back.

Lost in all this newfangled offense, was the gem pitched by Rick Porcello. Of those hits, none were more than weak line drives to the outfield. 14 Groundball outs. Which makes it easy for double plays, as the 6-4-3 struck 3 times today. And hey, Nate Robertson and Juan Rincon actually held the shutout for the Tigers.

So the "new look" Tigers head into the 8 game AL Central road trip, with a win under their belts. The question is what team is going to show up in Chicago, yesterday's or today's?

Tigers 9 Twins 0
W: Porcello (2-3)
L: Blackburn (2-2)

Tigers Record:
W - L
14 - 12

Game 25

2009-05-04T22:00:00.003-04:00

Another 7th inning, and another Tiger pitcher given the opportunity to get out of a jam for a chance at the win. 2 on, no one out, and then double...Edwin Jackson, you are no Justin Verlander. Brandon Lyon made sure everyone of the people Jackson left on base found their way home, before Clay Rapada got the final outs. There was no comeback from this one. It's a shame too, as Jackson was pitching well until the 7th. 25 games in, and I'm still not sure what to make of the 2009 Tigers

Tigers 2 Twins 7
W: Liriano (1-4)
L: Jackson (1-2)

Tigers Record:
W - L
13 - 12

Game 24

2009-05-03T21:56:00.000-04:00

The Tigers had trouble hitting Carl Pavano on Friday, so the defending AL Cy Young award winner Cliff Lee takes the mound on Sunday, you would think more of the same. Especially with the theme of pitchers restoring their mojo vs. the Tigers.

Cliff Lee was good, but Justin Verlander was better. JV and his newfound strikeout swagger kept the Tigers in it as the offense threatened, but just couldn't cash in. Then the 7th inning came along and each pitcher decided the game for his team.

Justin Verlander started off near the 100 pitch mark, and a walk and a double to the first two batters had him in trouble. Jim Leyland called for the intentional walk of 6 hitter Davd Dellucci, as to say "7-8-9 hitters, get them out ace." Get them out he did. A shallow pop-up did it Kelly Shoppach, Matt Laporte learned what Major League curves look like as he watched one sail into Dane Sardinha's glove for a called 3rd strike, and a groundball from Luis Valbuena ended the threat.

Jim Leyland left his guy out there to get the win, it was up to the offense to deliver. Dane "The Hawaiian Hammer" Sardihna mashed one into the gap for a leadoff double. Curtis Granderson stung one down the line for a double of his own to give the Tigers the lead. Magglio added another insurance run to give the Tigers the 3-1 lead and turn the game over to the bullpen.

That bullpen was more than capable. Bobby Seay got the first two outs, and started to falter. Joel Zumaya came in and got the final out, with a little help from a leaping Adam Everett. Fernando Rodney had a perfect ninth inning to pick up the save and secure the win, and the series for the Tigers

So after a stutter step on Friday, the Tigers used late inning rallies (both lead by Curtis Granderson) to take two of three from the Indians. In come the Twins for another AL Central battle.

Tigers 3 Indians 1
W: Verlander (2-2)
L: Lee (1-4)
S: Rodney (6)

Tigers Record:
W - L
13 - 11

Game 22

2009-05-01T22:59:00.002-04:00

Between the Red Wings - Ducks Game 1 and funnel clouds in the vicinity of my house, I kinda tuned out most of the game today. Been shut down by Carl Pavano will do that to you. And for the second game in a row the offense picked up a little to late. More troubling is the performance by Armando Galarraga. 5 runs on 8 hits and 3 walks, to an offense that has Shin Soo Choo as a clean-up hitter. At least the Wings won, or there might have been several electronics devices broken in my house. Win tomorrow and all is forgiven.

Tigers 5 Indians 6
W: Pavano (really? Carl fricking Pavano...)
L: Galarraga (3-1)
S: Wood (5)

Tigers Record:
W - L
11 - 11

What We Learned In April

2009-05-01T11:34:00.000-04:00

The first day of May, an above .500 record, and a half game out of first place. Not too bad, all things considered. So heading into the 2nd month of the season, what do we know?

-Miguel Cabrera is really, really, really, ridiculously good at hitting a baseball.

-Apparently I was wrong. The english translation of Jose Mesa is not "Joe Table", but "Brandon Lyon".

-Zach Miner over Nate Robertson was the right choice. May might prove Clay Rapada is the right choice over Nate.

-Justin Verlander looks to be back. He needs to be, as he has faced the #1 starter in each game he's pitched.

-Fernando Rodney thinks non-save situations are boring and likes to spice them up a little.

-The back-up catcher's position may very well be cursed.

-This may be the year Jim Leyland realizes Bobby Seay is more than just a LOOGY.

-The hype is real with Porcello and Perry. Though I think both will benefit long-term with some time in the minors.

-Josh Anderson should be the lead-off hitter by the season's end.

-Brandon Inge likes playing third base. I'd make a joke about pillows but I have no room to make fun of him since pulled a muscle getting out of bed this morning.

So those are the things I've taken in from the first month of baseball in 2009. With the Indians in town and The Carl Pavano one the mound, the Tigers can start May off on a good note.

Game 20

2009-04-28T22:08:00.003-04:00

Missing the beginning half, should have skipped the end as well. Posting will be scattered as month-end at the job leaves me a bit drained. A game like this doesn't help either. On the bright side, the White Sox and Royals, barring comebacks after I type this, are on their way too losses. Good thing they got the butt-kicking out of the way, before the nationally-televised game tomorrow.

Game 17

2009-04-25T22:27:00.002-04:00

What a difference a Davies makes. After being held to 1 run on 3 hits yesterday the Tigers busted out 9 runs on 11 hits. This time the the Zach with the win was wearing the Old English D.

Zach Miner had another strong start in his home state. He picked up the win after throwing 5 pretty good innings. While he had trouble finding the strike zone at times, he got the outs when he needed them. What more can you ask for of a 5th starter?

Miner left the game in the 6th, and the bullpen took over. Bobby Seay allowed the only run for the Royals (it was charged to Miner as he allowed the leadoff single in the 6th), and if that was it for KC. Even Brandon Lyon kept the Royals off the board. He pitched 1 2/3rds of no hit baseball. The only blemish on his box score was a lone walk. And hey who's that new guy out of the bullpen? Why it's Joel Zumaya. The velocity was there, the accuracy decent. A double play helped him out, and a harmless fly ball ended the game.

Zach Miner kept the Royals off the scoreboard, the 6-9 hitters for the Tigers did a majority of the damage against Kyle Davies. 6 through 9 had 8 of the 11 hits, and drove in 4. Gerald Laird lead the way going 3 for 4 with a 2 run homer. Magglio Ordonez finally added an extra base hit, and his first home run of the season to cap the scoring in the ninth.

So the Tigers are back in a first place tie, and Armando Galarraga faces Sidney Ponson tomorrow for the series finale. And we still haven't seen Farnsworth yet.

Tigers 9 Royals 1
W: Miner (2-1)
L: Davies (1-1)

Tigers Record:
W - L
9 - 8

Game 16

2009-04-24T22:31:00.002-04:00

Required reading for Zach Greinke's next opponent

Well at least this game ended before 11pm. If there's one thing I hate, it's staying up late for disappointment. The Tigers ran into the juggernaut that is Zack Greinke tonight. They did score a run, the first recorded against Greinke all year, on a throwing error. Unfortunately, the Royals scored 6. What more can you say? 3 hits 20 strikeouts, Greinke was in the zone. Sometimes you're the windshield, sometimes you're the bug. The Tigers left a big splat tonight

Tigers 1 Royals 6
W: Greinke (4-0)
L: Porcello (1-2)

Tigers Record:
W - L
8 - 8

Games 14 & 15

2009-04-24T14:33:00.000-04:00

Not to get all Peter King on you, but Blackberry's are pretty cool. I never though I'd be one of those turds on one, but here I am typing away. If I start talking about lattes and medical procedures involving my nether regions, please stab me in the temple. My point for telling you this? Well I had a nice little recap of Wednesday's game written during my lunch break yesterday, but apparently I haven't figured out all the tricks of my new phone so it got eaten by the interwebs. After getting home from work I was too tired to re-create my sleep deprived ramblings.
Today its not any better. So instead of going over a game that reminded me too much of 2008, I would much rather grab a bite to eat and powernap. So here's to resting up and hoping the Tigers can score the first run of the year off of Zack Greinke.

Game 13

2009-04-22T15:01:00.002-04:00

A lot of blame for last night's loss will go to Brandon Lyon (as it rightfully should), but Jim Leyland's decisions in the 9th severely hurt the Tigers chance of winning. It's a shame because Curtis Granderson and Carlos Guillen starting to break out should get some attention.

I'm sure what I'm about to say has been repeated all day throughout Tigerblogdom, but here's my take:

There are 2 issues I have with last night's 9th inning. First I do not understand trying to bunt. Brian Fuentes is no K-Rod. A save is not the surest of thing when he is on the mound. Why give him one less out to get? Second, why Adam Everett? Sending out a guy who hasn't had an at bat in about a week, and asking him to lay down a perfect bunt seemed to be a bit of a tall order. had it been Ramon Santiago up, then sure bunt away. He's pretty damn proficient at it. But to send Everett up, and give away one of your last three outs to a pitcher who was having trouble finding the strikezone...well maybe Jim crossed the border into Vancouver for some special tobacco last series.

As for me, well I would have sent Thames up and told him "wait for your pitch and hit it into the rockpile". At least that way when he strikes out, it wouldn't look as dumb. As for tonight, Justin Verlander gets the de facto #1 for the Angels tonight. Lets see what Justin shows up, and if Grandy and Guillen keep it going. And hey, isn't Cabrera due for a home run?

Tigers 3 Angels 4
W: Arredondo (1-0)
L: Lyon (1-2)
S: Fuentes (3)

Tigers Record:
W - L
7 - 6

Games 8-12

2009-04-20T19:21:00.002-04:00

Day games spent at work and West Coast games a little bit past my bedtime, kept me away from the Tigers this past week. I did catch most of the Ramon Santiago show yesterday, and I never get tired seeing Carlos Silva on the mound against the Tigers.

So what did I learn this past week? Well that the pitching that we saw for the first 7 games, appears to be the real deal. Just as he did against a hot hitting Texas team, Armando Galarraga shut down a White Sox team that scored 10 against the Tigers. Edwin Jackson finally picked up his first win of the season, after 3 great performances. The bullpen, did what it needed to do and helped close out two shutouts.

We also learned Miguel Cabrera is really good at hitting. 10 Hits in the 5 games, and he even added a stolen base. He was not alone as the Tigers had at least 9 hits in each game. I think that stats a little more impressive when you factor in three of those games were against legit #1 starters in Gavin Floyd, Felix Hernandez and Eric Bedard. And even more surprising is that most of the offense is coming from Brandon Inge, Ramon Santiago, and Josh Anderson; the normal 7-8-9 hitters. Once Granderson and Guillen get going...well let's just stop there as 2008 collapsed under the weight of the 1000 run line-up.

Next up, the Tigers have a series with the ailing Angels. How bad are they hurting? Their depth chart only shows 3 pitcher and Bobby Abreu is playing LF and RF. Of course the Tigers will be facing the top 2 of the 3 in All-Star Joe Saunders and Jered Weaver. And even without Vlad Guerrero, the Angels can still hit. Another good early season test for this Tiger team

Game 7

2009-04-12T19:48:00.002-04:00

Came home from dinner, sat down to watch the game, and was rewarded with one last Easter Egg. Brandon Inge with the bat and the glove leading the way for the Tigers. The Tigers could not figure out Kevin Millwood, lucky for them, he was on the bench when the 8th inning started. Inge started the inning with a solo HR, and ending the scoring with a 2 run single later in the inning. Brandon Lyon was responsible for blowing a great effort by Edwin Jackson last time around. This time he goes 2 perfect innings and gets the win, while the opposing bullpen blows the game away. Whatever Rick Knapp did, keep doing it. And now they have a sweep, first place, and momentum heading into the series with the pain in the ass White Sox.

Slew of afternoon games this week. Tightly restricted internet access at work will keep me away, more than likely. Here's hoping to some more wins.

Tigers 6 Rangers 4
W: Lyon (1-1)
L: Wilson (0-1)
S: Rodney (2)

Tigers Record
W - L
4 - 3

Game 6

2009-04-11T17:56:00.002-04:00

Missed the game today. Was getting all cultured and stuff at the High Museum in Atlanta. Saw something pretty cool, I went to see the First Emperor's Terracotta Army. Which starred this guy below...

You know what else was cool? Four perfect innings by the Tigers Bullpen, and 3 strikeouts for Rodney in the 9th. If Verlander would have kept those walks down, it wouldn't have been close. Still I'll take 3 runs off of 2 hits with 8 K's any day of the week. Now we're looking for the sweep on Easter Sunday. Very nice.

Tigers 4 Rangers 3
W: Robertson (1-0)
L: Harrison (0-1)
S: Rodney (1)

Tigers Record
W - L
3 - 3

Game 5 - Opening Day

2009-04-10T21:11:00.002-04:00

My Name is Miguel...This is my Boomstick

Ah Kris Benson, if it weren't for the millions of dollars and the Playboy model wife, I might have felt sorry for him. I had a good feeling going into this game. Home Opener, Ranger pitching, and Galarraga on the mound. Wow, I had no idea.

My plan was to watch the game on DVR after work, but I couldn't help myself. I caught the first 3 innings while at lunch. Then I turned the radio off. A phone call from my father sort of gave it away. As he was leaving he left me a voicemail that started off "WOOOOOO!!! HOW BOUT THOSE TIGERS!", so that kind of gave away the ending. Then some severe storms rolled across the area and I didn't have power at my house for a hour or two. Finally, power was restored and I continued the game from the 4th inning. I don't care if Dontrelle Willis never throws another pitch, Miguel Cabrera is that damn good. A Grand Slam to the deepest part of the park. Miguel was not the only Tiger breaking out the boomstick, as 8 of the 9 drove in a run and recorded a hit. Carlos Guillen was hitless, but had a sac fly, while Brandon Inge was the only one in the line-up who did not drive anyone in. I'll let Inge slide, as he had an amazing catch to end the first inning.

As for the question if Armando Galarraga was really the Tigers' Ace this year? Count me convinced. He shut down a Rangers offense that had scored 9, 8, and 12 runs against the Cleveland Indians. 8 Strikeouts, 5 hits, one run and one walk. More impressive I think is the 8 groundouts. In the 3 games against the Indians, I counted 14 groundouts by Cleveland pitches in the entire series.

So we turn back to you Mr. Verlander. The 4 other starters went out and did their jobs. Time for you to earn that #1 spot back. I get a feeling run support will not be a problem this series.

Tigers 15 Rangers 2
W: Galarraga (1-0)
L: Benson (0-1)

Game 4

2009-04-09T19:17:00.003-04:00

Tried to follow along at work today the best I could, but it sort of got tuned out after the 6th inning. All in all the outcome of Rick Porcello's debut also can best describe the Tigers opening series. Not the outcome we were looking for, but far from a disaster.

Going just by what I heard and looking at the boxscore so I could be off here, but Porcello did a good job throwing strikes and getting the ground ball when he needed it. He just ran out of gas in the 6th.

So 3 out of 4 starters had a good game. The offense had there chances against one of the better pitching staffs in the AL. While the series might not have gone the Tigers way, going into the home opener I feel a lot better about this Tiger team then the 08 Version.

Tigers 2 Blue Jays 6
W: Romero (1-0)
L: Porcello (0-1)

Game 3

2009-04-08T23:23:00.003-04:00

Now this was a little bit more like it. Big bats and better pitching, lead the Tigers to the first win of the season.

Home runs by Miguel Cabrera and Brandon Inge provided all the offense. Miguel starting it off with 3 run shot in the top of the first. Though it looked like more than that was going to be needed 4 batters into the Blue Jays line-up. Two Doubles, a Single, and a walk brought one run across the plate and the bases loaded with no outs. It was looking like it was going to be a quick day for Zach Miner. But a force out at home, a fly out and a great throw by Josh Anderson and the inning was over. The Blue Jays never got any closer than that.

While Zach Miner, rocky start may have had something in common with the man he replaced in the rotation, Jeremy Bonderman. He had something going for him that that Bonderman has been working on for years, an effective change-up. Using that offspeed pitch, Miner kept the Blue Jays at bay. And this time the bullpen was perfect. Bobby Seay, Ryan Perry, and Fernando Rodney, sat down all ten batters they faced in order. Best of all Rodney's final 3 out took only 7 pitches, all strikes.

Ryan Perry did great in his first big league appearance, tomorrow is Rick Porcello's turn to try to even the series, and to head into opening day at 2-2.

Tigers 5 Blue Jays 1
W: Miner (1-0)
L: Litsch (0-1)

Game 2

2009-04-07T21:49:00.002-04:00

While I may not have woken up to the strains of "I Got You Babe" this morning, I do have the sick feeling I've been through this before. And I'm not just talking about a Detroit Lyon losing. As much as I've tried to repress the memories of the 08 Bullpen, seeing Brandon Lyon "pitch" made visions of Grilli, Farnsworth, Fossum, and Jones flash through my head. A 3 run jack to blow the lead, just like a punch to the stomach. As soon as the Jays had a runner on base in the 9th, I was sure how it all would end for the Tigers.

But 2 games into the season is way to early to focus on the negative (we'll see about that if Miner goes nuclear tomorrow). The story of the game should have been Edwin Jackson. 7 and a third of manly pitching. 89 pitches, 60 strikes. Nice fastball, wicked curveball, and in control. But a hanging breaking ball by Brandon Lyon nets Edwin a no decision. Credit the Tigers for not rolling over in the top of the 9th. A Brandon Inge jack tied it up and gave the other Brandon a chance to redeem himself. Why he was out there is beyond me in the first place. It seems to me Jim Leyland thinks guys can work themselves out of jams, when they should even be in a position to get themselves into jams to begin with. Why let Brandon Lyon throw over 35 pitches? If Ryan Perry's good enough to be on a major league roster, he's good enough to take the mound in the top of the 9th in a tie ballgame. Now I know wins tomorrow and Thursday and we'll all be singing a different tune. But 0-4 going in the home opener...there's not enough Jack Daniels in the world to get me through this season

Tigers 4 Blue Jays 5
W: Ryan (1-0)
L: Lyon (0-1)

Game 1

2009-04-06T22:12:00.002-04:00

Artist Rendition of the Rogers Centre leftfield

Well that one sucked, didn't it? Verlander looked like the lost puppy of 2008, minus a few spots. The defense looked a little shaky. The offense got to Roy Halladay a few innings too late. The only real chance the Tigers had in this game is when the drunkards in the outfield started chucking things at Josh Anderson, and the umps might have called the game a forfeit. Not much to take from this game, other than it was one of 162. Now time to tune into the Michigan St ga...scratch that, they're down by 20.Ok, then, well at least the Red Wings won, right?

Tigers 5 Blue Jays 12
W: Halladay (1-0)
L: Verlander (0-1)

Back In Business...Sort Of

2009-04-04T22:29:00.002-04:00

A whirlwind of personal things going down these past few month. Marriage, new house, promotion at my job all added up to not a lot of free time to post. The moments of free time were fleeting at best. Add to that the trusty computer I had for the past few years done blowed up, and I was without a computer at the house for the past few months. Enter the tax return cash, and I've got a shiny new laptop.

So why today, for this rare appearance? Funny you should ask. I was dropping my wife off for a trip back up to Michigan this week (damn teachers and the Spring Breaks), and on my way home I pass by Turner Field. I see the sign say "Braves vs. Tigers Today 1:10". I look at my watch, it's 12:30 and I decide to postpone my planned marathon session of Guitar Hero: Metallica for a few hours. Drop a couple bucks on a ticket and find my way to a seat. And as luck would have it, one of the things I was excited about this season, Rick Porcello, was on the mound today. And I liked what I saw. 26 pitches, 21 Strikes. One hit in 4 innings of work. The Tigers bats were working as well 8 runs on 13 hits, and what's this 7 walks? I could hear the collective tightening of Braves fans sphincters with each free pass that the big money Japanese import Kenshin Kawakami issued today. It was weird to hear fans yell "Throw strikes" and it not be directed at a Tiger. Double bonus for me, like any good Atlantan, I left the game after the 7th inning, so I missed Nate Robertson continue to pitch batting practice to opposing teams. Would have liked to see Ryan Perry, but it was 72 degrees, sunny, and the Tigers won, so who's to complain?

Full disclosure, I haven't been the best Tiger fan in the few months. I've been keeping up with the big news, but I've kept my distance since the turd in the punchbowl that was the 08 Season. You see I tend to take things a bit too much to heart with my teams then any rational 29 year old man should. But when you consider that this 29 year old man was once a 15 year old boy who nearly broke his hand punching the floor in anger at the result of Game 3 of the 95 Stanley Cup Finals ( I still hate you Bobby Holik) it was probably for the betterment of my marriage that I avoided the Tigers the last two months of the season. Add to that an unpredictable work schedule, this year the posting may continue to be spotty. Maybe once a week, maybe once a series. Not quite sure how things are going to work. But one things for sure, I'm ready for the 2009 season. Nowhere to go but up, right?

Game 126 Recap

2008-08-19T22:44:00.002-04:00

Later hours at my job, work on the new house, finalizing an upcoming wedding , team playing like crap. Not a good recipe for regular viewing of the Tigers. But tonight I was able to catch most of the game in between picks of my first Fantasy Football Draft of the year (LT with the 1st pick woohoo!!! Kevin Smith in the 10th..steal!).

If it weren't for Armando Galarraga the Tigers would be fighting Cleveland for last place. And if they played more often like they do when Armando's on the mound they'd be fighing for first. It seems like every time Galarraga's on the mound, the Tigers score double digits. In my not very thorough research, I counted the Tigers have score 6 or more runs in 7 of Galarraga's 12 wins. And imagine if Texas had kept Galarraga? An extra 10 wins would be putting them in the thick of the Wild Card race.

Matt Joyce is making his case for the starting LF spot for 2009 with authority. 2 Big HRs drove in four runs tonight. He also helped 3 unearned runs score to cap a 9 run 7th when a fly ball off his bat, confused the Texas outfielders and dropped to the ground. And hey, looks who decided to play? Gary Sheffield drove in a run on two hits. Sheff has 9 hits and 7 RBI in the last 5 games he batted in. Hooray to building trade value!

All in all, finally a good night to be a Tiger fan. And probably the last time I'll be catching a Tiger game until I'm back in Michigan on Saturday. Just hoping this is the team that shows up to play when I'm there next Tuesday

Tigers 11 Rangers 3
W: Galarraga (12-4)
L: Padilla (12-7)

Sigh...

2008-08-12T22:17:00.003-04:00

Busy past few days. Didn't really miss much. The bullpen is still giving away games, the offense is maddeningly inconsistent.
I do this for fun, and this past few weeks have been anything but that. I have a bunch of things going on right now and sitting down and transcribing a gut-wrenching loss each night, isn't that high on my list of priorities. Still I'll keep watching and checking in from time to time, and hopefully this season can close-out with some positives.

Game 112 Recap

2008-08-06T00:09:00.002-04:00

Another game given away by a horrible bullpen, and an offense that decided to take a nap after 5 innings. How did it end? I have no idea, as this game is in the 11th inning right now. I'm going to bed pondering which member of the bullpen will be the goat for this one.

Game 108 Recap

2008-07-31T22:14:00.002-04:00

With a bullpen stretched to the limit, the Tigers needed a strong performance fro Justin Verlander. They didn't quite get that. JV gave up 6 runs and couldn't make it past the 6th inning. Tiger for a day Clay Rapada was force to eat it, as the Tigers really had no one that could pitch more than two innings. So Rapada stuck around for 1.2 innings and gave up three runs. Nine runs rarely will get you a win with a fully stocked Tiger line-up. It's a death sentence when the "Sunday Line-up" is thrown out there.

So the Tigers split another series. And this weekend isn't going to get any easier. They go to Tampa to take on the AL East leading Rays, while Chicago and Minnesota get the bottom two teams in the Central (KC and Cleveland Respective) to feast on. I was actually looking forward to this weekend, as Tampa is the closest the Tigers travel to Atlanta all year. But a wedding came up, and actually I'll be back in Michigan. Which is probably for the best. The way things are looking, if I had gone, I'd be front and center to watch the Tigers playoff chances die. I'll be back Monday, fingers crossed I still have a playoff chase to follow.

Tigers 4 Indians 9
W: Carmona (5-3)
L: Verlander (8-11)

Tigers Record:
W - L
55 - 53
3rd Place AL Central (6.5 GB Chicago)

Game 107 Recap

2008-07-31T00:50:00.000-04:00

This was one weird game. A game I almost missed. First off the big Pudge news of course. But then, driving home I flipped the game off after listening to the bottom of the 3rd, in which the Indians took a 8-1 lead. A seeming need for abuse brought me to my computer and hour later, where the Tigers had cut the lead to one run.

Then Todd Jones happened...BOOOOO!!!!

Then Miguel Cabrera happened...YAAAAY!!!!!

Then Placido Polanco happened...BIGGER YAAAY!!!!

Then Fernando Rodney did a Todd Jones...BOOOO!!!!

Then I drifted in and out of consciousness for the remaining 4 innings. I thought I saw Bobby Seay have 5 K's and Casey Fossum get out of a no-outs bases loaded jam. But I also think I saw a leprechaun bungee jumping off my desk. But I do remember a big hit by Polly and a big error by the Indians first baseman to give the Tigers the lead. Casey Fossum bumbled his way to the final three outs in the bottom of the 13th and that was that.

I would really like to write a farewell to Pudge but that will have to come a different day as it is way past my bedtime. The series wraps up tomorrow afternoon, where I will be clueless of it's outcome due to crazy month-end fun at work.

Tigers 13 Indians 12
W: Fossum (2-0)
L: Rincon (2-3)

Tigers Record:
W - L
55 - 52
3rd Place AL Central (5.5 GB Chicago)