Tigers Weekly 2007 Season

Week 8: 5/24/07 - 5/30/07

OK I'm going to try something gimmicky here.  I'll be
writing The Weekly with commentary on tonight's
game...  DAMMIT home run Victor Martinez... 6-4 Tribe.
Be prepared for random outbursts.  Lots of crazy
stuff has happened already.  

The Tigers had their worst week of the year, losing
consecutive series including a sweep at home to the
Cleveland Indians.  Injuries are beginning to pile up,
as Carlos Guillen and Brandon Inge have missed some
time.  A whole mess of pitchers are on the disabled
list and to make things worse, the team is in the
midst of a ten-game road trip.  Earlier in the week I
was telling myself "It's only May" but the losses
coupled with injuries is cause for concern... come on,
Verlander, throw some strikes...

New Subscribers...

Rob "Ed" Sprague

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Week of 5/24 - 5/30

Record:  2-5  WLLLLWL

Up Next for the Tigers...

May 31 - June 3  @ Cleveland
June 4           no game scheduled...
June 5-7         @ Texas

AL Central Standings (5/30)...

CLE  32 19 -
DET  30 22 2.5
MIN  27 25 5.5
CWS  24 24 6.5
KCR  19 35 14.5

Tigers Division (5/30)...


BOS  36 16 -
|
LAD  31 21 5
ARI  32 23 5.5
SDP  30 22 6
DET  30 22 6
ATL  30 23 6.5
MIL  29 24 7.5

Tigers News and Notes:  Jeremy Bonderman returned to
the lineup this week and pitched well in two
appearances.  Fernando Rodney was placed on the DL and
replaced, in the bullpen, by Zach Miner.  ...come on
Verlander, hit another batter!!!  at least the Pistons
are winning...  

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Tiger of the Week...
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Only two wins this week. Bonderman pitched in both of those games, but the Tigers scored 26 runs combined. Well, all right, he did only allow two runs total in 14.1 innings. I guess that's worthy of the honors. Bonderman remains the jewel of the three-way deal that sent Jeff Weaver to the Yankees. This rough stretch has seen some frustrating pitching performances, and Jeremy put a stop to the losing streak on Tuesday (the 22 hits helped as well). ...ring him up, ump!!! good lord, does Byrdak have to put it on a platter?... Bondo, along with Verlander, will be the anchors of this rotation for a good long time.

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Tigers Weekly Baseball Game 2007...
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I have been contacted by Mr. Josh Tkaczyk about
getting things together for some more summer baseball.
If you are interested in playing a near-full-speed
game (or two) of baseball in the Lansing area,
sometime in June or July, drop me a line about what
weekends you would be able to play.  We would most
likely play on a Saturday afternoon.  

... Byrdak calling for the grounds crew to mess with
the mound... 7-4 tribe after a sac-fly... this has
been a strange game...

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Everyone's Fault But My Own...
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Sometimes I think that America is the most backwards
country in history.  The father of Josh Hancock, the
Cardinals pitcher that crashed his car into a
tow-truck and died, is suing almost everyone possible
involved in the incident.  On the list of defendants
are the restaurant's owner and manager, the driver of
the tow-truck, the tow-truck company, and even the
driver of the car that was being assisted by the
tow-truck!  

http://www.sportsline.com/mlb/story/10195640

Hancock was drunk, speeding, on the phone, and not
wearing a seat belt.  I'd say the boy got what was
coming to him.  Chalk it up as another athlete who
thinks they're invincible and then runs into the
sledgehammer of reality.  You've gotta feel bad for
the family, but the dad has no case here, and lawsuits
like this are pathetic.  

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Poll Question...
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Injuries are piling up and it's making it hard on the
Tigers pitchers.  Tim Byrdak and Zach Miner have been
called up to fill in and are doing all right.  Jose
Mesa hasn't pitched too bad lately either, but the
Tigers need to get healthy soon.  

Which of Detroit's pitchers is missed the most?  

... Byrdak gets out of bases loaded, 0 out, giving up
just a run...

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Game Linescores...
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May 24:  Anaheim 0 - Detroit 12
Starters:  ANA: E. Santana 3.2IP - DET: Bonderman 8IP
ANA  000 000 000   0  4 1
DET  402 222 00X  12 13 0
W: Bonderman   (3-0)
L: E. Santana  (2-6)

May 25:  Cleveland 7 - Detroit 4
Starters:  CLE: Byrd 6.1IP - DET: Robertson 5.2IP
CLE  200 201 002  7 12 0
DET  010 002 100  4 11 1
W: Byrd      (5-1)
L: Robertson (4-4)
S: Borowski  (15)

May 26:  Cleveland 6 - Detroit 3
Starters:  CLE: Sabathia 7IP - DET: Verlander 6IP
CLE  002 000 130  6 9 2
DET  010 101 000  3 8 0
W: Sabathia (7-1)
L: Grilli   (2-2)
S: Browoski (16)

May 27:  Cleveland 5 - Detroit 3
Starters:  CLE: Carmona 7IP - DET: Maroth 8IP
CLE  400 010 000  5  6 1
DET  003 000 000  3 11 0
W: Carmona  (6-1)
L: Maroth   (3-2)
S: Borowski (17)

May 28:  Detroit 5 - Tampa Bay 6
Starters:  DET: Durbin 6IP - TBD: Jackson 6IP
DET  020 010 200  5 11 1
TBD  000 200 112  6  8 2
W: Glover (2-2)
L: Jones  (1-2)

May 29:  Detroit 14 - Tampa Bay 2
Starters:  DET: Bonderman 6.1IP - TBS: Fossum 1IP
DET  320 005 202  14 22 1
TBD  000 101 000   2  4 1
W: Bonderman (4-0)
L: Fossum    (3-5)

May 30:  Detroit 3 - Tampa Bay 5
Starters:  DET: Robertson 5.1IP - TBD: Shields 9IP
DET  300 000 000  3  7 1
TBD  010 022 00X  5 12 0
W: Shields   (4-0)
L: Robertson (4-5)

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Readers Write In...
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Brian "Stymie" O'Toole

Dear Cleveland,

If you have to ask us not to whoop your ass in either
baseball or basketball, it's just not time for you to
win.  In the words of the immortal Ric Flair, "To BE
the man, you gotta BEAT the man . . .
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"  
Pass the ball LeBron . . . no SHOOT the ball LeBron .
. . oh wait it doesn't really matter!  We appreciate
your politeness in the process though.

Regards,
Detroit

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Dallas "Big D" Senters

i don't like it when the big time announcers kiss up
to the big time teams and players, but i do tend like
miller/morgan.  maybe because morgan was a red, or
maybe because they are the voices for the baseball
game on my game cube.

i like the indians radio guys, and i get to hear tom
hamilton do buckeye games.  i don't get any of the
non-network televised games, so i stick to marty
brennaman's radio calls for the reds

DS

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Andy "Kin Korn" Karnitz

I'm all with ya as far as Mario & Rod are concerned,
Matt. They bring a lot more energy to the booth than
any Tigers TV crew that I can recall. Kaline & Kell
brought an awful lot of insight and expeience, and
while they coul both get excited at times, they
weren't the most gifted in the booth. I miss
Kell's,"Ooooooooo, pulled fahl," and his really poor
eyesight, "Allen Trammell at the plate- handsome young
man!", but I really don't associate any Tigers'
memories with him.

Larry Osterman and Jim Northrup- they were baaaad.
They could make any situation seem like one about
dryin' paint. How many ways are there to commit
suicide? I can't give ya the exact total, but I came
up with some new ones while these guys droned on. Have
ya ever actually wished for a test of the emergency
broadcast network ? I have. Similarly with anyone
involved with Braves broadcasts or any Buck not named
Jack, or any Carey not named Harry.  

Miller & Morgan are just plain great. They're able to
share their knowledge of the game, keep it fun and
give ya a sense of the ambience of the pasttime. I'm
also a fan of Thom Brenneman, Duane Staats(or is it
Dewayne Stats), two former Cubs radio play-by-play
guys, as well as the bottomless basso profundo of
Charlie Steiner.

Justin Carroll- Chester Banic III?!? Didn't he back up
Mike Ditka at Pitt? Or was he one of Abe Simpson's
pals in The Fightin' Hellfish? Great name! 

But I love Polanco's name as it is. I always wonder
if, after the games, Placido sings with Tito Puente at
The Mocambo Club.

And one last thought: As great as Magglio is playin',
I can't help but get nervous any time a ball is hit to
right field when he's out there.

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Chas "Grey Fox" Claus

Chas Sees a Pair of Games
-or-
"Old Grey Fox, He Ain't What He Used to Be"

While the Tigers were turning Hockeytown back into
TigerTown last autumn, The Grey Fox was soaking it in,
live and in technicolor.  Perhaps the most 
telling statistic of last season's postseason run was
this: the Tigers were 4-0 in playoff games that Chas
attended (NYY games 3&4, OAK game 4, StL game 2) and
only 4-5 in playoff games without him.  This
perfomance by yours truly left me laboring under the
delusion that I was good luck or something.

2007 has quickly proven my thesis incorrect, as the
Tigers have languished to a 1-3 mark with me in
attendance in the early part of the season (and the 
only win was a complete fluke, thanks to B.J. Ryan
walking about 43 batters in a row in Toronto in
April).

As a side note, my presence has not exactly been a
shot in the arm for Cuppy Coffee, who has faded from
late leads to finish last in both Donut Races, with
Dashing Donut winning 5/22 and Biggie Bagel winning
5/25.

My first home game of the season was last Tuesday
(5/22) with my brother Mike and my sister Jenny, who
had somehow never been to Comerica Park.  The 
opponent was the AL West-leading
California/Anaheim/LosAngelesOfAnaheim 
Angels.  The game was characterized by the Angels
putting a few guys on base and getting them all home,
and the Tigers putting a whole lot of men on base 
and doing nothing about it.  The Tigers stranded 11 on
base as a team, with individual stats revealing our
Boys credited with 24 total L.O.B.  C/A/LAoA 
made a ton of great defensive plays, but good teams
take advantage of opportunities and the Tigers simply
didn't.  Mike Maroth took his first loss of the
season, but did go 7 innings and 109 pitches - sorely
needed, given the state of our bullpen.  John Lackey
was outstanding, giving up only 1 run in 5 innings,
and Frankie Rodriguez was lights-out in the 9th.  
Luckily, $7 pitchers at the State Bar & Grill made
things somewhat better.  FINAL: ANGELS 6 - TIGERS 3.

On Friday night (5/25), I gave it another try, this
time against the Almost-As-Hot-As-O'Toole-Shirtless
Cleveland Indians.  I went as a part of a group led by
die-hard Tribe squaw Emily Sawyer, meaning that I had
to internalize some of my true feelings about the
visiting team, in contrast to my usual method of
yelling them for all to hear.

The crowd on Friday night was one of the type that
Tigers fans could only dream about in the past - every
standing room spot was packed two or three 
people deep.  Having purchased S.R.O. tickets a few
days prior, we caught the first half from the
2nd-level first base line, and the remainder of the 
game from just behind the last seats in lower-deck
right field.

Due to abysmal traffic on one-lane Woodward, we
arrived a bit late and therefore missed Casey Blake's
homer in the top of the first.  Despite this, 
we still got plenty of opportunities to watch Nate
Robertson do his impression of Jose Lima, as he gave
up another homer in the 1st to Victor Martinez and yet
another in the 4th to Josh Barfield. Ultimately, 
Nate was chased only one out into the 5th inning,
having surrendered 10 hits and 3 walks, leading to 5
earned runs.  After that, the bullpen was its usual 
self, making every inning more interesting than it
should have been.  Despite giving up a couple of runs,
I do want to go on record as saying that 
I think Tim Byrdak will be an above-average reliever
for the Tigers in a year or two.

The player of the game was easily Paul Byrd,
Cleveland's starting pitcher.  He got the Tigers
swinging at first pitches, and simply continued to 
throw slow strikes that led to popout after popout. 
He was pulled after 6.1 (I'm not totally sure why)
having only thrown 71 pitches, 60 of witch were 
strikes!  Rafael Betancourt came on and followed suit,
throwing 16 pitches, 15 for strikes.  FINAL: INDIANS 7
- TIGERS 4.

...which brings me to my biggest concern about the
Tigers.  Obviously the bullpen is a problem, but
there's not much we can do about injuries.  
What we CAN do something about it not swing at every
single pitch that we see.  I know that the Tigs are
free-swingers, etc, etc, etc - and I'm fine with 
that.  However, so many of the swings on this (and
many) nights are from-the-heels, for-the-fences,
popouts and untimely strikeouts on three pitches.  The
most guilty of this is Craig Monroe, who for some
reason feels the need to swing as hard as possible
even when the situation only calls for him to get on
base or for him to get bat-on-ball and knock in a run.
Sean Casey swings at a ton of bad pitches, and
Brandon Inge half-swings at every pitch (meaning that
he goes too far every time and doesn't actually 
swing on real strikes).  I know that you're not going
to change the colors of this team, and when they are
rolling (see 5/29's 22 hits vs. the D-Rays) they're 
great.  I would just like to see more
situation-appropriate swings.

Seriously, there's nothing worse than seeing Monroe
come up late in a game when you're down 2 runs or
more.  You might as well pack up and leave 
because he'll still be aiming for the statues for no
apparent reason.

TOOLIE: ...strange for a guy who, last season, was
known as Mr. Clutch

Chas

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Mike "Rocky" Claus

Hey Toolie- 

Mike Claus here, complete with a new email address now
that I have outgrown my school one. Yes I have
graduated, and am looking forward to the standard
Tigers Weekly graduation present--4 seats behind the
plate for a marquee game, plus a picture and autograph
of Paws. You can send them to my address in Michigan,
and thanks!

As I write this, the Tigs have just recovered from a
brutal four game losing streak by pounding the Rays
14-2. One thing last season taught me--it's a long
season. There's no reason to get too worked up over
one win or one loss. That being said, those four were
some of the most painful of the year. Good to be back
on the winning side of things. 

I did manage to attend one game while back in
Michigan--the lone loss to the Angels. The park was
hopping, at least for a Tuesday night. A couple of
notes on park changes. The entire infield and outfield
lines are now lined with a wrapping video screen, much
like you'd see in a hockey or basketball arena. Also,
the manual scoreboard in right-center has been
replaced by a video screen. I'm not a huge proponent
of video and electronics (I think they ruined new
Busch Stadium with their overuse) but the CoPA  folks
did a pretty good job of keeping it simple. Overall,
I'm for the changes. 

I'm off to Chicago into the heart of Cubs country to
start a job for which I have no qualifications. If
anyone's up for a baseball trip to Chi-town and want
free lodging, give me a call. 

Rod Allen sucks, Gary Thorne rules, bring back Costas.

Go Tigs!

Mike Claus

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Justin "Lewis" Carroll

You should probably send it out when the Tigers start
winning again, because of Wednesday the Tigers got
Steve Irwined, by which I mean killed by the Rays. 

*smirk* 

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Toolie's Trashtalk...

OK, it's been a bad week.  Here are my pet peeves from
the debacle...

On Sunday Night, the Tigers trailed the Indians by a
pair of runs in the 5th inning.  Curtis Granderson led
off with a double.  Instead of getting him to third
base, Craig Monroe grounded out to third.  The next
two batters were retired, and the Tigers failed to
score.  The next inning, the Tigers had 1st and 2nd
with nobody out and "Speedy" Sean Casey at the bat. 
They should have listened to Joe Walsh, because Casey
grounded into a double-play, and Omar Infante's fly
ball went for naught.  Again in the 7th, the Tigers
had a man on 2nd with nobody out, thanks to a Brandon
Inge double.  Do you think they moved him over with a
bunt?  Curtis Granderson was up, and he may have even
been able to scratch out a hit if the bunt was good
enough.  Nope.  Curtis swung at the first pitch and
flied out to right field.  The next two batters flied
out and reached on an infield single, either of which
would have scored a 3rd-base residing Inge.  Chalk
Sunday's loss up to management.  Instead of grinding
out a few runs, they played it lazy and it cost them
the game.  

Compounding my frustration was the way the Tigers lost
on Monday.  After taking a 6-3 lead into the seventh,
things were looking good.  Then the Rays pecked away
and eventually won the game.  Akinori Iwanmura hit
what should have been a single, but the ball was
misplayed by Curtis Granderson and Iwamura was on
third base.  Miner induced a strikeout, but the next
batter grounded out and the Rays had their fourth run.
In the eighth the Tigers still had a two-run lead
when B.J. Upton singled.  On a strike-out, Upton stole
second, and Rabelo's throw sailed into right field. 
Upton went to third, and Ty Wigginton hit a ground
ball to bring in another run.  That brought us to the
ninth, where Todd Jones had to face, what I think, is
his toughest matchup in the AL.  The Rays hit well and
they swing at everything.  Jones pretty much just
throws strikes.  A pair of singles was followed with
(drum roll please) a sac-bunt, putting the tying and
winning runs on second and third.  After an
intentional walk to set up the double-play, Elijah
Dukes bounced one off the turf over Brandon Inge's
head to plate two and send the Tigers to defeat. 
...double by Casey, RBI single by Thames and the
Tigers are back in it in the 8th...  The Tigers were
spoonfed the medicine that they refused to take on
Sunday and they (and their fans) were left with a bad
taste in their mouths.

...Mesa pitching in Cleveland, I hear he's a legend in
that town...

Looking forward to putting together the baseball game
this summer.  It sounds like the other fellows may
have enough people for a couple of teams.  I wouldn't
put it past The Weekly crowd to come up with two
squads either.  It's been kicked around that this year
we could do something sort of tournament style.  Now
that would be a day.  

...Mesa gives up a pair of singles, gotta hole 'em.
Man I hate that guy in the outfield with the drum.  Do
any of you Tribe fans know if the Indians give that
guy free tickets?  He deserves them, just to get on
the nerves of opposing fans...

OK, I'm going to check out the rest of this game and
also the Pistons.  Tigers need to snap out of this
funk and earn at least a split at the Jake.  

I'm out.
 





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Play Ball!

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