ESPN.com - MLB/SPRING2007 - Stark: Tigers' 2006 season changed lives (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/spring2007/columns/story?columnist=stark_jayson&id=2782401)
A great way to start the season. Overcoming the shock of last year's great season and drive to the yes, WORLD SERIES and based on the fact that I am ordering MLB season package, I plan to give some great insights to this Tiger season. My season review can found at this link:OLDSKOOL HQ'S NEWS AND VIEWS (http://journals.aol.com/oldskoolhq/OLDSKOOLHQSNEWSANDVIEWS/)
and i want to thank my sponsor's for assisting me this season on our run back to the WORLD SERIES:

Stroh's Beer
Hostess Twinkies
Wonder Bread
Better Made Potato Chips
Faygo Red Pop
Kellogg's Corn flakes
Marathon Oil
Vernor's Ginger ale
M& M Shrimp Shack
Top Hat Hamburgers
Marygrove College
The Lindell AC
Windsor Strip clubs of Ontario
Sir Graves Ghastly
WGPR and the Electrifying Mojo show

and

The 4:30 Movie

Here's to a great season and GOOOOOOOOOOOO Tiiiguhs!!!!:cheers:

Looks like you're all set Skoo.
pass me a Vernors. Cause it tingles through my nose.

Opening Day is one of only three days during the year that I definetly wont work. The other two are my birthday and the Blue vs Buckeyes game. This will a fun year but baseball is a funny game. here's my predictions:

AMERICAN LEAGUE EAST:
1. NEW YORK 100-62
2. BOSTON 91-71
3. TORONTO 84-78
4. BALTIMORE 77-85
5. TAMPA BAY 72-90

AMERICAN LEAGUE CENTRAL:
1. DETROIT 94-68
2. CHICAGO 91-71
3. CLEVELAND 90-72
4. MINNESOTA 87-75
5. KANSAS CY 74-88

AL WEST:
1. CALIFORNIA 92-70
2. TEXAS 89-73
3. OAKLAND 81-81
4. SEATTLE 80-82

CHAMPS: NEW YORK OVER DETROIT

NATIONAL LEAGUE EAST:

1. PHILADELPHIA 91-71
2. METS 90-72
3. ATLANTA 89-73
4. FLORIDA 82-80
5. WASHINGTON, DC 60-102

NL CENTRAL:
1. HOUSTON 90-72
2. ST LOUIS 88-74
3. CHICAGO 83-79
4. MILWAUKEE 81-81
5. CINCY 78-84
6. PITTSBURGH 70-92

NL WEST:
1. SAN FRANCISCO 86-76
2. LOS ANGELES 82-70
3. SAN DIEGO 82-70
4. COLORADO 79-83
5. ARIZONA 70-92

CHAMPS: METS OVER ASTROS


WORLD SERIES...YANKS OVER METS.....rats

HQ do you think losing those 10-12 starts from The Gambler (due to his blood clot surgery) will affect the Tigers quest to get 90 victories?

HQ do you think losing those 10-12 starts from The Gambler (due to his blood clot surgery) will affect the Tigers quest to get 90 victories?
Nahh! hes 43 yrs old. we have to start expecting that whatever he gives us is more important in the clubhouse than the dugout. Watch for durbin and Miller. And Nate Robertson will win 17 games at least. Im gonna enjoy this day!!! I ordered MLBTV. its only 14.95 a month and you get every game online Tv or radio. Im only paying month to month because baseball is so funny, but I think we will have a good year. For me, thats 90 wins or more..playoffs or not. Im just glad GOOD baseball is BACK!!!

Opening day had the Blue jays storming to a 3-0 lead and holding on for a 5-3 win in 10 innings.
THE GOOD:
Bonderman came back with 5 great innings after a terrible 1st.
Sheffield showed he is the gangsta of MLB.What a rocket bat.
Polanco and Granderson are going to be like the Brothers Johnson, Thunder Thumbs and Lightning Licks!!!
Zoom and Doom(Zumaya and Jones) were very good.

THE BAD:
Rodney is still a crooked hat wearing FlipMurray of a pitcher.
No homers. Thats a big part of our offense.
Ordonez needs a big hit this year when we least expect it.
Wont go 162-0!!!!!!!!!!!

.

THE BAD:
Rodney is still a crooked hat wearing FlipMurray of a pitcher.




LOL > Should he beferred to I Hat Him (Part Deux):pound:

AL WEST:
1. CALIFORNIA 92-70
2. TEXAS 89-73
3. OAKLAND 81-81
4. SEATTLE 80-82
----------------
Looks good Skoo
Just to fire back at ya.
Cal...............85-77
Oak..............84-78
Tex..............83-79
Sea..............70-82
Giants over Dodgers? Yeah? NO!
Zona............85-77
Yanks over Tigs ? you know better

SERIES: TIGERS AT ROYALS...3 GAMES

Tigers start of 1-1 and 1(snow trumps all) and head to KC where it aint much better. Justin V goes Friday and a very important start for Maroth Saturday. Curtis Granderson looks like Lou Brock out there and Polanco leads the AL with a .600 BA. All the hoopla from the pennant ceremonies are done, so this 10 day roadie should actually be kind of relaxing. Look for a lot of runs by our boys this weekend. KC is young and spunky and arguably the best last place team in baseball. Should be a fun weekend.

Also, great news that MLB can be scene on CATV this year through your IN DEMAND service,and its free this weekend.

They needed 10 runs to beat BJs.
crazyman

Halladay got us 2 to 1.
but came back the next day and clubbed them 10 to 7.
7 and 4 early with 5 road wins. Strong.
Yankees suck.

The Jays got us today though, 2-1. Our offense really struggled. Hopefully the Kansas City series will get it going.

12 hits in yesterdays come from behind victory and 3 hits today? Still some work to go for consistency but the season is early.

7-5 season record, 3-3 with the Blue Jays, 2-1 over the Orioles and 2-1 over the Royals. Al lot of tight games so far. Tigers have 49 runs and the oppsition has 47.

Maroth looks like a suitable replacement for the gambler, but not sure about Durbin yet.

Maroth was the real deal last year before he threw his shoulder to the plate.
2-1 = good pitching, game is under control.

SUNDAY REPORT: APR 22, 2007

TIGERS W-10 L-8
TEAM AVG: .235 (11TH)
RUNS: 86(4TH)
WALKS 62(5TH)
AT-BATS(IST)
ERA: 4.06 (6TH)

tigers have all the stats of a 10-8 team. still, they have yet to be swept and avoided that with a 2 out HR by Thames and a GW single by MVP candidate Placido Polanco.The Official Site of The Detroit Tigers: News: Detroit Tigers News (http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/news/gameday_recap.jsp?ymd=20070422&content_id=1924347&vkey=recap&fext=.jsp&c_id=det)

Polanco is off and flying after being the MVP of the AL Championship and THE MVG of the World Series. He is getting a Derek Jeter air about him , a look of doing whatever he wants when he's counted upon. Earlier, when attempting to hit behind the runner, he smashed a single down the first base line to score a run. Ozzie Guillen said he is the most feared hitter in our lineup.

Overall, weve been terrible 'hitting' wise and with our bullpen , sans Todd Jones. Sheffield , Casey and Inge arent even hitting my weight in the army while Rodney looks like he just fell off the pipe, crack pipe , that is.
he's has lost or been responsible for losing 5 of our 8 losses.

This is still pretty typical for a team coming off a World Series. St louis is
also hovering around .500. Tigers will be fine though as the weather warms up.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: PLACIDO POLANCO
PITCHER OF THE WEEK: WIL LEDEZMA

:sherlock:
The Tigers are struggling with the consistency. If the pitching is good - don't expect any runs, if they hit up a storm, don't expect pitching to hold it together. Durbin has been shaky, Rodney stunk up the MLB, and Sheffield is non-existent. If those guys get it together as long as Casey and Inge warming up, we should be fine.

On another note, how about Pena for TB? 10 games - 3 homers and 9 rbi, but batting .209 with 1 bb and 9 K's.

Look at Chef's on base % of .326 vs. Granderson's .329. That's not so bad. He's getting walked on about 20% of hit trips to the plate.

It also shows in his runs scored of 12 (highly correlated to OBP). He's tied for 36th in the league along side Barry Bonds. Mags and Granderson are the only 2 Tigers ahead of him.


Also, our top 3 starting pitchers have been great.
Robertson- 2.05 ERA
Verlander- 2.08
Bonderman- 2.25

Then there is a drop off...
Moroth- 5.05

If the Gambler was in there, we'd probably have 4 starting P's with ERA's < 3!

What's up with Bonderman and the first inning? Can he ever get through it without giving up at least a couple of runs? If he could do that - we are probalby talking Cy Young material. Well, maybe not that great, but he'd be a star in this league.
Jones needs to get his cr.p together. You can't blow a save after team came back from being down 7-0. It has a huge psychological effect no matter how experienced your team is.
Inge needs some more batting practice.
Granderson struck out 3 more times today. Even though he homered, he is striking out way too much for a leadoff man. I know, he is still young and working on cutting down on strikes, but the results are simply not there. He maybe needs to be moved down in the lineup, but that couldn't happen since we don't have anyone else even resembling leadoff hitter who gets on base.
Our pitching has been shaky. You can't rely on your offense to consistently score 10 runs each game to win.
Rodney had good outing, maybe he's getting his act together. He'd be a great help.
Is there a pitcher in our bullpen that hasn't blown a save this year? I am not sure, but seems like everyone did at least once.
Anyhow, it is still early in the season, but things need some quick fixing or there will not be any playoffs this year.

Bondo has no decisions in 5 or 6 starts.
What a messed up way to lose that 2sd Angel game.
Clutch hitting is our only hope. The pitching is a null, especially in the Central. As the Tigers warm up so will other teams. Still I like our chances, hope we stay healthy.

Tough sleety [snow and rain] win for Tigers tonite.
Beat the snot out of CWS 6 to 2.
Durbin gets first win in 3 years. Zoom walked like 6 guys, so Jones had to come in and finish.

I'm headed to the Sox-Tigs game tonight. I hope it doesn't get rained out... or snow.

Tough sleety [snow and rain] win for Tigers tonite.
Beat the snot out of CWS 6 to 2.
Durbin gets first win in 3 years. Zoom walked like 6 guys, so Jones had to come in and finish.

Zoom lost his focus. It's not often he comes into the game in the 9th with the 6 run lead. But it was strange non the less to see him walk 4 guys in an inning.

On the positive note, Durbin finally got a good outing in. He was great at Toledo last year, but I guess he was never able to translate minor league success into a starting job in the majors. Sheff is starting to get back to his normal self, and Maggs is on a roll. Now we need to get the bottom half of our lineup going and we'll be just peachy.

I'm headed to the Sox-Tigs game tonight. I hope it doesn't get rained out... or snow.

It did get rained out, I was hoping the Tigs can keep their hot hitting going, but oh well, they'll have to continue at home.

:rain:

Zoom lost his focus. It's not often he comes into the game in the 9th with the 6 run lead. But it was strange non the less to see him walk 4 guys in an inning. "
I think the sleet got to him. At least Jones got it done.

It did get rained out, I was hoping the Tigs can keep their hot hitting going, but oh well, they'll have to continue at home.

:rain:

Man...

I had great seats for once and it gets rained out. They cancelled the game at about 3:30 in the afternoon (why???) and then it cleared up and was perfect for the rest of the night. Looking at the radar at 3:30, it was obvious that the storm was about to pass over.

I didn't think they did it like that in baseball. I've been to games where we had to sit there for 2 hours in the rain before they cancelled.

Man...

I had great seats for once and it gets rained out. They cancelled the game at about 3:30 in the afternoon (why???) and then it cleared up and was perfect for the rest of the night. Looking at the radar at 3:30, it was obvious that the storm was about to pass over.

I didn't think they did it like that in baseball. I've been to games where we had to sit there for 2 hours in the rain before they cancelled.

I didn't know they called it off that early. I saw it was postponed at mlb.com. Somehow it always happens that way. On the other hand, maybe you could get to the game when they make this up and the weather is nicer. Hopefully it'll work out.

The Tigers are struggling. There defense is terrible, way to many errors (two more today). Leyland and Ledezma got ejected in today's game after an apparent "obstruction of the baserunner" call after a rundown at third to home! AND they ended up losing 11-3.

Brandon Inge hit a homer in the bottom of the ninth to salvage what was a great weekend at least for the other Detroit sports teams. (Tigs beat Twins 4-3)

Pistons finish off sweep, Red Wings avoid going down 0-2 heading out west, Lions draft a couple of playas, including a Spartan and 4 or 5 Wolverines get drafted in the first two rounds of the NFL draft.
:focus:
The Tigers avoided another sweep, but the defending AL Champs need to get their act together with that hitting. All 13 victories seem to be the result of the long ball and most of the losses seem to be of the 1-2 run margin. They need to get some consistent hitting to compete with the teams their dvision which you see is already beating each other up.

Tigers also need to get their pitching straightened out. The bullpen had been inconsistent, and they blew several saves just this past week. Zoom needs to get it together. Rodney seems to be doing better, and Jones... well, that guy's nick says it all - "rollercoaster".

So, what do you know? The Tigs sweep the Baltimore and things are looking much better:
The bullpen looked solid
Sheff, Inge, Monroe, and Casey are warming up
Polanco is a beast
Maggs is an animal
I know it was against team that lost 9 of 10, but still the Tigers are finally finding some solid grounds under their feet. Lets just hope they can keep it up.


:djparty:

Why did Balt. try to dis' Sheffield? They threw at him yesterday and since then he is 5 for 5 with 2 dongs. Nice 4-3 win today...Sheff 4 for 4!!!

Why did Balt. try to dis' Sheffield? They threw at him yesterday and since then he is 5 for 5 with 2 dongs. Nice 4-3 win today...Sheff 4 for 4!!!

Mario Impbemba made a comment (with no prior knowledge) about Shef's relationship with Baltimore saying that it is quite possible the bad blood started when Shef was a Yank since New York and Baltimore play each other 17 times a season. Plenty of time to get pissed at one another.

If I start getting into baseball statistics, I'm in trouble.

But, just want to point out that Detroit has 4 players in the top 20 in the AL for on-base-percentage. If this is a slump for Shef, then I'm pretty excited to see what he can really do.

#7- Mags .421
#13 Guillen .402
#18 Polanco .397
#20 Sheffield .383

If I start getting into baseball statistics, I'm in trouble.

But, just want to point out that Detroit has 4 players in the top 20 in the AL for on-base-percentage. If this is a slump for Shef, then I'm pretty excited to see what he can really do.

#7- Mags .421
#13 Guillen .402
#18 Polanco .397
#20 Sheffield .383
I dunno if Mags can keep it up at this rate, but it would be awesome if he can. Sheff's should go up, because he's only hitting .226 at this time and it should get better and his K's should come down with his walks remaining about the same. Guillen is right where he's been for the past few years. And Polanco is the toughest out in the MLB. He only K'd 3 times in over 110 at bats. I just hope that Granderson can inch closer to this group.

aFTER THIS WEEK I GOT TWO WORDS ABOUT THE TIGERS....

WE'REEE BAAAAA-AAACKK!
TRUST ME......

aFTER THIS WEEK I GOT TWO WORDS ABOUT THE TIGERS....

WE'REEE BAAAAA-AAACKK!
TRUST ME......

I sure hope you're correct, sir.

I sure hope you're correct, sir.Tigers win again...17-11!! Hopin 4 a sweep! Playing like the Pistons and Wings, not one player is leading the charge. Pudge went 0-5 vs Royals 2nite, but could go 4-4 with 3 rbi tomorrow!! Go bengals!!

Sheff needs to take his walks. He had 13 during that slump.

6 wins in a row and tied for the 1st. Cleveland finally cooled off. Their pitching is going to give them troubles. I just hope that Tigers pitching can hold up. Maroth is struggling, Durbin only pitched one good game. We need Rogers back in the top shape, and Maroth needs to get it together. The hitting is coming on strong, Maggs has been on a tear. Sheff, Monroe, and Casey are warming up. Polanco is hitting every pitch. Rodriguez cooled off a bit as well as Granderson, but there are enough live bats to keep things moving along. Inge is still struggling, at .160.

Tigers reliever Joel Zumaya is expected to be out for 12 weeks because of a ruptured tendon in his middle right finger. That's a tough loss for the Tigers and it weakens our bullpen and the depth in the bullpen for a little while. Lets see if other guys can step it up.

In other Tigers' news, Ronny should have saved his money:


Former Tiger LeFlore arrested on child support charge - MLB - Yahoo! Sports (http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ap-leflorearrested&prov=ap&type=lgns)

LeFlore was a hell of a story. In and out of jail.

Tigers reliever Joel Zumaya is expected to be out for 12 weeks because of a ruptured tendon in his middle right finger. That's a tough loss for the Tigers and it weakens our bullpen and the depth in the bullpen for a little while. Lets see if other guys can step it up.

Hopefully Mesa and Rodney can fill in meanwhile. Maybe starters will pitch a bit better and put a few more innings in reducing bullpen's load.

Man he must of been holding the ball tight.

What about that guitar game he keeps playing? :crutch: :rapture:

Some encouraging news from the minors:

The Detroit Tigers announced late Tuesday that their 2006 first round draft pick, Andrew Miller, has been added to Erie's roster and will make his first start on Sunday, May 13 in Akron.

Miller has made seven starts with the Class-A Lakeland Flying Tigers in 2007 compiling a record of 1-4 with a 3.48 ERA. His best outing of the season came on April 16 at Fort Myers when he tossed a complete game allowing one unearned run on three hits. In that game, Miller struck out six without issuing a walk.

Only 1 team in baseball has scored more runs than the Tigers this year... the Yankees.

And we have taken the top spot in the division.

Only 1 team in baseball has scored more runs than the Tigers this year... the Yankees.

And we have taken the top spot in the division.
The hitting is going to have to carry the team, at least for a while. The pitchers are struggling and Bondo is going to miss his next start so they bring up a guy from minors.

Good night for Verlander. Gave the bullpen the time they needed to rest. Prior to that the startes have been struggling somewhat. Mesa has been bombarded, does the guy still have anything left to give? I mean he's over 40. We gave him a lot of money, so hopefully he can put it together. Maggs is just unbelievable so far this year. The guy has been an RBI machine. Inge has warmed up quite a bit. Pudge finally put together a few hits, but he's been struggling throwing out base stealers. Maybe it is pitching that is slow delivering the ball, but so far the numbers have been way below his normal production. All in all not too bad. Still in 1st.

Well, this hasn't taken long:

The Official Site of Major League Baseball: News: Major League Baseball News (http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070516&content_id=1968318&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb)


The Tigers will call up first-round draft pick Andrew Miller to make his first Major League start Friday night against the Cardinals at Comerica Park.
Miller will take the place of Jeremy Bonderman, who will be placed on the 15-day disabled list with continued blister problems on his right middle finger.

Rained out today, maybe a double header tomorrow. Boston looks wicked.
Die Yankees Die!
Die Twinkys Die!
Team batting was .230 a month ago now it's .260
ERA has dropped a run too

Tigers lost 3 of 4 in Boston. Boston showed some good pitching. Or Tigers hitting is hitting a pothole. They have been hot lately, but Boston managed to shut them down. Pitching was decent, especially for a Fenway park game. Bullpen has been shaky. Some guys have been good, some have been awful. Ledezma had struggled. Inge is back to his usual form going 1 for 4 in the game with a HR and 3 strikeouts. Sheffield needs to get more consistent, and we need some power out of 1st base. Casey has been hitting better, but mainly singles. We need him to start hitting gappers for 2b hits and drive in some runs. Maroth skipped his start due to flu and Miner started in his place. Pitched decent enough considering that he was called up yesterday night. Only gave up one earned run. Miller will be starting tomorrow for Bonderman.

Boston pitching is monster.
So step into Mariners 16-4. At least the bats warmed back up.

My bad, they were playing the Cards.
And they scored more runs in that game than they did in 5 games of the World Series.
Why would the Cards tear down a team that busted its azzzz to win a World Series?

FIRST QUARTER BREAKDOWN.

RECORD: 26-16

BATTING: team leads all baseball in runs, extra base hits and slugging pct. Remember that the Tigers after 15 games, The tigers had 6 players hitting under .200!! They are now flexible and explosive.

PITCHING: Definetly not as good as last year when we led all of baseball. But considering we started the year without Kenny Rogers and have used an injured Bonderman, Mesa and Zumaja. Our bullpen sans Todd Jones has been unbearable. Grilli and Ledezma need some straighten it out down on the farm, but they can only be released as they are out of options. I believe we have new fresh arms in Miller, Byrdak(33 yrs old with an ox to grind) and Durbin (probably last chance)and we should go with them. Verlander, Rogers, Bonderman, Robertson and maroth are still a solid 6 innings a night though.

PLAYERS:

1. SHEFFIELD. When he got hot, so did the team. That is not a coincidence. The team loves the old man and his plate aggresiveness and discipline has helped the seasonal stats of the men hitting in front and behind him.

2. POLANCO. Mr. Consistency. He's a .300 to .350 hitter. He leads all baseball in average with rinners in scoring position and hitting with 2 strikes. He has fewest strikeouts per atbats in AL. He gets things done.
No errors all year.

3. ORDONEZ. I remember this guy when he played with the White Sox.
2004- .292, 9 hr 37 rbi's ALL SEASON. This year >344, 9 hr 38 rbi's. He has that swagger back and he thanks the good lord that he bats behind Shef and ahead of Guillen.

4. THE GRANDY MANCAN. Curts is the only player in baseball with 7 HRs, 14doubles and 6 triples. He's steady in the outfield and aggresive on the bases. I dont know how good Cameron Maybin is but if he's better than Grandpa, will hav ethe best outfield in baseball.

5. GUILLEN. The lone ranger. just quiet and effective. Always gets the key RBI. We need to get him trained at first base though because his bat is more important with his weak legs.

PITCHERS:

1. JONES. He is fun though. I like his toughness in the 9th. Very wise pitcher.

2. VERLANDER. Getting better and better. will win 20 games this year.

3. ROBERTSON. Keeps us in every game.

4. DURBIN. Suprisingly good in last couple of weeks. I hope his confidence catches up with his talent.

5. ROGERS. In my opinion, doing a great job as pitching coach on the bench. Gives great tips during games and keeps all their heads up.

LEYLAND- This is the man. In spite of poor hitting and a lousy bullpen, he takes it 1 inning at atime. When this team is healthy, we will have more balance all over the field.

record after next 40 games: PREDICTION 27-13 OVERALL 53-29

FIRST QUARTER BREAKDOWN.

RECORD: 26-16

BATTING: team leads all baseball in runs, extra base hits and slugging pct. Remember that the Tigers after 15 games, The tigers had 6 players hitting under .200!! They are now flexible and explosive.
Team batting now .272 only .003 off Boston

PITCHING: Definetly not as good as last year when we led all of baseball. But considering we started the year without Kenny Rogers and have used an injured Bonderman, Mesa and Zumaja. Our bullpen sans Todd Jones has been unbearable. Grilli and Ledezma need some straighten it out down on the farm, but they can only be released as they are out of options. I believe we have new fresh arms in Miller, Byrdak(33 yrs old with an ox to grind) and Durbin (probably last chance)and we should go with them. Verlander, Rogers, Bonderman, Robertson and maroth are still a solid 6 innings a night though.
Mash unit now...but for now team era 4.33 a little better than average

PLAYERS:

1. SHEFFIELD. When he got hot, so did the team. That is not a coincidence. The team loves the old man and his plate aggresiveness and discipline has helped the seasonal stats of the men hitting in front and behind him.
BA .240 now- up from .188

2. POLANCO. Mr. Consistency. He's a .300 to .350 hitter. He leads all baseball in average with rinners in scoring position and hitting with 2 strikes. He has fewest strikeouts per atbats in AL. He gets things done.
No errors all year.
Pitch Crushing Monster

3. ORDONEZ. I remember this guy when he played with the White Sox.
2004- .292, 9 hr 37 rbi's ALL SEASON. This year >344, 9 hr 38 rbi's. He has that swagger back and he thanks the good lord that he bats behind Shef and ahead of Guillen.
PCM

4. THE GRANDY MANCAN. Curts is the only player in baseball with 7 HRs, 14doubles and 6 triples. He's steady in the outfield and aggresive on the bases. I dont know how good Cameron Maybin is but if he's better than Grandpa, will hav ethe best outfield in baseball.
Mr. Clutch
5. GUILLEN. The lone ranger. just quiet and effective. Always gets the key RBI. We need to get him trained at first base though because his bat is more important with his weak legs.
PCM
PITCHERS:

1. JONES. He is fun though. I like his toughness in the 9th. Very wise pitcher.

2. VERLANDER. Getting better and better. will win 20 games this year.

3. ROBERTSON. Keeps us in every game.

4. DURBIN. Suprisingly good in last couple of weeks. I hope his confidence catches up with his talent.

5. ROGERS. In my opinion, doing a great job as pitching coach on the bench. Gives great tips during games and keeps all their heads up.

LEYLAND- This is the man. In spite of poor hitting and a lousy bullpen, he takes it 1 inning at atime. When this team is healthy, we will have more balance all over the field.

record after next 40 games: PREDICTION 27-13 OVERALL 53-29
Nice wrap.
Maroth, return to last years early form.
I'll go 22 and 18 - Mash unit-

Nice wrap.
Maroth, return to last years early form.
I'll go 22 and 18 - Mash unit-22-18????? And who do u expect to get worse than now THEE? Shef? better...Casey? BETTER...THames?..Better..cuz aint nobody getting worse.
Believe me , the party is just gettin STOTTED!!!!:party2:

I'd be on a bit of a cautious side - 25-15. I know the hitters are on fire, Casey is hitting like he is supposed to, Inge is homering, and Sheff has warmed up. But the pitching has not been there consistently. What this adds up to? They could easily go 30-10 in the next 40 or they could be something like 22-18 if the pitching continues to struggle. Outside a couple of guys we have no bullpen, at least they haven't shown us that they can keep Tigers in a close game. Hoping for return of Rogers and Zumaya and moving Durbin to bullpen where he seemed to do better since there wasn't as much pressure on him.

Figure on 24-16 for the next 40. Team chemistry picks up later in the season when Kenny R. returns and Sheffield is in full throttle.........

Bondo said he's pitching the next game. Miller is sent back to minors. Maroth with another bad pitching performance. I wish he could recapture the early season form from a year ago. If this continues, he could be the odd man out when Rogers comes back. Durbin actually pitched better as of late and if he could stay this consistent... Also, Grilli and Ledezma's jobs are no longer safe the way they are performing. We may see changes to Tigers bullpen in the near future if things don't change. Tigers bullpen is 29th in ERA after being in top 5 last season. Maggs has gone off the charts. If he can keep it up I don't think that contract that he signed will ever be brought up again.

Big win over Angels 8-7.
B.Colon is 5 and 1 now. His pitches have great movement but our guys hit it all.

Big win over Angels 8-7.
B.Colon is 5 and 1 now. His pitches have great movement but our guys hit it all.

Mags with two more dingers. Man, he's back to his old self. I guess having Sheff around helps, huh?

I guess the Yankees didn't need his help.

I guess the Yankees didn't need his help.


:pound: :pound: :pound: :pound: :pound: :pound:

Good game beating LA 12-0. Another strong offensive game today. Sheff with a dinger (NY didn't need him :stirthepot: ) and Guillen with a couple of HRs. Ordonez went 4 for 4 and is now leading MLB in RBI. Bondo was good once he was able to get through the first inning, with some luck I might add. I don't know everything, but if he could get through the first inning without trouble on regular basis he'd be a star. His ERA for the past couple of years was around 4.5. I bet he could've been closer to 3.5 without the first inning troubles.
Tigers are now in the 1st place at 29-17 with Indians being right behind them at 27-17.

Tigers are closing in on the top team batting average. Just .002 behing Boston........

Mesa is released. Rodney has been activated and Minor is staying with Tigs for now.

team batting now .285 best in bigs.
Pitching about 4.50 ouch!
Leyland says don't expect to slug your way to playoffs.
KR may be pitching by late June!!!
Sorry to say it but give the Division to Cleveland. Hopefully by late August we will be only 2 or 3 games back.

Robertson couldn't get an out against Texas. He's really been struggling since may.

Robertson couldn't get an out against Texas. He's really been struggling since may.

Nate and Maroth have both been struggling. They both have ERAs over 5. That won't get it done. One of these guys is going to the bullpen once Rogers gets back. I'm not convinced that Rogers will be great, though. At 42, coming back from an injury, I don't know. I know a lot of people want Andrew Miller to be given a shot. Verlander, Bonderman, Durbin, Rogers and Miller? Some pitching changes certainly need to be made in Motown. The lineup seems OK and scoring enough runs. I think Detroit still has a great shot at the Wild Card or the Division. I expect Cleveland to taper off a little.

Nate and Maroth have both been struggling. They both have ERAs over 5. That won't get it done. One of these guys is going to the bullpen once Rogers gets back. I'm not convinced that Rogers will be great, though. At 42, coming back from an injury, I don't know. I know a lot of people want Andrew Miller to be given a shot. Verlander, Bonderman, Durbin, Rogers and Miller? Some pitching changes certainly need to be made in Motown. The lineup seems OK and scoring enough runs. I think Detroit still has a great shot at the Wild Card or the Division. I expect Cleveland to taper off a little.
A lot depends on how Tigers pitching is going to hold up. Can we rely on Durbin to be the consistent starter? Is Miller going to be consistent enough to get us through the playoffs? There are too many question marks at this point.

Tigers place Robertson on disabled list; Miller recalled



ARLINGTON, Texas -- Tigers left-hander Nate Robertson was placed on the 15-day disabled list Wednesday, one day after failing to get a single out in a 7-4 loss to the Rangers.
Manager Jim Leyland said Robertson has a tired arm and Andrew Miller will be recalled from Double-A Erie. Miller will start Sunday against the Mets at Comerica Park.
Robertson, who faced six batters and gave up six runs before begin pulled in the first inning Tuesday, was not available for comment.
Sunday will be Miller's second start this season for the Tigers. He defeated the Cardinals on May 18, giving up four hits and no runs in six innings of a 14-4 victory while filling in for Mike Maroth. Miller is 2-0 with a 0.59 ERA for Erie this season.


Lets see what the youngster can do.

The MLB draft was today, the Tigers had the 27th pick, and the Tigers got one of the best pitchers in the draft.

- Today, they took right-hander Rick Porcello – one of the best players in the draft – with the 27th overall pick.

- Porcello, from Seton Hall Prep in West Orange, N.J., was widely considered the top high school pitcher available, but fell to the bottom of the first round, because of concerns over his high price tag – estimated around $8 million.

- As with Maybin and Miller, the Tigers were able to make the pick because of support from owner Mike Ilitch and an apparent willingness to pay well above the commissioner’s slot recommendation.

- Steve Phillips, the Detroit native and former New York Mets general manager, said Porcello may be the best high school pitcher since Josh Beckett, now the Boston ace.

- David Rawnsley, of Perfect Game USA, compared Porcello to Tigers right-hander Justin Verlander, at the same age. Porcello throws his fastball up to 96 m.p.h., and can "comfortably" throw at 94 or 95, according to the MLB.com scouting report.

- All season fans have descended on Seton Hall Prep for a glimpse of Rick Porcello, the kid with the golden right arm who scouts say is destined for the big leagues. Porcello, the Gatorade National Player of the Year, has dominated like no one else this year, blowing away hitters with a 97 mph fastball with nasty movement and a deceptive curveball.

Great pick by the Tigers, now the Tigers must sign him by Aug. 15, or lose negotiating rights. The future looks bright for the Tigers pitching staff.

Links: NJ.com: Everything Jersey (http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-1/118119034856180.xml&coll=1)

Tigers draft highly rated pitcher Porcello (http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070607/SPORTS02/70607050)

Welcome to www.dailyrecord.com - Updates - Porcello drafted by Tigers (http://www.dailyrecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070607/UPDATES01/706070394)

Tigers still eye gem with 27th (http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070607/SPORTS12/706070374)

All the analysts say that Tigers got the best pick in the draft, that is if they can sign the guy. With Boras it is a big if, but Tigers have been aggressive lately in signing their draftees. Mr Ilich opened his wallet.

Rogers on his way back made his first rehab start for Toledo. Looked solid. Hopefully he can once again bolster that lineup that struggled as of lately. I wonder if that means Maroth's demotion.

Thanks for that Hail73, talk radio said he was done for the year yesterday. I thought the guy was talking out of his ESPN...
Because 2 days ago Rogers said he wanted to test it.

Thanks for that Hail73, talk radio said he was done for the year yesterday. I thought the guy was talking out of his ESPN...
Because 2 days ago Rogers said he wanted to test it.
They were probably talking about Zoom. Because of what Leland said it could've been misconstrued as if Zoom is done for the year. Leland said that there are no setbacks, but also that he is planning this season as if Zoom is done. Which was a bit weird.

True a tendon is much more serious than a blood clot.

Maggs is #1 in ESPN Player Ratings. The guy's having an unbelievable year. Here is the top 100 players as of today:

ESPN - MLB Baseball Player Rater - Major League Baseball (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/playerrating)

Other Tigers on the list:

#8 - Sheffield
#22 - Polanco
#54 - Granderson
#63 - Guillen
#85 - Verlander

Bondo should be #85
Bats are killin' the ball right now. 287 avg.
15 to 7 over Glavin and the tough METs yesterday.

The team is currently batting .293 with Ordonez #1 in MLB at .367 and Polanco #3 at .348.

Justin Verlander just got a no hitter!!!!!!!!

Justin Verlander just got a no hitter!!!!!!!!

You beat me to posting it! :MusicBigGrin:

Go Justin!!!!!!!!! Sweeet

12 strikeouts! The first no hitter since 1984? Wow! By the 7th inning I was nervous.

Boxscore for this gem!

FOX Sports on MSN - MLB - Game Trax (http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/gameTrax?gameId=270612106&FSO2&ATT=MS)

Boxscore for this gem!

FOX Sports on MSN - MLB - Game Trax (http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/gameTrax?gameId=270612106&FSO2&ATT=MS)

MLB - Milwaukee Brewers/Detroit Tigers Recap Tuesday June 12, 2007 - Yahoo! Sports (http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/recap;_ylt=Av6N1hvaZeixVKK2dYX12j05nYcB?gid=270612 106)

Damn, this was in the game notes.

Anyone know the story behind it? I remember pictures of Cecil with his cute little kid back in the day. Wonder what happened?

"Fielder played in Detroit for the first time Tuesday, but not in the stadium where he spent much of his childhood. Fielder was a frequent visitor to the home clubhouse at Tiger Stadium when his father Cecil was with the team between 1990-96. Prince Fielder, who is estranged from his father, did not speak to the media before the game".

Way to go Justin. Hopefully this is a sign of things to come from him.

Way to go Justin. Hopefully this is a sign of things to come from him.

Hopefully. Remember the last Tiger to hurl a no hitter (Jack Morris in 1984) led his team to the World Series title that same year.

Damn, this was in the game notes.

Anyone know the story behind it? I remember pictures of Cecil with his cute little kid back in the day. Wonder what happened?

"Fielder played in Detroit for the first time Tuesday, but not in the stadium where he spent much of his childhood. Fielder was a frequent visitor to the home clubhouse at Tiger Stadium when his father Cecil was with the team between 1990-96. Prince Fielder, who is estranged from his father, did not speak to the media before the game".

I wonder that too. Cecil seemed like a very nice likable guy.

#8 - Sheffield
#22 - Polanco
#54 - Granderson
#63 - Guillen
#85 - Verlander
=
my bad maybe JV is #85

Damn, this was in the game notes.

Anyone know the story behind it? I remember pictures of Cecil with his cute little kid back in the day. Wonder what happened?

"Fielder played in Detroit for the first time Tuesday, but not in the stadium where he spent much of his childhood. Fielder was a frequent visitor to the home clubhouse at Tiger Stadium when his father Cecil was with the team between 1990-96. Prince Fielder, who is estranged from his father, did not speak to the media before the game".
Here's an answer. I just can't believe what's happened to the guy:

USATODAY.com - Poor tale of Cecil Fielder (http://www.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/2004-10-18-cecil-fielder-troubles_x.htm)

Way to go Justin. Hopefully this is a sign of things to come from him.

Hopefully, it is a sign of things to come for ME. I have Justin on my fantasy team.

Here's an answer. I just can't believe what's happened to the guy:

USATODAY.com - Poor tale of Cecil Fielder (http://www.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/2004-10-18-cecil-fielder-troubles_x.htm)

Great find Mikhail. Thanks...for breaking my heart.

Damn...I'm in total shock. I feel really bad for him and his family. That took my breath away. Well, at least Prince can take care of his mom. Prince is smart to keep it quiet.

Great find Mikhail. Thanks...for breaking my heart.

Damn...I'm in total shock. I feel really bad for him and his family. That took my breath away. Well, at least Prince can take care of his mom. Prince is smart to keep it quiet.
Can't say I enjoyed reading it myself. I have a friend who has the same problem. Not to the extent, but non-the-less. He owes me money as well. So I know how out of control their behavior could be. Hopefully Jr can take care of the family.

Good game for Rodriguez today 3-5, HR, 5RBI, 3 runs. Pitching struggled again. We need to get that straightened out. Yanks are heating up, A's are on par with Tigers record-wise. If the bullpen continues to struggle the way to the playoffs may be just a bit to steep to climb this year.

Kenny Rogers will make his first start of the season on Friday when the Detroit Tigers begin a three-game series against the Atlanta Braves.
Link:SI.com - MLB - Rogers to return for Tigers on Friday vs. Braves - Monday June 18, 2007 8:15PM (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/baseball/mlb/06/18/rogers.tigers.ap/index.html?section=si_latest)
AND
The Tigers optioned rookie right-handed pitcher Yorman Bazardo to Triple-A Toledo today and called up right-hander Eulogio De La Cruz from Toledo. De La Cruz hasn't pitched in the big leagues.
link: Tigers call up De La Cruz for bullpen spot (http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070618/SPORTS02/70618047)

Tigers are trying anything to get that bullpen to perform. Can't wait for Zoom to come back, although I guess he can't be back before August. Jones pitched like crap again yesterday giving up 3 runs in one inning. Offense has been carrying the team so far, but their record is nothing to boast about at 40-29 one game behind Indians.

Tigers are trying anything to get that bullpen to perform. Can't wait for Zoom to come back, although I guess he can't be back before August. Jones pitched like crap again yesterday giving up 3 runs in one inning. Offense has been carrying the team so far, but their record is nothing to boast about at 40-29 one game behind Indians.

Maybe they should throw Rogers in the bullpen to be the setup man since it appears some of those losses are occurring in the 7th and 8th innings.

The real issue is that we have not got to the half way point and those "damn yankees' have already shaved five games off the wild card lead with that 9 game win streak. Right now the A's are 2 back, the slumping Mariners 2.5 back and the surging yanks are 4 games back.

The Tigers have to play better and eventually grab first place and try to extend that lead in the fall. No use messing with the yankees in August and September trying beat them out of the wildcard spot

Tigers started bringing guys all the way from AA to try to get the bullpen to perform. Rodney has plain sucked so far this year. Grilli and Ledezma are inconsistent. The only guy that was a constant is Byrdak and who knows how long is that going to last. Also, as Leyland mentioned earlier, the starters are not giving the same innings and performances that they were last year and it puts greater strain and risk on the bullpen. The offense just keeps humming along. Casey with his 1st homer has been hot (but who is not hot on Tigers with more than 1/2 of the batters hitting over .350 for the month of June and Tigers leading the league in batting average?). If offense can sustain this and pitchers get a bit better we should be able to take the division from Indians.

Robertson with a rehab start at AA no hits an opponent in 6 innings of work. Two players reached - one on error one on walk. He also struck out 6.

Tigers O' finally starts to get some recognition:


“The Tigers have tremendous balance and depth all the way up and down the lineup,” the MLB handicapper says. “Left-right, contact-power, etc. It’s almost a dream lineup to manage.”

Magglio Ordonez has been the top offensive player in the majors this year and he’s been even hotter in June, hitting .500 (yep, you read that correctly) to lead Detroit in its run for the AL Central title.

But check out the other Tigers regulars in June: Brandon Inge is hitting .373, Placido Polanco .370, Gary Sheffield (http://www.covers.com/pageLoader/pageLoader.aspx?page=/data/mlb/players/player41518.html) .369, Omar Infante .343, Curtis Granderson .342, Carlos Guillen .326, Ivan Rodriguez .322 and Sean Casey .321.

Craig Monroe, in fact, is the only Detroit player with at least 35 at bats in the month of June hitting below .321.

The Tigers just swept the Washington Nationals, scoring 32 runs over the three games and winning admiration along the way.

"Best team we've seen all year," catcher Brian Schneider raved to the Washington Post after Wednesday’s game, an 8-4 Detroit win as a -196 favorite.

The eight runs was the Tigers’ lowest output of the series and all three games in Washington easily played over the books’ total of 9 ½ runs.

Sports Betting and Gambling Odds Online (http://www.covers.com/articles/articles.aspx?theArt=142411&t=0)

Great game by Rogers today. 6 innings allowing only 2 hits and he had 5 strikeouts. He was going against a pretty good opponet in the Braves too.

Braves now shutout for 3 straight games. Tigs are #1 in the division overtaking Injuns.

Al is still better than NL .543 all time.

The Tigers extend there winning streak to 6 games and Verlander threw another great game, only giving up one run, only giving up 4 hits, and striking out 11 in 7 innings. Hopefully they can sweep the Braves and keep the winning streak going.

These guys look tough going into the all-star game. With starting pitching matching the intensity of hitting, all we need now is for Todd Jones to be less exciting.............

These guys look tough going into the all-star game. With starting pitching matching the intensity of hitting, all we need now is for Todd Jones to be less exciting.............

He's doing his job. Got his 18th save today. The guy, although with extra excitement, gets things done when they matter.

Creeped back in front of Cleve.
Who's your daddy, Cleve?

Creeped back in front of Cleve.
Who's your daddy, Cleve?

Cleveland with comeback yesterday to stay within one game of Tigers. They scored 3 in top of 9th and then Washington screws up the bottom of 9th to run into 2 outs with bases loaded and 1 out. Final 4-3.

Could be back and forth all summer. :-)

Could be back and forth all summer. :-)

I sure hope that with return of Rogers and Robertson, solid pitching by JV and Bondo that won't be the case. But we'll have to wait and see. If the bullpen can develop some consistency we should be able to put some distance behind us.

Hear ya, but Cleve can put up 5 in the bottom of the 9th. Those cats are bad.<[:-E]

They could, but we all know that pitching wins in baseball. I guess the time will show. And our offense is as good if not better than those Injuns.

He's doing his job. Got his 18th save today. The guy, although with extra excitement, gets things done when they matter.

I'm on the fence about Jones. His 18 saves is a good stat, but his 5.46 era is not. This may be his last season if he becomes more inconsistent (entertaining). Just happy that the Cleveland closer is just as entertaining.

I don't think the Indians have the arms we have, but it all comes down to Miller and Robertson for me. If they can be at least mediocre and Zumaya can come back and dominate, the Tigs should be in good shape. I believe the Tigers are taking a big chance with Miller and I don't think Durbin is a great fill-in either. Miner might turn out to be an ace in the hole like he was last year as a fill-in for Maroth.

I couldn't be happier with the offense though. Man, this team can really mash.

Jonesy is what, 38? His time is coming.
:sssh:

Reports in Detroit indicate the Tigers are interested in Rangers relievers Akinori Otsuka and Eric Gagné and Detroit certainly has multiple assets.
The Tigers have an unusual situation -- in fact, the polar opposite of the Rangers. Detroit has an abundance of starting pitching but is not strong in the bullpen. Therefore it would make perfect sense for the Rangers to ship a reliever -- or even both relievers -- to the Tigers for a young starter.
link: Star-Telegram.com | 06/24/2007 | Prospects look good for a deal between Rangers, Tigers (http://www.star-telegram.com/284/story/147546.html)

Q . Surpluses aside, are the Tigers planning any deals for bullpen help as they wait for Joel Zumaya to return?
A . They have talked with Texas about Eric Gagne and Akinori Otsuka.
The Rangers have had an eye on some of Detroit's Class A and Double-A starters. Stay tuned.
Link: Week's trades will shore up Tigers' rotation and bullpen (http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070623/SPORTS08/706230395)

You guys see a possible trade happening???

I was reading takes on the Maroth trade. It's about 50/50, most thought it was too much experience to throw away. And the rest thought it had to be done and lightning would strike again with the PlayerTBNL. Bondo was one of those years ago.
Q---what was Maroths fast ball pre injury? I hear it's mid 80s now.

He's always been in the 80's. His problem is his control. When he hits his spots he's successful. But he can't miss those or he'll get run. It helped to spend time around Rogers. Talking about another slow thrower.

We was about 90-93 last year. I guys couldn't even swing at it.
Filth.

Tigers get bit by the injury bug again:
The Official Site of Major League Baseball: News: Major League Baseball News (http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070626&content_id=2050244&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb)

The Tigers placed reliever Fernando Rodney on the 15-day disabled list, because of tendinitis in his right forearm, prior to Tuesday's game against the Rangers.
Nate Robertson, Tuesday's starter, replaced Rodney on the 25-man roster. Robertson had been on the DL since June 7 with a "tired arm."

Inconsistency in the pitching corps again...or in this case injuries to our arms forces...

7 game win streak in progress including a 12-1 three game shellacking of the Braves over the weekend only to come home and give up 17 runs in two losses to the Rangers???:mad: :doh:

The Tigers have the best road record in the majors at 27-15, but are struggling at Comerica with a 18-16 record. What gives?? Almost reminds me of the dudes up the road in Auburn Hills last year.

All about bullpen. Can't hold leads, can't get through the inning without giving up runs. The offense is not going to average 10 runs per game. Starters had been good enough to win games.

All about bullpen. Can't hold leads, can't get through the inning without giving up runs. The offense is not going to average 10 runs per game. Starters had been good enough to win games.


Should have kept Maroth and used him and Durbin in the bullpen and forget about Rodney and Grilli etc...

The starters need to go at least seven innings instead of six as most of the leads are blown in the 7th and 8th innings. Rodney and Jones have about 9 losses between them and at least 5 blown saves...

Should have kept Maroth and used him and Durbin in the bullpen and forget about Rodney and Grilli etc...

The starters need to go at least seven innings instead of six as most of the leads are blown in the 7th and 8th innings. Rodney and Jones have about 9 losses between them and at least 5 blown saves...
Rodney is on DL. Maroth is a starter, he can't strike people out, so he'd be quite ineffective in bullpen. Byrdak was quite effective until last couple of games. I am not sure if there's an answer other than a trade. I think they should've tried to get bullpen help for Maroth, but I don't believe there was enough time to wait.

Maroth went 7 or 8 innings in his first start for Cards. Gave up one run.

Good thing a game was rained out today. Some extra rest won't hurt the Tigers. Double-header tomorrow.

Creamed 11 to 1 by Twinks.
I bet we hammer them right back today.
10 to 2

With 3 losses in the last four games, looks like the Gambler (Rogers) is the only pitcher who can get anyone out....

Figuring on about 85 wins this season........Would like more, but that's still a good year.

The Tigers added another reliever to the mix of their depleted bullpen, acquiring right-hander Jose Capellan from the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday morning for Minor League left-hander Chris Cody.
The 26-year-old Capellan has spent the past month in the Milwaukee bullpen after being promoted from the rotation at Triple-A Nashville. He's 0-2 with a 4.50 ERA in seven games for the Brewers, scattering 10 hits over 12 innings with six walks and eight strikeouts.
Capellan was a key piece of the Brewers' relief corps in 2006, making 61 appearances and posting a 4-2 record with a 4.40 ERA. However, he was optioned out to Nashville at the end of Spring Training and requested a trade soon after. He was placed on the restricted list later in April after leaving the team for two days, but has had a clean record since.
link: The Official Site of The Detroit Tigers: News: Detroit Tigers News (http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070701&content_id=2059651&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det&partnered=rss_det)

TIGERS CORNER: Uh-oh! Zumaya's return delayed (http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070701/SPORTS02/707010610&imw=Y)
Joel Zumaya's timetable is changing.
The Tigers reliever said before Saturday's game that he might not return until September.

"I was expecting to come back in August, but I'll probably be back in September," Zumaya said. "I'll give it the extra caution if I can get a better feel for my finger. "I know they're trying to see how fast I can get back and be healthy. But I have a second opinion, too, and leaving me out for the extra month of August just so I can say I'm really ready now."

We finally got to see what Bondo can do if he gets through the first inning without troubles. A great game for him 8 innings 6 hits 7 K's with only 1 BB. Thames with the only run of the game on a solo HR. Jones with the surprisingly quick save. Tigers salvage one game against Twins.

We finally got to see what Bondo can do if he gets through the first inning without troubles. A great game for him 8 innings 6 hits 7 K's with only 1 BB. Thames with the only run of the game on a solo HR. Jones with the surprisingly quick save. Tigers salvage one game against Twins.


Bonderman wants to win the internet ballot..........last to make the all-star team..................

We get Injuns next. Our turn to win the series. At home.

We get Injuns next. Our turn to win the series. At home.
The problem is our home record is not championship material. (20-18) and we let the Twins and Rangers come into Comerica and take 4 out of six last week. The Indians are just a shade under .500 on the road, but are playing better ball pitching wise than we have been doing the past week other than Rogers and Bodermans's two recent gems.

The Tigers have to take at least four out of six from the tribe and bosox to go into the Alstar break with some second half momentum and feeling good about themselves. Duplicating last weeks poor effort could put them in danger of relinquishing the wild card spot to the streaking Mariners by the break. (They are only 1 game back right now).

Go Tigers

The problem is our home record is not championship material. (20-18) and we let the Twins and Rangers come into Comerica and take 4 out of six last week. The Indians are just a shade under .500 on the road, but are playing better ball pitching wise than we have been doing the past week other than Rogers and Bodermans's two recent gems.

The Tigers have to take at least four out of six from the tribe and bosox to go into the Alstar break with some second half momentum and feeling good about themselves. Duplicating last weeks poor effort could put them in danger of relinquishing the wild card spot to the streaking Mariners by the break. (They are only 1 game back right now).

Go Tigers

Interesting how the Mariners manager just quit after 35 years in baseball. And when the team was on an 8 game winning streak. Hopefully, they're not too affected..........:pound:

Interesting how the Mariners manager just quit after 35 years in baseball. And when the team was on an 8 game winning streak. Hopefully, they're not too affected..........:pound:
Yeah there is something going on here that is hidden. I wonder if there is an undisclosed health problem that is forcing him out.>??

Yeah there is something going on here that is hidden. I wonder if there is an undisclosed health problem that is forcing him out.>??


Heard he recently bought a ranch in New Mexico. Him and his wife are driving there now.

Aint worrying about Mariners for now. Heck we didn't even need Maroth.
And what is wrong with CoAmer.? I remember Juan Gon. saying move the fences in.
-
As for that coach, I never thought you could fake earning a multi-million dollar contract. If your mind aint into it, people will question you.

TIGERS CORNER: Zumaya news good (http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070703/SPORTS02/707030394/1050)


Joel Zumaya has been medically cleared to start a throwing program and could begin playing light catch as early as today, in the latest development of his closely followed return from finger surgery.
Zumaya traveled to New York on Monday for a follow-up with Dr. Charles Melone that had been moved up from its original July 11 date.

According to an individual briefed on the findings, Melone discovered that Zumaya's right middle finger had healed ahead of schedule.

This team really frustrates me. They are 2-5 against Cleveland so far this season. Really, really tough loss last night. Maybe the toughest loss of the season. Nate Robertson, again, can only go five innings. He is such an inefficient pitcher. 108 pitches in five innings! Geez, Nate, get them to swing at the ball. Quit nibbling.

Hopefully, getting Zumaya back can help this team although I'd like to see Rodney back, too, with his head on straight. I like the fact that Dombrowski has made some trades to try and shore up the 'pen. If the Tigers don't get into the playoffs again this year, it won't be for lack of trying. At this point, however, they wouldn't be favored in a series against Boston, Cleveland or Los Angeles. 81 more games to go. Their first half has been OK, but I expect bigger things in the second half. I think if they get to 95 wins, they're in.

This team really frustrates me. They are 2-5 against Cleveland so far this season. Really, really tough loss last night. Maybe the toughest loss of the season. Nate Robertson, again, can only go five innings. He is such an inefficient pitcher. 108 pitches in five innings! Geez, Nate, get them to swing at the ball. Quit nibbling.

Hopefully, getting Zumaya back can help this team although I'd like to see Rodney back, too, with his head on straight. I like the fact that Dombrowski has made some trades to try and shore up the 'pen. If the Tigers don't get into the playoffs again this year, it won't be for lack of trying. At this point, however, they wouldn't be favored in a series against Boston, Cleveland or Los Angeles. 81 more games to go. Their first half has been OK, but I expect bigger things in the second half. I think if they get to 95 wins, they're in.

Team really should have more wins cause of the high talent level. This is their year to become flakes...........I see 85 wins, but hope that I'm wrong. Talent wise, should be 105............

To tell you the truth gazoo, Nate was inconsistent last year being the 4th pitcher on squad and the team never seem to score any runs when he pitched anyway. They should have kept Maroth on the team and let Nate be the possible set up man. After all it seems he can only go those 2-3 innings but after that??? Maroth seem to be back in the groove after sitting out almost all of last year and suffering those 21 losses back in 2003.

The other thing is Leyland is a good coach, but to conservative for my liking and IMO, he is another Flip Saauders type that means that we can possibly get to the championship, but what will we do when we get there (I guess I can't blame the butter finger pitching collapse on him though)

The other thing that I think I pointed out last week or so is that a 20-19 record at Comerica is something the defending Al champion should be ashamed of. How can you expect to compete for a title when you are just barely making it at home??? 5 more home wins and they would be the best team in the majors (52-29) instead of fighting to hold to the wildcard spot. Weren't they about 40 games above 500 at the end of July last year.

To tell you the truth gazoo, Nate was inconsistent last year being the 4th pitcher on squad and the team never seem to score any runs when he pitched anyway. They should have kept Maroth on the team and let Nate be the possible set up man. After all it seems he can only go those 2-3 innings but after that??? Maroth seem to be back in the groove after sitting out almost all of last year and suffering those 21 losses back in 2003.

The other thing is Leyland is a good coach, but to conservative for my liking and IMO, he is another Flip Saauders type that means that we can possibly get to the championship, but what will we do when we get there (I guess I can't blame the butter finger pitching collapse on him though)

The other thing that I think I pointed out last week or so is that a 20-19 record at Comerica is something the defending Al champion should be ashamed of. How can you expect to compete for a title when you are just barely making it at home??? 5 more home wins and they would be the best team in the majors (52-29) instead of fighting to hold to the wildcard spot. Weren't they about 40 games above 500 at the end of July last year.
Tigers were 30 games above .500 a year ago. But they also had healthy Zumaya, normal Rodney, and they had Walker that held the bullpen together. Their ERA was 3.6, this year Tigers' ERA is 4.4. And that'll do it.

ESPN - Tigers' Perez tests positive for banned stimulant - MLB (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2927670)


Detroit Tigers (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=det) infielder Neifi Perez (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=5702) was suspended 25 games by Major League Baseball on Friday after it says he tested positive for a banned stimulant.
Perez, has appeared in 33 games this season. He is hitting .172 in 64 at-bats with one home run and six RBIs.
"The Tigers fully support Major League Baseball's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program," the team said in a statement.
The 34-year-old seldom-used utility player broke into the major leagues in 1996 with the Colorado Rockies (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=col). He also has played for the Kansas City Royals (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=kan), San Francisco Giants (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=sfo) and Chicago Cubs (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=chn) in 12 seasons.

Now, this is pathetic. Taking drugs and still can't hit worth a lick. I guess we should get off Barry's bashing bandwagon even if he did take stimulants and such.
I think they should just release the guy outright.

ESPN - Tigers' Perez tests positive for banned stimulant - MLB (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2927670)


Now, this is pathetic. Taking drugs and still can't hit worth a lick. I guess we should get off Barry's bashing bandwagon even if he did take stimulants and such.
I think they should just release the guy outright.

Well, at least it won't hurt the team. I agree, release the guy.

Well, at least it won't hurt the team. I agree, release the guy.


Ok.......I'll make some calls. Look for the cut soon.............

Ok.......I'll make some calls. Look for the cut soon.............

I think they have called up some guy from Toledo, their third basemen Ryan Raburn, who might be playing tonight. Got some young, unproven guys in there tonight with Andrew Miller and Raburn. Miller, Bonderman and freaking Nate Robertson going this weekend. No Kenny or Justin. I see Boston taking 2 out of 3 this weekend. They already got us 3-1 this season overall.

I think they have called up some guy from Toledo, their third basemen Ryan Raburn, who might be playing tonight. Got some young, unproven guys in there tonight with Andrew Miller and Raburn. Miller, Bonderman and freaking Nate Robertson going this weekend. No Kenny or Justin. I see Boston taking 2 out of 3 this weekend. They already got us 3-1 this season overall.


But at least Leyland plays the youth........He's not afraid to give the "minutes" to the new/young guys.

He's actually a centerfielder. He was up with Tigers before. Was supposed to be good earlier, but had a bad accident. This year he's hitting .292 with 17hr and 64rbi in 85 games. Looks like Shelton is nowhere nere the last year's form. Only .276 with 8hr 42rbi and 91K's. This way he ain't going nowhere. There's another interesting guy in Toledo - Mike Hessman. He plays 3rd and 1st. He's hitting .269 with 26hr and 84rbi in 85 games. The problem is strikeouts - he's got 110 already. But the power numbers are there for sure.

He's actually a centerfielder. He was up with Tigers before. Was supposed to be good earlier, but had a bad accident. This year he's hitting .292 with 17hr and 64rbi in 85 games. Looks like Shelton is nowhere nere the last year's form. Only .276 with 8hr 42rbi and 91K's. This way he ain't going nowhere. There's another interesting guy in Toledo - Mike Hessman. He plays 3rd and 1st. He's hitting .269 with 26hr and 84rbi in 85 games. The problem is strikeouts - he's got 110 already. But the power numbers are there for sure.

Right, he's an outfielder. I got him mixed up with Hessman.

Nice 9-2 victory over the Bosox yesterday.

Does anybody know whether or not MLB extra innings will offer mid-season discounts like NBA Leage Pass did?

Nice 9-2 victory over the Bosox yesterday.

Great pitching by Miller. Hopefully he can stay consistent.

Great pitching by Miller. Hopefully he can stay consistent.
That was relief, right?
Verlander got the win.

That was relief, right?
Verlander got the win.

Not sure I follow this. Miller pitched 7 innings and got a victory. Bondo pitched 8 innings today gave up only 2 runs (both in the 1st, of course) but didn't get the win, and bullpen held on to win in 13 on Pudge's walk-off single.

Kind of an infuriating win last night by the Tigers, but a win is a win. They had bases loaded twice in the late innings and couldn't push one across. Of course, neither could Boston. Better clutch hitting will be needed in the playoffs. Glad to see they beat Papelbon though. I was wrong about Boston taking 2 out of 3 in this series. I'd love to see them beat the crap out of Dice K today and beat Boston 4 out of 7 this season. I'm surrounded by Red Sox fans and I need some kind of repellent that can clear them out of the way like the little bugs they are.

Kind of an infuriating win last night by the Tigers, but a win is a win. They had bases loaded twice in the late innings and couldn't push one across. Of course, neither could Boston. Better clutch hitting will be needed in the playoffs. Glad to see they beat Papelbon though. I was wrong about Boston taking 2 out of 3 in this series. I'd love to see them beat the crap out of Dice K today and beat Boston 4 out of 7 this season. I'm surrounded by Red Sox fans and I need some kind of repellent that can clear them out of the way like the little bugs they are.

It will be very tough today. Maggs and Polanco are not playing for sure. I am assuming that Pudge is going to get a day off as well after catching 13 innings. And we have Robertson, who struggled lately, starting.

Robertson is the sacrifical lame of the rotation. I doubt he can beat the 1 or 2 of any rotation. Come playoffs I bet he starts first if we are on the road.
Maggs must really be hurt...#$%$^%(
-
Hail73, may I heard wrong.
Zoo, keep up the good fight.

I see Boston taking 2 out of 3 this weekend. They already got us 3-1 this season overall.

Hey, nice prediction. I think Detroit got Boston at the right time. The Red Sox scored only 9 runs in three games against our guys. Not to take anything away from the Tigers, however, who won today despite committing five errors.

For those of you who didn't see it, Granderson made an unbelievable catch today in center field. Look for it on the highlights. You can even see it on ESPN's web site. It was a beauty. Best catch I can remember made by a Tiger.

ESPN - Sheffield, Tigers sweep away Red Sox - MLB (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=270708106&action=playvideo&hcmp=motion)

A good article on MLB.com on Cameron Maybin, one of the best prospects in Tigers farm system:
The Official Site of Major League Baseball: News: Major League Baseball News (http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070708&content_id=2076531&vkey=allstar2007&fext=.jsp)
With Maybin's five-tool talent and instincts for the game, the question with him has never been if he makes the Major Leagues, but when. The aura of inevitability grew stronger when he more than held his own playing regularly in Spring Training, when he was still a 19-year-old.
So far, however, the Tigers have emphasized patience with him. Though his spring performance raised the speculation that he could jump a level to Double-A Erie, he opened for Lakeland and stayed there. In a lot of ways, the experience has been good for him.
Playing in what is considered a pitcher's league because of the jump in talent and big ballparks, Maybin is showing off just about every facet of his game. His .303 average is nearly identical to his clip last year for Class A West Michigan, while his eight homers are one off of his total for the entire 2006 season.

First.............I like the fact that the Tiger players are batting 6th - 7th - 8th in the All Star game. Just hope that Leyland plays all the Tiger players. Also hope that Ordonez hits more HRs in the derby than AP of St. Louis..............

Second............I like the fact that we open up the 2nd half with Seattle.......in their park. They sit just 2 1/2 games behind us for a wild card spot. We get to beat them down to start the season going again.

So Zoo, you beating them down?
Grandersons catch was great but all world?
14 of 19 and 1st place. Hitting our stride.

So Zoo, you beating them down?
Grandersons catch was great but all world?
14 of 19 and 1st place. Hitting our stride.

I'm beating a few down, Thee. Grandy's catch is the best I can remember a Tiger making. I've been told Gary Pettis did better. Actually, my favorite catch ever was Kevin Mitchell catching one bare-handed in left. He reached behind his head and snagged it with his right-hand although all his momentum was carrying him the other way. I wish I could find footage of it.

Tigers finished 28 games above 500 last year at 95-67.

Tigers are NOW 18 games above 500 at 52-34.

Finishing the season by playing 43-33 will give us an identical record as last season.........should be enough for a playoff spot...........:) :)

Tigers finished 28 games above 500 last year at 95-67.

Tigers are NOW 18 games above 500 at 52-34.

Finishing the season by playing 43-33 will give us an identical record as last season.........should be enough for a playoff spot...........:) :)
Currently there are two teams that could potentially create problems - Seattle and Minnesota. Minni always finishes strong, so I would expect a playoff push from them. Oakland is a second half team so we should be weary of them. I don't know whether to count out both Yanks and White Sox. Those teams have some very good players. Sox also have pitching. Maybe a second half push from them as well. If we can play these teams well, we should be in a very good shape to get at least the wild card.

Currently there are two teams that could potentially create problems - Seattle and Minnesota. Minni always finishes strong, so I would expect a playoff push from them. Oakland is a second half team so we should be weary of them. I don't know whether to count out both Yanks and White Sox. Those teams have some very good players. Sox also have pitching. Maybe a second half push from them as well. If we can play these teams well, we should be in a very good shape to get at least the wild card.

Yankees at 42-43......need to go 53-24 to hit 95
victories.......maybe !!!!!!!

White Sox at 39-47......need to go 56-20 to hit 95
victories.......yikes !!!!!!!

Minnesota at 45-43......need to go 50-24 to hit 95
victories.......possible !!!!!!!

Oakland at 44-44......need to go 51-23 to hit 95
victories.......not this year !!!!!!!

To me.........it seems that the Indians and Mariners are the teams to beat...............to make the playoffs............

I saw that catch Zoo.
How about Joe Rudi going up the wall.

We're a half game from having the best record in MLB! The gambler is back. We also have an emerging young pitcher who will contribute more in the 2nd half. Zumaya will be back eventually. Shef was in a slump for the first month+.

All things are pointing to a better 2nd half than 1st half for us.

We're a half game from having the best record in MLB! The gambler is back. We also have an emerging young pitcher who will contribute more in the 2nd half. Zumaya will be back eventually. Shef was in a slump for the first month+.

All things are pointing to a better 2nd half than 1st half for us.
Actually, more than half of the team was in the slump in the beginning. If Monroe back to his normal self and pitching holds up we should win the division.

Detroit Tigers (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/baseball/mlb/teams/tigers) catcher Ivan Rodriguez (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/baseball/mlb/players/4680) has been suspended for one game Saturday by Major League Baseball for his conduct during a game against the Seattle Mariners (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/baseball/mlb/teams/mariners). Rodriguez, who was also fined an undisclosed amount, was ejected from Thursday's game in the fourth inning for arguing that he was interfered with while trying to throw out a base stealer.
The ump was the one who should of been suspended! Pudge suspened for being right, wow.
link:SI.com - MLB - Tigers' Rodriguez gets 1-game suspension - Saturday July 14, 2007 1:11PM (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/baseball/mlb/07/14/bc.bba.tigers.rodriguez.ap/index.html)

Detroit Tigers (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/baseball/mlb/teams/tigers) catcher Ivan Rodriguez (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/baseball/mlb/players/4680) has been suspended for one game Saturday by Major League Baseball for his conduct during a game against the Seattle Mariners (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/baseball/mlb/teams/mariners). Rodriguez, who was also fined an undisclosed amount, was ejected from Thursday's game in the fourth inning for arguing that he was interfered with while trying to throw out a base stealer.
The ump was the one who should of been suspended! Pudge suspened for being right, wow.
link:SI.com - MLB - Tigers' Rodriguez gets 1-game suspension - Saturday July 14, 2007 1:11PM (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/baseball/mlb/07/14/bc.bba.tigers.rodriguez.ap/index.html)


This is some BS, but that is the way things are handled in todays politically incorrect sports society:hanged2:

Pudge suspension: Major BS, but Pudge usually sits out one game per week anyway. Just let him serve the suspension on a planned day off.

Looks like Pudge is appealing. Hopefully he can win.

Pudge played last night. They can't be serious about suspending him for his reaction the other night...he didn't do anything besides argue a horrible call.

Rogers looked terrible last night...the worst I've seen him as a Tiger. 4 walks, no K's, gave up a grand slam to end his evening in the 6th with no outs...he was behind in most of his counts all night.

Ordonez was called for a strikeout by old man Froemming before Magglio showed him the mark on his elbow to prove he got hit by the pitch.

TERRIBLE officiating this series. Froemming should be forced to hang it up.

Shef wasn't going to be denied a run today. Seeing that his teammates can't drive him in he steals home.
That guy was everything and more than we expected. Now with 16 steals. A potential for a 30-30 season.

Tigers beat Mariners to split 4 game series in Seattle and maintain their divisional 1/2 game lead. Verlander goes to 11-3. Not a bad beginning to the 2nd half of the season.

An interesting article on Sean Casey from the Free Press.
CHATTY CAT: Tigers' Casey plays, talks good game (http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070715/SPORTS02/707150552/1048)
Most major league first basemen offer at least some kind of greeting when opposing batters reach first. Then there is the Tigers' Sean Casey, a soft-handed, gap-hitting human Rolodex, capable of recalling minute details about the lives of nearly every player who enters his corner fiefdom.
Or at least it seems that way.

Sheffield fined for umpire comments


Baseball Commissioner Allan H. (Bud) Selig announced today that Gary Sheffield of the Detroit Tigers has been fined an undisclosed amount for his recent remarks regarding umpires.
Commissioner Selig said: "Our highly professional umpires protect the integrity of the game on the field. Attacks on their professionalism and character will not be tolerated."

The Official Site of Major League Baseball: Official Info: Press Release (http://mlb.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20070718&content_id=2094288&vkey=pr_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb)

Almost like Sheed being fined. I can hear Stern saying exactly that - "highly professional referees".
:MusicBigGrin:

Huge series for Tigers. Sweeping the Twins and putting some distance between themselves and Indians. Bullpen is coming on strong. Miner has been a pleasant surprise. McBride just like advertised. Durbin is solid. Jonsey with three straight saves without getting close to a heart attack. If pitching remains this good they should be able to win the league. Offense will score.

Minnesota's bullpen is unbelievable. Tigers for the most part didn't even get a sniff. Nathan made a couple of mistakes and ended up losing the game.

Thames went on the 15-day DL with strained muscle. Monroe is resting his back. Tigers call up Timo Perez from Toledo and he scores a game winning run. Way to go.

Leyland impressed by Perez (http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070720/SPORTS0104/707200351)

Timo Perez isn't comfortable with his English, so he chose not to express how he felt.
But how would you feel if you'd been in the majors for seven years, went back to the minors and suddenly found yourself not only back in a big league game but scoring the winning run in your first game for a new team?
Pretty good, right?
Well, his manager was feeling pretty good about it.
"Why not?" manager Jim Leyland said about starting Perez in left field hours after he'd arrived. "To me, when you get called to the big leagues and get a chance to play the minute you get there, you're ready to go.
"He's a good player. He got a nice hit for us (a single in the eighth). He hit another ball hard, and got a walk to get on and give us the winning run."
Perez was hitting .322 at Triple-A Toledo.
The Tigers purchased his contract and will use him to fill the void created by Marcus Thames' hamstring injury.

One negative surprising note from this series at Minnesota. Polanco twice failed to sacrifice runner to 2nd with nobody out. I would've thought he could lay that bunt down no problem. I bet Tigers are going to work on that extensively during practice time. You have to be able to do those things when you have pitchers like Santana on the mound since you wont' get much. Rabelo actually managed two of those in the third game. One ended up scoring a winning run.

Three one run victories against Minnesota. So they're nine games behind us. That's too close for comfort. (margin of victory)

Three one run victories against Minnesota. So they're nine games behind us. That's too close for comfort. (margin of victory)
Actually, they were 12 games behind last year in August and overtook the Tigs, so nothing is set in stone yet. Yanks are also getting hot, Seattle keeps winning. Need to keep focused and keep winning games.

Sea..............70-82
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I need to update my Sea. Mar. prediction.
89-73

Tigers win 10-8 in the 10th by a Brandon Inge walk-off homer. The Tigers bullpen got the Royals back in it, but at least the Tigers got the win...

Tigers win 10-8 in the 10th by a Brandon Inge walk-off homer. The Tigers bullpen got the Royals back in it, but at least the Tigers got the win...

Just when I thought Jones was back on track he blows a save. He hasn't given up a run in previous 11 appearances. Verlander was shaky as well.

Well, well, well. After sweeping Minni in Minni Tigers come home and lose a series to Royals. Royals are not as bad as they used to be, but Tigers looked tired. There are some grumblings that Tigers spend too much time on community work and don't have enough energy left. Leyland said that he'll try to figure out why Tigers are so much better on the road.
Now the Tigs are off to Windy City for the 5-game series against Sox including a double-header. They are planning on calling up someone from Toledo to start one of the two double-header games.

KC took 2 from Bosox.
They're a tough out.
Let us know when they find out what the CoPark jink is !!!

KC took 2 from Bosox.
They're a tough out.
Let us know when they find out what the CoPark jink is !!!
Tigers struggled at CoPa ever since it's opened. There's a theory that Tigers lineup is full of right-handed power hitters that cause lots of fly balls and with the ballpark being so big they turn into flyouts. The other team's bloops on the other hand turn into hits with outfield playing deep. There are lots of things that are talked about. It just doesn't sound or look right. It would really be interesting to see this team mash at the Tiger stadium.

Just got back from the Tigers-Sox game here in Chicago. That was a roller coaster of a game.

I don't think I've ever been to a game with more hits and runs. At least 5 home runs that I remember and 22 combined runs.

The bad news is that KRog was getting shelled.


How about the hitting from Raburn and Rabelo? Raburn with 7 RBI's! It is always cool to see guys like this make an impression when they get a chance.

Just got back from the Tigers-Sox game here in Chicago. That was a roller coaster of a game.

I don't think I've ever been to a game with more hits and runs. At least 5 home runs that I remember and 22 combined runs.

The bad news is that KRog was getting shelled.


How about the hitting from Raburn and Rabelo? Raburn with 7 RBI's! It is always cool to see guys like this make an impression when they get a chance.

I saw the stat line. I thought we were in when I saw Sheff, Pudge, and Polanco out. But the youngsters came through. Rayburn was Tigers top outfield prospect before he got into some kind of accident. He had one unsuccessful stunt in the majors before this season. If he keeps this up (obviously I don't expect him to hit 2 homeruns in every game) he may be up here to stay. This could make Monroe expendable.

I saw the stat line. I thought we were in when I saw Sheff, Pudge, and Polanco out. But the youngsters came through. Rayburn was Tigers top outfield prospect before he got into some kind of accident. He had one unsuccessful stunt in the majors before this season. If he keeps this up (obviously I don't expect him to hit 2 homeruns in every game) he may be up here to stay. This could make Monroe expendable.

I'd say Monroe is expendable now. I'm willing to take Rayburn right now. Also, amid all that stats from last night was one big goose egg from Ordonez. Hmmm ...

As far as Kenny goes, the guy is pretty old. I haven't given up on him yet but if Miller is pitching well come playoff time, Leyland will have a tough decision to make. Normally, you concentrate on your Big 3 pitchers in the playoffs and allow a fourth guy to start if needed. But I think the days off will be set up so that most teams will be able to use three guys primarily. Whose the Tigers' third guy? Does Leyland go with experience and grit or young and hungry? I just wonder how much Rogers has left in the tank. And Miller doesn't throw enough breaking balls.

I'd say Monroe is expendable now. I'm willing to take Rayburn right now. Also, amid all that stats from last night was one big goose egg from Ordonez. Hmmm ...

As far as Kenny goes, the guy is pretty old. I haven't given up on him yet but if Miller is pitching well come playoff time, Leyland will have a tough decision to make. Normally, you concentrate on your Big 3 pitchers in the playoffs and allow a fourth guy to start if needed. But I think the days off will be set up so that most teams will be able to use three guys primarily. Whose the Tigers' third guy? Does Leyland go with experience and grit or young and hungry? I just wonder how much Rogers has left in the tank. And Miller doesn't throw enough breaking balls.
Unfortunately, Miller's breaking ball is not at the point where he can use it consistently. And being in the majors doesn't give him much time to work on it. All of our starters struggled lately. Offense has been carrying the Tigers for the past week or so. Ordonez will be alright. I didn't expect him to keep hitting at the .380 clip the entire year. As far as Monroe goes, he may not have much trading value at this point. And Rayburn only had a few good games so I'm not sure if I'd be inclined to make a move before the year ends.

KC took 2 from Bosox.
They're a tough out.

But the Yanks have swept the Royals so far this week in KC with no trouble, so go figure. :confused:

The Tigers are heading out west next. Hopefully they will playup to the competition and regain the pitching they had in Minny:pray: Other wise they will return home in second place

The bullpen blows another save. Tigers up by 1 in the 8th lose the game. Can someone on that pitching staff step up and hold the fort? We coud've been close to locking up the division or at least would've had a fairly safe lead on Indians if not for all the blown opportunities. Could've easily been up 5 or 6.

The bullpen blows another save. Tigers up by 1 in the 8th lose the game. Can someone on that pitching staff step up and hold the fort? We coud've been close to locking up the division or at least would've had a fairly safe lead on Indians if not for all the blown opportunities. Could've easily been up 5 or 6.

I said almost the samething in the Detnews Tiger forum this afternoon after the bullpen blew another one. Why Leyland pulled JV after giving up only 2 runs and three hits in 7 innings after the Tiger pitching staff had given up 28 runs in the four prior games to the Chisox is beyond me. I would have stuck with him to the end...

I think the bullpen has blown at least 7-10 saves and another 5 or 6 guaranteed wins and they should have a least 70-75 wins instead of just 60. They could be sitting with a 10 game lead over the tribe and could be coasting into the playoffs with the Yanks, Indians and Mariners fighting it out for the WC. Now they are just another team hoping that they can hold on to the division lead down the stretch..

My view,

Leyland is teaching them a lesson. A reminder about what it takes.

I'd say Monroe is expendable now. I'm willing to take Rayburn right now. Also, amid all that stats from last night was one big goose egg from Ordonez. Hmmm ...For all of Raburn's bat heroics last night, he looked like crap in RF in the 6th. I think Ordonez would have caught that...not to mention Raburn's relay was off-target and way short (the run scored)...it was like he had his eyes closed AND was suffering from vertigo.

I hope the guy does well with the Tigers, but JEEZ...learn to play the field.

I said almost the samething in the Detnews Tiger forum this afternoon after the bullpen blew another one. Why Leyland pulled JV after giving up only 2 runs and three hits in 7 innings after the Tiger pitching staff had given up 28 runs in the four prior games to the Chisox is beyond me. I would have stuck with him to the end...

I think the bullpen has blown at least 7-10 saves and another 5 or 6 guaranteed wins and they should have a least 70-75 wins instead of just 60. They could be sitting with a 10 game lead over the tribe and could be coasting into the playoffs with the Yanks, Indians and Mariners fighting it out for the WC. Now they are just another team hoping that they can hold on to the division lead down the stretch..
Unfortunately JV's pitch count was somewhere around 110. This is only his 2nd full season in the majors and Leyland is big on pitch count. He wasn't going to leave him in especially with Thome coming to bat.

My view,

Leyland is teaching them a lesson. A reminder about what it takes.
What is the lesson going to teach them? Their bullpen struggled the entire season. It is not like everyone else is having an issue. The offense is humming along. Starters sputtered a bit as of late, but that should rectify itself.

When is Zoom coming back?

When is Zoom coming back?
He's supposed to intensify his workouts soon. However, I don't think it is realistic to expect him to come back before September if at all this season.
Rodney is in Toledo for 3 games (tonight, Sunday, Tuesday) to get into working shape again. I wish he could come back to the last year's pitcher. That way he'd be a huge help to the team.

Maroth would have been handy lately too.

Maroth would have been handy lately too.
Now, this is funny. Did you see his ERA with St Louis?

Now, this is funny. Did you see hi