Game 2012.9: Tigers at White Sox

5-3, 2nd place, .5 games behind CWS

Several things came to an end yesterday. The Tigers will not go wire to wire this year a la ’84 (though 35-5 still remains a possibility). The Tigers will not win every series this year. The Tigers will not go all season without back to back losses.

But we did see a strong performance from Adam Wilk before Fielder knocked him out of the game with a line drive to the shoulder (unintentionally, I think). Wilk will be a great spot starter and could get some innings if Smyly doesn’t pan out.

Rick Porcello climbs the hill today looking for his first W, and trying to notch the first W of the season for the starting pitching.

At DH, Brandon Inge, batting 8th. Inge, batting 8th. A lineup like this lineup against lefties could spell trouble this season.

1. Jackson, CF
2. Santiago, 2B
3. Cabrera, 3B
4. Fielder, 1B
5. Young, LF
6. Raburn, RF
7. Peralta, SS
8. Inge, DH
9. Laird, RF

2:10 PM ET Start

86 thoughts on “Game 2012.9: Tigers at White Sox”

  1. Which is worst, Inge batting 8th, or Raburn batting 6th? And bringing his clown show to RF? If Inge spends the season pinch-hitting and DHing we are in huge trouble…

    1. It looks like Smokey wants to hand the Sox the sweep ….. with the line-up he is fielding today!

      1. Why the h#&& is Kinge the DH ….. look at what he did/didn’t do in his first at bat!
        What is Smokey puffing on now?

  2. Jim Price is still out on sick leave. Will be out until Thursday when the Rangers come to town. Dan Petrie will be standing in for Jim while the Tigers are in Kansas City. Best wishes for speedy recovery.

    1. lets see Boesch raises his average 50 points this week..better give him the day off…Raburn is 2 for April…keep playing him….he’s due…and as a side note start the other two Mendosa brothers Inge and Laird as well…..wow

    2. Is it because of his cancer treatment? Or maybe he just got the bug that was going around the clubhouse?

    3. Dickerson has been phenomenal riding solo. I like Jim Price, but we’re lucky to have Dan.

    4. One of the great joys of Tiger baseball this year: watching Prince Fielder run the bases 🙂

        1. He’s feeling the pressure, looking back over his shoulder…The Inge is back, waiting to steal his job.

  3. Am I the last one to figure out that the Metro Detroit Chevy Dealers radio spot is making fun of Leyland?

  4. A little scare there, but Porcello very efficient: only 51 pitches through 5 IP.

    1. I like the good example he sets running the bases hard every time ….. even on ground outs at first!

  5. is this considered a clown show offense when you have to rely on the other team to wild pitch in your runs???

    1. Out of 11 ground ball outs total. Anybody know what the record is for pitcher assists in one game?

  6. this is why I gotta question Leyland. this seems to happen all the time. he takes the starter out, who’s basically doing fabulous, and brings in a reliever who starts walking guys……..grrrrr………

    1. To be fair, Porcello was at 99 pitches and Leyland seems to be on the conservative side with pitch counts for starters so far this year. Also, he seems to have been kind of conservative with Porcello in the past anyway.

    2. Nothing wrong with the decision to pull Porcello. Before the HR, Fukudome hit a rope that would’ve been a double if not for the a real nice play by Cabby. Benoit is pretty dependable and he is coming in fresh. Porcello pitched a great game, no need to let him spoil it for himself as Verlander did on Wednesday.

      What I have a quarrel with is not leaving Benoit in to pitch the 9th. Once we got up four there is no need no need to waste Valverde. Add to that the fact that Valverde doesn’t pitch well in non-save situations and its a head scratcher move by Leyland. This “well he got loose in the bullpen so I’m gonna use him” mentality is pure bullheaded thinking on Ol’ Smoky’s part. How many times does Papa Grande need to demonstrate to Ol’ Smoky that he is not sharp in non-save situations before Ol’ Smoky gets it??

  7. From a strategy perspective, the best thing to do here is to score 1 run (1 BB and 3 WP would do it) to preserve the save opportunity for Valverde, providing just the right amount of cushion while not putting the Big Potato outside of his comfort zone.

  8. ok, Papa…….follow the one rule all closers / relievers gotta follow: THROW STRIKES!!

  9. Tigers are making the White Sox feel like contenders in the AL Central

  10. Steve Stone is a saint for what he puts up with everyday. 4 innings is my Hawk tolerance for the year.

    1. Hawk makes it real easy to root against the White Sox. He really grates one’s nerves/patience if you are not a diehard ChiSox fan.

      1. My favorite least-favorite thing: “stay fair!! dagnabit!!” when someone yanks a ball 30 ft foul.

        On the other hand, he played golf with Jackie Robinson once, so there’s that…

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