tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15607696992347130212011-07-07T16:27:45.101-04:00A Blog for 2011.Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.comBlogger1211100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-85609373162217991502011-05-11T21:56:00.000-04:002011-05-13T16:35:11.548-04:00

Don’t get me wrong. The trends are very good right now, but the numbers don’t lie either. After the first 18 games (one “inning”) the Tigers were 4.5 games back in 3rd place. After the next 18 games (2 innings) the Tigers are 5.5 games back in 3rd place. Yet, there are indications that what was planted in the spring is about to give fruit as summer approaches. Let’s look at some key numbers.

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-52982173761753577512011-04-13T07:56:00.000-04:002011-04-13T07:56:55.726-04:00

The Tigers have played 9 games. The Regular Season is 162 games. This can be broken down into 9 “innings” of 18 games each (162/9 = 18). So 9 games = ½ inning. If I can remember where I first saw this laid out for me I’ll link to it because I can’t come up with stuff like this on my own. • They are 3-6. So far they have won one game of each series (Yankees, Orioles and Royals). • The

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-71491272981296718282011-04-06T21:10:00.000-04:002011-04-06T21:10:02.379-04:00

The Tigers have played 4 games (3 vs the Yankees, 1 against the O’s). They have won 1 and lost 3. Let’s break it down… • They have been out scored 28 to 20. • They have hit 5 home runs and given up 10. • They have gotten 13 extra base hits (including HR) while giving up 18. • They have committed 4 errors (vs 2 committed in their favor). • They have struck out 32 times while striking out 27. •

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-4765941727501058602011-03-30T22:00:00.000-04:002011-03-30T22:00:28.507-04:00

The Day is here (well, it's here tomorrow)!  In about 16 hours Austin Jackson will receive the first pitch of the 2011 Regular Season.  Let's take a look what we have to look forward to this season. Here is our Opening Day roster: Austin Jackson Will Rhymes Magglio Ordonez Miguel Cabrera Victor Martinez Ryan Raburn Jhonny Peralta Brandon Inge Alex Avila Justin Verlander will take the ball,

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-71359376224719280312011-03-18T21:18:00.000-04:002011-03-18T21:18:54.971-04:00

It's Friday!  The weekend has started and it's time to look back a little. Looking back to this afternoon- the Tigers won again.  I like the sound of that, let's hear it again.  "The Tigers won again."  Yes, it has a beautiful ring to it.  Today they beat a split squad from the Red Sox.  But with Scuturo, Youkilis, Pedroia, Veritek and Ortiz in the line up I would say it was a fair fight.

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-54623647554176757332011-03-17T21:24:00.000-04:002011-03-17T21:24:02.001-04:00

I was home sick today.  I pretty much slept the day away, what a fantastic way to appreciate the first day near 70 degrees this year.  Ah well, there will be more. While I was sleeping the Tigers were not, at least not all the way through the game.  It was the Twins that came to Joker Marchant Stadium.  I think this was the first time they have played each other this year and think that we will

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-42290638846729015622011-03-16T23:17:00.000-04:002011-03-16T23:17:22.707-04:00

Here is quick round up of stuff from March 16 Samara listened to a game and enjoyed Jim and Dan's commentary.  Money quote: “Nothing the trainer can do except come out and offer moral support.” After Max St. Pierre got hit in the replicators. This is from a couple of days ago, but is worth going back to.  Kurt at Bless You Boys interviews Dan Dickerson (radio voice of the Tigers).  Part 1 is

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-16368131327323778842011-03-16T21:17:00.000-04:002011-03-16T21:17:39.663-04:00

It has been a long time. Much has happened, the world continues to turn. I think about this blog often. I work on it much less often. The world goes on anyway. As I muse about Section 148 I keep coming back to the same issue- I can't keep up with just Tigers' baseball as much as I should to do a blog justice. As much as I love the Tigers, my brain just isn't wired that way. To paraphrase

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-3910305739994866912010-05-31T18:42:00.000-04:002010-05-31T18:42:05.612-04:00

The Tigers have taken their lumps for stranding runners and not supporting some of their pitchers of the past few weeks. At almost the same time they have had some dramatic come-from-behind rallies to win games late. They have scored 220 runs in the first 49 games (averaging 4.5). This includes 4 shutouts and 7 games where they have scored 8 or more runs. Baseball-Reference.com lists them as

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-81762863777984324052010-05-30T19:41:00.000-04:002010-05-30T19:41:22.558-04:00

This past week has not been a good one for the Tigers. They went 1-4 (with 2 off days). Well, actually they seemed to have more than 2 “off” days, but there were 2 days they weren’t scheduled. They wrapped up their last West Coast road trip against the Mariners before coming home to start a 4 game series against the A’s. For one of those reasons that make no sense the Tigers cannot seem to

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-72817374935046265382010-05-19T19:57:00.000-04:002010-05-19T19:57:14.874-04:00

Well, due to a couple of rainouts we are technically at 39 games, but I’ll buck tradition on this point. So Sparky Anderson is famously quoted as saying that you can’t tell how good or bad a baseball team is until they have played 40 games. Is that the magic number? Can’t you tell at 20 or should you wait until 60? Well, I have enough respect of sample size to resist the urge at 20 and I’m

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-49902544563521015112010-05-16T18:26:00.000-04:002010-05-16T18:26:35.648-04:00

As I was originally shown by Lee Panas at Tiger Tales, the 162 games in a standard baseball season can be broken down into 9 innings of 18 games each. The Tigers have completed 36 games, which equal 2 innings of play. Let’s look at how they have done. They are in 2nd place, 2 ½ games behind the Twins in the AL Central. The Tigers’ record is 20-16. Their overall batting average for the 2nd

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-49206687514760896902010-05-04T23:16:00.000-04:002010-05-04T23:16:23.514-04:00

Ernie Harwell (1918-2010) passed away tonight.  He has been fighting cancer of the bile duct for much of the past year.  He died at home in Novi, MI with his wife Lulu at his side. Harwell was the voice of the Tigers for many years (1960-2002).  He was teamed up with Paul Carey from 1973-1991 and so it was their two voices that I associate most with the Tigers as a kid. Here are some links...

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-25411001008057702782010-05-02T22:31:00.000-04:002010-05-02T22:31:34.909-04:00

Best pitcher for April: ERA Starter = Willis 3.13/ WHIP = Bonderman 1.35/ xFIP = Verlander 4.23 (26 K’s) ERA Reliever = Valverde 0.75/ WHIP = Valverde 0.75/ xFIP= Zumaya 2.39 (0 walks!) Best hitter for April BA = Jackson .364/ OBP = Damon .431/ OPS = Cabrera 1.042/ BABIP = Jackson .530 Record for the month = 14 and 10 Series wins vs: KC, CLE, MIN, Series losses vs: KC, SEA Series split vs: LAA

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-38580859604771759432010-04-13T20:40:00.000-04:002010-04-13T20:40:10.201-04:00

Game 7 Game 8 Game 7 stunk.  The Tigers lost 10-5 on terrible defense and not enough offense.  The pitching was not all that great either (15 hits allowed plus 5 walks).  Meh, there's nothing to see here (or much to write about either). Game 8 was another example of how exciting this Tigers' team can be.  The pattern is well established by now- 1) don't get any hits against the opposing starter

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-33488924100406419302010-04-13T20:00:00.000-04:002010-04-13T20:00:15.899-04:00

Game 4 (Home Opener) Cleveland 2 Tigers 5 Game 5 Cleveland 2 Tigers 4 Game 6 Cleveland 8 Tigers 9 Tigers sweep!  (there was a lot more written but it was sucked into the Ether.  It's gone, but the Wins stay on the record books.)  Maggs and Cabrera are the heros.

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-7964303720765956382010-04-08T21:45:00.000-04:002010-04-08T21:45:57.627-04:00

Wednesday night Tigers 2- Royals 3 Thursday afternoon Tigers 7 - Royals 3 After last night's game lasted until almost midnight and then playing an afternoon game today it's time for some catch up here in Section 148. Last night started out with Scherzer and Hochevar going head to head in a pitching duel.  Scherzer was almost perfect through 5 2/3.  He didn't allow a hit or a walk until then (

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-31301002379781211622010-04-07T19:40:00.000-04:002010-04-07T19:40:43.245-04:00

Game Day Link Tonight is Max Scherzer's Tiger debut.  The word on the internet is that Scherzer is a top tier pitcher and Detroit did well to get a hold of him.  I'm sure not going to doubt wiser people than me, but his Spring numbers did not impress me (I know, "Spring stats don't mean anything" but that's all I have).  Apparently Max decided about half way through Spring Training that he

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-74932535354501418072010-04-05T22:13:00.000-04:002010-04-05T22:13:03.577-04:00

We saw two of last year's best pitchers to start things off in KC today: Zack Greinke (2009 AL Cy Young winner) against Justin Verlander (3rd place in the 2009 Cy Young voting).  Verlander went 5 innings and gave up 4 runs with 1 walk and 6 strike outs.  Greinke went 6 innings, giving up 1 run with 1 walk and 4 strike outs.   But there is only 1 Zack Greinke and after the 6th he was done.  The

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-6851536327814044932010-04-05T16:03:00.000-04:002010-04-05T16:03:31.871-04:00

Tigers at Royals 4/5/2010 Here it is!  Opening Day for a brand new season!  The Roster has been whittled down to 25 men.  Names we have known for years are gone (Granderson, Polanco, Rodney, Robertson).  New ones are now on the team (Sizemore, Jackson, Valverde). No one really knows how well they will do (the individuals or the team).  For today they are just as good as the eventual World

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-63513081479730992422010-03-02T21:35:00.000-05:002010-03-02T21:35:59.227-05:00

Florida State College 1, Detroit Tigers 13 It was a beautiful sunny day in West Michigan today, but there are at least 6" of snow on the ground and nobody could play baseball here.  But, in Florida they can and today- for the first time since Game #163- the Tigers played together against another team.  And they won!  Perhaps you believe that a MLB team should beat a Division II college team (and

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-30212705909957892362010-02-15T23:03:00.000-05:002010-02-15T23:03:48.815-05:00

It is only 4 days until the pitchers and catchers report to Lakeland, FL for the first formal day of Spring Training!  The winter has been cold, long and confusing (for many of us Tiger fans).  There has been much written and discussed since Game 163 last October.  Why did DD trade Ganderson and E. Jackson?  Who on earth are A. Jackson and Scherzer?  Can Bonderman and Zumaya make comebacks this

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-2175239486084066362010-01-17T12:59:00.003-05:002010-01-17T14:47:08.292-05:00

That is pretty much all that we have to go on right now. We can look at the deals which the Tigers have closed, participated in or not participated in and we scratch our heads and attempt to figure out "Why?" and "What it all means!" In the final analysis we cannot really understand what DD and his office have in mind.This has not been a quiet off-season. First they allowed Polanco, Lyon and

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-75081065564939213512009-12-23T22:23:00.003-05:002009-12-23T22:28:15.859-05:00

Here is a link to MLB Network's recap of the Tigers 2009 season. It's hard to recap all of the joy and heartache in 3:50 seconds but they do a decent enough job of it. They key in on the successes of the starting rotation and spend some time on the race against the Twins.As a bonus they pay special attention to Granderson's catch (1:11 mark) and Porcello's take down of Youkilis (1:40).

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-65119666406918675922009-12-19T21:52:00.004-05:002009-12-19T23:45:10.258-05:00

Jim Leyland has been asked to be part of a very select committee that has been put together by Bud Selig to "analyze ways to improve" baseball.He will join 3 other managers: Tony La Russa, Joe Torre and Mike Scioscia along with other greats such as Frank Robinson a number of GM's, owners and even George Will (!). This is a veritable who's who of the baseball world.So what could such an august

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-76949779691742226002009-12-18T17:20:00.002-05:002009-12-18T17:49:28.805-05:00

The Tigers announced that they have signed Ramon Santiago to a 2 year deal. This keeps some valuable versatility in the infield as well as some short term power at the plate. There has been debate over the years as to why Santiago doesn't get more playing time. When he plays he has a decent bat:In 183 games with the Tigers since the start of the 2007 season, the switch-hitting Santiago has hit

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-54367213083790812862009-12-18T14:46:00.003-05:002009-12-18T15:08:39.481-05:00

I came across this article while looking over Baseball Musings the other day. The people at "The Book" did a study of defense over the last decade and put together the top 5 defenders at each position. Would you like to know which (ex)-Tigers made the list?Placido Polanco was the 3rd highest rated of 2nd Basemen in the MLB (based on runs saved). He prevented an average of 10 runs per 150 games

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-409474245810215232009-12-17T21:50:00.003-05:002009-12-17T22:14:14.490-05:00

It has been quite a while since I could post. My laptop died (it was over 6 years old, so it had a very good run). But that's history- I have another laptop to use now so it's time to jump in again.There has been so much that happened, especially at the Winter Meetings last week! I'll probably put more up on this later, but my household is grieving right now- Placido Polanco was my daughter's

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-65585228065292989122009-11-09T15:10:00.002-05:002009-11-09T15:13:03.802-05:00

The Tigers announced that Tom Brookens (yes, that Tom Brookens) will replace Andy Van Slyke on Jim Leyland's coaching staff. Here are the details...Detroit NewsBeck

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-19250524416710913042009-11-07T21:06:00.002-05:002009-11-07T21:10:55.108-05:00

WHYGJG? asks the tough question- why don't they condense the regular season so we don't have a "snow bowl" for a World Series.I completely agree. There should be more double headers scheduled in the season. They should also set the early season schedule with weather in mind (remember when Cleveland was snowed out for a week to begin the season a couple of years ago?). Stay down south to start

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-74059529593405358652009-11-07T18:07:00.001-05:002009-11-07T18:09:33.379-05:00

My friend Bob and I love to discuss baseball and the trivial aspects of it. So last week he asked me if there had ever been 2 All Star games in one year. My answer was "No." and "You're crazy." Everybody knows that there is only one All Star Game.Well, Bob is a pretty smart guy and sent me enough info to convince me that there had, indeed, been a period of time when there were two All Star Games

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-25575221108477532152009-11-06T17:54:00.002-05:002009-11-06T18:27:26.936-05:00

The Tigers started making room on their roster today by cutting two players, Matt Treanor and Marcus "Country Strong!" Thames.Treanor only played in 4 games as a Tiger and had 0 hits with 4 strike outs. He spent most of the year on Disabled List. He was picked up last December and was supposed to be Gerald Laird's back up. He was a free agent when DD signed him but a hip injury that required

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-26119762473019582052009-11-05T14:12:00.002-05:002009-11-05T14:15:24.759-05:00

Rick Porcello was chosen as the Detroit Tigers' Rookie of the Year.Detroit News article here.We won't know if he won the American League ROY until Monday.Congratulations to Kid Rick for a great year!

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-46003398071809333792009-11-01T13:15:00.006-05:002009-11-01T13:43:48.932-05:00

Curtis Granderson has been recognized by the other players as a great guy. He has won the Marvin Miller Man of the Year Award for his community work. One of the things that makes Curtis a great guy to watch is that he really sees that his fame can be put to good use by bringing attention to areas that need help.If you follow the Tigers on Fox Sports Detroit you will see Granderson in ads for

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-11980608767185709182009-10-27T20:36:00.003-04:002009-10-27T21:39:33.159-04:00

Well, not a Tigers' World Series addition, but the Yankees and the Phillies start the 2009 World Series tomorrow night. That means there may be as few as 4 games of MLB baseball remaining for this year! Since I am a one sport guy that means many long, dark months of boring.But, there have been some Tiger-ish things happening and some great analysis being done of what was, in the end, a

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-19020883014162611682009-10-14T23:18:00.002-04:002009-10-15T00:15:10.687-04:00

So, when it is all said and done the Detroit Tigers finished 2nd in the AL Central. In what seems to be a disturbing pattern the Tigers lead their division for most of the season, but when it was over they had given up control t somebody else. This year it was the Twins, who took control after 11 innings in an extra game (#163) in extra innings (12) after the lead see-sawed back and forth for

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-7276071493757320302009-10-09T20:48:00.003-04:002009-10-09T21:16:19.237-04:00

It is Friday and my voice is just getting back to normal. That was, without question, one of the best baseball games I have ever watched (and I was only able to watch the last 4 innings on TV).I missed seeing the Magglio home run in the 8th, but I was yelling and screaming in the car as Dan and Jim called the play. I missed seeing Rick Porcello strike out 8 men in under 7 innings, but thanks to

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-6295251659288826942009-10-04T18:11:00.004-04:002009-10-04T18:48:50.243-04:00

I love the movie Highlander (the first one). An epic battle as our hero eliminates his opponents one by one until there is only the final battle to be completed, because there can be only one.That is what this last month has felt like as I watch the Tigers slog their way through the American League Central. They started strong, fell flat and then picked themselves up and battled on. They could

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-62340783158062370902009-10-04T12:23:00.006-04:002009-10-04T18:52:14.237-04:00

It is 12:30 on October 4th. In 35 minutes the Tigers start their last regular season game of the year. Last night they lost to the White Sox and the Twins beat the Royals, so there is a tie between the Twins and Tigers for 1st place in the AL Central. The magic number is still 2. It hasn't moved all week. It was 2 after the Tigers and Twins split their four game series.Going into the month

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-61294673885654410752009-10-01T09:14:00.001-04:002009-10-01T09:16:13.423-04:00

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-54875416585319619382009-09-30T12:44:00.004-04:002009-09-30T13:36:00.167-04:00

157 down, 5 to go.What an awesome year this has been to be a Tigers' fan! According to my handy, dandy calendar the Tigers have been in first place since the end of April and have owned it all by themselves since May.This is not a "blow your doors off" type of team. As we sit mid-way through the "most important series since 1987" I want to look at what we have in front of us.Pitching: according

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-17809602677933699872009-09-20T20:42:00.001-04:002009-09-20T21:02:29.584-04:00

I originally had this at the end of Week 24's update, but it deserves it's own spot.Here is a wrap up of some of the tributes for Mr. Harwell as well as what he said in his own words.Ernie said his farewell this past Wednesday. He knows that he won't be able to say good-bye later, so he did it now. There have been many tributes from all over baseball- Detroit News, Freep, USA Today. Major

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-80486693192731099582009-09-20T19:09:00.008-04:002009-09-21T12:05:50.735-04:00

The Tigers have just completed their 2 worst weeks of the season after completing two of their best weeks before that. I guess that is just how this team plays the game. In this last week they did do one thing differently though: 3 of the 4 aspects of the game sucked for Detroit instead of only 1 or 2 areas lacking.Starting Pitching: how about an ERA of 6.69? That is 27 earned runs in 36 1/3

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-56889801083756940652009-09-15T16:00:00.003-04:002009-09-15T16:03:03.327-04:00

MLB has released next season's schedule. The Tigers open up on April 5 in KC. The Home Opener is April 9 versus Cleveland.Here is the link.

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-55926648760347009952009-09-13T20:20:00.003-04:002009-09-13T21:31:10.944-04:00

I guess this is called "regressing to the mean". The Tigers started the month of September by going 6-0, their longest winning streak of the year. They continued the month by falling back to earth and losing 5 straight (regression can be tough). This team impressed me by being able to play through August without sliding disastrously toward irrelevance. Maybe they forgot that August was over (

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-1426414263462810042009-09-08T13:42:00.001-04:002009-09-21T12:02:53.820-04:00

It's a good thing Brandon Lyon has been practicing his closing skills. Fernando Rodney has been suspended for 3 games. Rodney has appealed, but he will probably serve it sooner or later.After his near-meltdown on Friday night Rodney threw the ball into the stands. He claims he was "in the moment" and "throwing it to fans". It appeared to baseball writers that he was frustrated and chucked it,

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-66539334089778875622009-09-06T20:43:00.006-04:002009-09-06T21:49:34.946-04:00

When this week started the Tigers had to finish one game of their 4 game series against the Tampa Bay Rays and then play the Indians before leaving on a road trip to Tampa Bay and KC. Back then the Tigers were 3 1/2 games ahead of the Twins.Tonight the Tigers have just completed a run of 6 consecutive victories and have put a full 7 games between themselves and the Twins.The starting pitchers

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-12358798159005823512009-09-04T17:28:00.003-04:002009-09-04T17:48:20.239-04:00

(photo from mlb.com)MLB.com is reporting that Grady Sizemore will have surgery on his left elbow.This is another blow for the Indians, after they traded away Cliff Lee and Victor Martinez in an effort to bring in more talent and rebuild for the future.I guess it makes sense to have the surgery now from their points of view. It gives Sizemore almost 6 months to get ready for spring training next

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-89214087620350507172009-09-04T07:48:00.002-04:002009-09-04T07:54:04.290-04:00

Sad news this morning. It is being reported at the Detroit News that Ernie Harwell has inoperable cancer. He has been in and out of the hospital this year for different reasons, but Ernie said yesterday that he has cancer in his bile duct which cannot be treated. Reading the article it sounds like his prognosis is less than a year. He has a great outlook though..."Whatever is in store, I'm

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-72471995269880048102009-08-31T09:31:00.002-04:002009-08-31T09:34:48.365-04:00

Two quick quotes that are worth sharing today:First from Justin Verlander (via Jason Beck's Twitter page)Verlander: "Nate [Robertson] pulled out Gum Time again today. Hadn't seen that since 2006."Secondly from Bob Wojnowski's article in this morning's Detroit News:"I knew it (his HR Sunday) had a chance when I hit it," Polanco said. "I was blowing and kind of pushing it, saying, 'Go, go, please

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-47566705998861417152009-08-30T21:50:00.002-04:002009-08-30T23:25:00.811-04:00

Week 214 Wins, 2 LossesSoooo, perhaps this team can compete in a playoff series after all? It seems to look more and more like it. You might ask "Are you crazy?!" and you might ask with good reason, but here is what I am seeing right now that makes me believe that this team might advance in the post-season.Exhibit A: this past week the 1st place Detroit Tigers took a series in LA against the

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-21503676184351332242009-08-23T22:49:00.003-04:002009-08-23T23:07:10.645-04:00

3 Wins, 3 LossesThe week started out fairly positive. After their first day off in 17 days the Tigers took a home series from the Mariners. This is almost becoming so routine it may become boring. So far in 2009 the Tigers are 40-20 at home. So they basically win 2 of every 3 they play in CoPa. That is just amazing. What is not nearly so amazing (because that is a positive word and this

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-51450398410980295702009-08-20T22:40:00.004-04:002009-08-20T23:20:07.280-04:00

Clete Thomas completed the 2nd come from behind win of this 3 games series today with a single past the diving 1st baseman in the bottom of the 9th as Miguel Cabrera scored from 3rd. The Tigers came back from being down 4 runs two times in this rain delayed game. Before the delay the game appeared to be all Seattle. But the Tigers had loaded the bases as the rains stopped play. The sun came

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-60321105029058447772009-08-18T17:33:00.002-04:002009-08-18T17:36:25.075-04:00

Pudge Rodriguez has been traded from the Astros to the team where it all began (for him). The Free Press reports that he has been traded to the Texas Rangers for 2 minor leaguers.I hope he can wrap up his career there on a high note (so long as it doesn't interfere with a Tigers' playoff spot).

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-79358889686278527752009-08-17T22:55:00.003-04:002009-08-17T23:44:02.711-04:00

This will be mostly a catch up post because I couldn't possibly do the past weeks justice.The Tigers are still in first place. As of right NOW they are 2.5 games ahead of the White Sox and 6 games over the Twins (but both of those teams are playing (and losing) as I write this, so stay tuned).It is awesome that Detroit is leading the AL Central. Mainly because in either other division this year

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-87090358667412079652009-08-10T20:16:00.010-04:002009-09-21T12:02:53.841-04:00

I got to see the Tigers win a game in person! A first time for me. I've seen about 12 games in person, but they have always lost until yesterday. Here are some of my impressions-It was very HOT!We saw Marcus Thames hit his 100th career home run- (very lucky pic)That ball landed about 40' away from where we were standing (in Section 148). Cabrera followed him with a homer of his own.Earlier in

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-27905374124124454432009-07-18T06:46:00.004-04:002009-07-18T07:37:12.871-04:00

Tigers 3- Yankees 5Okay, if I have to be at work at 6 am on a Saturday and there is nothing to do right now I can at least catch this blog up a little. (Just keep the coffee coming!)Last night the Tigers blew a game against the Yankees. Joel Zumaya deserves most of the blame, but there is enough to go around. There were many encouraging things in that game too.Hits-Luke French can get Yankees

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-61995435546520707302009-06-28T20:57:00.003-04:002009-06-28T22:07:15.653-04:00

Almost swept? A sweep! (A "benching" and a haircut!) Another sweep! Almost swept? Do you see the pattern here?Week 114 W, 2 LThe Tigers were on the verge of being swept out of St. Louis (in a nightmarish re-run of the '06 World Series filled with pitchers' errors, fielders' errors and little scoring). But Detroit pulled it together for the last game of the series and then marched into

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-2220252499052718322009-06-14T22:44:00.003-04:002009-06-15T00:19:19.752-04:00

Week 10: 4 W, 4 LThis was a week that I will admit I was very worried about. There were 5 games schedules in Chicago against the White Sox (and the Tigers just don't seem to win there). Then there was the expectation of starting against National League teams (who have been easy pickings for Detroit the past few years). Well, things didn't turn out quite as I had expected.Firstly the Tigers

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-48486969145579548122009-06-07T18:01:00.004-04:002009-06-07T18:58:54.499-04:00

Week 9 ended up as the first losing week of the season for the Tigers, who lost 4 and won 2.Many people have mentioned it, but it must be said again- this team is not hitting right now for a lick! At least not when it counts. Here are the numbers....Week 9 had a total of 44 hits in 187 At Bats, for a Batting Average of only .235. Their BA has been dropping like a rock for the past 4 weeks. In

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-78762404779467044202009-06-01T20:57:00.005-04:002009-06-01T21:49:16.950-04:00

It's an off day while the Tigers settle back into Comerica Park and wait for the Red Sox to show up. So I've been reading around the web. These are some posts others have made about the Tigers that I thought were cool:These two are from Baseball Musings- both about Tigers' pitching. The first is about Verlander vs. Greinke. The second article looks at the extremes seen in the Tigers' staff.

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-32219285732867657492009-05-31T19:16:00.002-04:002009-05-31T19:58:34.710-04:00

Week in Review- Road Trip editionThis past week the Tigers ran into two men who seem to defy the laws of statistics: Matt Grienke pitching for the Royals and Luke Scott hitting for the Orioles. Other than that they played well. Here comes the science....Detroit played a 3 game series against Kansas City early in the week. Verlander and Porcello dominated the Royals, Justin pitched a shutout

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-12451036140622334452009-05-25T19:09:00.003-04:002009-05-25T19:27:14.929-04:00

Tigers 13, Royals 1A rare chance to blog about a game right after it happened! Aren't holidays wonderful?Whatever was ailing the Tigers in Detroit those last two games was left behind when they landed in KC. The Tigers got 13 runs off of 19 hits. Laird hit another HR and Cabrera had 2 more doubles, adding to his MLB leading .378 batting average. Verlander pitched another fantastic game

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-38410953586347031232009-05-25T13:18:00.004-04:002009-05-25T19:28:11.428-04:00

Lots of W's, not so many R's...The Tiger's finished up what was, overall, an impressive week at home. They won 5 out of 7. They finished up a sweep of Oakland. Then they swept Texas. They lost the final series to Colorado.Pitching: Galarraga continues to struggle badly. He had two starts and gave up 9 runs in a total of 6 innings over 2 starts. The first start lasted only 2/3 of an inning

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-5030228059295592312009-05-17T16:35:00.005-04:002009-05-17T17:01:21.131-04:00

Tigers SWEEP the A's!!!!!!Good: Santiago with 4 RBI on 3 hits (including a 3 run HR). Granderson with 3 RBI on 2 hits (including a 3 run HR).Bad: Galarraga with 5 earned runs in only 2/3 of an inning. His ERA for the day was 67.51.Detroit scored 34 runs in this series while allowing only 9.

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-90444882537167876722009-05-17T00:05:00.004-04:002009-05-17T01:23:01.307-04:00

Week 6 had the Tigers in Minnesota and at Detroit. Minnesota did not agree with them (although they should have won 2 games there). Being at home seems to have a great effect on this team (10-5 in Comerica).We saw what appears to be a slide by Galarraga from strike throwing machine to more of a ball throwing machine. Over his last 5 starts he has allowed 17 walks in 27 2/3 innings. He has

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-25485976911058819012009-05-10T19:02:00.002-04:002009-05-10T19:55:21.242-04:00

The story of this week was pitching. Verlander pitched 2 games (16 innings) and allowed only 1 run. He struck out 11 in each game and only walked 5 over that span. It is even more impressive that he pitched BOTH games against the reigned Cy Young Award winner, Cliff Lee, and won both of them. Friday's game in Cleveland was saved by Granderson (but more on that later).Jackson pitched one great

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-53727055761047748592009-05-07T23:43:00.003-04:002009-05-08T00:11:24.269-04:00

After the rain out last night, tonight was a washout for the Tigers.Tigers 0- White Sox 6About the only bright spot here (for Detroit) was that this was the first time they have been shutout in 2009. Update: it was the 2nd time, the first was against the Yankees on 4/28. My bad.Galarraga was not good in the 1st and the Sox made him pay with 5 runs. He wasn't good in the 2nd either but kept

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-36206933502433620982009-05-05T21:56:00.004-04:002009-05-05T22:47:33.080-04:00

This game was the wrap up of a quick, 2 game series, in Detroit against the Minnesota Twins.Last night Detroit just could not get any offense going and lost 7-2. Jackson pitched well through the first 6 innings, as he did in his last start. However, in this game he came out to pitch the 7th and it didn't go well. He pitched to 4 batters and all four got on base and Cuddyer drove the first 3

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-14455307894604208372009-05-03T20:32:00.003-04:002009-05-03T21:38:05.009-04:00

The Tigers split 6 games this week against the Royals, Yankees and Indians.The Good:Verlander pitched 7 shut out innings against the Yankees 4/27 with 9 strikeouts. Jackson followed the next day with 6 innings of shutout ball.Brandon Inge continues to get on base. He has been on base in every game so far this year and finished the week with 7 home runs.The Ugly:The 7th inning of Jackson's game

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-74033523366627973872009-04-27T22:05:00.002-04:002009-04-27T22:21:53.236-04:00

Yankees 2 Tigers 4Okay, that was pretty sweet! Justin Verlander seemed to find his groove tonight. He had 9 strikeouts and 0 walks over 7 innings. He started to loose it in the 8th when he gave up 2 singles, but Bobby Seay came in from the Pen and shut them down! Nobody got past 2nd in that inning. Rodney made it waaay too interesting allowing 3 hits and 2 runs before getting Posada to

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-67214584566732838172009-04-26T16:48:00.002-04:002009-04-26T17:35:45.409-04:00

The Tigers wrap up their road trip with a win over the Royals! They won 5 and lost 4 winning the series in Seattle and Kansas City and losing the one in LA. They were not swept in any series. In the last week they averaged 6.33 runs per games. That is just a 1/3 of a run better than the 6 runs they gave up per game.They gave up 10 runs in two separate games in LAA, but amazingly managed to

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-31067509373061702732009-04-24T20:14:00.003-04:002009-04-25T02:46:20.867-04:00

Line ups:RoyalsCrisp, CFDeJesus, LHTeahen, 3BJacobs, DHButler, 1BCallaspo, 2BAviles, SSOlivio, CMaier, CFGreinke, PTigersGranderson, CFPolanco, 2BOrdonez, RFCabrera, 1BGuillen, DHLaird, CInge, 3BAnderson, LFSantiago, SSPorcello, PHere's hoping that last night's ugly was left on the west coast and that Detroit plays better in the Midwest. All of those errors killed the Tigers last night.*Teahen

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-87294216931546488982009-04-20T22:16:00.001-04:002009-04-20T22:18:02.065-04:00

Bilfer posted a very interesting and encouraging analysis of the Tigers' defense so far this year. Enjoy.

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-20879756153123518352009-04-19T21:29:00.005-04:002009-04-19T22:29:40.560-04:00

Game 11 Detroit 2- Seattle 0Edwin Jackson pitched just over 7 innings and allowed only 2 runs on Saturday while pitching through the flu. Just an amazing performance all around by Jackson. Rodney finished it out for his 3rd save in 3 opportunities. (I must admit, I am becoming a believer in Rodney).Brandon Inge continued hit greatly improved hitting with 2 more hits and another RBI. His

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-15618224677903675842009-04-18T17:00:00.002-04:002009-04-18T17:42:22.487-04:00

Tigers 3- Mariners 6Remember last year when the Tigers used Seattle as a punching bag? They averaged almost 6 runs per game against Seattle pitching and went 7-3. Well... it appears that Seattle wasn't too pleased with that, so they decided to put some changes in place.Going into Friday night's game Seattle had the best record in the American League. They had allowed only 35 runs against so

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-45304291745826153452009-04-15T21:58:00.005-04:002009-04-15T22:15:00.352-04:00

Game 7 Texas 4- Detroit 6Game 8 Chicago 10- Detroit 6Game 9 Chicago 0- Detroit 9There is so much to cover, so let's try to do this in pictures.Game 7Game 8Game 9Translation:Tigers complete a 3 game sweep of the Rangers!Tigers suck in freezing cold game against White Sox.Tigers go BOOM! by shutting out the White Sox 9-0!

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-89826203049972625842009-04-11T16:41:00.003-04:002009-04-11T16:52:56.870-04:00

.500 is here. Detroit won their second home game today against the Rangers 4 to 3. Pitchers looked great. Defense not so much. Hitters were good enough, but just barely.Verlander gave 5 solid innings with only 2 hits and 1 earned run with 8 K's. Unfortunately 2 errors in the same inning by Inge and Everett cost him the win. The Rangers scored 2 un-earned runs in the 5th because of those

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-54432053331582133852009-04-10T18:43:00.002-04:002009-04-10T18:45:19.429-04:00

I just noticed Beck sharing the news that Joel Zumaya may be starting his rehab assignment in Lakeland.

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-87644481403076883002009-04-10T17:31:00.004-04:002009-04-10T18:47:44.445-04:00

TIGERSGranderson, CFPolanco, 2BOrdonez, RFCabrera, 1BGuillen, LFLarish, DHLaird, CInge, 3BEverett, SSP: Armando GalarragaRANGERSIan Kinsler, 2BMichael Young, 3BJosh Hamilton, CFHank Blalock, DHNelson Cruz, RFMarlon Byrd, LFChris Davis, 1BJarrod Saltalamacchia, CElvis Andrus, SSP: Kris BensonToday was the 2009 Home Opener for Detroit. It was a beautiful day to play (for early April anyway). It

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-26848625169044226572009-04-08T19:13:00.002-04:002009-04-08T19:17:11.024-04:00

I don't want to talk about last night. I had flashbacks from last year. Jackson gave the 'pen a 3 run lead in the 8th. Lyon gave it all back in the 8th. Inge tied it up with a homer in the 9th. Lyon gave that back as well. This was pure suck from Lyon and Leyland too. Why did Leyland put Lyon back out there for the 9th? I just don't get it.Tonight's line ups:TIGERSGranderson, CFPolanco,

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-32498246533244403332009-04-07T20:04:00.002-04:002009-04-07T20:08:10.758-04:00

Let's all see if Detroit can put the 0-7 ghost behind them tonight with a win. Edwin Jackson has his first start in the D. There was a great TV shot of him last night, during the carnage that was the Tigers' Opening Day, quietly taking notes on the side. He didn't look phased at all. I hope he carries that demeanor with him today.Line up:DetroitGranderson, CFPolanco, 2BOrdonez, RFCabrera,

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-16714875637837177512009-04-06T18:17:00.021-04:002009-04-06T22:13:36.093-04:00

Here it is. First pitch in about an hour. Right now I'm watching FSN Detriot's "Season Preview" and MLB Network's coverage of Opening Day around the League. One disturbing note, FSN has an even more annoying version of "April in the D" this year. Not cool guys, not cool at all.Here are the rosters for today-TigersGranderson- CFPolanco-2BOrdonez-RFCabrera-1BGuillen-DHLaird-CInge-

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-76995167148931897642009-04-05T20:54:00.002-04:002009-04-05T21:04:52.483-04:00

Just watching the Phillies and the Braves on Opening Night. So far the Braves are having an easy time of it with Brett Myers giving up 3 homeruns in the first 2 innings against him, including one by Jordan Schafer on his very first MLB at bat. Schafer is the guy that won the Centerfield position in Atlanta that made Josh Anderson available for Detroit. ESPN just put up a graphic saying that

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-28036381447448618302009-04-04T20:48:00.002-04:002009-04-04T22:10:47.740-04:00

The Tigs finished up their last spring game of the year today in Atlanta (winning 8-4). Not that it means much, but they finished up the Spring with at 15-17 record.I am excited about this team! I don't know if I am right or not, but it seems to me that too many people are down on Detroit. For example: Baseball Musings expects them to tie for last with the Twins. Jimmy Boyd says the same

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-70174550019236242162009-03-10T21:16:00.004-04:002009-03-10T21:46:40.826-04:00

David Pinto, at Baseball Musings, is doing his spring analysis of how many runs per game each team may do, based on all kinds of cool math stuff.Because the heart of Detroit's line up is playing for Venezuela right now we can't really get a good read for how they are doing. Thankfully Mr. Pinto is going to help us out with that...Best lineup: 5.16 runs per gameProbable lineup: 5.08 runs per

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-90458650241267851542009-03-09T19:23:00.003-04:002009-03-10T00:03:17.243-04:00

There was lots of baseball this weekend! Even if I can't watch any Tigers' pre-season games (what's up with that FSN Detroit?) I was able to watch Team USA vs. Team Canada on Saturday and then Team USA vs. Venezuela Sunday. I watched bits of Puerto Rico's game against Panama and the Dominican Republic's game against Panama.Detroit didn't do anything to calm my concerns about 2009 starting

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-74646816589257878022009-03-05T22:18:00.004-05:002009-03-05T22:54:39.538-05:00

Panama 9, Detroit 3Nationals 2, Tigers 10Yesterday's game just didn't look good to me (at least reading the box score, which is the best I can do). Porcello looked pretty darn good (1 hit, 0 earned runs, 2 walks, 3 Ks) in 2.0 innings. Kyle Bloom looked good too (1 hit, 0 earned runs, 1 walk, 1 K) in 2.0 innings. Perry looked solid with no hits a walk and a strike out). But Lambert got rocked

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-69322979410491059222009-03-03T22:56:00.003-05:002009-03-03T23:58:19.164-05:00

Florida Southern College 1, Detroit 7Team Venezuela 5, Detroit 7On Monday the Tigers played their annual game against FSC. I can remember seriously wondering if the Tigers would be able to beat the college team (remember the early 2000's?). I didn't seriously wonder about Detroit winning this year, but I was curious about how our pitchers would look facing college hitters. (This shouldn't

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-7821283477440420812009-03-01T21:29:00.004-05:002009-03-01T21:58:38.431-05:00

Saturday Tigers 7, Mets 2Sunday Tigers 4, Pirates 6Saturday Detroit had 3 home runs and good pitching to power over the Mets. SundaySunday Detroit had 1 home run and some really weak pitching to knuckle under to the Pirates 4 to 6.Saturday Kibler and Darrow were the only Detroit pitchers to give up runs and those runs were spread out between the 1st and 8th innings.Sunday it was the saga of Zach

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-49500066818369564402009-02-27T23:46:00.004-05:002009-02-28T00:03:41.696-05:00

To answer Ian's question, I am a glass half empty guy about Dontrelle Willis. I'm sorry, but I just don't believe that Dontrelle is capable of Major League pitching anymore. For that matter Fernando Rodney's line didn't really impress me much either.Willis pitched to 9 batters in 1 inning (plus four batters) and gave up 3 hits, 1 walk and 4 runs (2 earned) this afternoon. He picked up the "L"

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-42600875991875130292009-02-27T00:31:00.003-05:002009-02-27T00:57:02.278-05:00

Tigers 1, Nationals 2I'm hoping that this is one of those games. You know, the ones that you chalk up to "one of those days" where your realize that the best of teams lose 3 games out of 10 (the very best of teams).But the Tigers were held to 2 hits today (Everett and Thomas) and one run today. The Nationals earned two runs (both by Orr) on 4 hits.I'm hoping that this will be an exception.

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-76139752809082203402009-02-25T23:54:00.004-05:002009-02-26T00:19:53.797-05:00

Braves 4, Tigers 5Finally, they play some ball!If you missed it the Tigers and Braves started out the first game of 2009 Spring Training. Justin Verlander got the start against our old friend Jurrjens. Since it is so early in the year no pitcher was allowed to stay in for very long, so we got to see something from: Miner, Lyon, Seay, Bonine, Ni, and Bloom.Verlander gave up an unearned run on

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-29584460104956048222009-02-13T17:05:00.003-05:002009-02-13T18:07:45.949-05:00

Tomorrow morning is the first day of work outs! In my mind Spring has arrived. The question in my eyes is "what will happen in April?" Can Detroit start out better than 0-7 this year? If I am right about last year the areas that need fixing are pitching and defense.Pitchers are the start. Starters are the beginning. There are more informed analyses of what Detroit's guys can do or not do.

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-25403039443917294892009-02-01T16:41:00.003-05:002009-02-01T16:42:43.430-05:00

Kurt has resumed posting at Mack Avenue Tigers. This is another sign of spring returning through the cold snow.Welcome back Kurt!

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-37199524323361250242009-01-30T22:42:00.004-05:002009-01-30T23:41:01.407-05:00

It is 19 above zero tonight, but it down in Lakeland Florida there are people getting ready for baseball - 2009 style. Of course I am hoping that 2009 style is significantly better than 2008 style.I'm not sure what exactly to make of his comment, but Mike Ilitch isn't setting the bar very high this year when he tells us that 2009 is a "stabilizing year" and that next year they will be "very,

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-87252205827139550952008-12-14T23:39:00.003-05:002008-12-15T00:08:50.163-05:00

Christmas is almost here and it is time to look at the list and check it twice for beleaguered Tigers.Dear Santa,You were soooooo good to us last year! You gave us Miguel Cabrerra and Edgar Renteria. We thought you had given us the American League on a platter. As you know it didn't quite work out that way so we are asking you for some more gifts this year. Dave Dombrowski has found a short

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-73654390804324389742008-11-14T15:03:00.005-05:002008-11-14T15:24:57.737-05:00

What do the Tigers' need to be competitive in 2009?Well, as I've discussed all year and others have too, they need pitching and defense. Maybe I'm crazy, but would Randy Johnson fit the bill for pitching?In 2008, pitching for Arizona, he was 11-10 with an ERA of 3.91. I know, ERA isn't the best indicator of ability. How about WHIP of 1.239? That is better than everyone on the '08 Tigers'

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-61050917398971704522008-11-05T22:01:00.002-05:002008-11-05T22:12:54.123-05:00

I just saw this and thought I would post on it.Dimitri Young played for the Tigers until 2006 when he sort imploded into a public and private hell. He got a fresh start with the Nationals and became Come Back Player of the Year in 2007. I sort of lost track of him after that. Now it looks like Washington has sent him to their AAA club.I really hope he turns it around again.He is a career .292/

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1560769699234713021.post-60858275462609535792008-11-05T21:09:00.005-05:002008-11-05T21:53:45.240-05:00

No baseball for now. There are lots of trade rumors flying around. Tis the season for that kind of stuff and we all know that the Tigers are going to do something- we just don't really know what. We'll just have to wait and see what Mr. Dombrowski actually does (or doesn't do).No, let's venture out a little. It's November 5th. I was up until 1 o'clock this morning watching the presidential

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09338495807128864857noreply@blogger.com0