Comments on: Game 2009.022: Indians at Tigers

By: Willis does not appear ready yet » Mack Avenue Tigers : A Detroit Tigers Blog

Sat, 02 May 2009 20:52:56 +0000

[...] from the comments on the Detroit Tigers Weblog site, reports: I just watched Willis pitch at Lehigh Valley. What wasn’t encouraging was his [...]

By: stephen

stephen — Sat, 02 May 2009 17:35:52 +0000

Kurt, that’s a very good point.

By: Kurt

Kurt — Sat, 02 May 2009 17:19:20 +0000

Obviously he’s a professional athlete and you think there should be some expectations of staying in shape that go with that.

… But I just wonder if the anti-anxiety drug is causing him to put on weight. I know that’s a side effect to some of them.

By: mcb

mcb — Sat, 02 May 2009 17:08:49 +0000

Ok, point taken!

By: stephen

stephen — Sat, 02 May 2009 16:16:34 +0000

A final note on Willis. I didn’t talk to him, but watched him warm up and that’s where I noticed him trying to psych himself up and convince himself playing baseball was still fun. He threw a lot more strikes as the game went along, but he was throwing mostly in the mid 80s. Now I didn’t see him in spring training, but he looks like he’s as heavy as I’ve ever seen him. I’m all for him getting help for his anxiety, but he’s got to take some responsibility and get in better shape. Sure, Sabathia and David Wells were huge and still got the job done, but there’s also the Bartolo Colons who wasted prime years at least partially because they were overweight.
I would say the most disturbing thing about the game was the IronPigs’ ‘Swing For Swine’ charity drive. (Talk about bad timing!). Oh yeah and they don’t shoot t-shirts into the crowd, they should actual hamburgers. I am not making this up! There’s all you can eat BBQ and the crowd chants ‘Oink, Oink, Oink’ during rallies. If the cleanup hitter gets an rbi, everyone gets free Arbys so the crowd chants ‘Roast Beef, Roast Beef,’
Seriously, they should give an angioplasty with every ticket.

By: rings

rings — Sat, 02 May 2009 13:37:31 +0000

I think many of the Tiger hitters are giving away ABs…led by Miggy, who looked more locked in during his 8th inning AB (even before he hit the dinger, he took a few borderline pitches to get an offering he could drive). They look to me like they need a little something to wake them up and get them locked in. They can’t afford to be playing bad baseball the next two weeks.

By: Adam

Adam — Sat, 02 May 2009 04:11:53 +0000

That’s two games in a row where we have a five-run inning against a bad bullpen and still lose.

Pitching, anyone?

By: David

David — Sat, 02 May 2009 03:10:46 +0000

Sooo close and yet so far. I’m going down tomorrow, anybody else?

By: Coleman

Coleman — Sat, 02 May 2009 02:52:53 +0000

@!##*%! the 5th!

OK, here’s a nugget for y’all…

So far today Inge has had 3 AB; one bad one (K), one decent one (hard line drive), and one great one (double). The K was in the 5th inning. Why do I mention that? Because his BA for 2009, in the 5th inning, is .000, OBP .111 (with 3 K in 9 PA).
(OK now he’s had 4, including a K in the 9th).

His BA/OBP if there weren’t any 5th innings would be .349/481 (before the double).
(Overall career he is .238/.307…career in 5th innings he is .217/.284).

Not only that, but DET as a team in 2009 is .178/.262 in 5th innings (even with Inge’s numbers taken out they are only .194 BA), easily the worst in the league (OAK is next at .211/.291).

Leyland’s a crafty old-timer; now’s the time for him to pull out the tricks and figure out a way the team can go straight from the 4th to the 6th inning…

By: billfer

billfer — Sat, 02 May 2009 02:45:15 +0000

As did the 5 that Galarraga gave up.

By: mcb

mcb — Sat, 02 May 2009 02:37:32 +0000

That run Nate gave up proved costly.

By: Coleman

Coleman — Sat, 02 May 2009 02:36:00 +0000

Last season when we got on a run of GIDPs I half-jokingly suggested changing the batting order…you know how Leyland like to have R-L-R-L as much as possible, instead maybe have the batting order alternate between Fast guy-Slow guy-Fast guy-Slow guy, that way in potential GIDP situations either the guy on base or the guy at bat puts pressure on the infielders to turn the DP well or one of them beats it out.

Now I’m thinking they need to do this, and I’m only tenth-joking…

Look at it this way: You take player A: team high OBP, weakness is speed on the bases. You take player B: has been dependable RBI guy but has a high GIDP rate; in addition his running ability is hampered by injuries. Bat player B after player A. Sit back and watch GIDP records fall…

By: Russ

Russ — Sat, 02 May 2009 02:25:01 +0000

@Kyle J: There’s that too. Odd logic.

By: Coleman

Coleman — Sat, 02 May 2009 02:23:24 +0000

The thing about Carlos is he is hitting GIDP balls even when there are 2 out or nobody on base so it’s not bad luck, he’s just hitting a bunch of ground balls to SS and 2nd, whether he gets a GIDP or not just depends on what happens before he bats.

By: Kyle J

Kyle J — Sat, 02 May 2009 02:22:15 +0000

Russ: No explanation other than Leyland’s strongly-held belief that moving a guy out of his established spot in the batting order will somehow screw up his swing.

My bigger gripe is why Guillen’s in the lineup at all. The achilles thing is clearly affecting him at the plate. Sit him until he’s healthy.