Dailies

Tigers, Valverde Hang on in KC

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The Tigers scratched out a run in the 8th and Valverde pitched around a 9th inning lead off single and stolen base to move Max Scherzer’s record to 9-0.

Donny Kelly got the the scoring started in the 2nd on a line drive to left that scored Victor Martinez.

The 8 and 9 hitters in the lineup has six of the Tigers’ 11 hits. Infante had 3, Kelly had 2 and Garcia had 1.

Alex Avila went 0-3, striking out twice and walking once moving his batting average down to .169.

I’m not sure how long the Tigers can keep throwing him out there.  He is almost an automatic out.

“God, I love baseball.” – Roy Hobbs | The Natural

Tigers Waste Another Fister Gem

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Doug Fister pitched 8 innings, giving up three earned runs, and came away with his 4th loss of the season.  The Tigers could only get him two runs on a 3rd inning Miguel Cabrera two run homer.  That’s all the scoring the Tigers could muster.
In his last 3 starts the Tigers have scored only 2 runs.

Alex Avila continues to struggle at the plate going 0-3 with a walk.  How long can the Tigers let him hit under .200?  After tonight, his average is at .172.  I’m not sure the Tigers are doing Avila any favors by letting him go up there and struggle so mightily.

“God, I love baseball.” – Roy Hobbs | The Natural

 

Tigers Beat Indians 6-4; Another Good Outing for Rickey

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Saturday, June 8th, 2013

The Tigers beat the Indians 6-4 on Saturday with Rick Porcello pitching 6 strong innings giving up 2 runs but only 1 earned.

Porcello was solid but I was a little concerned early because a lot of his outs were in the air.  As a sinker ball pitcher it seemed like he was missing up but getting fly ball outs.

It doesn’t like Prince Fielder, aka PF Money, likes it when a pitcher walks Miggy in front of him.  In the 2nd inning Carrasco walked Miguel Cabrera to load the bases.  Fielder stepped to the plate and delivered a bases clearing double.

Papa Grande came in to close the game out and as usual, it wasn’t easy.  But to be fair, Santana hit a Texas Leaguer that dropped between Infante and Hunter.  It was a cheap hit but nothing is ever easy when Papa comes into the game.  Valverde walked Gomes but struck out Rayburn and Aviles to end the game.

I’m very concerned about Alex Avila.  I have been a huge fan of his since he came into the league but I’m not sure there is a place on any roster for a guy that hits under .200.  If he doesn’t get on a little roll in the next week or so, I’m wondering if sending him down to Toledo for a few weeks to work on his stroke might not be a good idea.

I’m not sayin’, I’m just sayin’.

“God, I love baseball.” – Roy Hobbs | The Natural

Tigers Win 7-5; JV OK

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JV was OK in his start tonight against the Cleveland Indians.  In what is becoming a pattern, he gave up 3 earned in 7 innings.  The rough inning was the 5th when the Indians got two infield hits and a Texas Leaguer to load the basis.

The first run was driven in on a hard single to left by Michael Bourn on an 0-2 pitch.  I really have to question the pitch selection.  From the third base side it looked like a 96 MPH fastball that obviously caught too much of the plate.  I guess I’m not sure why he threw Bourn an 0-2 fastball.

The damage could have been limited to 2 runs but a fly ball off the bat of Jason Kipnis went off the heal of Torii Hunter’s glove in right scoring two runs.  I thought Hunter should have been given an error on the play but what do I know.  JV got Swisher and Brantley to fly out to end the inning.

This is just an observation or suggestion.  I don’t understand why JV and other Tiger pitchers allow batters to hang over the plate and foul two strike pitches off. It is absolutely maddening.  It drives the pitch count up and gives the hitter the advantage.  Why not throw inside and move them off of the plate especially with less than a 3 ball count?  For example, in the 6th Mark Reynolds worked Verlander for a 9 pitch at bat.  Reynolds fouled off 3 pitches with the count full and eventually lined a single.  Even with a full count, after Reynolds fouled off the second pitch, JV should have buzzed him hard inside.  I’m not saying to hurt the guy but I would argue that lighting up his ribs with a 90 MPH fast ball would have moved him and the rest of the Indians off of the plate and he would have been no worse off.  Reynolds would still be on first but I bet he wouldn’t be leaning over the plate fouling off pitches the next time at bat.

“God, I love baseball.” – Roy Hobbs | The Natural

Tigers Take Series From Cubbies

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It is a good thing AJax hit that two run homer in the top of the ninth to give the Tigers a 5-2 lead.  Papa Grande came in and gave up a run in the bottom of the ninth but the Tigers held on to win 5-3 and take the series two games to one from the Cubbies and give JV his sixth win of the season.

Next, the Tigers head home for a weekend tilt with the Rockies.

-Crippy

“It’s a wonderful game, this baseball. ” -David Schoenfield| ESPN.com

FREE ROGER CLEMENS…

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from federal tyranny.

Obama has sent his Einsatzgruppen after
former major league pitcher, Roger Clemens.  Clemens is facing prison
time for allegedly lying to congress about his steroid use.  Of course,
they don’t have a shred of evidence, but the facts don’t matter to these
modern day Torquemadas.

While the American people have
mountains of evidence that 99% of all elected officials in Washington
D.C., and their staffs, routinely lie to 300 million people, this band
of worthless Eichmann are trying to put a man in jail because he didn’t
give them the answers they wanted to questions they had no business
asking.

From Lew Rockwell dot com, A Tale of Two Congressional Testimonies, by William Anderson:

The
New York Times and all of the usual mainstream media outlets were
blaring out the news that the Obama Department of “Justice” had indicted
former perennial all-star pitcher Roger Clemens on charges of “lying to
Congress.” Indeed, with the DOJ actively pursuing cycling legend Lance
Armstrong allegedly for using steroids (although Armstrong, who has been
randomly tested often, never failed a drug test), it seems that the
government is ramping up its efforts to imprison as many prominent
athletes as possible.

Clemens’ indictment, I believe, is a new
low, especially since the “evidence” that the government has is based
upon conflicts in testimony given by Clemens and his former trainer,
Brian McNamee, and another statement by a former Clemens friend who says
that Clemens told him that he took human growth hormone about 10 years
ago. In other words, we have a “criminal” case based entirely upon
hearsay.

Keep in mind that Major League Baseball at
the time had not banned any of the products that Clemens is alleged to
have taken, and, furthermore, MLB is a private organization, and
breaking the rules of private organizations should not be a crime,
period. Last year, Candice E. Jackson and I had this article in which we
examine the tactics that the federal government has used to criminalize
actions that might not even be violations of private rules, much less
infractions of criminal law.

Another thing to keep in
mind, Roger Clemens is more useful while he’s taking a crap than all
three branches of the federal government, minus Ron Paul, are on their
best days.

God help us!

Tigers 7 Orioles 5

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Armando Galarraga pitched around some shoddy defense in the first two innings.  In the first, Santiago made a two out error to extend the inning and Galarraga’s pitch count.  In the second, Brennan Boesch lost Adam Jones’s liner.  Jones was given a single but Boesch should have made the play.  Fortunately, Galarraga was able to overcome both miscues and shut the O’s down.

The Tigers got on the board in the second when Alex Avila drove in a run with a two out single driving in Carlos Guillen from third.

With two on and two out in the third, Don Kelly made a great diving catch in center field to take a hit and an RBI away from Ty Wigginton.

Johnny Damon singled with one out in the third for his 2,500 career hit.  Magglio Ordonez followed with a single to put runners at first and second with one out but Cabbie took a backwards K and Boesch flew out to end the inning with the Tigers failing to score.

Another runner in scoring position with less than two outs that the Tigers didn’t score.

Miguel Cabrerra made a fantastic play in the sixth.  Weiters lead off with a double.  Felix Pie hit a hard ground ball to first.   Cabbie fielded the ball and threw Weiters out at third.  Galarraga got Lugo to fly out but walked the ninth place hitter Izturis.  Luckily, he struck out Patterson to end the inning and preserve the one run lead.

The Orioles had runners in each of the first seven innings and finally got to Galarraga in the 7th.  Tejada singled to lead off the inning then Markakas hit a line drive over the right field wall to give the Orioles a 2-1 lead.  Armando retired the next two hitters, but after a triple by Weiters, was relieved by Phil Coke.

Coke gave up a single to Pie to drive in Weiters.  Coke was then relieved by Gonzalez.

While pitching to Lugo, Alex Avila threw out his second runner of the night at second, Pie, to end the inning.

The O’s picked up a run in the eighth but the Tigers responded with a 2 in the bottom of the inning.  Cabbie tripled and came home on a single by B Money, Brennan Boesch. Guillen struck out but I Money, Brandon Inge, tripled in Boesch.
 
Avila struck out, Santiago walked and then Austin Jackson pinch hit for Don Kelly. Unfortunately, Ajax grounded out leaving the tying run at third.

The Orioles picked up another run in the ninth on a one out single by Lugo but the inning was set up when Santiago missed a ground ball at short that could have been a double play but ended up putting runners at first and third with nobody out.

Damon led off the ninth with a walk.  Magglio struck out and Cabbie blasted a two run homer deep over the left field wall to tie the score.

Valverde pitched a scoreless tenth and Ryan Perry pitched a scoreless eleventh.

The Tigers ended it in the 11th when Ajax lead off with a single and then Johnny Damon slammed a 2 run homer to right.

With the Twins beating the Jay earlier, this was a huge win!

Mets Dust Tigers Again!

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The Tigers wasted chances early.

In the first after Damon flew out, Santiago walked and Magglio singled putting runners at first and second with one out.  Cabrera flew out, Boesch walked loading the bases but Guillen grounded out to end the inning.

Another runner in scoring position with less than two outs that the
Tigers couldn’t cash in.

In the second, Damon led off with a single and stole second.  Santiago bunted him over to third but both Magglio and Cabbie grounded out weakly stranding Damon at third.

Another runner in scoring position with less than two outs that the Tigers couldn’t cash in.

Are we seeing a pattern here?

Bonderman looked good, especially if the first when Reyes led off with a triple but was stranded there.  Bonderman struck out Pagan, Wright grounded to third and Davis grounded to first.

After retiring the first two in the third, Reyes singled and stole second, Pagan walked and Wright doubled.  Bondo got Davis to ground to Santiago ending the inning and limiting the damage to 1 run.

The Mets knuckleballer, R.A. Dickey was smoking balls, retiring 4 consecutive Tigers on 4 pitches.  Inge ended the streak with a two out single but Avilla flied out to left ending the inning.

Bondo retired the Mets 1, 2, 3, in the fourth on 4 pitches.

With two outs in the 5th Reyes got his third hit in three at bats with hit a solo shot.  Pagan flew out to end the inning, 2-0 Mets after 5.

Bondo gave way to Zumaya after the first two batters reached in the seventh.  Zumaya came into to face pitcher Dickey and walked him on four straight balls.  Reyes grounded to second and Gullien threw Blanco out at the plate.  Feliciano pinch hit for Pagan and grounded to second scoring Tejada.  After Zumaya walked David Wright, Leyland made a double switch, bringing in Coke for Zumaya and Rayburn for Inge. 

Ike Davis singled on an 0-2 pitch from Coke scoring two.  Wright was thrown out at third to end the inning.  5-0 Mets after seven.

Francisco Rodriguez came out for the ninth and surrendered only a single to Cabrera.

The Mets dusted the Tigers for the second night in a row.

Mets Dust Tigers 14-6

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Not that it mattered by why did G-Money Laird bat second?

The Mets jumped on the Tigers early with 2 in the second and 8 in the third.  JV didn’t look good and left the game with nobody out, and two men on in the third, after a 58 minute rain delay.

The Tigers got on the board in the fourth with a one out double by Cabbie and a monster home run by B-Money Brennan Boesch.

The Mets came back with one run in their half of the fourth.

The Tigers had a chance to really cut into the lead.  They sent 10 men to the plate in the fifth scoring 4 runs but Ryan Rayburn got caught looking with the bases loaded to end the rally.

The Tigers tried to claw there way back but the bullpen was horrible.

Verlander was charged with 5 earned runs in 2 innings.

Back at em tomorrow.

Tigers 8 Nationals 3

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The Tigers picked up their 5th consecutive win tonight.  After falling behind 2-0 on solo shots by Bernadina and Dunn, the Tigers scored 4 in the second and 1 in the third to take a 5-2 lead.  Justin Verlander was smoking balls again with another quality start.  He threw 116 pitches, going 8 innings, giving up 3 earned runs, striking out 11, walking 0, and hitting one batter.

The Tigers had a chance to pick up a run in the 6th.  Boesch grounded to 1st.  Guillen doubled, Inge walked, but Laird popped to short and Santiago grounded to 1st squandering another chance to score with a runner at second and less than two outs.

The Tigers blew it open in the 7th.  After two outs, Magglio and Cabrera singled and Brennan Boesch dusted a 423 foot, three run homer to right, giving the Tigers some insurance.

After getting 7 hits over the weekend Johnny Damon is 0-10 in this series.
.
The series wraps up tomorrow with a 1:05 start.