From the category archives:

Pitching

Rotation shuffle

14.04.2009 6 comments

With today’s rain out, the Tigers have changed their rotation, or have they demoted Zach Miner to the bullpen? The two different stories have a different feel to be sure. First though, the upcoming pitchers are: Galarraga, Verlander, Jackson, Porcello. That’s what we know for sure. The Tigers are effectively skipping Rick Porcello this turn [...]

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Tigers go closer by committee

01.04.2009 6 comments

The Tigers are certainly making the last week of an agonizingly long spring training interesting. The other news of the day is that Fernando Rodney will be the closer on Opening Day (presuming of course they need a closer). But that he might not be after that. But Jim Leyland isn’t naming him the closer [...]

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Starting pitching not so ready

26.03.2009 9 comments

The news from Lakeland today is that Joel Zumaya and Jeremy Bonderman may not be ready by Opening Day. The Zumaya news isn’t at all surprising. The Bonderman news isn’t especially surprising, but a little concerning as he looks to regain velocity. But that’s not all… There is of course the Nate Robertson thumb injury [...]

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Today’s 5th starter battle run down

21.03.2009 17 comments

I really wish there were other stories in this year’s camp, but aside from the fact that 4 of the team’s 5 most prominent offensive forces are on the other side of the country, it comes down to the battle for the rotation. Rick Porcello gets as big of a stage as you can during [...]

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Are things looking up for starters

17.03.2009 20 comments

It has been a tumultuous spring for the Tigers starters. Exactly what you wouldn’t want to see with the hopes of the team largely relying on the incumbents ability to bounce back from a rough 2008. Bonderman injured. Verlander working on mechanics. Willis, Robertson, and Miner playing hot potato with the 5th starter spot. Galarraga [...]

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Pondering Pen Possibilities

15.03.2009 14 comments

While the performances of the Tigers starters have been fairly unremarkable this spring, things are better at the back end of games. It looks like there are actual battles taking place, and in the favorable sense. Brandon Lyon, Fernando Rodney, and Bobby Seay are locks for the pen leaving four spots open. Zach Miner is [...]

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Did Porcello make the team?

13.03.2009 16 comments

Lynn Henning has been writing about Rick Porcello daily, basically imploring Jim Leyland and Dave Dombrowski to take him north. In fact it’s the only story he’s been writing about. (although I haven’t written about much either so I’m not really ragging on him for this). Well in this afternoon’s piece Henning says: Fans are [...]

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Is it time for Rick Porcello

10.03.2009 81 comments

With a job in the rotation up for grabs, the leading incumbents have struggled. Dontrelle Willis has taken a step forward from his struggles last year, but it hasn’t been a big enough step to warrant a rotation spot. Nate Robertson, who I expected to pitch better this year, simply hasn’t. But Rick Porcello? The [...]

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I’m looking for pitching

02.03.2009 19 comments

"I’m looking for pitching," Leyland said. "You can write whatever you want." That’s the message that Jim Leyland sent to reporters today when he announced that Rick Porcello would get a start on Wednesday. Further solidifying that Porcello might really be a rotation candidate this season. With Dontrelle Willis still shaky, Zach Miner getting rocked [...]

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This Porcello Kid

22.02.2009 5 comments

Spring training is never short on stories about guys being in the best shape of their lives, or young kids making a favorable impressions on the coaching staff. But the Rick Porcello hype is reaching a fever pitch, and the first spring training game hasn’t even been played yet. Jim Leyland made the familiar comments [...]

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Recapping the first workouts

15.02.2009 84 comments

The beats were busy with the first official workout of the spring. Seriously, multiple stories and blog posts throughout the day, even a live blog from Morosi. A quick rundown of the stories from Tiger Town… Rick Knapp After 20+ years in the minors, this was Rick Knapp’s first day as a big leaguer. This [...]

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Oh those intentional base on balls

29.01.2009 13 comments

The Tigers struggled with walks in 2008. This is well documented and fairly obvious with the Tigers issuing more walks than every team other than Texas. It resulted in Chuck Hernandez losing his job and the Tigers bringing in a coach who built his reputation on pounding the strike zone. But a significant chunk of [...]

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