51-42, 1st place, 1.5 games ahead of Cleveland. OK, that didn’t go so well. I look at it as Scherzer losing 4-1, let down considerably by his teammates. (Is Alburquerque even worth mentioning? No.) The bright spots would seem to be Phil Coke (the inevitable response to being singled out for criticism in a game … Continue reading Game 2013.94: Rangers at Tigers
51-41, 1st place, 2.5 games ahead of Cleveland. Very good win last night. Only a couple things marred the enjoyment: 1. Will someone please explain why Miggy didn’t catch the foul ball that dropped 10 feet away from him, and am I making too big a deal out of it? 2. What Ortiz did to … Continue reading Game 2013.93: Rangers at Tigers
30-24, .5 ahead and in first place, winning streak at 1. Torii “300” Hunter is back in the lineup and Rick Porcello throws sinkers, so today’s victory is, of course, assured. The stone glove, Teflon hands, and paper bat of Ramon Santiago will not prevent it! Sorry, Ramon. I’m sure you’ll have a good game. … Continue reading Game 2013.55: Tigers at Orioles
One pitch, one hit, one Prince, and the Tigers are 14-10 and atop the division by a half game over the Royals going into this game. They’ve won 4 straight for the second time this season. Now it’s Verlander vs. Worley, also for the second time this year, and this time it’s in Detroit. In … Continue reading Game 2013.25: Twins at Tigers
Wow!! That bad omen rain made me sooooo nervous. The Detroit Tigers (13-10) wrap up their 9-game (less one postponed) home stand with three against the Minnesota Twins (11-10). The Tigers are coming off an exhilarating sweep of the Braves, while the Twins are coming off the AL equivalent, 2 convincing wins in a row over the Texas Rangers. … Continue reading Game 2013.24: Twins at Tigers
Well, we needed that off-day. I’m not speaking for the team; the fans certainly did though. The news of the day is that Octavio Dotel has been placed on the 15-day disabled list with right elbow inflammation, the 2nd time he has suffered this ailment (the first just landed him on the day-to-day list). Whether … Continue reading Postponed: Royals at Tigers
Yes, the game post picture is a mite creepy. But then again, it is a 10:00 pm EST game, and creepiness is thematically apt. Whenever the Tigers play at Oakland, there are three unavoidable questions that come to mind: Will anyone stay up late enough to watch? Who named O.co Coliseum, and how much would … Continue reading Game 2013.10: Tigers at A’s
STARTERS: C Avila, 1B Fielder, 2B Infante, SS Peralta, 3B Cabrera, LF Dirks, CF Jackson, RF Hunter, DH Martinez. BENCH: C Pena, IF Santiago, IF/OF Kelly, IF/OF Tuiasosopo. ROTATION: Verlander, Sanchez, Fister, Scherzer, Porcello, RHPs all (the precise order remains undisclosed as far as I know). BULLPEN: RHPs Dotel, Benoit, Alburquerque, Villareal; LHPs Coke, Downs, … Continue reading 2013 Roster Is Set
Lots of news over the past 4-5 days. You’re already aware of these items, most likely, but here’s a little roundup to “put them in the paper,” so to speak: ROSTER MOVES: IF Jeff Kobernus was sent back to the Nationals. The Tigers retained the rights to Rule 5 LHP Kyle Lobstein by trading C … Continue reading Late Spring Roundup
Doug Fister turned in another rather belabored start (88 pitches in 4.2 and not a great strike ratio) but avoided getting hammered, and Tigers hitters – the A-team regular season lineup – were able to solve the Mets’s talented young righty Matt Harvey just enough to keep Fister ahead. The Tigers jumped all over Brandon … Continue reading Tigers 9, Mets 4
I can’t promise that it’s not just a pleasant dream and that you won’t soon wake up still in 2003 (or the right-side-up version of the above), but for at least the second year in a row the Detroit Tigers aren’t merely contenders, but favorites. In several categories. A very strong team on paper, even … Continue reading Underrating the Overcats
The Detroit Tigers are 8-7 in Grapefruit League play as of this writing and are having a rather good spring overall, statistically speaking. A few injuries and a few WBC excused absences are the only flies in the ointment at this point. We’re getting to the point where Spring Training starts to get interesting, or … Continue reading How Time Flies