On Tuesday, the Tigers knocked out Tampa Bay’s starting pitcher early, and it nearly came back to haunt them (till they figured out how to hit the reliever). Last night, the Tigers DIDN’T knock out James Shields early, and it DID come back to haunt them. Oh, yes, the Reyes Effect was in full force tonight after the first inning. I didn’t see most of the game, so I’m gonna have to rely on the official website and the box score for most of this, but I’ll do the best I can. From what I can tell, the offense really couldn’t get anything going against Shields. There is a pattern starting to emerge where the Tigers have trouble against starting pitchers they’ve never faced before (De La Rosa, Baek, Matsusaka, Carmona to some extent, and now Shields come to mind). They seem to do better the second time around (at least, the second time they faced De La Rosa, they were able to get some decent offense against him, and that was back when the offense was still struggling), but this is still a trend that’s gotta stop. What’s strange, though, is that National League pitchers seem to be immune from this trend, cuz they were able to hammer all three starting pitchers that the Cardinals threw at them (granted, they’d seen Reyes before, but they didn’t have a whole lot of experience with the other two pitchers). So as far as that’s concerned, I’m gonna chalk most of it up to the Reyes Effect and let the offense move on. The thing that’s of greater concern is that the injuries are really starting to pile up now. Apparently, that pitch that Brandon Inge took to his foot was more serious than I originally thought, cuz he has a broken toe. He’s listed as day-to-day, and according to the doctors, it’s a chip fracture and he won’t risk aggravating it by playing, so once the swelling and the pain goes down, he should be back in the lineup, albeit with a splint on his toe (I really gotta admire his dedication here, cuz I certainly would never be able to do anything remotely like that with a broken toe). However, and bear in mind that I’m no expert on this, I would think that it would still take several days for that to happen, which means he’ll probably miss the series against Cleveland. Omar Infante has nowhere near the defensive talent that Inge has, but his batting average is on par, if not slightly more consistent, than Inge’s, albeit with less power, so the Tigers could probably survive for a little while, at least. Of greater concern to me is Carlos Guillen, who left the game with some sort of groin injury. He’s listed as day-to-day, and reports are obviously still vague, so I’m not sure if this is something that’s gonna sideline him for a while or not, but I really hope not. The Tigers need Guillen, especially with the batting average he has (and with his slot in the lineup, providing some protection for Magglio). I am sorry, but Neifi Perez is NOT an acceptable long-term substitute. I suppose we’ll get more information on Carlos sometime today, but I’m gonna assume he will not be playing tonight, and neither will Inge.

Apparently, Nate Robertson also had an injury scare. I did not see this myself, so I could be wrong on the details, but from what I can piece together, he fell during one pitch and landed on his back. He seems to be all right, now, though. Speaking of Nate…<frustrated sigh>. I know he’s frustrated, but he needs to figure out what the problem is and get it fixed quickly. It’s getting to the point where every time Nate’s spot in the rotation comes up, I start to get the same feeling I had back in early April whenever it was Chad Durbin’s turn to pitch. And I feel really bad saying that, cuz I really, really like Nate. Confidence is probably playing some role in it, too. With every postgame interview, he sounds more and more depressed. Perhaps pitchers can go into pitching slumps like other players can go into hitting slumps? Whatever it is, I hope he works it out soon, cuz the Tigers can’t afford to lose every five days, especially since the offense usually doesn’t seem to provide Nate with a whole lot of run support, for whatever reason. To be fair, from what I’ve read, there is at least one run that really wasn’t Nate’s fault (even though it was charged as an earned run). Apparently Marcus Thames misplayed a ground ball. It was not an error, but afterwards, Nate had a wild pitch and gave up a double, which scored the run. As far as the rest of the pitching goes, I’m really surprised that the bloggers never went after the bullpen, cuz, you know, Zach Miner DID give up a run (<sarcasm>). When I got home, it was the bottom of the seventh inning, and Miner had already given up the one run, so I never saw any of that. He did give up three hits, and he walked two, but I wouldn’t characterize his performance as bad. Lacking in confidence, maybe, but not bad (that had to have been the slowest eighth inning I have ever seen). Bobby Seay only faced one batter, who hit a flyball to Curtis Granderson on the first pitch, so I really can’t comment much on him.

James Shields’s outstanding pitching unfortunately snapped the hitting streaks of both Magglio and Pudge. It would be foolish of me to read anything deeper into that, since it’s only one game, and we have yet to see what they’ll do tonight. Magglio did draw a walk. Pudge did not, which should come as no surprise. I’m not sure about Maggs, but Pudge did have one bright spot, as he threw out B.J. Upton trying to steal third. Also, they released the voting results so far for the All-Star Game, and Pudge is currently in the lead for starting catcher. It’s a very slim lead, though (and you know this is gonna motivate those fans of the catchers who are behind him), so y’all still need to keep voting for him. The other Tigers need your help, too, cuz no one else is leading their position. Think about it: Magglio Ordoñez, who leads all of baseball in doubles and RBIs and is currently on track to become the AL MVP, is currently in seventh among the outfielders. I’m not sure why all the outfielders get grouped together like that, cuz not all outfielders play the entire outfield. Curtis Granderson (who is actually not on the All-Star Ballot) plays center field exclusively, and as far as I know, Maggs only plays right field (the same cannot be said about Craig Monroe, who usually plays left, but has played center and right in the past, and will be playing a little bit of center field during Interleague Play). What happens if, like, three right fielders get voted in? And how come we don’t get to vote for any of the pitchers? Okay, I’m through with the public service announcement/dumb question round.

Tonight, the Tigers, battered and bruised as they may be (but never broken), march into the lion’s den of Jacobs Field to take on the Cleveland Indians once again. It’ll be a pitching rematch from last Saturday, as Justin Verlander once again takes on C.C. Sabathia, and everyone knows that I just love Justin Verlander. He wasn’t quite at his best on Saturday, and he got his pitch count up a little too fast, but he was decent nonetheless. He looked just a little bit intimidated, but I hope that’s passed now that he’s seen the Cleveland offense. I’m really hoping he can turn in the same sort of performance that he showed a couple of starts ago in Boston, though. He really hasn’t gotten the fastball up to triple digits since then, which is kind of strange, but for the most part, his secondary pitches look really good. As far as Sabathia goes, if I recall correctly, the Tigers actually got quite a few guys on base against him (I seem to remember several leadoff doubles in particular), but they just couldn’t come up with the big hit. Hopefully they’ve learned something from that game and they can improve on their performance. It’s gonna be a HUGE challenge for them, though. As I said before, I am 100% certain that Inge and Guillen won’t be in the lineup, and it’s Thursday, so Pudge probably won’t be, either, and they’re definitely gonna miss all three of them. With that said, I have no idea what this batting order is gonna look like (well, I’m pretty sure that Neifi Perez’ll bat ninth). The Tigers have yet to face a lefty starter without Pudge, who would normally bat leadoff. I don’t know who Leyland would put in instead (possibly Craig Monroe, but I’m grasping at straws here). With both Inge and Guillen out, Omar Infante will have to play either third base or shortstop (with Neifi Perez playing the other position), so it looks like Leyland’s gonna have no choice but to start Curtis Granderson at center field against a lefty starter, unless he does something really weird. I mean, he could start Craig Monroe at center and Marcus Thames at left and let Sean Casey start at first base. Casey’s not as bothered by left-handed pitching as Granderson is, so that is a possibility, albeit a really far-fetched one, and I’m probably over-analyzing this WAY too much. There is another issue, one which I briefly touched on before. With Guillen out of the lineup, there’s really no one left to provide protection for Magglio. Craig Monroe or Marcus Thames might provide a little bit of protection (actually, Craig has batted in the number five spot earlier this season, so this is also a possibility), and so could Pudge in their one game against a righty starter, but none of them are as effective as Guillen. However, I think Jim Leyland and the Tigers have the right attitude about this somewhat rough patch they’re in. It’s still early, and there’s plenty more baseball to come…

One Year Ago: On May 31, 2006, the Tigers lost to the Yankees 6-1. Nate Robertson found himself in a pitching duel with Mike Mussina for most of the game. The Yankees led 2-0 until the eighth inning, when Nate gave up a 2-run triple to A-Rod. Nate would depart the game in the ninth, and he had a few sharp words for the home plate umpire over some questionable calls. The Yankees would score two more runs in the ninth. Entering the bottom of the ninth, it looked as though the Tigers would get shut out for the third time in four days. Granderson lined out, but Polanco managed to reach second base on a throwing error by A-Rod. Pudge then lined out (um, yeah, it goes without saying that he went hitless in this game), but Magglio singled to get Polanco in. Carlos Guillen struck out, and that was that. Mike Mussina had himself a complete game, and Nate Robertson had himself his first loss in over a month. And here’s something to take away from this: If you’ve been keeping track, you’ll notice that I documented an eight-game winning streak for the 2006 Tigers, followed by a four-game losing streak (and I’ll add that this was their second four-game losing streak of the season). The 2007 Tigers, remarkably, have had both an eight-game winning streak, and a four-game losing streak (though this time they were not back-to-back). Here’s another interesting tidbit I noticed: In 2006, the Tigers got swept by the White Sox in their very first homestand of the year. This year, the Tigers did not get swept until the last weekend in May. Maybe we’re not as off the mark from 2006 as we think we are (let’s just hope that we can put together a significantly better August and September than we did last year)…

2006 record: 35-18

2007 record: 30-22

EDIT: I forgot to mention this over the past couple of days, but I thought I'd come in here with a little positive factoid. The next time Craig Monroe hits a home run, it'll be the 100th homer of his career, so go Craig!

Before I get to this happy dance of a post, I’d like to complain that my subconscious has been torturing me with downright bizarre dreams lately. A few days ago, I dreamt that one particular member of the Tigers’ roster was a regular cast member on CSI. Last night, I dreamt that a different Tiger was a regular cast member on Friends. I don’t watch either of these shows, so I’m not quite sure what the connection is, but I’d really like for it to stop. Okay, now that that’s out of my system…

I got home from work last night to find quite a pleasant surprise waiting for me on TV. That was a well-played game by the Tigers on pretty much all fronts. I was so impressed with what I saw that I just had to watch the replay (that is why I only got four hours of sleep last night). Jeremy Bonderman did an outstanding job, allowing only four hits and one earned run. The unearned run actually reached on an error by Marcus Thames, his first of the season (which is pretty impressive for someone who just started playing first base a couple months ago). The earned run actually occurred when the runner advanced to third on a balk that never got shown on TV (not that I would have been able to spot it anyways), then scored on a wild pitch. That was probably the only time Bonderman got shaky. In the seventh, Ledezma came out of the bullpen and pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings. He walked two, but he didn’t allow any hits, so it was a nice outing from him as well.

As great as the pitching was, the offense stole the show, topped off by three home runs (by the way, you got both your home-run heroes in the above photo). Gary Sheffield hit two of those and ended up with 5 RBIs on the night. He is having himself some kind of series, so far. Curtis Granderson hit a triple, which makes him the leader in the American League, and Magglio Ordoñez added one more double to his total (he still leads all of baseball both in doubles and RBIs). On his first day back, Polanco had a nice night with three hits. All in all, every Tiger sent to the plate (not just the starters, mind you) had at least one hit last night, which’ll certainly boost all the batting averages. One thing that kind of got lost in all this offense bonanza was that Pudge ended up being a triple shy of the cycle. His two-run homer in the ninth made the game that much better for me, though in retrospect, he had been trying to hit that home run all night (and he really shouldn’t have been, but I digress). He struck out rather aggressively his first time up, then hit a line-drive single to the pull field his second time out (which really makes me think he was trying to homer, cuz I could be wrong, but most of his home runs seem to go to left field, even though he’s a better hitter when he’s going the other way). He hit a ground ball his fourth time up that really should have been a double play, but the Rays’ third baseman decided to get the out at third before throwing to first, and Pudge runs too well for that kind of play. He hit a double to center his next time up (just barely failing to clear the wall), then finally got the home run in the ninth (and ironically, it went to right field). Carlos Guillen also got a little ambitious in the fifth, but it never paid off for him. The Rays’ pitcher was trying to pitch around him, but with Polanco at third, Guillen wanted an RBI, not a walk. He ended up striking out. Still, as I said before, everyone turned in some nice performances last night. There was one kind of weird thing at the end of the game. Normally, when they get the final out of the ninth inning, FSN goes to commercial, and then when they get back, the commentators do a brief wrap-up and announce the “Chevy Player of the Game” before handing things over to the postgame show, which is where they do all the interviews and stuff. However, last night, when they came back from commercial, for some reason, they had the field reporter interviewing Pudge before they sent it back to the commentators for the wrap-up. Not that I mind. I’ll take an interview with Pudge any day (plus, he actually slowed down a little this time, so I was able to understand most of what he said). It was just kind of a weird order.

Tonight, the Tigers look to win the rubber match before heading off to Cleveland. Nate Robertson will make the start. He’s been struggling of late, losing 3 of his last 4 decisions, and historically, he hasn’t been really good against Tampa. Hopefully, he can put all that behind him. The Rays’ll be sending out James Shields, who actually has some decent numbers (in fact, his ERA is lower than Robertson’s). Shields has never faced the Tigers, but you never know. It probably won’t be as easy for the offense as it was last night, but Nate could really use the run support. Brandon Inge will not be playing tonight because he got hit by a pitch last night and apparently his foot is still sore. I’m also gonna go on record and say that there’s an outside chance that Pudge will sit out as well, and I say this because once the Tigers get to Cleveland, three of the four starting pitchers they’ll face are left-handed, and I’m not sure what the lineup would look like if Pudge doesn’t play Thursday and Sunday (which are the days that he usually sits out). Still, the official website’s preview pegs him as the “Player to Watch” for tonight’s game, so it probably is just an outside chance. By the way, it’s been a full week since Maggs has hit a home run. He’s overdue…

One Year Ago: On May 30, 2006, the Tigers lost their third straight game as the Yankees defeated them 11-6. Roman Colon was making the start for the Tigers for the injured Mike Maroth (who would later go on the Disabled List after requiring surgery to remove bone chips in his elbow). Colon lasted only 2 1/3 innings and allowed five runs on seven hits. Detroit would end up using seven pitchers during the course of the game. In the first inning, both teams left the bases loaded. By the third inning, the Yankees were up 6-0 (By the way, Gary Sheffield did not play this game, nor would he play in any of the following games against Detroit that season; he would end up spending most of the year on the DL after having wrist surgery). In an unbelievable coincidence (when you think about what he did in last night’s game), Pudge ended up being a double shy of the cycle in this game. He had a rare bunt single in the first, which helped load the bases, but he would eventually be stranded. His home run in the third would finally get the Tigers on the board, and it would be the first time in three days that the Tigers had gotten a run. He hit a two-run triple in the fifth and scored on Magglio’s single. Detroit would go on to tie the game (helped out by a nice outing by Zumaya) and send it into extra innings, but the Yankees would score five runs in the top of the eleventh, and that sealed the Tigers’ fate.

2006 record: 35-17

2007 record: 30-21

Okay, I’ll start with the obvious and say that that sucked. What’s weird is that I felt this funky sort of energy (or lack thereof) right from the get-go, very similar to what I felt during that second game the last time the Tigers were in Kansas City (The Tigers won that game, but it was a come-from-behind win, plus that was the night that Joel Zumaya was injured). The commentators were quick to blame the bullpen, but they really didn’t do too badly. I’d say it’s more of a mix of fatigue (after all, the Tigers didn’t get to their hotel until 5 AM), not being productive with runners in scoring position, a couple of errors from our backup catcher, and Jonesy being overdue for a bad outing (he hasn’t had a blown save since last month). Luckily, the Red Sox came through for me and beat Cleveland, so the standings have not been affected.

It’d be all too easy for me to call this one another instance of the “Reyes Effect” (cuz after Edwin Jackson got hit in the face, he became a strikeout machine), and I would say that's true to some extent, but the Tigers’ offense kind of let themselves succumb to it. They just got WAY too aggressive. A lot of those stranded runners were stranded due to strikeouts (I believe Jackson ended up with a total of 9 or 10 strikeouts). And I’m hoping it’s just travel fatigue, cuz they kind of did the same thing the day after their last ESPN game too (of course, the screwy batting lineup of the last couple days probably isn’t helping matters). There were a couple of highlight moments. Gary Sheffield nearly got hit by a pitch, and proceeded to hit a home run (Opposing team pitchers, have you learned NOTHING from Daniel Cabrera?), and Craig Monroe absolutely blasted one out over the center field wall. As far as pitching goes, Chad Durbin did a really nice job, and really, so did everyone in the bullpen except Todd Jones (and I don’t mean any disrespect; I know there are some bloggers that really dislike Jonesy, but I’m not one of them. He said himself in the postgame show that he just didn’t have his stuff last night). One thing that has been overlooked by nearly everyone but that I feel must be examined as a factor is Mike Rabelo’s performance. It started out looking like it would be another nice game for him. He had two singles and a caught stealing that was a lot less…”indecisive”…than his last one. It still looked kinda slow, however (though I guess that’s an unfair statement when Pudge Rodriguez is your basis of comparison). He made some good blocks and he called a nice game. Unfortunately, he also had a passed ball that allowed a run to score, and later on, he had a throwing error that advanced a runner to third base, and that runner would later score. All other things being equal, had those two errors not occurred, the Tigers would’ve likely entered the bottom of the ninth leading 5-2 instead of 5-4, so the passed ball and the error really did come back to haunt them, just as much as the stranded runners. Please understand, though, that I am not picking on Rabelo. I have made my preferences known on numerous occasions, but I really don’t mind Rabelo. He’s usually a pretty good catcher, and there have been two games (one in Boston, one in Anaheim), where errors by Guillen turned out to be the difference, and I’ll still say Guillen is one of the finest shortstops in all of baseball. By the way, Brandon Inge certainly proved his worth defensively last night, didn’t he?

As usual, there are a few notes and observations from the game. First, it seemed like there were more Tigers fans there than Rays fans. Second, the Tampa Bay mascot is rather creepy-looking. Third, the guy operating the graphics board had the ADD last night. At one point when Rabelo was at the plate, they stuck Curtis Granderson’s name key in instead. Then later, when Magglio was at bat, they put up the name key of someone I’ve never heard of named “Navarro” (Apparently, he is a catcher for Tampa Bay, according to the name key). The third time Rabelo was at bat, the commentators were having a discussion about the importance of the backup catcher. During this discussion, we were given a shot of Pudge leaning against the dugout rail, looking rather forlorn (Maybe he knew something that we didn’t?). This shot lasted a really long time, to the point where it was starting to get weird. The commentators finally acknowledged the shot once they had gone back to the shot of Rabelo at the plate. The analyst remarked that Pudge looks really bored when he’s not playing, which I found funny (even though “bored” wasn’t quite the expression). Of course, they then went back to the shot of Pudge, and the other commentator said he looked like he was being punished for something. Then the graphics guy decided to put up Pudge’s season numbers as well as his career numbers against Tampa Bay, and geez, he’s got a .364 batting average against the Devil Rays. The commentator had the same reaction I did, but at that point, Rabelo struck out, so the discussion was never finished.

Tonight, the Tigers hope to not screw this one up as they send Jeremy Bonderman against Casey Fossum. Apparently, Fossum has some pretty good numbers against the Tigers, mostly cuz they wouldn’t lay off his breaking ball last year. Let’s hope that the newfound diligence resurfaces after being missing in action last night. Fossum is left-handed, so Pudge should be back in the lineup (which really won’t help with the diligence part, but the .364 career batting average against the Rays might help the offense nonetheless), and hopefully, Polanco will be too. He has said that his strained oblique is actually more in the abdomen area and not in the oblique, and that he wanted to start last night, but decided to give it one more day. Leyland’s still being cautious, though. As for me, I’ll be at work (same story for tomorrow and Thursday night as well), but I need a Tigers win cuz this front page just doesn’t have enough pictures…

One Year Ago:  On May 29, 2006, the Tigers were shutout for the second straight game, losing 4-0 to the Yankees at Comerica. Ironically, they had been shut out the day before by Jason Johnson of the Cleveland Indians. This time they were shut out by Randy Johnson (AKA “The Big Unit”). Randy Johnson actually had himself a no-hitter until the sixth inning, when Pudge finally managed a single against him. Guillen got the Tigers’ only other hit, a double, in the seventh. Jeremy Bonderman actually lasted more innings than Johnson, but he struggled through the middle innings, giving up four runs (and apparently, it was over 90 degrees at game time). This was one of the more confusing box scores for me to interpret. First of all, each team has a guy named “Rodriguez,” and the accompanying story never used their first names to identify them (or nicknames, for that matter, since they’re usually referred to as “Pudge” and “A-Rod” respectively), so I had to sort all that out. Also, it was really weird seeing Gary Sheffield on the Yankees’ side of the box score (by the way, Sheffield got a single and scored a run, and later on he was intentionally walked by Jason Grilli). And I know that’s a bad picture of Guillen, but the only other photo they had was an even worse-looking picture of Bonderman.

2006 record: 35-16

2007 record: 29-21

By the way, today is my parents’ 25^th wedding anniversary. It’s also a sort of fifth anniversary of something else that took up a lot of energy, but which I will probably not be marking cuz it just ain’t conducive to baseball…

Yeah, getting swept sucks, but it’s something that was bound to happen sometime. It happens to every team at some point every year, and apparently the Tigers didn’t have karma on their side anyways, cuz it seems that a whole slew of away teams swept the home team over the weekend, and as one blogger pointed out, it was more of an “It’d-be-nice-to-win” situation versus a must-win situation. I wouldn’t be so frustrated about it if not for the fact that my boys have to face Cleveland again in three days, this time at Jacobs Field. I suppose last night’s game came down to one bad pitch from Mike Maroth, and that was the three-run homer he gave up. That turned out to be the difference, I’m afraid. Maroth was really good for the rest of the game, and, most importantly, he spared the bullpen, save for Mesa, who shockingly had himself a 1-2-3 ninth inning, and so will probably be available tonight (not that I really want him to be). It was just that one bad pitch…

Fausto Carmona proved to be about as tough as his reputation stated, though when all was said and done, the Tigers did out-hit the Indians 11-6. Carmona was just too damn good at pitching out of jams (and unfortunately, the way things have been scheduled, we’re gonna be seeing him again REAL soon). Monroe was actually pretty productive in the #2 spot, but the absence of Polanco was certainly felt once again in the bottom of the ninth. Polanco probably would’ve had a better chance of getting on base than Monroe, and then, even if all things were equal and Gary Sheffield still had the accidental popout, it would’ve brought Maggs to the plate. There were an awful lot of infield singles, which is not something this team is known for. Pudge has extended his hitting streak to seven games. Granted, his one hit last night was a very weak infield single that only became an infield single because Pudge was able to beat the throw to first base. I’m pretty sure he intended to simply foul the ball off, but I bet he’ll take it nonetheless (and he wasn’t really “pull-happy” tonight either; he struck out twice, then flied out to deep right field). Of course, it turned out to be for naught because Casey then grounded into a double play, but, hey, it still helps the batting average. Guillen was the only Tiger who went hitless, but he did reach first base on an error (same inning where Pudge got the infield single and Casey grounded into the double play). However, he only made it as far as third base. In a way, it kind of reminds me of the last game the Tigers played in Boston. They got themselves into scoring position several times, but just couldn’t come up with the big hit.

Tonight, the Tigers try to get back on track down in Tampa Bay. Chad Durbin will face Edwin Jackson. Jackson is 0-6 with an ERA of 7.78, so apparently, he’s a guy that seems really easy to beat up on. However, nothing’s a given in this game. I haven’t followed the Rays much (obviously), but I believe they beat the White Sox yesterday, so this is still a team that you’ve gotta take seriously. The good news is that Polanco may be back in the lineup as early as tonight. I’m also pretty sure that Pudge will not make the start in one of these next three games, but I’m not sure which one. By the way, the Toledo Mud Hens are gonna be on either ESPN or ESPN2 tomorrow afternoon, mostly cuz the starter for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre will be Roger Clemens. As for me, I’ll be at a Mud Hens game on June 23. Wouldn’t it be cool if Kenny Rogers was on a rehab stint with Toledo at that time? Meanwhile, the Indians are gonna be spending the next three days facing the Red Sox at Fenway Park, which marks one of the few times I’ll be rooting for Boston. I’m hoping that Cleveland’ll find it even more difficult than the Tigers did.

One Year Ago: It was an even uglier end to the series with Cleveland last year (though the Tigers did take two out of three of that meeting), as on May 28, 2006, the Indians halted the Tigers’ win streak at eight, beating Detroit 9-0. Kenny Rogers gave up 5 runs on six hits in 4 2/3 innings (Bobby Seay would later give up a grand slam in the eighth inning). Offense-wise, this game was a lot like last night’s game. The Tigers did get some runners into scoring position, but they just couldn’t get them in. And it may just be me, but Pudge looks really, really dark in that photo. It’s getting a little weird…

2006 record: 35-15

2007 record: 29-20

Geez, could anything ELSE have gone wrong in that game? We lost three guys in one day. First off, Fernando Rodney was placed on the DL yesterday morning, so now we’ve lost both our 8^th inning guys for the time being (though Rodney should be able to return sometime during the Tigers’ upcoming series in Texas). Justin Verlander did an okay job, but he wasn’t as efficient as he’s been, and he got his pitch count up early. The bullpen really didn’t have a good outing, though. The normally solid Bobby Seay gave up a run. Jason Grilli, who looked very good the last couple times he was out, gave up a two-run homer, which put Cleveland ahead for good. The very next batter for the Indians then hit a line drive off Grilli’s knee, knocking him out of the game. I don’t know much about those sorts of things, but I could hear the ball hit his knee, and that can’t be good. Apparently, his knee isn’t broken (the website is saying it’s badly bruised), but I’m gonna guess he’ll be out for a while. Tim Byrdak gave up the one run (actually, it was charged to Grilli) and walked a couple, but other than that he really wasn’t that bad.

Rodney and Grilli’s injuries are bad news, but I’m more worried about Polanco. After hitting a go-ahead double, he had to leave the game due to a “strained oblique muscle.” That’s another thing I don’t know much about, but according to the FOX analyst, if he responds to the cortisone shots, he could be back within a few days. If he doesn’t, it could be weeks. I’m hoping it’s the former, cuz the Tigers had to go without him for about six weeks last year and it about killed them. They need him. Right now he’s listed day to day, and so far there’s nothing to indicate that’s it’s really serious, but I still have kind of a bad feeling. Marcus Thames, who had been struggling recently in his limited starts, had a rather good game, including a broken-bat home run (now there’s something you don’t see every day). Omar Infante pretty much sucked at the plate, striking out three times, and apparently should’ve been charged with an error in the second inning. For most of the game, it looked as though the pack leaders in offense during Game 1 (Guillen and Pudge) would both go hitless in Game 2, but Pudge hit a double in the bottom of the ninth (You know, for someone who’s been struggling all month, he’s now on a six-game hitting streak; Pudge also got himself a beauty of a caught stealing yesterday, which is good, cuz the current percentage ain’t pretty). Unfortunately, the absence of Polanco was felt not once, but twice, because that put Granderson in the #2 spot, and both times he was at bat, they were in key “runners-in-scoring-position-with-two-outs” clutch circumstances that Polanco thrives on. I love Curtis Granderson, but unfortunately, he struck out in the bottom of the seventh, and popped out in the bottom of the ninth (That’s two games in a row where Granderson was the final out; it’s also the second game in a row where Sean Casey led off the bottom of the ninth with a single). Maggs went hitless, but he did get an RBI on a sacrifice fly (and yes, he still has more RBIs than A-Rod), while Monroe went hitless and struck out three times.

I didn’t really like the commentators in this game. The analyst said some nice things about Magglio and Pudge, but he was being really supercritical of Justin Verlander for not throwing first pitch strikes and getting his pitch count up (though I noticed that C.C. Sabathia didn’t throw too many first-pitch strikes either). The weblogs, meanwhile, ranged from venomous lashings at the bullpen to fretting about the injuries. There was one, and one that I think is probably being the most sensible (for now) that simply made the point that the Tigers are not gonna win every series. Yes, I find it frustrating too, especially since they have a four-game series coming up next weekend at Jacobs Field (where it’ll be even harder to win), and yes, the bullpen has been inconsistent, but it’s still fairly early. I’m still gonna wait a couple more weeks before becoming really concerned. Besides, for all the bitching about the bullpen that’s been going on, there’s not really an easy solution. The Tigers have a lot of good pitchers in the minors, but most of them are still a little too young/inexperienced for the big league, and all our other players are way too valuable to even consider trading them. Still, Zach Miner and Andrew Miller have shown promise in their starts. Miner has been called up from Toledo to replace Rodney for the time being.

Tonight, the Tigers are on ESPN as they try to avoid the sweep. Let’s hope they look better this time than the last time they were on ESPN. Mike Maroth will make the start against Fausto Carmona. Carmona is apparently another of Cleveland’s big gun pitchers. Maroth…not so much, but the Tigers have a tendency of winning when he’s on the mound (they’re, like, 6-1 in his starts or something like that). I know things aren’t looking good for the Tigers right now, but it’s really hard to sweep a team in their home stadium. Maroth does have good numbers against Cleveland. However, he’s gonna need the offense to get to Carmona. I’m completely clueless as to the batting order. I’m gonna assume that Polanco will still be out, which means that Neifi Perez will probably start in his place (there’s an outside chance it’ll be Infante instead of Perez). I read an article this morning that made me feel a little better, in which they interviewed Polanco and he says it’s nothing serious. He also said he would like to play tonight, but Jim Leyland probably won’t let him. I don’t know who Leyland is gonna put in that #2 spot. He had Perez in there last time, but most of the time that Polanco hasn’t played, Pudge gets the #2 spot (though I think the last time Polanco had the day off, so did Pudge, so that might explain Neifi batting second). I’m not even sure Pudge will be in the lineup, though. He did play yesterday, and he usually does not play on Sundays, but it is a nationally televised game, and I know they like to use all their A-listers in those situations. Plus, he has been hitting a lot more consistently in the past week, and with Polanco out, they’re gonna need some big bats to stay in the lineup. Also, the official website’s preview pegs him as the “Player to Watch” (cuz he hit a two-run homer off Carmona last season). So…maybe he gets the start tonight and then sits out tomorrow’s game? I don’t know, but I am guessing that all the other regulars make the start.

One Year Ago: On May 27, 2006, the Tigers extended their winning streak to eight, beating the Indians 3-1. Magglio Ordoñez hit a two-run homer in the first inning, and the only run that Justin Verlander allowed was a solo home run to Grady Sizemore. What’s interesting is that Guillen, who grounded into a double play yesterday, also grounded into a double play during this game. Polanco went 3-for-4 with an RBI as well.

2006 record: 35-14

2007 record: 29-19

For the second time this week, the Tigers fell victim to a spectacular play by the other team’s defense. Craig Monroe was absolutely robbed of a 3-run homer in the second inning, which kinda killed the Tigers’ momentum (shades of what happened in Game 1 against the Angels). Nate Robertson wasn’t a big help, either, giving up 3 home runs. I don’t think he’s necessarily pitching badly, but it seems that a lot of other teams have somehow figured him out. I don’t know how you work through something like that, but he’s gotta do it. I like Nate, and I don’t want to see him struggle anymore. On the bright side, Ledezma looked very solid out of the pen, and Jose Mesa didn’t exactly suck. Tim Byrdak did give up two earned runs, but I’m gonna place that into the “every pitcher has a bad day” category for now, cuz he’s been pretty good for most of his outings (besides, you could argue that Byrdak suffered from some questionable calls from the umpire).

Going into this game, there was a lot of talk about the offensive production from the 3, 4, and 5 hitters, but virtually all the offense last night came from the 5, 6, and 7 guys. Guillen and Pudge both went 3-for-4, and Pudge had 2 RBIs. This is the second game in a row that Pudge has gone 3-for-4, and he’s been hitting pretty consistently for the past week, so I do believe he’s righting the ship. Granted, the last time he was up, he grounded into a double play, but it looked to me like he was trying too hard to hit a home run, which would’ve put the Tigers in the lead, and it just didn’t happen. But what can you do? All other things being equal, Cleveland would’ve gone back ahead anyways. Pudge also unfortunately had a throwing error (mostly because the base runner careened into Polanco and so Polanco was unable to catch the ball and it rolled out into center field), but the runner never scored, so no harm done (although that’s his second error this season, and he only had two all of last season, so he’s not allowed to have any more). Besides, Robertson got him a nice, juicy caught stealing to help his percentages (at least, that’s how I think it works). As far as the rest of the offense goes, Maggs hit a double, Guillen was a home run shy of the cycle, and Casey went 2-for-4. By the way, as they started the bottom of the ninth inning, the commentator said that they would have Casey, Monroe, and Inge due up. My dad turned around and said, “Man, if it comes down to Inge, they’re screwed.” I guess my dad just doesn’t have a lot of confidence in Brandon Inge. Personally, I think that’s a bit unfair. Inge does strike out a lot, but he also has hit eight home runs this season.

There were a couple things about this broadcast that I thought were interesting. First, there was a guy at the game dressed as a lobster. Second, they began the broadcast with some footage of Ernie Harwell doing the play-by-play of a couple games, followed by some footage from a couple of last season’s games against the Indians (one of which I would really, REALLY have liked to see, but I’ll get to that whenever it shows up in my “One Year Ago” segment). In the footage from Ernie Harwell, they tried to make it look really old by making the picture grainy and “film-like.” However, one of the shots was of the Tigers’ catcher tagging out one of the Indians at the plate, and Harwell, in his play-by-play, said, “Great tag by Inge,” and I could clearly see a “15” on the back of the catcher’s uniform. Nice try, FSN guys, but if Brandon Inge was the catcher, it really wasn’t that long ago (FYI, Brandon was the Tigers’ catcher until Pudge was signed, and then he got moved to third base). My third thing really doesn’t have anything to do with the broadcast. I went to Wal-Mart yesterday, and there was an American Legion guy standing outside, selling those poppy-things that they always sell on Memorial Day weekend. I gave him a dollar, and he said, “I’m a Tigers fan, too” (Obviously, I was wearing my Tigers t-shirt at the time). He then said, “Morgan, the third baseman, and Rodriguez, they’re my favorites.” Um, that’s nice (especially the “Rodriguez” part), but there is no one on the team named “Morgan.” I’m guessing he was shooting for either “Monroe” or “Magglio” (probably Monroe). I didn’t point this out to him, though. I just smiled and told him that Rodriguez was my favorite, too.

Today’s a sort-of-day game that pits Justin Verlander against C.C. Sabathia. Sabathia’s supposed to be Cleveland’s best pitcher, or so I hear. I do love Justin Verlander, though, and he has been outstanding this year, so I’m guessing we’re gonna be in for a real pitching battle. The online previews are once again pretty indecisive, except for the FOX Sports preview, which is slightly favoring the Indians. One problem for the Tigers is that they’re gonna be without Fernando Rodney for the rest of the series, but the bullpen’s been doing better recently, so it could be worse. As far as the lineup goes, I’m not sure what to guess. Pudge normally does not play in the day game after a night game, but this is one of those “nationally” televised games. He didn’t play the last time a Tigers game was on FOX Saturday Baseball, but then I found an article that said the only reason he didn’t play in that game was because he had gotten pretty beat up by foul balls the night before. Plus, Sabathia’s left-handed (Wow, I think that’s the first lefty starter the Tigers have faced since Johan Santana, and that was two weeks ago), and with a lefty starter, Pudge bats first in the lineup. I don’t think they’ve played a game with a lefty starter without Pudge in the lineup. However, tomorrow’s game is a night game that’s gonna be on ESPN, so they’re probably gonna want all their A-listers in that game, too, so I don’t know. I honestly can’t guess at this one as far as Pudge is concerned, but I will make the prediction that Granderson will not start today (but we may see him later on as a defense replacement), simply because of the lefty starter (although last time Granderson faced a lefty, he hit a home run off him). Marcus Thames may also be in the lineup at first base, but Sean Casey really isn’t bothered by left-handed pitchers, or so I’ve heard.

One Year Ago: On May 26, 2006, the Tigers had a better start in their homestand against the Indians, beating Cleveland 8-3 (and won their seventh game in a row). Nate Robertson had an outstanding outing, and every Tiger had a hit except Polanco and Inge. Curtis Granderson had the biggest night, going 2-for-5 with five RBIs, thanks mostly to the triple he hit.

2007 record: 34-14

2006 record: 29-18

Well, it took a while, but the Tigers finally got their first shutout of the season, beating the Angels 12-0. Jeremy Bonderman looked no worse for wear, after having missed his last two starts with the blister problem. He loaded the bases with nobody out in the first, but got helped out by a very unusual double play (1-2-3). After that, he was pretty much solid. Wilfredo Ledezma, who has been struggling mightily, pitched a perfect ninth. Hopefully that’s a good sign, especially since Rodney’s been bothered by shoulder tendonitis lately.

On Wednesday, Maggs hit two homers. Yesterday, it was Guillen’s turn. Sheffield also hit a home run. There wasn’t a whole lot of production out of the bottom of the order. Rabelo got an RBI on a sacrifice fly, and Thames walked once (and scored a run), but that’s about it. Magglio didn’t have a home run, but he still had a big day, going 4-for-4, catapulting his batting average to .361, and surpassing A-Rod as the guy in all of baseball with the most RBIs (45). The game kinda lost its energy after Leyland brought in the rest of the bench guys, but I still enjoyed it. I kinda wish Ernie Harwell had done some of the play-by-play, cuz I hear that he was really good at it. He mostly shared a bunch of anecdotes, but what can you do? I still liked him, though.

Tonight, the Cleveland Indians finally come to town (cue dramatic music). Nate Robertson gets the start for the Tigers. He’ll be opposed by Paul Byrd of the Indians. It’s a Friday night game, so I’d expect all the A-listers to start as well. The online previews are about as indecisive as you can get. I’m really nervous about this series, cuz Cleveland looks to be the Tigers’ biggest threat in the Central Division, at least for now. They did just lose two out of three to Kansas City, though. By the way, Ernie Harwell will also cover this game.

One Year Ago: On May 25, 2006, the Tigers completed their sweep of the Royals, winning 13-8. It wasn’t as easy as that score suggests, though. Mike Maroth gave up six runs on six hits and only lasted one third of an inning (He later needed surgery to remove bone chips in his elbow, which caused him to miss most of the rest of the season). Detroit began to chip away at the Royals’ lead in the second inning, though. Marcus Thames homered in the fourth, and at one point the Tigers were within a run, though Kansas City would then score two more. Then in the eighth, with the Tigers trailing 8-5, two out, and two men on base (Monroe at second, Granderson at first), Polanco singled in a run. Pudge then hit a two-run triple, tying the game (You honestly didn’t think I’d go through an entire post without mentioning him at least once, did you?). In the top of the ninth, Monroe hit a solo home run to break the tie and give the Tigers the lead. This would be followed by another solo home run, this time from Marcus Thames, and a three-run homer from Pudge (who got himself a total of 5 RBIs that day). The interesting thing was that Pudge was only playing that day because Vance Wilson had twisted his ankle the night before. Man, I wish I had seen that game.

2006 record: 33-14

2007 record: 29-17

Well, it was another close one, but as I’ve said before, a win’s a win. Truth be told, I had a bad feeling about this game, cuz when I got home from work, I turned on the TV and the first thing I saw was Pudge getting a foul ball bounced off his foot (Making it about the 1,756^th time that’s happened to him this season, right? I just hope that’s not some sort of foreshadowing), but I was pleasantly surprised…sort of. Things got a bit dicey for the Tigers in the top of the 8^th, after Jose Mesa did his best to screw things up by giving up a three-run homer. Luckily, Curtis Granderson got one of those runs back in the bottom of the 8^th, cuz the Tigers would need it. In the top of the ninth, it was the umpires who had issues. After Pudge made an unsuccessful attempt to prevent a stolen base (he threw the ball, but it hit the runner instead of reaching Polanco), the umpire ruled Jonesy’s pitch as a ball, even though the Angels’ batter totally swung on it. It wasn’t even a matter of a checked swing. He swung on it (though, as the commentators pointed out, he swung as a means of stopping Pudge from throwing out the base runner, not because he was trying to hit the ball), and yet all four umpires missed it. Luckily, Jonesy got Guerrero to ground into a double play (scoring one run), and then got Gary Matthews, Jr to flyout to get the save and win the game, though Pudge looked rather annoyed for the rest of the inning (Dude, I would be, too).

Jose Mesa and umpires with ADD aside (not to mention teenagers who randomly show up on the field and start running around), there was a lot to like about this game. It looks as though the boys are making progress on multiple fronts. It wasn’t Chad Durbin’s best outing, but he did his job, minus the home runs he gave up (at least they were both solo shots and the Tigers had a pretty big lead at that point). Jason Grilli looked great for the second night in a row, as did Tim Byrdak (though he only faced one batter). The offense was certainly clicking on both sides. As I said in the title, it was certainly a slugfest, with a total of seven home runs. The Tigers hit four homers, and the Angels got three. Maggs hit two of the four for the Tigers, bringing his season total to 12 and continuing his hot streak. Carlos Guillen and Curtis Granderson each had one. Granderson’s was especially encouraging because he hit it off a left-handed pitcher, and I know he usually struggles against lefties, so hopefully this is a sign of progress. Brandon Inge was the only Tiger to go hitless, though he did reach base on a walk and eventually scored a run (he also struck out with the bases loaded at one point, and that almost came back to haunt them, but I’ve got no hard feelings). From what I can tell from the box score, it looks as though every Tiger reached base at least once. Another encouraging sign is Pudge’s performance. He’s now hit safely in 7 of his last 8 games, and he went 3-for-4 last night (the only Tiger with 3 hits last night, BTW), getting his batting average up to a slightly-more-respectable .266 (That’s 13 points in one game). I’m not sure at which point you’re allowed to say that someone has officially busted out of his slump, but at the very least, this is a good sign. He doesn’t seem to be as “pull-happy” as he’s been, cuz two of his hits went to right field, and the other one went to center (plus, he would’ve been 4-for-4, but he was robbed by Vladimir Guerrero on what would otherwise have been a double). By the way, Kansas City continued to help us out last night. The Royals beat the Indians 11-7, allowing Detroit to leapfrog them in the standings. The Tigers are now half a game ahead of Cleveland.

Today, the Tigers look to take 2 out of 3 as they wrap up this series. Jeremy Bonderman should be back after missing his last two starts due to blister problems. Bonderman’s not my favorite person in the world, but he is a good pitcher, which is what counts in this game, so I’m glad he’s back. He almost always has a bad first inning, though, so the offense needs to be ready to provide him with some run support so that he can settle in faster and get the job done from the second inning onwards. Bonderman’ll be facing Ervin Santana, who is apparently better than his numbers indicate. It is a day game after a night game, so we probably won’t see Pudge (other than the random shot of him sitting in the dugout, chewing on his fingernails) and perhaps one other A-lister, although this is a “take the series” instead of a “sweep” situation, so Leyland might keep all the other regulars in the lineup. This’ll be an interesting test for Rabelo. He hasn’t really been challenged yet as far as stolen bases are concerned, but the Angels are a team that likes to run, and Jeremy Bonderman is pretty bad at holding runners on (to the point where most sports experts/analysts are blaming him for Pudge’s low caught stealing percentage). It’ll be interesting to see how that fans out. Despite the likelihood that Pudge will not start, those of us who watch the game on TV are still in for a treat. One of the normal commentators is attending his son’s graduation and will not be in Detroit for the next two days, and so filling in for him is the great Ernie Harwell. I’ve never seen/heard any of his broadcasts (I’m a little too young for that), but I know the guy’s a legend and he’s in the Baseball Hall of Fame, so I’m sure I’ll enjoy his commentary. As long as the Tigers win, that is (but I have two chances at that, cuz he’s also gonna be there tomorrow night).

One Year Ago: On May 24, 2006, the Tigers continued their domination of Kansas City, beating the Royals 6-3. Jeremy Bonderman pitched seven innings. He gave up a three-run homer to Matt Stairs in the sixth, at which point Jim Leyland told him, “It’s time for you to graduate.” This went on to become one of Leyland’s more famous pep talks, and Bonderman didn’t allow any more runs after that. Omar Infante (who was DHing for the game) hit two solo home runs and got 3 RBIs (the third was Pudge, who scored when Omar grounded into a fielder’s choice), and Brandon Inge hit a 2-run homer. Oddly enough, Pudge went 3-for-4 in this game, and got himself a caught stealing (he went 3-for-4 last night, but rushed too much in making his throw to second base, so history couldn’t quite repeat itself). By the way, I had two choices for the photo. The other choice was a picture of Infante, but I went with the Inge photo even though Infante had the bigger night, because Omar looks really weird in his photo.

2006 record: 32-14

2007 record: 28-17

 By the way, I am totally 100% satisfied with the results on Dancing with the Stars. Yay Apolo!

I’m not really sure what all to say about this game. For one, I only saw the last two innings due to being at work (And while I was there, I saw a kid wandering around the store wearing what appeared to be a baseball uniform complete with a St. Louis Cardinals jersey that had a number 7 and “Rodriguez” on the back. WTF?), so all I have to rely on for the rest of the game is the box score, which is one of the most confusing things for me to interpret. From what I can tell, though, the Tigers really didn’t do anything wrong. The Angels just picked last night to bring out all the highlight-reel-caliber defense. It is kind of reassuring to know that my boys didn’t just “let it slip away,” but it’s frustrating at the same time. Of course, the most frustrating part was probably that final play of the bottom of the ninth. Guillen was batting with the bases loaded and 2 outs and hit what on most nights would’ve been a sure RBI base hit, but the Angels’ shortstop just happened to make that one-in-a-million leaping catch. I have to hand it to ‘em. Doesn’t make it any less frustrating, though. However, when you think about it, had Guillen gotten the base hit, it probably would’ve only scored two, at the most, meaning that Pudge would also have had to get a base hit. As capable as he is of doing that, there’s an equally good chance that he would’ve struck out, cuz he’s quite capable of doing that as well. We’ll never know. Luckily, Cleveland also lost tonight (Nice job, KC!), so the Tigers are still only a half-game behind.

Mike Maroth got handed his first loss of the season. What’s ironic is that he pretty much held Vladimir Guerrero in check for the entire game, but he gave up homers to some of the Angels that aren’t known to be power hitters. As for John Lackey, from what I hear, the Tigers actually made him work, and he wasn’t as dominant as the numbers by themselves would actually suggest. Apparently, he got helped out a lot by the defense. There is one thing that is confusing me to no end, and that is the final out of the sixth inning. I’ve read a play-by-play, but I’m still confused (plus I went back and looked at the tape, and that didn’t help either). Aybar of the Angels was at first, with Maroth facing the next batter. Maroth threw the ball over to first, but Aybar was too far away from the bag, so Casey was able to run him down. The Tigers’ side of the box score awards a pickoff to Maroth, but the Angels’ side of the box score lists Aybar as both picked off and caught stealing. It can’t be both, can it? To make things even more confusing, the description for the caught stealing field says “2^nd base by Maroth/Rodriguez.” I don’t get it. Maroth made the throw, and Casey made the tag. Pudge really didn’t have anything to do with that play, other than maybe call for Maroth to make the throw to first base. However, if it helps increase his caught stealing percentage, then I’m all for it. And those of you who are lifelong baseball fanatics probably think I’m a complete idiot by now, but hey, this ain’t called the Total Amateur Analysis for nothing.

Even though the Tigers lost, there are some good things I can take away from this game. Maggs hit his 10^th home run of the season. Pudge got himself a base hit on a night where the Angels defense made hits a premium, so here’s hoping that’s a sign that he’s continuing to come out of the slump (I can’t comment any further, as I didn’t see the base hit, so I’m very vague on the details as it is). Most importantly, the bullpen, which has been shaky for weeks (save for Tim Byrdak, Bobby Seay, and Todd Jones), had a pretty solid outing in their two innings of work last night. Jason Grilli gave up a couple hits to start off the eighth, but recovered nicely and pitched himself out of the jam (which, according to the commentators, will do wonders for his confidence level), and Jose Mesa had himself a 1-2-3 ninth (I guess that was his birthday present, as he turned 41 yesterday).

Tonight, the Tigers look to have better luck against the Angels’ defense in Game 2. Chad Durbin will be taking on Bartolo Colon (whose name sounds like it should be the name of some sort of expensive wine, but I digress). Colon has a perfect record going into this game, but hey, so did Mike Maroth until last night. Here’s hoping that the Angels’ defense used up all their allotted spectacular plays for the series last night. And let’s hope the Tigers break through the bad luck and take 2 out of 3, cuz their next opponent is sure to be even tougher.

One Year Ago: On May 23, 2006, the Tigers came from behind to beat the Royals 8-5. Kenny Rogers was uncharacteristically shaky to start the game, giving up four home runs to the Royals, and at one point, Detroit was behind 4-0. Carlos Guillen hit a 2-run homer in the sixth, and the Tigers went into the top of the eighth trailing 5-3. Monroe walked with 2 out, Infante singled, and then Brandon Inge drove in Monroe with a single of his own. Curtis Granderson then doubled, scoring Infante and Inge. Granderson would later come around to score on a single by Polanco. Guillen was the hero of the game, going 3-for-5, including a home run, plus he stole a base and later scored. At the end of the day, nearly all the Tigers had at least two hits. Chris Shelton was the only one with one hit, and Pudge was the only one to go hitless (Oh, well; it seems as though there has to be one every game; as Pudge would probably say, “That’s baseball, man”).

2006 record: 31-14

2007 record: 27-17

Since there was no game yesterday for me to report on, I thought I’d use this opportunity to catch up on a few random things I’ve been meaning to discuss, but never had the time or space to do so. First of all, during the games, they’ve had a commercial on for some MLB video game for Playstation 3. As in most video game commercials, there is a montage of scenes from the game. I happened to notice that one player featured in the montage is none other than the Tigers’ very own Curtis Granderson. Thank you for that, Playstation.