Detroit Tigers

Pirates 9 Tigers 3

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After the 14 inning affair Tuesday night the Tigers needed innings on Wednesday from Alfredo Simon.  They got 5.2. To be fair, it wasn’t all his fault.  The defense made two errors behind him but Simon was up in the strike zone all night and surrendered six earned runs on 15 hits.

Basically, the Pirates beat Simon into a conniption and I don’t have the adjective to describe what they did to Joba. I don’t think “conniption” accurately describes the type of beating they put on him.  Try to remember the beating Freeway Ricky put on Youk in Fenway a few years ago.  Or perhaps think of the whooping Nolan Ryan put on current White Sox’s manager, Robin Ventura, you know, the Dumbest Manager In Baseball.  If you take those two beatings, multiply them by 1000, you may begin to get an idea of what the Pirates did you Joba last night. When Joba left the mound he didn’t know whether to crap his pants or wind his watch.

DD needs to trade David Price soon  He’s not re-singing here.  This team is not making the playoffs. They need to get something for him.  This rotation is a mess.  When you subtract Price, you don’t have much left.  Is it too early to start thinking about next year?  I’m not so sure.

Pirates 5 Tigers 4

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Well 5-4 seems to a popular score.  While I don’t like coming out on the losing end, the four-run Tigers are much better than the two-run Tigers.  I’m impressed that the Tigers have been finding ways to claw their way back from deficits, especially late in games. J.D. came up with another big homer home run last night to even the score, his 20th.

I’m not sure what to make of J.V. Perhaps it’s too early to tell. This could basically be his spring training.  He only allowed two earned in 6 plus but he did allow twelve base runners.  I guess when push comes to shove, the Tigers are 39-37, basically right around a .500 team.  I has hoping for more, but ‘hope is not a strategy’, and this is probably what we are going to get.

Tigers 5 White Sox 4

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The Tigers got their first win of the season when trailing after the 7th and it didn’t look like they were going to get their first Sunday either.  They were doing nothing with Jeff Samardzija until James McCann led off the eighth with a single.

The four run, eighth inning, rally was even more impressive because the Tigers got nothing from Miggy.  Samardzija was able to blow three 95 mile an hour fast balls by him, the last up and away, for the first out of the eighth, with bases loaded.  Luckily, he tried to do the same thing to Victor who took the first pitch and cleared the bases with a double.

It looks like, when the bases are loaded Miggy, is trying to hit a home run instead of just a single or a sac fly and as result he’s striking out.  I believe he is 0-5 now with the bases full this season.  Usually, especially with RISP, he’s fine with taking the pitch the other way between first and second.  I guess it’s hard to complain about a guy hitting .350 but he did leave five runners on base yesterday.

Anyway, big win.  Even thought the White Sox suck, they’ve played the Tigers fairly even this year.  At this point, every win is big.  The Tigers are basically a .500 team so far.

White Sox 8 Tigers 7

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This game had to end this way.  How could it end any other? When a mistake is so egregious, so odious, karmic law requires that the committer of said infraction is harmed by his own misdeed.  That’s exactly what Brad Ausmus and the Tigers got today.

I’m a believer in liberty and the free flow of information.  However, if there is a “book” that told Brad Ausmus he needed to pinch run for Victor Martinez, in the bottom of the ninth inning, when he was on first base, with two outs, that “book” is the first one in history that I want burned.  Please.  Every copy needs to be collected. Placed into a fire place.  Doused with gasoline and set ablaze.

Brad.  Didn’t you go to Dartmouth?  Isn’t Dartmouth an Ivy League School?  Aren’t we told that Ivy League Schools are elite (eyeleat) institutions?  Don’t you have to be smart to get into those schools?

There was less than a 31% chance that Cespedes was going to hit safely?  Much less than a 31% chance that he was going to hit for extra bases.

Where did you learn your trade?

For as mad as I am at Ausmus, did anyone hear Kinsler’s comments after the game?  The little baby doesn’t like the fans booing the team.  Generally, I’d agree with him, but it comes with the territory. Fans pay a lot of money to watch jackasses like him play.  While I chose not to boo, because I think it is rude, it is classless for babies like him to complain about it.  He should take lessons from Ryan Rayburn.  Rayburn took a lot of crap when he was here and he took it with class.  I’ll always have respect for him.  Kinsler, on the other hand, is on the Joe Nathan list.  Get your head out of your ass jackass, hit better than .257, come up with a clutch hit once in a while, the 10th inning today would have been nice, and maybe you won’t get booed. – Jackass!

This video is for Brad Ausmus and Ian “Diaper Boy” Kinsler.

Indians 8 Tigers 2

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So the brief winning streak is over.  Buck Farmer doesn’t seem ready for the big leagues.  Hmm, I’m not sure JV is ready either. The only good thing is that J.D. stayed hot with another home run.

I’m beginning to worry about Justin Verlander and wonder what the Tigers can expect from him the rest of way on his contract. It could be ugly.  He shows no signs of paying any dividends in the near future.

When Price leaves, this once vaunted rotation will look rather modest. (He’s going to the Cubs.) I’m not sure what to make of Simon.  One start he looks great the next he looks like he’s throwing batting practice.  Sanchez is great when he’s on and not balking and not hurt.  I’m not sure what’s going on with Greene and Lobstein.  A lot of ifs and maybes and mights and Idontknows.  I’m rambling.

Let’s see what happens this weekend.

Reds 5 Tigers 2

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Kyle Ryan was cruising along until he wasn’t.  Still, the only runs he gave up were courtesy of solo home runs.  This seems to be an epidemic among Tigers pitchers this year.  Once they give a long ball they can’t stop.  It’s like eating one potato chip.  It begins to snowball.  Before you know it they’ve given up four bombs and the game is over or you’re 300 pounds but I digress.  It is a very odd phenomena that I wish would stop, along with hitting into double plays.

It didn’t take Reds manager Bryan Price long to realize it probably isn’t a good idea to keep pitching to Jose Miguel Cabrera. I suspect he won’t get much to hit in Cincinnati either.

The Tigers caught a bit of bad break on the line drive hit by Cespedes that hit the Reds pitcher, Michael Lorenzen.  That should have scored a couple instead of only one.

Back to the drawing board.

Tigers 6 Reds 0

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Our old friend, Brennan “B Squared Money” Boesch, just keeps showing up and I’m not sure why. Not that have any ill will towards him, or anyone else for that matter, but I just can’t figure out why teams keep having a look at him.  Perhaps there is little risk and the price is right?  Granted, he did win the Pacific Coast League batting title last year but he looks like the same old B Squared Money to me.

When Boesch first came up, you’ll remember, he was on fire for two months, exactly 30 days longer than Chris “Red Pop” Sheldon.  In fact, B Squared Money, almost hit himself onto the all-star team. Unlike, Red Pop, who I knew was going to to cool off, I wasn’t sure about Boesch.  I didn’t like his lack of plate discipline but he was making a lot of hard contact.  I thought, he’s either a left handed Vladimir Guerrero or a left handed Red Pop.  He was the latter.  Did I mention he plays the outfield like I do?  (I’m fat, have a bad back, and haven’t played since 8th grade. )  I guess my question for major league organizations is, haven’t you seen enough?

Getting to the game, Anibal pitched a gem and Miggy and J.D. might be heating up. Now add to that, Victor, JV and Rondon coming back and perhaps I had started on the obit prematurely?  I’ve been told I have a tendency to fly off the handle?

Have I mentioned that I sat through about 50 home games in 2003?  Remember, the year they lost 119 games?

I’m not hating this team that much right now.  Funny, winning does that to me.