SB Nation - Marcus Thames

Marcus Thames?

Tom Dakers — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 23:13:24 -0000

Jon Morosi from foxsports.comsays that the Jays (and Indians) are looking at Marcus Thames. I don't know, I guess he's better than Joey Gathright but is this someone we really want? This is the winning line:

Both teams need right-handed power and have yet to establish clear everyday left fielders for 2010.

Don't we have a few guys for left and would like someone to play RF? Thames also has played first so could platoon with Overbay if Lyle isn't traded and if we didn't have Randy Ruiz and Brian Dopirak to do that.

I'd hope there will be a better name among the guys none tendered tomorrow.

Monday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:01:31 -0000

by Ann Heisenfelt - AP

Carlos Gomez makes the wrong kind of contact.

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Some things to read while realizing you left your credit card in your other armor.

Thanks to Dan, Tyler and Rubie for filling in for me last week while I took a quick break to experience life in New York for a few days. Writing the Mug is no small feat, and all three of them did admirable work in my place, so be sure to stop by their sites today to thank them. It's good to be home. With that said, I'm going in for oral surgery in roughly an hour so I'm off again tomorrow, and I've lined up another of my favorite Brewer bloggers to fill in. I'm hoping to return on Wednesday but that will depend on how I bounce back and how coherent I am on Vicodin.

The Brewers, of course, saw fit to ruin a perfectly good day of my vacation by trading J.J. Hardy for Carlos Gomez. If you weren't around the site this weekend, you missed a lot of great content on the trade: Jordan weighed in with his disappointment, Jeff made the case for keeping Mike Cameron anyway, and Noah, writing his first weekend roundup, had a great collection of thoughts on the deal from around the web. With that said, there's still a bunch more out there:

The Transaction Oracle compared Gomez to Tom Goodwin and said, "Gomez's version of selectivity is staring blankly at a random pitch and then flailing at the next one."
Tom Powers of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press called Gomez "clueless" and said he "has the baseball instincts of an Icelandic grade-schooler." (h/t BBTF)
The Grand National Championships called Gomez "a Juan Pierre without all that incessant singles hitting."
TheJay has a look at the career paths of players who have made as many PAs as Gomez has at such a young age with such a low OBP. Not exceptionally pretty.
Aaron Gleeman says Gomez has gotten a bum rap, but also likes the deal for the Twins.
Miller Park Drunk has a roundup of other things people are saying about Gomez.
Meanwhile, despite Jeff's objections, Doug Melvin confirmed that the Brewers' decision to acquire Gomez means they won't make a push to retain Mike Cameron for 2010.
Nick's Twins Blog has an overview of the deal, including my scouting report for Hardy.
Twinkie Town has some questions about Hardy's defense (based largely on the comments of some frequent BCB'ers), and whether or not it's as good as advertised.
FanGraphs has a look at Hardy's defense, and rated him the third most valuable defensive player in baseball since 2007.
Along with the Red Sox (and presumably some others), the Reds confirmed interest in Hardy. Melvin didn't want to deal Hardy in the division, so he was forced to accept less from someone else.
The Ghost of Moonlight Graham called the deal a steal for the Twins.
Rubie Q called the deal "worst nightmare stuff."
Baseball-Intellect says the Twins got Hardy for "pennies on the dollar."
Sabernomics is having a hard time choosing a winner in the deal.
Jorge Says No! says this deal has the potential to be win-win.

As of this writing, 54% of voters in the poll on your right think the Twins won the trade, with just 13% picking the Brewers. Gomez is walking in the door with a large portion of the fans believing he's not worth much, and it can be tough to overcome that when you're carrying a sub-.300 OBP. This could be the deal that sinks Doug Melvin.

Now, the Brewers have to find a way to wisely spend the financial windfall. MLB Trade Rumors has the likely landing spots for this winter's top 50 free agents, and lists both Doug Davis and Jarrod Washburn as likely Brewers, and also lists the Crew as a potential interested party regarding Jon Garland. Meanwhile, they have Felipe Lopez as a Dodger, Mike Cameron as a Padre and Ben Sheets as a Ranger.

Beyond that, there's not a lot of Brewer news, unless you wanted to talk about the decision to decline David Weathers' option.

Around baseball:

D-Backs: Exercised Brandon Webb's option for 2010.
Dodgers: Declined Jon Garland's option for 2010.
Nationals: Declined Austin Kearns' option for 2010.
Phillies: Exercised Cliff Lee's option for 2010 and declined Pedro Feliz's.
Pirates: Designated pitchers Virgil Vazquez and Eric Hacker and catcher Steve Lerud for assignment.
Red Sox: Declined their option for 2010 on Alex Gonzalez.
Reds: Outrighted outfielder Danny Richar and first baseman Kevin Barker to AAA. Both will be minor league free agents.
Rockies: Declined options on catcher Yorvit Torrealba and Alan Embree.
Royals: Declined 2010 options for Coco Crisp, Miguel Olivo and Yasuhiko Yabuta.
Tigers: Removed outfielder Marcus Thames and catcher Matt Treanor from their 40-man roster.
White Sox: Bought out the final year of Jermaine Dye's contract.

I'm going to wrap this up quickly, because my pre-surgery meds are starting to kick in:

Miguel Olivo has been mentioned as a potential option for the Brewers next season. Beyond the Box Score has a comprehensive list of things he does well.
Phil Birnbaum looks at the possibility that younger umpires have more accurate strike zones.
Baseball Reference wants your thoughts to help improve their site.
Seventeen congressmen voted no on a resolution congratulating the Yankees for winning the World Series. One of them was Wisconsin rep Jim Sensenbrenner. (h/t Baseball Musings)

On this day in 1982, Robin Yount was the unanimous choice to win the AL MVP after leading the AL in hits, doubles, slugging, OPS, OPS+ and total bases, while playing shortstop for the AL Champion Brewers.

It's also a big day for Brewer birthdays:

Dave Bush turns 30.
Angel Miranda, who appeared in 116 games as a Brewer between 1993 and 1997, turns 40.
Dion James, who was the Brewers' first round pick in the 1980 draft, turns 47.
Teddy Higuera, arguably the greatest pitcher in Brewer history, turns 51. You should celebrate his birthday by purchasing the sponsorship on his Bref page, which is available for $10.

Drink up.

Morning Prowl: Arbitration Dilemmas, Free Agent Predictions, and Gibby's Managerial Aspirations

Ian Casselberry — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:00:54 -0000

The Tigers face quite a dilemma with their free agents, in regards to offering arbitration. Kurt Mensching tries to predict what decisions the team will make on Placido Polanco, Adam Everett, Fernando Rodney, and Brandon Lyon at Mack Avenue Tigers.

MLB Trade Rumors listed their Top 50 Free Agents for 2010, and Tim Dierkes forecasts where each of them will end up. He sees the Tigers being in on a couple of guys (you'll have to scroll down the list), and he has an interesting destination for Placido Polanco. (And if his Yankees predictions come true, I might just be disgusted.)

Will Detroit's effort to fill its shortstop vacancy be made more difficult by the Red Sox now also cruising the market after declining Alex Gonzalez's option for next year? Might they be interested in Adam Everett, or do they want more offense at that position? (Boston tried to get J.J. Hardy before the trade deadline, as well.)

The Freep's John Lowe exchanged e-mails with Brewers general manager Doug Melvin, who said he never contacted the Tigers about Hardy because they didn't have what he was looking for in return.

At The Detroit Tigers Weblog, Bill Ferris takes a look through The Bill James Handbook and lets us know how the Tigers stacked up in a variety of categories and stats.

More from Lowe: Did we know Kirk Gibson interviewed for the Cleveland Indians' manager job? I don't recall reading that anywhere else, but apparently he did. Gibby wants to be a major league manager, and feels his six years working as a bench coach (between the Tigers and Diamondbacks) have taught him plenty that he'd use in that role.

How did the two Tigers prospects do in Saturday night's Arizona Fall League Rising Stars Showcase? Casper Wells went 0-for-3, and Andrew Oliver allowed three baserunners in one inning of work, but didn't give up a run. (Here's the boxscore.)

Staying in Arizona for one more item, Lynn Henning reviews the performance of four Tigers prospects playing out there, including the aforementioned Wells and Oliver. (Cue your sad trombone for Cale Iorg.)

The Oakland Press' Pat Caputo thinks that Comerica Park (or its field) should not be named after Ernie Harwell.

Oh, the bonds that develop between baseball players and the beat reporters who cover them. MLB.com's White Sox beat writer Scott Merkin laments Chris Getz getting traded to the Royals, depriving him of someone to discuss University of Michigan football and basketball with. You can e-mail me, Scott.

Former future Tigers superstar-in-the-making Cameron Maybin is having shoulder surgery this offseason. Maybin has a partially torn labrum in his left shoulder. ("Always a Tiger," as Old English D says.)

And this is self-indulgent, but in our farewell post to Marcus Thames, rook34 mentioned his favorite Thames moment. It's one of my favorite memories of 2006, as well, and here's what I wrote about it in my pre-BYB days.

Daily Roundup

Eli Greenspan — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 17:57:53 -0000

More photos » by Tom Olmscheid - AP

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FOXSports.com is reporting that Dodgers outfielder Manny Ramirez has exercised his 20 million dollar player option for the 2010 season. Ramirez missed 50 games for violating the leagues drug policy, but ended the year with a .290 average and 19 home runs.
The Twins exercised Michael Cuddyer's 2011 option after he put up career numbers over the 2009 season. Cuddyer will make 8.5 million in 2010 and 10.5 million dollars in 2011. Cuddyer hit 32 home runs this past season.
The Nationals have declined Austin Kearns' 10 million dollar club option, giving him a 1 million dollar buyout instead. Kearns has struggled to stay healthy since joining the Nationals, posting just 174 at-bats this past season.
MLB.com is reporting that the Marlins declined Ross Gload's 2.6 million dollar option for the 2010 season. Gload was a pretty solid pinch-hitter this past season, and will find a job in a similar role in 2010.
The Rockies declined options on Alan Embree and catcher Yorvit Torrealba. Torrealba could emerge as an option for the Mets this offseason.
The Tigers released catcher Matt Treanor and outfielder Marcus Thames. It is possible the Tigers would bring back Treanor on a one year deal, but Thames is a defensive liability and likely won't return.

The Marcus Thames Era Has Ended in Detroit

Ian Casselberry — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 23:00:41 -0000

More photos » by Tony Gutierrez - AP

Marcus Thames was removed from the Detroit Tigers' 40-man roster, making him a free agent and likely ending his six-year career with the team.

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And so goes the Slugger Thames.

With the offseason officially under way, the Detroit Tigers needed to make some decisions to create room on their 40-man roster. That process has begun, according to Jason Beck. Outfielder Marcus Thames and catcher Matt Treanor were removed from the roster. Both players are now free agents and can sign with any other team.

Those moves free up space on the 40-man roster for Joel Zumaya and Jeff Larish, both of whom had to be reinstated from the 60-day disabled list. Infielder Michael Hollimon was also taken off the 60-day DL, but was sent to Triple-A Toledo.

This season, Thames batted .252/.323/.453 with 13 homers and 36 RBIs, the lowest totals of his six-year stint with Detroit. He was out from mid-April to early June, due to a pulled rib cage muscle.

But even when Thames returned to the lineup, he never provided the power that the Tigers needed. May through July was usually when Thames could be counted on to bring the thunder, only to disappear once August began. But this year, he was never able to put together that sustained hot streak. As a result (along with Ryan Raburn's emergence), Thames really only got off the bench when the lineup needed a DH against left-handed pitching.

Thames's Tigers career ends with a .245/.307/.501 batting line, 99 home runs, and 255 RBIs in 485 games played.

I know a lot of Tigers fans thought Thames could be a 35-to-40-homer guy if he'd gotten 500 at-bats, but that just never developed. My feeling always was that if Thames was capable of being Detroit's full-time left fielder, Jim Leyland would've had him in there. But he did provide some memorable home runs during his time here, and sometimes seemed like the only power threat in the lineup.

Thames made $2.3 million this season (a $1 million raise), and was eligible for arbitration. I could be wrong on this, but pay cuts don't usually occur in that situation, which is why he was non-tendered.

Treanor was signed last December, with the hopes that he could back up Gerald Laird and still give the Tigers good defense behind the plate. But he could never fully recover from the hernia surgery he had after the 2008 season, and by late April, was done for the year. (Alas, we never did get those gratuitious shots of Misty May-Treanor watching from her seats and cheering on her husband.) Had he been available, perhaps Laird wouldn't have worn down the way he did late in the season.

Morning Prowl: Lloyd McClendon, Zumaya's Health, The Power Thames, and Useless Articles

Ian Casselberry — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 10:01:25 -0000

For those wondering why the Tigers didn't fire Lloyd McClendon as hitting coach after the season, perhaps the team reached many of the same conclusions as Bill Ferris did at The Detroit Tigers Weblog. Did Tigers batters perform below expectations, compared to preseason projections? The answers might surprise you.

Dave Dombrowski told the Detroit News' Lynn Henning that there's "no question" Joel Zumaya will be 100% healthy by Spring Training.

Here's a thought: How can anyone ever not have a question about Zumaya's health?

Were the Tigers actually the third-best team in the AL Central, despite their narrow second-place finish? Beyond the Box Score's Power Rankings say yes. This may be why these baseball teams play the games.

John Lowe doesn't come right out and say it in the Freep, because a decision hasn't been made. But if Marcus Thames's main job is to hit home runs, and he didn't hit any after mid-August, is there any way he has a spot on the Tigers roster next year?

SI.com's Jon Heyman fills out his awards ballot (also including his picks for worst performances of the year). He thought very highly of one Tiger, while eliminating another entirely from consideration.

I believe we shot down any interest in Scott Podsednik last week. But just in case any curiosity lingers, consider that South Side Sox hopes Podsednik either ends up as their fourth outfielder or doesn't return to the team at all.

Ernie Harwell finds himself high on the list of Richard Deitsch's Media Power Rankings for the month of September.

Sometimes, bloggers attempt to write a post, only to talk themselves out of the argument they originally tried to present. Or they just reach a dead end. I wonder if something similar happened to the NY Times' Ben Shpigel when he wrote this article.

Let's Pretend The Cubs Are In The Postseason! - Tigers vs. Twins Preview, Tuesday 10/6, 4:07 CT

Al — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 18:00:45 -0000

More photos » by Morry Gash - AP

Thomas Hook prepares the 3B line early Tuesday in Minneapolis as they switch the Metrodome from Monday's Vikings vs Packers game to the Twins vs Tigers tiebreaker.

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So what are we going to do around here for 181 days until the next Cubs regular season game? I figure many of you -- I know I am -- are interested in the postseason, and it begins today with the AL Central tiebreaker game between the Tigers and Twins in Minnesota. So I figured I'd post a game thread in the same format that I use for Cubs games. Below the fold you'll find the usual pitcher box, preview and links. Throughout the postseason I'll post game threads for those of you who want to discuss the playoffs -- though probably not with as much detail as this post.

The baseball punditocracy talks about today's game:

Rob Neyer @ ESPN: Twins all the way.

Tim Brown @ Yahoo: the Metrodome refuses to die.

Jon Paul Morosi @ FoxSports, who grew up in Michigan: history favors the Twins.

Chris DeLuca of the Chicago Sun-Times downplays the teams involved and instead whines that the White Sox should have been in it. Ugh.

From Detroit: Rick Porcello's brother talks about him.

From Minneapolis: Scott Baker is a big-game pitcher.

And finally, just to wrench this back somewhat on topic, here is Bruce Miles' analysis of the 2009 Cubs position players. Enjoy the game. My pick: the Twins; they're hot (16-4 in their last 20 games and 9-1 in their last 10 home games) and they always seem to know how to win the big ones -- notwithstanding their 1-0 loss in last year's tiebreaker with the White Sox.

Today's Starting Pitchers


Rick Porcello Tigers	vs.	Scott Baker Twins

14-9	W-L	15-9
4.04	ERA	4.36
81	SO	160
50	BB	46
22	HR	27
vs. Min	--	vs. Det

	W-L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	BS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2009 - Rick Porcello	14-9	30	30	0	0	0	0	165.0	172	79	74	22	50	81	4.04	1.35

	W-L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	BS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2009 - Scott Baker	15-9	32	32	1	1	0	0	194.0	184	96	94	27	46	160	4.36	1.19

Scott Baker is probably the Twins' most consistent starter, but he is only 1-1, 6.75 in four starts vs. the Tigers this year. He faced the Tigers last Thursday in Detroit and gave them only five hits and an unearned run in five innings. As a pitcher in the AL Central for several years, he's faced most of the Tigers many times. Curtis Granderson and Marcus Thames have both homered off him four times. Magglio Ordonez is 18-for-39 (.462) off Baker with a a pair of homers.

If the Tigers win today, Rick Porcello won't even legally be able to enjoy the champagne after -- he won't turn 21 until December 27. He has had a fine rookie year in which he has posted a 3.09 ERA vs. the Twins (but just a 1-2 record). He faced the Twins last Tuesday in Detroit and got a no-decision in a game the Twins won in extra innings. He should fear Jason Kubel, who is 8-for-11 (.727) against him; Kubel is red-hot right now, too (11-for-26 in his last seven games with 3 HR and 12 RBI).

Today's game is on TBS. Chip Caray and Ron Darling will be the announcers. Here is today's MLB.com Mediacenter.

MLB.com Gameday

Baseball-reference.com game preview

SB Nation game preview

Please visit our SB Nation Tigers site Bless You Boys and Twins site Twinkie Town.

I'm not posting any overflow threads today; if this one gets too slow during the game, feel free to post an overflow in the FanShot section.

Discuss amongst yourselves.

Twins Foiled By...Nate Robertson?

Jesse — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 22:13:33 -0000

More photos » by Paul Battaglia - AP

Has anyone told these guys they should let the girls catch the bouquet?

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Twins 2, Tigers 6

It looked good, briefly. A Jason Kubel ground out in the first plated Orlando Cabrera for a 1-0 lead, and after the Tigers tied it up in the top of the fourth Minnesota came back in the bottom half to answer. Delmon Young's double was the alpha, Nick Punto's clutch two-out hit was the omega, and the Twins re-took the lead at 2-1.

But that was as good as it would get.

It wasn't a good night for Scott Baker. He struggled early to find his rhythym, giving us a hint during his very first plate appearance when he had trouble putting Curtis Granderson away. Seven pitches later Granderson would strike out, but it would be a promise of things to come. By the time the fifth inning rolled around Baker had been staked to a 2-1 lead. I'm still cringing at what happened.

In reality, the inning wasn't as horrible as I remember it being. At the time it was total agony. A seven-pitch walk to Gerald Laird (yes, Gerald friggin Laird, and that I still maintain that changeup was a STRIKE), Ramo Santiago picking up a single, Granderson grounding out but still advancing both runners. Placido Polanco scoring them both on a single to give the Tigers their first and final lead of the game. Marcus Thames adding another single, Miguel Cabrera flying out (that's two if he could just get one more!!!) and Magglio Ordonez picking up yet another single (NO!) to complete the Tigers' three-run inning. Baker was lifted with two away in the fifth, having faced seven batters and given up four singles, a walk and three runs.

Ron Mahay finished the inning.

Francisco Liriano picked up the final out in the sixth, managed a perfect seventh (with a pair of strikeouts no less), and then paid for his successes in the eighth. He'd done well for four outs, but to be fair it wasn't like he knew where his pitches were going. Liriano consistently missed his spots, but as we've come to know, Liriano can also be at his best when he's effectively wild. Which is a great way of saying "thanks, hitters, for swinging at crap", although at the same time his slider is still pretty tough.

So when Liriano surprised everyone by throwing two consecutive pitches low in the strike zone to Ryan Rayburn, it came as some surprise. Rayburn's solo home run, not so much of a surprise. Cisco walked Brandon Inge, who would later score off a sacrifice fly with Jon Rauch on the hill. Liriano clearly still has some work to do mentally. All the talent in the world, and I'm not going to complain too much about a guy with his stuff being "effectively wild", but there has to be some sort of consistency because right now there's none.

The Twins don't pick up the sweep, and it's a shame, but they still come away with a series win which puts them one very meaningful game closer to first place than they were when this whole stress-filled weekend started. A week from tomorrow we get to be in Detroit for a four-game tilt which, hopefully, still means something. Which will depend on how things play out over the next week.

Minnesota gets a three-game stand in Chicago with the struggling White Sox before getting a day off, and then taking on the Royals for three next weekend. While the Twins are in Kansas City, the Sox will be hosting the Tigers. Detroit, meanwhile, gets Monday off before travelling to Cleveland for three. Both the Twins and Tigers are on the road, both play the Sox. This will be a very telling week.

It's been a great weekend, and I'll see you all tomorrow

You Cannot Win If You Do Not Score: Twins 3, Tigers 0

Ian Casselberry — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 14:35:08 -0000

More photos » by Paul Battaglia - AP

Magglio Ordonez was one of several big bats for the Detroit Tigers that contributed nothing to last night's 3-0 loss to the Minnesota Twins.

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Normally, we try to use these recaps to look closely at the preceding game. More often than not, we'll review key moments that influenced the final outcome. Maybe we'll analyze what a player did, or a strategic decision that was made.

And had this been written directly after the game, we'd probably do just that. But after a night of sleep and a relatively short turnaround before the Tigers and Twins go back at it, let's leave this to Jim Leyland. Because he summed up last night's result (and perhaps this entire season) in one post-game quote:

"It's time for the stars to shine down the stretch. It's going to take everybody contributing. You expect your big boys to step it up."

When asked a follow-up question about his batters' approach, he tersely replied, "You'll have to ask those guys." That was really the best response. What more can he say? This Tigers lineup has to shoulder their load, too. And after 147 games, how about accepting some accountability for this playoff effort?

Rick Porcello only gave up three runs last night. The rookie came to play in an important late-season game. Where were his teammates with their bats?

Yes, Brian Duensing has been fantastic for the Twins since joining their starting rotation. And last night continued that run of success. But this Tigers lineup has to win some games, too. It can't always be the pitching.

Whimper:

How about everyone who held a bat for the Detroit Tigers last night, except for Marcus Thames and Curtis Granderson? Those guys got two hits apiece. Everyone else combined for one. (Tip of the cap to Brandon Inge.)

One hit. Nothing from Placido Polanco. Zippo from Magglio Ordonez. Zilch from Miguel Cabrera. Nada.

Purr:

Granderson got another hit off a left-hander. (He knocked one off Lenny DiNardo on Wednesday night, too.) And he got the lone Tigers hit off Joe Nathan in the ninth inning. Hey, that's something.

Comment of the Night:

I wonder if any teams have won a divsion with a negative run differential

by explosivo2k2

Three Games of Pain: Royals 7, Tigers 4

Ian Casselberry — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 01:55:29 -0000

by Charlie Riedel - AP

Much like Ryan Raburn here, the Detroit Tigers were a team sliding to nowhere over the past three games in Kansas City.

View full size photo »

Once again, this 2009 Detroit Tigers season has become a roller coaster.

Just as this team starts to look like it's coming together, with all sorts of different ways to beat the opposition, it reminds us that it's far from a perfect team. Just as we start to believe that this team might actually be capable of doing something in the playoffs, beating last year's AL champs with authority, it gets swept by the last place team in its division.

Who are these guys?

Was the three-game sweep last weekend in Tampa - the one with great pitching, timely hitting, and rousing comebacks - a fleeting moment of greatness? Are these 2009 Tigers really just the same team they've been all season? The one that hits into double plays and squanders scoring opportunities? Whose middle relief leaks gasoline all over the pitching mound?

Maybe the Tigers used up all its good road trip juju in Tampa and was due for a correction in Kansas City. And maybe all will seem well again with seven upcoming games at Comerica Park (including a chance to exact some revenge against the Royals next week).

But a series like this - a result like this - shakes the faith. And for many, it wasn't that exactly that deep to begin with.

Whimper:

Zach Miner has kind of been a man without a role all season. Is he better as a starter? A reliever? Is he better in late innings or in middle relief? Maybe we can scratch middle relief from the list. Miner was handed a 4-3 lead in the sixth inning, and pretty much blew it right away.

Alex Gordon hit a leadoff homer, and the next two batters reached base on a walk (How can this team walk Yuniesky Betancourt so often?) and a bunt single. That led to another RBI for Billy Butler, who's rediscovered his inner Tigers Killer after taking a season off.

Purr:

I've been kind of hard on Marcus Thames for his lack of contributions over the past couple of months. But if there's a bright side to this series, maybe it's that Thames found his bat again. Could a 3-for-5 series with two RBIs be a revival?

Comment of the Day:

The Tigers are making me cry...

although, it could just be the allergies

by ahtrap

And just for a laugh (or a wince), check out the recap headline at Royals Review.