The Tigers Win A Series On The Road

Posted on August 26, 2009 by mlblogsskiponsecond

June 8, 2009 seems like a hundred years ago, and there have been 70 baseball games played since. The Detroit Tigers played five games against the Chicago White Sox that particular week. The Tigers took three of the five games played (there was a doubleheader played on June 8), but afterward, they have been unable to win a series, on the road. They had lost ten straight series, until now.

Last night they clinched their series against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim with a 5-3 win. It was particularly satisfying because there were a couple of times, during the game, that it could have gotten away from them. A noteworthy play by Clete Thomas in the eighth inning, was a fly ball caught at the wall in right field. Afterward Jim Leyland joked,

“I thought Morales’ ball was gone, I was waiting for the crowd to roar, and then all of a sudden, the bench was roaring.”

It was a magnificent catch, and saved the game for the Tigers. It was a good boost for everyone’s morale. When it comes to losing on the road, earlier in the week Jim Leyland had pointed out,

“It will have to change or we won’t win anything!”

On another note, the Tigers made some changes to their roster today. They sent Armando Galarraga down to Toledo to give him 10 days to rest an inflamed elbow. In the meantime, look for the return of Nate Robertson to the rotation.

“Nate threw the ball very well,” Dave Dombrowski said. “He threw only three (called) balls through five innings. He had good command of his pitches. His slider was good and his fastball was good.”

Rick Porcello will move up, and start on Friday against Tampa Bay, and Robertson will get the nod on Saturday.

Well, as I write, the Tigers have just wrapped up their series with the Angels. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a sweep. They lost today 4-2. Edwin Jackson gets the loss. A pair of doubles from Ryan Raburn and Miguel Cabrera, and a home run from Adam Everett (yes, that’s right), weren’t enough to get the Tigers in the win column.

(AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

It has been a good week for the Tigers. Now, it’s back home to Comerica Park to face the Tampa Bay Rays.

Let’s Go Tigers!!

 

 

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Tigers Win Big In Anaheim

Posted on August 25, 2009 by mlblogsskiponsecond

 

It was a little wild. It was a lot of crazy. But, the Detroit Tigers were able to pull it out last night. The two first place teams battled, and for a while it looked as though their 10 run lead was going to slip away. It didn’t.

The Tigers were up 10-0, going into the bottom of the sixth. A long top half seemed to disrupt Justin Verlander’s flow. He was touched up for four runs. Verlander went 5 and 2/3 innings, but still picked up his 14th win. Bobby Seay finished the inning.

Brandon Lyon, who replaced Seay, gave up a three-run homer to Bobby Abreu in the eighth. That was all of the scoring that the Angels were going to do. Fernando Rodney finished off the ninth in a beautiful 1-2-3 fashion.

The final score was 10-7.

Despite the win, it seemed as though most people wanted to talk about a small exchange between Verlander and catcher Gerald Laird. I’m not sure what it was about. Apparently ESPN made more of an issue of it than FSTigers. I left the room for a moment while Verlander was pulled from the game. While he was in the dugout, he and Laird exchanged words.

Afterward, Verlander said,

“It’s one of those things that’s in the heat of the battle,” Verlander said. “It wasn’t going well. He’s fired up. I’m fired up. It’s nothing… I said something he didn’t like. He said something I didn’t like. It’s whatever. It’s not a big deal. It’s the heat of the game. We need to win every game we can the way things are going. That’s going to happen over the course of the season. There’s nothing even really to talk about. Me and him are fine. It’s nothing.”

I suppose that some people are always looking for a good fight, but I don’t believe that they should look here. The one thing we don’t hear about is the politics that go on behind the scenes. That’s the way I like it. It is distracting to the game. If there are issues, let them deal with them behind the closed door of the clubhouse. I’m sure that’s what they will do.

One final water-cooler conversation was about Brandon Inge, and his new forearm tattoo’s. According to MLB Fanhouse, one arm says “Chase,” and the other says, “Tyler,” the names of his sons.

“This guy does tattoos for a lot of major league players and drew them up for me the last time we were in town,” Inge said. “He said to sit on it and think about it, and I just loved it the more I looked at it. It’s a real unique cursive style. My wife loves it, and it’s for my two boys. I’m very happy about it. The stereotype about tattoos drives me nuts, but don’t judge me by this. These are very special to me.”

If you missed them last night, you can find a picture of the tat’s here on Detroit 4 Lyfe.

The second game with the Angels is tonight. Jarrod Washburn (8-7, 3.18 ERA)is pitching for Detroit. John Lackey (8-6, 4.00 ERA) will get the nod for Los Angeles.

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A Tiger’s Game Through The Eyes Of Twitter

Posted on August 23, 2009 by mlblogsskiponsecond

I presume that many baseball fans who come to my MLBlog are not on
Twitter. That’s OK. If you are, you probably follow the Detroit Tigers
through YOUR tweets and through the tweets of those you follow.
Actually, it’s fun.

Today’s blog comes to you through the tweets
of Tiger’s fans, coast to coast, who were watching today’s game against
Oakland while in the Twitter-verse.

I have added appropriate
punctuation in some spots, not all, and I have left misspellings
exactly as they appeared in my timeline. I have also removed the names
associated with each tweet. Finally, the following tweets do not
necessarily reflect my views, and/or opinions. Enjoy!

Come on tigers!

Let’s go #tigers!

Hello from Oakland. It’s 61 and sunny as Granderson takes strike one on first pitch of game from RH Brett Tomko.

Curtis Granderslam! Woot! #tigers

(AP Photo/Tony Avelar)

After
a Carlos Guilen foul ball, they cut to a shot of some guy coming out of
his chair and pulling up his pants. I have no idea why.

Tomko
reinforces the notion you should push your kids to baseball. He’s
horrid, but still going. Trivia – How many teams has he played for?

Cust-Away: Jack Cust goes deep to left with a three-run shot in the third. It’s 4-1 A’s over Tigers.

White Sox lose again, drop 2 of 3 at home to Orioles. Unfortunately 4 runs looks like a hill too tall to climb for Tigers

Well at least the white sox’s lost.

I think detroit has single-handedly lowered the era of all American league pitchers.

To say #aubreyHuff is due, would be an understatement come on #tigers.

But
of course, he’s two-hitting the Tigers right now. Now there’s a trivia
question. Who’s the worst pitcher the Tigers have made look good?

Well…. Tigers need 5 runs OR MORE to win this game…. they haven’t scored more than 5 runs since…. ummmm…

That sucks! Strikeout and runner on first base gets picked off napping to end the inning for the detroit tigers.

The #tigers bats make me cry.

He would win the cy young if he pitched against the tigers every game. Brett Tomko looking like an ace. WTF

What will happen first – Lions win a road game or Tigers win a road series?

Yes,
I’m glad I didn’t make the trip up north to watch this game in person.
Now I can just turn off the TV and applaud my decision.

Carlos Guillen is a BUM!

(AP Photo/Tony Avelar)


It seems the Tigers can’t win a road series to save their lives. More run support is needed in Detroit.

Happiness = now ruined. detroit tigers are getting whomped. brb, attempting to stifle my sobs.

Detroit Tigers bringing me down with a classic snooze job on getaway day in Oakland.

Home run from Miggy! 5-4 Oakland in the bottom of the 8th. Perry pitching…2nd & 3rd for the A’s.

(AP Photo/ Tony Avelar)


These Detroit Tigers are gonna make me pull my hair out. Come on now. Ugh.

WTF come on #Detroit #Tigers

#Tiger comeback, negated by #Athletics 8-4 sigh!

Add Another: Cliff Pennington homers to right. 9-4, A’s over Tigers.

Tigers lose 10th consecutive road series in Oakland.

Can you believe that the Detroit Tigers lost again..Bummer,,Tigers best get with it and soon!

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The Tigers Walk Off Against The Mariners

Posted on August 20, 2009 by mlblogsskiponsecond

The front page of my Detroit Free Press this morning had a headline
that I have seen too often, written in many different ways. It said,

“WEAK BATS COST TIGERS AGAIN”

Using
any words of your own choosing to convey that simple thought, you would
probably come across an actual headline that has appeared at some time
this season, in a Detroit area newspaper.

On Wednesday night,
the Detroit Tigers (63-56) lost to the Seattle Mariners (62-58), 3-1.
Justin Verlander went eight innings. He gave up three runs, on six
hits. The American League strikeout leader (204) struck out 10 batters.

Verlander deserved a win. He didn’t get it.

Fast
forward to today. My, what a difference a day makes. Actually, a little
more than half a day (the Tigers played an afternoon game). Yesterday,
I had written about the excitement of the late inning rally in
ballgames. As I watched this one (the Tigers were down 6-2 going into
the bottom of the sixth), I kept hoping that I would see a repeat
performance of Tuesday’s win. I did.

The Tigers scored three
runs in the sixth inning to close the gap to 6-5. It wasn’t until the
ninth that things began to heat up.

Carlos Guillen came into the
game as a pinch hitter, substituting for Marcus Thames. Davis Aardsma
walked him. Then, Raburn fouled out. The next batter, Miguel Cabrera
doubled, moving Guillen to within 90 feet of the plate. Ordonez was
walked intentionally to load the bases. (You know, this is where things
really begin to happen!) With a 1-1 count, Brandon Inge sacrificed to
bring in Guillen.

AP Photo/Duane Burleson

Finally, after an unbelievable eight pitch at bat, Clete Thomas singled to right field, to score Cabrera, and win the game. Wow!

You gotta love it!

AP Photo/Duane Burleson

Lost
in the afterglow of the victory (fortunately), was Jarrod Washburn’s no
decision. He pitched six innings, and once again, looked horrific on
the mound. Washburn gave up six runs (four were home runs), and five
hits. On the good side of things, his ERA still ranks in the top 10, among AL pitchers (3.18 ERA).

But, from ESPN.com:

Washburn
has now given up five earned runs or more in three of his first four
starts since being traded, and has yet to pick up a win for the Tigers.

Where
is the guy I thought we were getting? Hopefully, he’ll get it together
in the next start, or two. We desperately need him to be what he can
be, especially as we play on the road.

Go Tigers!!

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That’s The Way To Do It!

Posted on August 19, 2009 by mlblogsskiponsecond

 

The late inning rally. What’s better? I think that when your team is down, and it is starting to look like the other team may win, but YOURS pulls it out – that’s one of the most exciting things about a game.

The Tigers down in the eighth inning, did just that.

Last night’s game against the Seattle Mariners (and King Felix) was pretty well wrapped up (in the minds of some) going into the bottom of the inning. But, it has been said that, “it ain’t over, ’til it’s over!”

(AP Photo/Duane Burleson)

Mark Lowe, who replaced Felix Hernandez on the mound, faced Alex Avila, leading off the Tigers portion of the eighth. With the Mariners leading, 3-1, Lowe sent Avila out for a jog around the bases. Santiago came into the game as a pinch hitter, and promptly singled. After popping out Curtis Granderson, there was an error, a walk, and another single. Then – Ryan Raburn stole home!

Add Fernando Rodney to the mix, and THAT is some pretty good, and exciting, baseball.

Game number two against the Mariners is tonight. Justin Verlander (13-6, 3.28 ERA) will go against Ian Snell (2-9, 5.84 ERA).

Go Tigers!

 

 

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Tigers vs Royals Wrap-Up

Posted on August 17, 2009 by mlblogsskiponsecond

The Detroit Tigers were happy to get out of Boston. Fenway Park is a
terrific place to see a ballgame, and to play, but it is the nemesis of
the Tigers. Good riddance, and…

Welcome to Comerica Park! This is where the Tigers WANT to be! They play good baseball – HERE!

After
winning his 13th game of the season on Thursday, against the Red Sox,
Justin Verlander and the Tigers headed west. They had business with the
Kansas City Royals, in Motown, on Friday night.

The first game
turned out to be a classic pitcher’s duel between Zach Greinke and
Jarrod Washburn. As you know, Washburn has struggled here since being
acquired by the Tigers. We finally had an opportunity to see him pitch
– really pitch. Washburn took the game into the eighth inning, before the Royals batters were turned over to Brandon Lyon.

The
1-0 win was special, as pitcher’s duels usually are. Each starting
pitcher gave up three hits. The difference in the game was the hit that
former Tiger Roman Colon allowed; a solo home-run from Brandon Inge.

“Any
homer is fun, but hitting one to win a game is something special,” said
Inge, who came into the game hitting .188 since playing in his first
All-Star game. “I felt a little better tonight, but I feel a heck of a
lot better now. Winning a game like that will do that.”

It
was wonderful to see the Tigers team mob Inge as he crossed the plate.
After losing three of four to Boston, they needed their confidence
bolstered up – badly.

(AP Photo/Duane Burleson)

The
bats were alive with leftover fireworks from Friday night, as on
Saturday, the Tigers beat the Royals 10-3. Carlos Guillen homered, and
drove in four runs; Miggy had his third four-hit game of the season
(including homering in the eighth); Roman Santiago and Alex Avila added
home-runs to the 16 hit mix, and Placido Polanco doubled.

(AP Photo/Jerry S. Mendoza)

Then, on Sunday afternoon, the bats fell silent. Unfortunately, this has become a pattern after multi-run games.

Armando
Galarraga, who missed his previous start due to illness, turned up
strong on the mound. After walking the first batter of the ballgame, he
settled in; giving up four hits, two earned runs and striking out six.
The game was tied at two runs a-piece entering the tenth. Former Tiger,
Josh Anderson reached on a single. An error by Ryan Raburn allowed
Davis DeJesus to reach. Anderson moved to second, and eventually scored
on a throwing error from Ryan Raburn. With the Royals ahead, the Tigers
were unable to make it happen in the bottom of the inning.

They
have tonight off. Tomorrow, the Seattle Mariners are in town, and the
Tigers will face King Felix. Felix Hernandez will undoubtedly be good.
He has picked up a “W” in five straight starts against Detroit. Also,
he is hot on the road.

Rick Porcello’s suspension will end Tuesday, so he’ll get the nod for the Tigers.

The
Tigers habitually leave runners in scoring position, and still need to
find out why they fall flat at the plate, when runs are needed most.
Too often, this is the reason why they have lost games. Additionally,
finding out why they fail on the road will need to be addressed,
especially as September approaches.

But, fans can still find
solace in that the Tigers (62-55) are in first place, in the AL
Central. The Chicago White Sox are two and a half games behind.

Today, the Tigers also added to their line-up by acquiring Aubrey Huff from the Baltimore Orioles.

“I’ve been in last place basically my whole career, so this is an exciting time for me,” Huff said. “I’m looking forward to it.”

It is a great time to be a Detroit Tigers fan. Let’s go!

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Porcello Suspended Five Games

Posted on August 12, 2009 by mlblogsskiponsecond

YOUK PORCELLO.jpg

This is unbelievable!

Rick Porcello has been suspended for five games, for his role in last night’s bench clearing fracas. Also, Edwin Jackson received an undisclosed fine for, what was called, “his aggressive actions.” Kevin Youkilis faces a five days suspension for charging at Porcello, after being hit by a pitch.

Rick Porcello said it was not intentional.

“The only thing I have to say about tonight is that I was not intentionally throwing at Kevin Youkilis,” Porcello said after the game. “That’s all I have to say. It was unintentional. There was nobody on. It’s a 3-0 game. I was not trying to hit him intentionally.”

The suspensions will be served, for both players, beginning tonight.

I question why Youklis didn’t receive more time off. Not only did he go after Porcello, who was clearly backing away during the charge, he also threw his helmet at him! I don’t get it.

Detroit took an early 3-0 lead prior to the fight, and then after a more than hour-long rain delay, lost the game, 7-5.

In addition to losing Porcello for one start, the Tigers will be without Miguel Cabrera, who was hit in the hand, and is listed as day to day. Carlos Guillen will start at first base tonight, in his place.

Unrelated to the brawl, Armando Galarraga will not pitch tonight, due to illness. Zach Miner will get the start for the Tigers.

 

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A Stormy Night At Fenway

Posted on August 11, 2009 by mlblogsskiponsecond

As I write this, the Detroit Tigers/ Boston Red Sox game has been
delayed by rain in the Top of the 7th Inning. Boston has the lead 6-3.

The
early innings of this one were marked with a little excitement. Junichi
Tazawa took the mound for Boston. The Tigers were able to score three
runs in the first. But, it was when facing the fourth batter of the
inning, Tazawa began a chain of events that would have heavy
consequences for Detroit. He hit Miguel Cabrera in the hand with a
pitch. In the next inning, Cabrera had difficulty, and during his
second at bat, was pulled from the game. In the Boston half of the
second, Rick Porcello drilled Kevin Youkilis with an 89 mph fastball.
Youkilis immediately charged the mound, threw his helmet at Porcello,
and lunged at him. Both men rolled to the ground, while both benches
cleared. Porcello and Youkilis were ejected. Chris Lambert came in to
pitch for Detroit, while Mike Lowell was brought in as an offensive
substitute to pinch run for Youkilis. Also, Terry Francona was tossed
for arguing a play at second base.

It proved to be a pivotal
inning as Lambert showed his youth and inexperience on the mound. After
giving up a single to Big Papi, left-fielder Jason Bay, homered to tie
the game. Subsequently, Mike Lowell homered in the third AND fifth innings. Boston went up 6-3.

While
the storm raged on the playing field, rain clouds were forming in the
skies above. Eventually, the rains fell, and the tarp had to be drawn
over the field.

The Twitterverse was a buzz with people
tweeting the Tigers/Red Sox game. Quickly, the brawl became a Twitter
Trending Topic, and before long video of the scrum found its way onto
You Tube.

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Tigers Lose In Boston, 6-5

Posted on August 11, 2009 by mlblogsskiponsecond

Edwin Jackson.jpg

The perfect storm arrived in Boston. Of course, I’m not referring to a weather related event, but to a combination of things that contributed to the Tigers loss last night.

To begin with, the Tigers have not played well on the road this season. As a matter of fact, they are horrible when they are not at Comerica Park. They boast a 40-13 record in Detroit, but they sink to 20-34 as visitors. That’s only 37% of their road games that they have won! Likewise, the Boston Red Sox enjoy a winning home record (37-13).

The Red Sox were coming off of an extended losing streak, and naturally, were due to win. The storm clouds continued to brew.

Edwin Jackson struggled. He lasted four innings, allowed nine hits and four earned runs. He was replaced by Fu-Te Ni, and Zack Miner.

The Tigers found themselves down early in the game, 4-0. In the fourth inning, Magglio tripled to bring in Miguel Cabrera, who was on base after being hit by a Brad Penny pitch. Eventually, they were able to tie the game.

Unfortunately, the effort wasn’t enough. The Red Sox answered back with a run of their own, in the bottom of the 7th, to take the lead, 6-5.

During the 8th inning, the game could have been turned around. With the Red Sox ahead, Magglio doubled (he was replaced by the faster Clete Thomas) off of Ramon Ramiriz. Brandon Inge was hit by a pitch, and Gerald Laird was able to advanced the runners with a sac bunt. Adam Everett then struck out on three straight pitches. At this point, Terry Francona brought in Jonathan Papelbon, who induced Curtis Granderson to foul out to the catcher.

Here we are again! A squandered opportunity with runners on base.

The road losses are frustrating and hard to explain, and leaving men on base as often as they have – is inexcusable.

But, tonight is another night, as they say. Will the road woes continue to haunt the Detroit Tigers?

The Tigers, who have yet to beat Boston this year, are putting their money on Rick Porcello (10-7 4.30 ERA) to turn it around! He’ll be facing Junichi Tazawa (0-1 10.80 ERA).

GO TIGERS!!

Follow me on Twitter as the Detroit Tigers make their run to the playoffs!

http://twitter.com/Skips_Tigers

 

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Tigers Take Series From Twins

Posted on August 9, 2009 by mlblogsskiponsecond

As you know the Detroit Tigers have been, for lack a better word, streaky. This past week, they played at Comerica Park (which is good), against the Baltimore Orioles and the Minnesota Twins.

The Orioles series was particulary exciting for me. I was able to make it to three of the four games, and the Tigers took three of four from the Birds.

The weekend series against Minnesota had its surprises. Most notably, the Twins aquistion of Carl Pavano from the Indians. Detroit faced him on Saturday night, and were shut out. But, they were able to put another notch in the win column on Friday, and again this afternoon. Today’s win, in nearly 95 degree temperatures, was big.

According to Tigers manager Jim Leyland,

“That’s a helluva of a win. Down 3 to nothing on a hot day, beat up last night 11 to nothing, they showed me something today. I’m proud of them.”

In addition to the long ball (Thames and Cabrera), the Tigers played small ball, and showed an ability to manufacture runs when they were needed.

The drawback in today’s game was Jarrod Wasburn’s inabilty to prevent his opponents from reaching base, and scoring. In his second game as a Detroit Tiger, he pitched six innings and gave up 10 hits, and five earned runs. Today’s win went to Brandon Lyon. Fernando Rodney (with no lack of drama), picked up his 23rd save.

Tomorrow night, the Tigers will be in Boston. Edwin Jackson (8-5 2.62 ERA)will pitch for Detroit. Former Los Angeles Dodger pitcher, Brad Penny (7-6 5.20 ERA)is on the mound for the Red Sox.

Follow me on Twitter!

http://twitter.com/Skips_Tigers

 

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