ALDS Game 3: The day after

After his warm-up tosses in the bullpen, Rogers made his way down the leftfield line and politely tipped his cap to the Tiger faithful offering encouragement. At the end of the game he thrust his hat into the air to the Comerica faithful offering thanks. The Tigers offense mixed in some key hits from the mid to bottom of the order. CG-2, Carlos Guillen and Curtis Granderson continued their hot hitting while Pudge Rodriguez found a level of comfort with 2 hits and a walk.

Some other thoughts on the game:

  • Al Kaline threw out the first pitch. When his name was announced the Tigers warming up in the outfield stopped their running and stretching to applaud for Mr. Tiger. Kaline threw from the actual rubber, and looked up to see what the radar gun clocked him at.
  • Rogers was awesome the whole game, but he seemed to get another rush of energy after fielding a Derek Jeter bullet through the box. He responded by throwing a 92mph fastball. From that point on he seemed stronger than ever.
  • As dominant as Rogers was, he continued a trend among Tiger starters. They’ve yet to pitch a 1-2-3 inning in this series.
  • Inge is struggling to say the least. He added to his woes last night with 2 K’s and a popout while looking completely perplexed.
  • Lineup order doesn’t seem to mean nearly as much when you win does it? Both managers changed their lineups. The Tigers seemed to work, but the Yankees not so much. Then again, did it matter who was hitting against Rogers last night.

What others are saying

WasWatching.com

Actually, if Wright can go a solid 5 tomorrow, Proctor should be good for two and Farnsworth and Rivera can chip in one inning each. But, the Yankees still need to score some runs to force a Game 5 back in New York.

Baseball Toaster: Bronx Banter

The worst case scenerio reared its ugly head tonight for the Yankees as Kenny Rogers, the consumate October choke-artiste, came up aces for the Tigers, throwing the best money game of his career. It was nothing short of Ripley’s I tell you and I can’t recall being more livid watching a game all season. Rogers had a nasty curve ball that he used for a strike-out pitch, to go along with his normal assortment of slop. His control was excellent and he had the Yankees at his mercy. Did he make a deal with the Devil? This certainly wasn’t the Kenny Rogers we knew in New York.

New York Daily News – Baseball – Bill Madden: A beautiful day for Mr. Rogers

What we do know is that it was quite a confluence of fractured and frayed personalities around Joe Torre last night all seeking to atone for their Yankee postseason failures – Randy Johnson, Alex Rodriguez, Gary Sheffield and, above all, Rogers. And what an awful night it turned into for the Yankee manager, who placed his faith in Johnson and Rodriguez, and bit the bullet on Sheffield in favor of his pet vet Bernie Williams, only to get tortured by the 7-2/3 shutout innings of pitching by Rogers – who he once said “lacked confidence” and was “one of the toughest players to read.”

Carlos Guillen is showing the country that he shouldn’t have to take a back seat to Derek Jeter. He is now 5 for 10 with 2 walks in the series. Another one who is showing off his stuff is Curtis Granderson. Granderson capped the scoring with a solo home run in the 7th. He is now 6 for 12 with 2 homers in the series.

Mack Avenue Tigers: A Detroit Tigers Blog » ALDS Game 3: Rogers throws game of his life

The dream season that we thought had slipped away is no longer a dream. This is October. Now it’s a reality. That was Ernie Harwell’s voice coming from your television and radio, bridging the years. That was Chet Lemon’s name you heard mentioned when Curtis Granderson hit two home runs in a series. That was playoff baseball at its finest.

AMAZING! – 10/07/06 – The Detroit News Online

The Tigers brought playoff baseball back to Detroit after a 19-year wait, and the pent-up spirit, from the stands to the base paths to the pitcher’s mound, was overwhelming. On a night when Yankees legends flailed and Tigers legends grew, the Tigers graphically showed why they’re here — and why they just might stick around.

DREW SHARP: Rogers, fans enjoy overdue playoff feast

Starvation assumes all new dimensions when you’ve waited 19 years for even the tiniest bite. Detroit gorged itself Friday. A city that had long forgotten the emotional timbre of hosting playoff baseball swallowed the moment whole, without chewing.

ESPN.com – MLB/PLAYOFFS2006 – Crasnick: Yanks pinning hopes on Wright and dormant bats

The New York players are too seasoned and businesslike to send out negative signals. But there was some blunt talk in the clubhouse about the need to show energy and get the old swagger back.

4 thoughts on “ALDS Game 3: The day after”

  1. The Yankees were 0-for-18 in 18 PA with runners on base. I’ve seen pitchers allow fewer baserunners than Rogers, but Rogers may have set a record with that statistic. He looked like Warren Spahn out there, giving fits to the Yankee lineups of the ’50s.

  2. My least favorite comment from that Yankees weblog you linked: “and having the old man in the booth (and thus paying NO attention to the game being played) was the WORST!”

    They want to mess with Ernie? Ernie’s in good with the Lord, the Yankees fans will be smited (smote?) down bigtime for that.

  3. Again, Billfer, terrific job with the collection. Thanks so much for your good work!

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