Comments on: Game 2009.157: Twins at Tigers

By: Vanguy

Vanguy — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 07:24:29 +0000

Nothing quite like a pennant race

By: Jeff

Jeff — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 06:28:35 +0000

Edit: oops, this was sposed to be a new post.

Refusing to pitch your excellent left-handed relievers in either of the two games close in the late innings vs. Mauer and Kubel… well, I guess it’s not surprising.

To quote the “The Referee Pitman Show” from SNL, I was just curious – what’s in Leyland’s head, you know, since there’s no brain? I mean, is it empty, or is it filled with, say, human excrement?

By: Jerry the Tiger Fan

Jerry the Tiger Fan — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 05:34:15 +0000

My vote would be for Maggs. His hit in the third inning was John Holmes huge in magnitude. It took a lot of pressure off the ballclub early in the game. If they don’t score there, it makes every pitch from Verlander fraught with tension. That gave JV some relief mentally so that he didn’t feel like the weight of the world was riding on every pitch (which it would’ve been as the game wore on and if the Tigers were only clinging to a one-run lead). To me that was the key hit of the evening, although Grandy’s HR and Inge’s double were also big.

By: Jerry the Tiger Fan

Jerry the Tiger Fan — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 05:28:12 +0000

C’mon mark, we all know that Rodney struggles in non-save situations. You have to admit that he is pretty solid in save situations, as he once again proved tonight. He got five outs in my mind, because his defenders let him down twice. There was exactly one hard hit ball among the five batters he faced and that one should’ve been caught by Granderson. It wasn’t routine, but it was play that should be made by an aspiring Gold Glove centerfielder (as Rod Allen constantly likes to tout Granderson as being). Rodney should’ve been out of there 1-2-3 in the ninth tonight but his teammates decided to make things dramatic, not Rodney. Rodney was nails tonight.

By: Jerry the Tiger Fan

Jerry the Tiger Fan — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 05:21:27 +0000

Uhh…….yeah he’s appreciably better than Maggs defesnively. I think even Stevie Wonder can see that when he attends Tiger games. Let me ask you a question: With a two run lead late in the game with two men on do you want Maggs or Clete tracking a deep fly ball to right-center field? If you answered Maggs, it might be time for a visit to the optometrist. (I’m really not trying to be nasty, but c’mon Mike. Was that a serious question?)

By: Big Game James

Big Game James — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 05:09:51 +0000

I second the thumbs up. Where would the Tigers be without Rodney? He has gone from “high upside” to indispensable reliever. Never thought I would type that.

Lyon was a heart breaker today. I don’t see him being resigned but I wonder if Rodney is playing his way to another Detroit contract?

Way to go Tigers! A win when they needed it most!

By: Jerry the Tiger Fan

Jerry the Tiger Fan — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 04:57:00 +0000

Just got back from watching the game at a buddy’s house. Not to pat myself on the back, but I said in the thread from the first game that if the Tigers were going to win tonight that the hitters were going to have to get it done. I’m happy to say that the hitters did their job tonight and……….tada! They won the game. The hitters will determine if we actually win this, not the pitchers. Our guys have to put runs on the board the next five days (by runs I mean more than two in a game). We’ve been held to two runs or less 43 times (I think that is the number) this season. That number needs to stay unchanged between now and Sunday. Our pitching is good enough that if we just score four-five runs per game we will be fine. I knew Verlander wasn’t going to shut down the Twins because they are just too good. Bonine is not going to totally shut them down either, he just needs reasonable support from the hitters. Hopefully the guys do not let Pavano get in their heads and come out attacking him tomorrow right from the jump. Its on you Tiger hitters, can you give us an offensive attack like we saw in the nightcap of the DH today? That is what it is going to take in order to be crowned AL Central division champs.

By the way, big thumps up to Rodney tonight. He essentially got five outs. Unbelievably shoddy defense in the ninth tonight from two normally reliable Tiger players. If Magglio or Guillen had botched that line drive that went over Grandy’s head I wouldn’t have been shocked in the least. To have the normally sure-handed Granderson let a ball get over his head like that was shocking. Memories of Grandy slipping and falling in CF in STL in the 2006 World Series came flooding back. Polanco also had a poor day defensively. There was the play in the ninth inning of tonight’s game, but he also let two ground balls get by him in the afternoon game that he normally gets to (they were ruled base hits). A weird, stressful day and night of baseball. The good news is that we didn’t lose any ground, but the bad news is that we didn’t essentially end the season for the Twins (which was possible with just a smidge of clutch hitting in the early innings of Game 1).

By: Coleman

Coleman — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 03:44:33 +0000

I can’t wait to hear your rationale…

It’s one of the occupational hazards of following the Tigers from the West Coast…I mean I just finished dinner.

You, you’re just up late (like I usually am, but not quite late enough to catch the first morning posts…)

By: Chris

Chris — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 03:23:15 +0000

Man, I’m glad they managed a DH split w/ Pavano pitching tomorrow… Span is our worst nightmare. That guy has almost singlehandedly killed us… One more win in this series and the odds are stacked hard against the goddamn Twins… I just want them gone

By: Stephen

Stephen — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 03:11:38 +0000

I think everyone else is asleep besides us, Coleman. I vote for Vance Wilson.

By: Coleman

Coleman — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 03:06:36 +0000

What do y’all think?

I’m actually leaning toward Cabrera–because the way things have been going for Detroit, it would have been a real burden trying to come back from behind; this is one case I think that scoring first was almost bigger than scoring in the 9th…

By: Coleman

Coleman — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 03:02:16 +0000

The worst weather for baseball: climate-controlled, tuna-casserole-scented, perfectly-dry Humpdome-terrain..

By: TC Chris

TC Chris — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 02:58:23 +0000

I don’t get to see many tiger games. That may be a good thing. I don’t know how somebody could watch that day in and day out. That’s exhausting.

Hope the MLB network puts Rod and Mario on tomorrow instead of the Twins announcers (who aren’t terrible at all).

By: Brenden

Brenden — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 02:45:49 +0000

Nice…

By: jason

jason — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 02:39:58 +0000

I think the weather was perfect weather for baseball tonight.