2010 Season, Game Post

Game 2010.052: Indians at Tigers

78 Comments

Armando Galarraga pitches for the Tigers tonight, but if the bats can’t get something going it doesn’t really make that much of a difference does it? The Tigers will face the reanimated Fausto Carmona.

Carmona has his walk rate under 5 for the first time since 2007 and his ERA has followed suit. Unfortunately for the Tigers he is another sinker ball pitcher, the kind they haven’t fared well against at all of late.

Galarraga makes his first start since being anointed the 5th starter with the dismissal of Dontrelle Willis.

78 thoughts on “Game 2010.052: Indians at Tigers”

  1. Dear Armando,
    If you don’t go at least seven innings with giving up one run (whether its earned or not, doesn’t matter) or less, you will take the L. Sorry buddy, we don’t give preferential treatment to anybody, it’s just how things are lately.
    Sincerely,
    The Tigers’ Bats

  3. Talk about quiet bats–The Diamondback and Dodgers are in the 14th right now, tied 0 – 0.

    (Edwin pitched a 9-inning, 3-hit “shutout”).

    1. Coleman, I feel like I don’t even know you anymore with the new avatar…

  5. Since Cabrera is always hitting inning-leadoff HRs anyway, why don’t we just swap his spot in the batting order with AJax? He would get more ABs that way (always a good thing), and think how fun it would be to start off games up 1 – 0 after 1 batter…

  6. With all the Tiger bats cold, except for Miggy……why the heck do they bother pitching to him……it’s not as if he will steal second and/or third.

  8. This sending guys to Toledo thing seems to be working out pretty well. Maybe we should rotate all of our pitchers through there.

  10. I bet there is only about 20,000 people at this game, if not less. A very special game so far.

  26. i’m not even mad at joyce. i feel absolutely horrible for armando, that’s it.

  28. The play at first was not even close……..that first base ump will not get out of town in one piece.

  29. Congrats Armando. You pitched a perfect game. Only thing not perfect was the umpiring.

  31. Arghh! What happened, just pop home, put on the gamecast, walk into THIS and he loses it in the ninth with two down! What happened!?

  34. Unforgivable. Joyce has been a pretty good umpire, but this call was so bad and so ill-timed that he might as well just retire now.

  35. Battlestar had the best perfect game ever thrown. He got 103% of the hitters out.

  36. Could it be that the call was pay-back to the Indians by Joyce for the incorrect safe call made on Damon earlier in the game?

  37. still speechless. watched the replay of the 9th inning on MLB network and it only makes me feel worse for Armando. he’ll never get another chance at that. never.

  38. If there is any justice in this world, that blown call will be turned over by the league. He should be credited for a more than perfect game.

  41. I feel absolutely horrible for Armando. A perfect game is very rare and something which defines a pitcher for years – a pinnacle of a career. To have this taken away by incompetence is unforgiveable.

  43. According to Leyland’s postgame comments, Joyce thought the runner beat the play, no issue about Armando missing the base or bobbling the ball. Does that help any? Not really.

  44. I love how the players stuck up for Battlestar tonight. Just a travesty and he handled himself brilliantly after the game.

    Did Jim Joyce get fooled by the snow cone and think he bobbled it?

    Also, I understand if you are Cabrera that you want to go after that ball but that was a much easier play for Guillen to make. Worst win ever.

  45. Armando, I salute you. A superb performance only tainted by a moron umpire that needs to be fired. 88 pitches….only 21 balls. I’ve honestly never felt so bad after a Tigers’ win. Only game I’ve ever seen with 28 up and 28 down…Armando, you made my night there buddy! …… 🙂

  46. Wow is right……….. By what ever definition you want to go with Armando was completely professional about it. Even though he was wronged he acted decently. Not something we see often these days. I am sick, S I C K about the call. I’m sure there will be a lot of talk about it. Mike and Mike will go all through it, and so will every other sports guy on Thursday. Bottom line, nothing will change.

    Really hard to believe what Joyce was thinking about, love to hear his thoughts. Does the league take a different look at this because it was a bad call to wipe out a perfect game? Does Joyce get suspended? If one of us made a mistake to that magnitude on our jobs, there would be plenty of time spent in our bosses office.

    Ok good night, and I’m still livid about that. Joe average pitcher on the best night of his life, hosed by an ump. Arggggh

  47. Hats off to Armando and the Tigers on a great game as it was still a joy to watch. Despite the call, the team has held their heads high. I hope that all this energy will be channeled into upcoming games. (However, that call did remind me of something to expect from an umpire at a Vicksburg softball game.) This all reminds me of the movie Tin Cup in that this will be the most remembered game that wasn’t perfect. This should be good national exposure for the Tigers and great teams take such events and do better things with them! Let’s see if we can go!

    2. I dug out my 2009 note book and see the notes on Game 92 against the Mariners. During that game, Armando went perfect for 5 innings when he gives up a single. He ends up going 7 2/3 with only one hit and turns it over to Seay who gives up a 2-run homer to Russell Branyon. Tigers lose 2-1. Another should have won!

  48. Official scorer. Do the only thing you can. Give Galarraga an error for missing the bag, which is the only way Donald is safe.

    Thus giving hi the no hitter at least..

    1. Sorry, thought it through. Here’s what should happen. MLB calls Joyce says you need to say Galarraga bobbled the ball, even though he’s already said he didn’t. He’s only told Leyland that.

      Thus the official scorer can change it to an error on the bobble. Scorers do this all the time after reviewing the game and talking to umpires. They have 24 hours to change it.

      Make it happen, doesn’t help the perfecto, but gets Galarraga’s name in the record books as the 7th no hitter in Tiger history

    2. nice idea but it’s not the same. Armando earned the big one – something that’s only happened 21 times in 100+ years of baseball – and had it taken from him. he deserves better.

      1. He does, but nothing short of an act of Congress will get it for him. At least it would go down as a no no, and given special discussion when talked about .

        Now it will be talked about for a week, and then forgotten. Every no hitter is special, and everyone will talk about the missed call, when they do on this day..in baseball history.

        He doesn’t even get that now.

        1. Mark@HOU: Your idea is inane. There’s no need for MLB to make something up in order to make this right. In this case, the truth is the best and easiest solution–the ump got it wrong on the final out of the game and therefore his call should be reversed.

          And before you tell me baseball doesn’t or can’t reverse calls, I’d point you to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pine_Tar_Incident.

  49. From the AP:

    “The veteran ump regretted it.

    “I just cost that kid a perfect game,” Joyce said. “I thought he beat the throw. I was convinced he beat the throw, until I saw the replay.”

    “It was the biggest call of my career,” said Joyce, who became a full-time major league umpire in 1989.”

    http://tiny.cc/6srbb

    1. And credit to Joyce for owning up to it. In the postgame, Battlestar said he aoplogized to him.

  50. Between Marsh and Joyce, umps have cost us a Perfect game and Game 163 in the last 8 months. Can’t imagine any worse combination.

    Feel bad for Joyce. Man this all Donald’s fault why does he have to hustle? He’s not the trying run nor does he bring the tying run to the plate.. Can’t he Manny Ramirez down the line?

    My advice to you is to start drinking heavily.

  51. This just breaks my goddamned heart. It has reduced me to tears. Life is so damn unfair. They should rule this a perfect game. My god, this makes me sick to my stomach.

  52. Ladies and Gentleman:

    The first 28-out perfect game.

    I’m outraged. Jim Joyce needs to makes an official apology. This isn’t just a blown call. This is a blown call of historic proportion. Tonight Armando Galarraga accomplished something only 20 people in this history of the sport have accomplished — and this legacy has been denied to him and to the Detroit Tiger franchise by an egregious error in judgement. The call is so outrageous it is borderline conspiratorial — coupled by an obscenity-laden attitude by Jim Joyce after the fact. As a Tiger fan, I feel violated, am utterly appalled, and demand a public apology.

    Further, the Detroit media must acknowledge the history of this game accurately. If I see one more headline to the effect: Galarraga Perfect Game Broken Up By Infield Hit, I’m going to puke. For once write what happened instead of peddling Newspeak and protecting MLB’s pathetic policies. If the Detroit Free Press et. al do not publicly support Galarraga and at the very least record the accurate history of this game, with the degree of outrage it warrants, they will permanently lose all respect — and patronage — from this reader. I don’t want to hear that umpires are human and make mistakes. Yes, they do. We all know that. We also all know these errors are part of the game. Sometimes, in some situations, the umpires need to be called out for their mistakes. This is one of those situations. Jim Joyce must make it clear to Armando Galarraga and to all Tiger fans — and to all baseball fans for that matter — for the record, that he made an error in judgement that denied Armando Galarraga and the Detroit Tigers a perfect game. I will not be satisfied with anything short — and no Tiger fan should be — Bud Selig and his apathy be damned.

    Be of no mistake: if Jim Joyce made this same call on the 27th out of a perfect game Andy Pettite was hurling at Yankee Stadium, the New York Post and the Newsday and the entire New York media would run both Joyce and Selig right out of town on a rail and would not allow either to return until MLB made this right. Detroit needs step up and do the same.

  53. Two blown calls at first base in the same inning, neither particularly close and the one that ruined a perfect game with at least 6 inches between the runner’s foot and the base. I trust in Detroit baseball fans to never let this fool forget his mistake.

  54. It’s Galarraga’s fault – should have struck him out instead of leaving it in the hands of an inept human. But I did love that priceless look on Galarraga’s face once he saw the ump call him safe – most pitchers would have gone ballistic but G-Man just gave a perfect “Whatchu talkin’ bout Willis?” look with a smirk.

  55. His composure, Galarraga, will be noted around all of MLB. His interviews were perfect, also.

  56. If there is any silver lining, however faint it may be at the moment, but things like this can galvanize a team (wouldn’t you just love to see Miggy get p.o.ed about this and get more locked in than he is now).

  57. Well the next Tigers perfect game I’m watching, I’ll remember where I was when they bring up Galarrage being ROBBED in the summer of 2010. Assuming I’ll ever see a perfect game by a Tigers pitcher, I mean it’s happened three…errrr….twice this year already and twenty times in history.

Comments are closed.