Well, Rick Porcello did his part, the bullpen held on in roller-coaster fashion, and the Tigers head into the fur game of the 4-game series only 1/2 game behind the Indians in the Central.

Fur game because the performance of Furbush will be key tonight;  with Valverde done until the break and Alburquerque out until the break, the bullpen is a bit light right now, and Furbush is on a limited pitch-count.  If Furbush and the Tigers do come through tonight, they head into the first-half finale with none other than Justin Verlander holding the broom, and with 1st place in sight.

The Royals will turn to Luke Hochevar, who may look a bit nervous as the 5th inning begins–in his last start he gave up a 5-run 5th.

As noted yesterday, Austin Jackson will be kept out of the starting lineup for the rest of the series with wrist soreness (he will be available for defense and pinch-running).  Tonight Casper takes his turn haunting CF.

Today’s Player of the Pre-Game:  Don Kelly

They pitch around V-Mart to get to Kelly, and The Donkey makes them pay

Today’s All-Star Peralta Gets the Dhay Off Lineup:

1. Andy Dirks LF
2. Ramon Santiago SS
3. Brennan Boesch RF
4. Miguel Cabrera 1B
5. Victor Martinez DH
6. Don Kelly 3B
7. Alex Avila C
8. Ryan Raburn 2B
9. Casper Wells CF

Last night Max Scherzer came through with a sparkling performance after falling apart the start before against the Giants.  Most impressively, he walked none, only getting to a 3-ball count 3 times.  This followed another solid outing by Brad Penny, who shook off a 4-run first to grind out a win.  Tonight is Rick Porcello’s turn to follow up the success of his last outing where he was wild but won.  Another good go by Porcello, and suddenly the starting pitching could begin to once again look like a strength of the team.

Porcello will by opposed by Kyle Davies, who has been having all sorts of trouble (1-7, 7.77), including rotator cuff inflammation.  In his April 13 start against Detroit he didn’t make it through the 4th inning.

And speaking of pitching, Jacob Turner, who began the season as Baseball America’s 21st ranked prospect, has jumped up to 11th in their midseason rankings. If the rotation continues to improve, and with Coke stabilizing the bullpen and Turner in the wings, is it possible the Tiger shopping list might veer away from pitching toward a position player?

Today’s Player of the Pre-Game:  Andy Dirks

Austin Jackson will miss the rest of the KC series with a sore wrist.  Dirks will try to hold down the fort in CF and takes over leadoff duties.

Today’s They Must Be Saving Kelly for the Bullpen Lineup:

1. Andy Dirks CF
2. Brennan Boesch LF
3. Magglio Ordonez RF
4. Miguel Cabrera 1B
5. Victor Martinez DH
6. Jhonny Peralta SS
7. Alex Avila C
8. Ryan Raburn 2B
9. Brandon Inge 3B

The Tigers start a 4-game series tonight in Kansas City, which currently has the worst record in the American League, so now might be a good time to find out if the Tigers have actually been struggling lately, or have just run across some very good opponents.  Avila, Cabrera, Verlander, and Valverde get to wear special stars on their hats and jerseys for the series because they are special.

The Tigers managed to salvage the last game of the Angels series when Miguel Cabrera woke up from a week long nap (.130) in time to hit a 2-run home run, and after Bad Penny re-emerged in the 2nd inning as Shiny New Penny, after going Bonderman in the 1st inning.

Max Scherzer continues his quest to become the first Tiger pitcher ever to win 20 games with a 5.00+ ERA (9-4, 4.90).  His last outing he was bombed for 9 runs by the Giants during Rick Knapp’s going away party.

Detroit will be up against the dreaded Rookie Pitcher Guy, who has dominated them the past few seasons.  Tonight’s version is named Danny Duffy, and he brings a 1-3 record and 5.09 ERA into the game.  As if statistics matter when you are facing Rookie Pitcher Guy.

In other news, Carlos Guillen, who reportedly will re-join the team after the All-Star break, is hitting .176 (3-for-17) in his Toledo rehab stint.

Today’s Player of the Pre-Game:  Victor Martinez

Victor gets an All-Star vacation after finishing 2nd to Paul Konerko in the last-guy-in All-Star voting.  Tonight he takes it to Rookie Pitcher Guy.

Today’s Avila-Sandwiched-Between-2-Slices-of-Whiff Lineup:

1. Austin Jackson CF
2. Casper Wells LF
3. Magglio Ordonez RF
4. Miguel Cabrera 1B
5. Victor Martinez DH
6. Jhonny Peralta SS
7. Ryan Raburn 2B
8. Alex Avila C
9. Brandon Inge 3B

I chose to watch the alternate baseball reality version of yesterday’s game, where the Tigers were rained out in the 3rd inning.  No word so far on the makeup date.  I hear there was another version of the game played;  I hope I didn’t miss anything.

The Giants wield the interleague brooms today as they go for the sweep of the 3-game series, which concludes the both the homestand and the 2011 interleague schedule.

The matchup looks favorable for San Francisco. The surprising Ryan Vogelsong (6-1, 2.09) takes the mound for the Giants against the equally surprising–and not in a good way–Rick Porcello.  Kid Rick (6-6, 5.06) has allowed 18 runs in his last 11 innings, and concedes that he has hit a “bump in the road.”  Porcello attempts to smooth the bumps today, and keep the Tiger rotation from devolving into Verlander then Head For Cover.

Adam Wilk was recalled from Toledo to bolster the beleaguered bullpen. (The phrase beleaguered bullpen has been used so much for the Tigers this season that they might want to look into a trademark). To the surprise of no one, Villarreal was sent down.

In other news, the Tigers signed Adelin Santa, a 16-yr old Dominican 3rd baseman, known for his raw power and arm strength. In the meantime, Adam Everett is always available–he was just released by the Indians.

Oh, and by game time today the final results of the All-Star voting should be public.  Go Alex!

Update:  Alex Avila has been voted as the American League starting catcher for the All-Star game (fireworks). Miguel Cabrera, Jose Valverde, and Justin Verlander have also been named to the team.

Today’s Player of the Pre-Game:  Don Kelly

Yes, the Donkey is not in the lineup.  But after catching last night, Kelly has now played all 9 positions in the major leagues.  Today he takes over as manager.

Today’s Broom-busting Lineup:

1. Andy Dirks CF
2. Brennan Boesch LF
3. Magglio Ordonez RF
4. Miguel Cabrera 1B
5. Victor Martinez DH
6. Alex Avila C
7. Ryan Raburn 2B
8. Ramon Santiago SS
9. Brandon Inge 3B

Brad Penny was once again Good Enough, but the Tigers were unable to do any damage against Cy Bumgarner, and after a brief bit of excitement when they sent The Beard to Zambrano-land, the rug was pulled out from under on a bang-bang game ending double play. It was exciting enough that Aubrey Huff had tears in his eyes after the victory, although that could have also been because the Giants took a pass on a really delicious ham sandwich to keep him on the roster, or from relief that he changed his mind at the last second about strolling to the water cooler as Brian Wilson was coming off the field.

On the bright side, Casper Wells made Sportcenter’s Play of the Day when he thwarted interfering fans and threw a perfect strike to a plate-blockingly perfect Avila.  You don’t run on The Ghost!  Good stuff.

Pablo Sandoval is about the only guy hitting for the Giants, and yet that was somehow enough.  And also we somehow threw him a strike on a 0-2 count with 2 out, because…well, just because.

At any rate, 2 more games, and the interleague horror show is over.

Tonight the Tigers give the ball to Home Boy Max Scherzer.  Home Boy because he is 5-1 with a 3.13 ERA at Comerica.  Barry “The Contract” Zito flings it for the Gigantes, in only his 2nd start since April.

Today’s Player of the Pre-Game:  Jhonny Peralta

Zito is pretty much the definition of what you would call a “finesse” pitcher.  If you look at the BBRef pitcher type splits, Peralta just jumps off the page with a .360 / 1.045 OPS vs finesse pitchers.  As opposed to, say, Inge (.182 / .473).  In fact Inge and Ordonez are a combined 7-for-49 (.143) vs Zito.

Today’s Raburn is SO Due Lineup:

1. Austin Jackson CF
2. Casper Wells RF
3. Magglio Ordonez DH
4. Miguel Cabrera 1B
5. Victor Martinez C
6. Jhonny Peralta SS
7. Brennan Boesch LF
8. Ryan Raburn 2B
9. Brandon Inge 3B

They might be giants.

Than again, who knows.  The Giants are the reigning champs of MLB, so they are certainly not to be discounted.  And once again, their pitching is top-notch.  Lincecum, Cain (who recorded his career 1,000th K last night), and the surprising Vogelsong are easily the class of the league, and The Beard leads the NL in saves.

On the other hand, they have been struggling like mad to score runs lately;  they only managed 2 in 13 innings against the Cubs yesterday in their 2nd consecutive walkoff loss, and the loss of Buster Posey becomes larger and larger the more Tejada and our old friend Aubrey “Ham Sandwich” Huff drop down the downside of their careers.  It’s gotten so bad they are rumored to be interested in picking up Mike Cameron.

The Tigers, meanwhile, have the momentum of yet another Verlander gem behind them.  The great thing about the way the DTW rotation has worked out is that I seem to get all of the post-Verlander posts, which is always fun.

This was Verlander’s 9th straight win, which is the longest streak for a Tiger pitcher since David Wells pulled off 9 straight in 1995.

On the downside, in a stretch where we’re likely to need our bullpen, we are going to have to do it without Captain QuerK:  Al Alburquerque has been placed on the DL with a sore elbow, or in layman’s terms, right flexor mass inflammation.  Right-hander Lestor Oliveros has been recalled from Toledo to take his bullpen spot. His Toledo stats have been underwhelming;  it wouldn’t be a surprise, if Al-Al’s stay on the DL is extended, to eventually see Chance Ruffin get a shot at his role.  At the very least he would be able to keep up the cool-nameness factor.

Oh, and the last time the Tigers faced the Giants, there was a minor stir caused when the game-winning run was knocked in by Ryan Raburn, and the SF Chronicle called him “a scrub.”

In other news, Carlos Guillen has crept up the rehab ladder from Lakeland to Toledo. A representative of Guillen says Carlos expects to be back in the lineup after the All-Star break. Stay tuned.

Today Brad Penny takes on Madison Bumgarner.  Penny has been a Good Enough Penny of late, so it will in all probability come down to run support.  Speaking of probability, ESPN voters say there is about a 55% chance the Giants win this.  Accuscore says there is about a 55% chance the Tigers win this.  Game on!

Today’s Player of the Pre-Game:  Andy Dirks

Andy goes for 4 tonight–he has homered in 3 straight games.

Today’s Player of the Pre-Game Deux: Ryan Raburn

Ryan says:  Scrub this!

Today’s Player of the Pre-Game Trois:  Casper Wells

The Faceoff:  The Ghost is the only player in MLB history named Casper.  The Bum is the only player in MLB history named Madison.  Who will prevail?

Today’s Raburn’s Batting WHERE? Lineup:

1. Austin Jackson CF
2. Casper Wells LF
3. Magglio Ordonez RF
4. Miguel Cabrera 1B
5. Victor Martinez DH
6. Jhonny Peralta SS
7. Ryan Raburn 2B
8. Alex Avila C
9. Brandon Inge 3B

Today is the misfit 1-game make-up series with the Blue Jays, at the misfit game time of 6:05.  At least the Tigers don’t have to travel for the one-day trip like the Blue Jays do.

We’ll make this short today, as befits a one-game series.  Max Scherzer takes the mound for Detroit. Scherzer leads the team in run support, so maybe we can have some more offensive fun like yesterday.  The Jays counter with rookie Zach Stewart (0-1, 5.91).  (Warning! we have had problems with Rookie Guy in the past).

Today’s Player of the Pre-Game:  Andy Dirks

We haven’t seen the Dirks much lately; let’s see how he does in the leadoff spot.  At least he is less likely to K.

Today’s Would it have killed you to try Ramon at 2nd Lineup:

1. Andy Dirks CF
2. Don Kelly 3B
3. Brennan Boesch LF
4. Miguel Cabrera 1B
5. Victor Martinez DH
6. Magglio Ordonez RF
7. Jhonny Peralta SS
8. Alex Avila C
9. Ryan Raburn 2B

“A baseball manager is a necessary evil.”  -Sparky Anderson

Some are more necessary and less evil than others, and today the Tigers honor Sparky Anderson and officially retire his number 11.  Many ex-Tigers will be on hand for the ceremony, including Kirk Gibson and Alan Trammell of the Diamondbacks, Rod Allen, Al Kaline, Willie Horton, Gates Brown, Dick Tracewski, Dave Bergman, Darrell Evans, Mike Henneman, Larry Herndon, Dan Petry, Dave Rozema, Frank Tanana, and Milt Wilcox.  (That’s a somewhat pitcher-heavy list for a guy known as Captain Hook).

It that weren’t enough excitement, fans are still buzzing about Justin Verlander’s impressive 14-strikeout performance last night.  In the 8th, he let the first two batters get to 2nd and 3rd, seemingly as a tease, just so he could strike out the side, making Upton look particularly helpless.  I’m sure he has a bad game in him somewhere, but it has been so long it will seem strange and foreign when we see it:  since May 29 he is 6-0 with a 0.72 ERA.

Brady Penny is no Verlander, but he has been good enough lately.  Penny is matched up against Joe Saunders, who is 4-7 4.35 for the season, but has been improving of late.

Alex Avila is notably missing from today’s lineup–he is resting a sore wrist he received from an errant Ryan Perry pitch.

Today’s Player of the Pre-Game:  Casper Wells

The Ghost has quietly put together an impressive June, hitting .333 with a 1.108 OPS.

Today’s Lineup With a Spark:

1. Austin Jackson CF
2. Casper Wells RF
3. Magglio Ordonez DH
4. Miguel Cabrera 1B
5. Victor Martinez C
6. Jhonny Peralta SS
7. Brennan Boesch LF
8. Brandon Inge 3B
9. Ryan Raburn 2B

For once, Phil Coke got some run support.  Glove support, not so much.  The floodgates opened in the 4th following Raburn’s boot of a double-play grounder, and Coke never quite got the lid back on.  Regarding the error Leyland, straining to maintain the fiction that Raburn is a good fielder, said “that was a tough play.”

There was no play of any sort on the game-winning HR by Wily Mo Pena, which was measured at 454 feet, making it the 3rd longest HR at Comerica.

There were some bright spots in the game, including a HR by The Ghost, continued clutch hitting by Martinez and Peralta, and a vintage Ordonez opposite field double.  Hopefully this is a hint of a resurgent Magglio.

And the brightest spot of all is that today is another day, and this other day features Justin Verlander on the mound.  Hopefully Verlander will have his fastball back today; Verlander says his last start “wasn’t that great,” and that his “fastball control wasn’t anywhere near where it should be.”  Consequently he struggled through a 4-hit, 1 run, complete game.

It should be a fine day for fans of pitching, since Verlander will be opposed by Josh Collmenter, who is 4-3 with a sparkling 2.09 ERA.  Collmenter, a native of Homer, MI, and a Central Michigan alum, has an outstanding 39:11 K to BB ratio, so don’t expect many free passes tonight.

Today’s Player of the Pre-Game:  Brennan Boesch

With JV on the mound, a baesch or two should do the trick today; Boesch takes a shot at the #2 spot in the order.

Today’s Burn-out Lineup:

1. Austin Jackson CF
2. Brennan Boesch LF
3. Magglio Ordonez RF
4. Miguel Cabrera 1B
5. Victor Martinez DH
6. Jhonny Peralta SS
7. Alex Avila C
8. Brandon Inge 3B
9. Ramon Santiago 2B

Interleague play can be fun when those natural rivalry games come up.  Then there are all of those other games, the leftoverlry games, in which it has somehow been decided that Detroit vs Arizona is a good idea.

Just our luck:  The Diamondbacks are the hottest team in MLB;  they are the new Indians, leading the majors with 27 wins since May 14.  And traveling to Comerica doesn’t look to phase them:  Arizona is 15-4 over their last 19 road games.

On the other hand, we get an added treat this season, since Arizona is being managed by ol’ Gibby himself, and joining Kirk Gibson on the bench is bench coach Alan Trammell.  Not that Gibson is being all sentimental about it:  “they’re the enemy.  It’s totally different.  Tiger Stadium is where I played.”  Expect that to change for the 3rd game of the series Sunday, when the Tigers will hold a ceremony retiring Sparky Anderson’s number.

Phil Coke will take the mound today and pray for some run support for a change.  Oh wait, look, Brandon Inge is back tonight!  Problem solved. (Danny Worth drew the short straw, so back to the Toledo mud for him).  Inge and company will be bashing against Zach Duke, who gave up  3 runs in 5 innings vs the White Sox his last outing.

Today’s Player of the Pre-Game:  Alex Avila

Justin Verlander says, vote Alex into the All-Star Game. (By the way, Justin seems to have borrowed artwork by Samara over at Roar of the Tigers).

Today’s Ingetangible Lineup:

1. Austin Jackson CF
2. Casper Wells LF
3. Magglio Ordonez RF
4. Miguel Cabrera 1B
5. Victor Martinez DH
6. Jhonny Peralta SS
7. Alex Avila C
8. Brandon Inge 3B
9. Ryan Raburn 2B

Just like that, no more first place.  Back with the Stroh’s

It started well, with a 3-run first, but the rest was forgettable and it kept being so, on-and-on, for 3 1/2 hours.  But the Tigers can still take the series with a win this afternoon.

Perhaps Raburn will help.  Today is his turn; he has been platooning with Santiago.  Jim Leyland says of Raburn that he is going to “play him more, play him less, whatever.”  Actually I think “whatever” sums it up best.

Today Max Scherzer tries to right the pitching ship vs. Mitch Talbot.

And Brandon Inge is off to Toledo to start a rehab assignment, starting as DH.

Today’s Player of the Pre-Game:  Alex Avila

Support for Alex is growing like an Avila beard; he is now 2nd in All-Star voting. And he has even been taking infield practice at 3rd.

Today’s Rubbery Lineup:

1. Austin Jackson CF
2. Don Kelly 3B
3. Brennan Boesch LF
4. Miguel Cabrera 1B
5. Victor Martinez C
6. Magglio Ordonez RF
7. Alex Avila DH
8. Jhonny Peralta SS
9. Ryan Raburn 2B

That, said Justin Verlander, was my good stuff.

Hard to argue with that; if possible he looked even better than he did when he threw his no-hitter against Toronto.  Many were convinced by the 7th inning that another no-hitter was inevitable (I won’t name names), but, alas, it was not to be.  Still a masterful performance, including fitting our old friend Grady Sizemore for the golden sombrero.

All kinds of people were raving about Verlander on the sports shows and internets, which is nice.  The Free Press launched a Let’s Give Verlander a Nickname campaign, which is something else.

Oh, and now we’re really, really in first.  Break out the Stroh’s!

Brad Penny will venture out to defend first place tonight.  Penny was good enough his last start, giving up 3 runs in 7 innings, but unfortunately that night the Tigers couldn’t muster any offense against Cy Bedard. That may be less of a problem against Fausto Carmona, perhaps best known for playing a tune on Gary Sheffield’s head.

Carmona has dropped 5 consecutive starts, posting a 9.55 ERA over that span. His last start prompted Manager Manny Acta to declare Carmona was “divorced from the strike zone.”  So the Tiger plan will be to be patient at the plate and build hitters’ counts, right? Right?

Today’s Player of the Pre-Game:  Magglio Ordonez

He didn’t get a hit his first game back, but hit the ball hard twice–harder than he was hitting it before his Toledo stint.  Let’s see how today looks.

Today’s Maggsnificent Lineup:

1. Austin Jackson CF
2. Don Kelly 3B
3. Brennan Boesch LF
4. Miguel Cabrera 1B
5. Victor Martinez DH
6. Magglio Ordonez RF
7. Alex Avila C
8. Jhonny Peralta SS
9. Ramon Santiago 2B