SB Nation - Ramon Santiago

Ramon Santiago Will Return

Ian Casselberry — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 21:05:14 -0000

The Detroit Tigers will have Ramon Santiago capably backing up at shortstop and second base for the next two seasons, as he signed a two-year, $2.5 million deal on Wednesday.

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With Placido Polanco moving along to the Philadelphia Phillies, and rookie Scott Sizemore set to break in at second base next year, the Detroit Tigers probably needed as much stability in their middle infield as they could get. They got started on that last week by re-signing shortstop Adam Everett. And now, both second base and shortstop will once again be backed up dependably, as Ramon Santiago has agreed to a new contract with the team.

Santiago signed a two-year, $2.5 million deal. This also prevents him from having to go through salary arbitration for a new contract with the Tigers (along with free agency after next season).

This year, Santiago batted.267/.318/.385 with seven home runs and 35 RBIs, both career-highs. Perhaps it's not a coincidence that he achieved those numbers in 296 plate appearances (93 games), the second-highest total of his career. He's not Everett or Polanco with the glove, according to metrics such as UZR, but he gives the Tigers dependable defense at those positions, which is pretty much the main requirement for Jim Leyland.

The question with Santiago among many Tigers fans has been whether or not he's capable of being the full-time shortstop. Leyland and Dave Dombrowski have stated their belief that Santiago would wear down under the rigors of a full 162 games. Understandably, fans see the numbers Santiago puts up in limited time, along with a valuable left-handed bat, and wonder what he could do with more plate appearances. But has he been that successful because Leyland uses him correctly?

We may never know the answer to that question, barring an injury to one of the starting middle infielders. But having Santiago around for the next two years should leave those positions in good hands, while the Tigers try to break in some new blood up the middle.

(Thanks to allikazoo for first posting this news in a FanShot)

Tigers Get Adam Everett On Cheap Deal

Satchel Price — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 23:01:01 -0000

More photos » by Duane Burleson - AP

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Update (6:47 PM): Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports tweeted that Everett signed for $1.55M. That's a pretty small amount for a guy who has established himself as one of the best defenders in the game at shortstop, especially when you see that guys like Alex Cora got $2M, and a year after Cesar Izturis and Aaron Miles got two-year deals for $5M and $4.9M, respectively. It's a pretty solid deal for a guy that's sure to be a good defender at shortstop, even if he's sure to give back much of the value with his bat.

According to the Detroit Tigers' Twitter account, the team has re-signed shortstop Adam Everett to a one-year deal. Unless the Tigers add another option, it's likely that they'll go into next season with the tandem of Everett and Ramon Santiago dominating time at shortstop.

Everett, 33 in February, is regarded as one of the best defensive shortstops in recent memory, but he's also one of the least productive everyday hitters in the game as well. Everett has a career line of .245/.297/.351, and he's consistently posted worse numbers in the past three seasons. He's likely good for a wOBA in the .265-.280 range over a full season, he's posted a mark in that range in each of the past four seasons. He's essentially a -20 run hitter over the course of a full season.

While he's clearly a liability offensively, he's also shockingly good on defense, supported by numerous scouting institutions and defensive metrics. He won the Fielding Bible Award as the best defensive shortstop in the game in 2006, and has a startling +18.3 UZR/150 in 792 games. He's clearly one of the better defenders in the game, with smooth hands, a strong arm, good instincts and impressive range, and he's never posted a UZR/150 below 11.0 in a season with over 40 games.

The terms of the deal aren't known yet, but presumably Everett won't command much more than $2-3M guaranteed, making him a solid investment considering that you're essentially assured to have one of the best defenders in the game at shortstop. He's certainly not ideal considering that he's one of the worst hitters in the majors, but the Tigers could use the quality defense up the middle and they have Santiago as an alternative if they can't withstand Everett's poor offensive efforts.

There's pretty much zero upside to the deal for Detroit, but knowing that at the very least you're going to be getting top-notch defense from the most important position on the field is nice, and the cost to do so is presumably relatively low. Unless the Tigers spent more than $2-3M on this deal, then it's a nice move for them, especially when you consider that Alex Cora got $2M.

The Finish Line is Near: Tigers 7, Twins 2

Ian Casselberry — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 11:45:15 -0000

More photos » by Duane Burleson - AP

Magglio Ordonez and Ramon Santiago combined for five RBIs in the Tigers' 7-2 win over the Twins Wednesday night. Surely, that's what they're talking about in this photo.

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It's so close. So very close. Tiger Town is leaning on the dugout rail in anticipation, ready to jump over it and take the field. And if the Detroit Tigers win one more time, we're going to celebrate.

Right now, all things seem possible. Heck, if the Tigers can beat Carl Pavano, what can't they do?

Pavano's mastery over the Tigers lineup was one of the most baffling aspects of this 2009 season. In five starts against Detroit, he had a 4-0 record and 1.69 ERA. Yet overall, he had a 4.86 ERA coming into Wednesday's game. So the Tigers were probably due to finally get to this guy, right?

Oh, they got to Pavano, all right. And did so early, pouncing on him in the second inning with four runs. The Tigers led off with on two singles and a walk. With the bases loaded and no outs, this would either be a chance to finally lay a smackdown on Pavano or commit an epic squandering. There was no squandering. Brandon Inge stroked a two-run double to left-center. Two batters later, Ramon Santiago singled to drive in two more runs.

But the Tigers weren't done with Pavano at that point. They had five games worth of frustration to take out on the guy. In the fifth inning, Detroit again loaded the bases on two singles and a walk. This time, however, there were two outs, so the squandering would not have been epic. But Magglio Ordonez made sure that didn't happen.

Ordonez jumped on a first-pitch fastball up in the strike zone, lacing into a wide-open gap in left-center field to clear the bases. (As I wrote for one of our overflow gamethreads, is there any more beautiful sight than a ball into the gap with nothing but green surrounding it?) That gave the Tigers seven runs, as many as Pavano had allowed altogether in his previous five starts versus Detroit.

The primary beneficiary of all that offense was Eddie Bonine, who could've used at least three of those runs last Friday in Chicago, but was surely happy with what he received Wednesday night.

Bonine provided a huge scare in the first inning, however, putting five straight Minnesota batters on base. With two runs already in, the Twins had the bases loaded with one out. Imminent disaster? Not this time. Jose Morales hit a groundball to second, which Placido Polanco and Santiago turned for a huge double play. That might have been the ballgame right there, as the Tigers took control soon thereafter.

So very close now. The Tigers' magic number is two. Can they push this pennant race over the finish line this afternoon?

Roar:

With 2.1 scoreless innings in relief of Bonine last night, Zach Miner now hasn't allowed a run in his last 12 innings.

And in a non-save situation with a five-run lead, Fernando Rodney got three straight groundball outs to finish out the game.

Comment of the Night:

Paging Kevin Rand. Kevin Rand to the field.

Pavano’s been mauled by a gaggle of determined Tigers. Bring the bandaids.

by wepri31

Deflated, Defeated: Rangers 7, Tigers 3

Ian Casselberry — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 03:00:09 -0000

More photos » by Tom Pennington - AP

Miguel Cabrera is about to lay flat on the ground here, which pretty much describes the Detroit Tigers' effort after the second inning.

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If the Tigers aren't going to put much effort into trying to win a game, how much effort should I put into a recap?

This one started off promisingly, with Detroit pouncing on an early scoring opportunity, instead of frittering away yet another chance. With two on and two out, Ramon Santiago smacked a double into the opposite field gap to drive in the first run of the game. Then Dusty Ryan followed that up with a single that brought in two more runs. A three-run lead for Luke French!

French got so excited that he gave the lead right back in the bottom half of the inning. With two outs in the inning, but two runners on, three straight Ranger batters got base hits. A single, triple, and double, to be specific. French almost gave up the cycle in one inning. What he did give up was four runs, and the Tigers went flat after that.

Detroit put two runners on to lead off the fourth, but the next three hitters went down. And from then until the ninth inning, another 12 Tigers batters failed to reach base. Perhaps adding to the indignity was former Tiger Jason Grilli recording six of those outs in the fifth and sixth innings, which turned out to be good for the win. (Another former Tiger, Guillermo Moscoso, closed out the game in the ninth.) Throw in three errors, and that pretty much sums up the night. It wasn't pretty.

Comment of the Night:

On the bright side...

We’ve only left 4 guys on base!

by SabreRoseTiger

And your runner-up, but you have to read the comment directly before it for context.

Paulino Beats Figaro: Astros 8, Tigers 1

Ian Casselberry — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 12:25:32 -0000

More photos » by David J. Phillip - AP

Michael Bourn leads the run parade, scoring the first of eight Astros runs against Alfredo Figaro and the Tigers Saturday night.

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So... that happened.

Once again, the Detroit Tigers made a fledgling pitcher with a previously undistinguished track record look like an All-Star. (Detroit's pattern of doing this was detailed nicely in our GameThread.)

I'm not going to call Felipe Paulino "mediocre," because maybe he'll actually turn out to be a good pitcher. The Astros seem to think highly of him, and he definitely throws hard. Chalk it up to unfamiliarity, perhaps. Or maybe Paulino just deserves all the credit. But he was making his first start since coming off the DL. And those were some feeble swings the Tigers lineup took against him.

Paulino racked up nine strikeouts, while allowing only one run and three hits in seven innings of work. The only Tigers batter who had any kind of answer for him was Ramon Santiago, who hit a solo homer in the third inning when Paulino teed a fastball right down the middle. That was really the only bad mistake Paulino made all night.

Between that, and Alfredo Figaro continually hanging his off-speed pitches in the strike zone, along with Gerald Laird leaving in the first inning because of back spasms, and it was just a bad night overall. The Tigers have now lost six of their last seven games on the road. That's not looming well for a team that has seven more games to play on their current road trip.

Whimper:

Today's Captain Obvious statement: Eight runs and 10 hits is not the type of performance the Tigers were hoping for from Figaro in his second major league start. Suddenly, the fifth spot in Detroit's starting rotation looks like a question mark again. Credit the Astros for a patient approach at the plate, taking pitches and making a young pitcher work. But Figaro also wasn't throwing very good stuff, either. As mentioned above, his curveballs and change-ups kept finding the middle of the strike zone, and Houston batters just teed off on that soft stuff.

If there's a bright side to Figaro's outing, it's that he toughed out another four innings after getting shelled in the third. He essentially became his own mop-up man, and saved the Tigers from tapping out their bullpen in what became a blowout. And though many of Figaro's strikes were too hittable, at least he threw strikes. The Astros beat him, but he didn't beat himself. That's something we shouldn't take for granted from any fifth starter these days. And I certainly think he warrants at least one more look.

Comment of the Night:

If you did stick this one out until the end, Freddy Dolsi provided at least one highlight for those watching.

Dolsi just blew his nose on the ground.

by densogirl

Redemption Rally: Tigers 6, Cubs 5

Ian Casselberry — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 22:15:32 -0000

More photos » by Paul Sancya - AP

How cool is Ramon Santiago? He will throw you out from his knees, with shades on.

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This one didn't go to 11. Armando Galarraga's winless streak, that is.

After 10 straight starts without earning a win, Galarraga finally got himself a "W." It wasn't pretty, as he fell behind 3-0 in the first inning, thanks to a fastball right down the middle that Jake Fox blasted out for his first major league home run. Overall, Galarraga allowed four runs for the fifth time in his last seven outings.

And if the Tigers' offense hadn't rediscovered itself over the past week, he probably would've taken yet another loss. But things are a bit different these days.

Even Magglio Ordonez hit for extra bases today. Maybe that's a bit of an understatement. Free of those thick, curly locks weighing him down, Maggs unleashed that whip-like swing we hadn't seen in so long, turning on a ball and pulling it over the left field wall for a two-run homer that gave the Tigers the lead for good. You know it's going well when a team gets some power from its #7 hitter. (Was that a low blow? We should be past that.)

An RBI single by Ryan Raburn (who hit 3-for-4 today) in the fifth inning gave Detroit an insurance run, and they needed that padding when Fernando Rodney had another adventurous save opportunity. (Although, really, the Tigers should've already had another run on the board when Miguel Cabrera's first-inning home run was ruled a double. Replay clearly showed that the ball hit the railing above the yellow line on the right-center field wall. But second base umpire Tim McClelland never called for a replay, and no one from the Tigers' coaching staff raised a protest.)

Rodney made the game a little closer than it had to be when he left a fastball out over the plate for Micah Hoffpauir to smack for an opposite field homer. But I suppose that two-run lead gave him a little bit of room to breathe. Rodney threw 20 pitches for the second straight outing, which probably means he won't be available for tomorrow night's game in Houston. But he nabbed his 16th save in as many opportunities, closing out the Tigers' seventh straight win.

Roar:

Ramon Santiago got the rally started in the third inning, with a two-run homer that got the Tigers right back into the game. Up until that point, it looked like it was going to be a long afternoon at Comerica Park. Santiago had a 2-for-3 day, adding some slick defense at second base.

Comment of the Day:

Remember that at-bat Ordonez had a home run?

Good times.

by MackAveKurt

And your runner-up. Careful, you'll break an ankle jumping off like that. (Kudos also to Flying J for being the diligent gatekeeper of Rally Megan Fox today.)

Lyon, Tigers Beat Fox, Cubs: Oh, My! Cubs Get Swept Out Of Detroit 6-5

Al — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 20:26:48 -0000

More photos » by Paul Sancya - AP

Nice work, Jake. Unfortunately, you'd have had to hit a couple more today for the Cubs to win.

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Yes, I know I was asked to keep bad puns out of headlines, and Brandon Lyon was hardly the biggest reason the Tigers beat the Cubs 6-5 this afternoon (he threw one scoreless inning in relief), but I'm kind of in a mood to lighten up the atmosphere around here after the Cubs suffer a reversal of their sweep of the Indians over the weekend.

The sweep at the hands of the Tigers, who have won seven in a row, puts the Cubs back a game under .500 heading into their final interleague series of the year at the Cell this weekend. The Cubs' interleague record for 2009 stands at 5-6. They aren't alone, either, in the NL Central -- only the Cardinals, at 8-4, have a winning interleague record.

Congratulations to Jake Fox for hitting his first major league home run in the first inning with two men on base. I hope that's the first of many. It should have made today a no-brainer for Ted Lilly, who's been the Cubs' most consistent starter all year. Unfortunately, Theodore Roosevelt decided to choose today to get his own home run pitch out of mothballs, giving up a pair of two-run shots to Ramon Santiago and Magglio Ordonez -- Maggs hadn't hit one in two months. Maybe it was the haircut.

Kevin Hart did a decent job in relief today, though after a pair of walks Lou was forced to summon Sean Marshall to end the inning and attempt to keep the game close. Not long after the last out, large thunderstorms plowed through the Detroit area, too. It would have been interesting had the Cubs tied the game and then the rain came -- the game would have had to be suspended. Oh, well.

Fortunately for the Cubs, the Cardinals lost their second straight to the Mets today, 3-2, so the Cubs remain only 3.5 games out of first place, and still only one down in the loss column. I remind all of you that on June 21, 2007, after losing to the Rangers 6-5 -- a road interleague game started, coincidentally, by Ted Lilly -- the Cubs stood 32-39, 8.5 games out of first place. (Have a look at who hit sixth, seventh and eighth that day, too.) Two other teams who seemed far out of contention on that date, June 21, 2007 -- the Yankees, who were 35-35, and the Phillies, 37-35 -- both made the playoffs in 2007.

Just looking at that June 21 date in other recent years gives us the idea that positions now can have little to do with final standings -- in 2005, Baltimore (42-28) and Washington (41-30) were in first place on that date. Neither came anywhere near the postseason -- the Nats finished at .500 and the Orioles lost 88 games. How about June 21, 2004? The Braves on that date were 32-36, in fourth place. They won 90 games and a division title. (The Cubs, on that date the wild card leader at 39-30... well, you know what happened to that team.)

The point is, there are still 93 games remaining -- more than half the season. The Cubs stand only 3.5 games out in a mediocre division. (Today, the Cardinals managed to get two men on base against Francisco Rodriguez in the bottom of the ninth, trailing by one, and still couldn't score.) This division is eminently winnable. But the Cubs need another bat -- and not just Aramis Ramirez's bat, but another one still. Despite Lilly's rough outing today, the starting pitching has still been very good.

In addition to that, the Cubs still have 19 games remaining against the two teams now ahead of them, and 23 left against the three clubs (the Pirates, Diamondbacks and Nationals) currently in last place in their divisions. Start it this weekend against the White Sox. This season is not over. Keep the faith.

Almost, But Not Quite: White Sox 4, Tigers 3

Ian Casselberry — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 01:00:14 -0000

More photos » by Charles Rex Arbogast - AP

Edwin Jackson couldn't bear to look at an understudy-filled Tigers lineup that wasn't going to score any runs for him.

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Free passes don't get handed out very often at BYB, but we were ready to write one out for Edwin Jackson when the lineup for today's game was announced. (Three hours before the game was actually played, by the way, thanks to a three-hour rain delay.)

At any point during today's game, the White Sox could have gone through a bottom three of Gerald Laird, Ramon Santiago, and Adam Everett, followed up by a top three of Josh Anderson, Ryan Raburn, and Clete Thomas. Yes, Jackson had been amazing in his past two starts, and certain guys in the lineup needed a day off after four games in three days. But giving a pitcher at least the promise of run support wouldn't have been a bad thing.

Jackson didn't have his best stuff or control, but he held the White Sox to two runs and five hits over five innings. (He did issue four walks, however.) Unfortunately, the lineup performed as poorly as expected (especially against a pitcher like Gavin Floyd) and couldn't give Jackson any runs. But they finally broke through in the eighth when Ramon Santiago hit a solo homer to put the Tigers on the board. (... Yes!) That seemed to wake the team up and give them some juice going into the final inning (even when Nate Robertson gave that run right back on a home run by A.J. Pierzynski).

The chances of a comeback didn't look good against Bobby Jenks, who has 20 saves in 31 appearances versus Detroit, with a 1.59 ERA and 34 strikeouts in 36 innings. But the Tigers gave Jenks an example of what's won them several games this season. Unexpected hitting (a single by Raburn), speed (a stolen base), and power from Curtis Granderson. Jenks teed up a fastball low-and-in, and Grandy uppercut it deep to right field for a game-tying two-run homer. Offense when needed.

But the White Sox had the last shot at winning in the bottom of the ninth, and Joel Zumaya let them take it. Zumaya loaded the bases on a single, a throwing error that gave Tigers fans chilling flashbacks to the 2006 World Series, and a walk to the first three hitters he faced. So he had no margin for error left. Zumaya actually got ahead of Scott Podsednik 0-2, but Podsednik fought back by fouling off the next three pitches. He then knocked a 101 m.p.h fastball (according to MLB Gameday) into right for the game-winner.

It was a tough loss, but considering how it began and the comeback that followed, along with Detroit already winning three games in this series, perhaps some of the sting was taken away. (We don't want to speak for anyone else who may have felt a stomach punch on this one, however.) Regardless, this long, cold, wet slog of a five-game series is over, and the Tigers performed better than many expected. Onto Pittsburgh for some Interleague Play.

Comment of the Day:

Home runs by Tigers Killers bring out the best references in everyone, it seems:

AHHHH KELLY CLARKSON!!!!!

I hate you Jim Thome…I hate you….
by Tagne13

Ramon, the One-Man Rally: Tigers 11, Athletics 7

Ian Casselberry — Mon, 18 May 2009 02:00:19 -0000

More photos » by Duane Burleson - AP

Believe it or not, Ramon Santiago is walking on air. Surely powered by those slick shades, he batted 4-for-4 today with a triple, home run, and four RBIs this afternoon, leading the Detroit Tigers to a comeback 11-7 win over the Oakland Athletics.

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After what Tigers fans went through last season with their team, feeling sorry for another team and fanbase really isn't an option. Especially when this year's team finds itself in a tight division race and every win is important. But I almost - almost - feel sorry for the Oakland A's and their fans, because today's game had to hurt. To go from what looked like a relatively sure win, building a comfortable 5-0 lead in the first inning, to watching it collapse just two innings later is soul-crushing. Trust us, A's fans, we know. The memories and pain still linger.

But enough sympathy. Let's relish this one. Because when the Detroit Tigers fell behind by five runs last season, they didn't come back. You could see in their demeanor and their (lack of) effort. They checked out. We've already seen more than a few examples of this in the first 36 games of the season, but this year is different.

These guys have a mental toughness that was missing in 2008. There's a belief that they can come back. They don't just sit back, waiting for someone to make a big play or lazily presume that the game will just yield to their talent. They fight. And the wins are just so much sweeter when you know your team always has a chance because they're going to keep trying.

Roar:

This is Ramon Santiago's world; we're just along for the ride. He was practically a one-man rally today, giving the Tigers their first run of the game with a second-inning RBI triple, and igniting the spark that eventually became a full-blown comeback. That comeback was complete one inning later, when Santiago smoked a ball to right-center for a three-run homer, a blow that gave Detroit an 8-6 lead.

For the day, Santiago went 4-for-4, adding two singles to the aforementioned triple and home run, and collecting four RBIs. With that performance, his average surged from .300/.340/.480 to .352/.386/.611.

Credit also needs to go to the Tigers bullpen, which cleaned up the mess Armando Galarraga created (we'll get to that) and gave the lineup a chance to catch up. Zach Miner wasn't great in his 4.1 innings, allowing two runs and seven hits (though he struck out six), but it was good enough. Luke French, Ryan Perry, and Fernando Rodney pitched another scoreless four innings (giving up just one hit altogether) to make sure there would be no A's comeback.

Whimper:

Can you hear the drums, Armando? As thrilling as the comeback heroics were today, they wouldn't have been necessary had Galarraga not thrown perhaps his worst inning in a Tigers uniform. And he couldn't even make it out of that first inning, recording only two outs while throwing 41 pitches and giving up five runs before the Tigers even came to bat.

There was already concern about Galarraga, who came into today on a three-game losing streak, giving up five or more runs in each appearance. Five batters into the game, it was horrifyingly clear that this was going to be even worse. Four batters after that, Galarraga was dashing back to the dugout, leaving his team to try and recover from a 5-0 deficit, and all of us to wonder what the Tigers are going to do next.

With Jeremy Bonderman coming back soon, a roster move will need to be made. And Galarraga is making such a decision increasingly easy for the Tigers. The only question would be where to move him. Putting him in the bullpen probably isn't an option, as the pitching staff is already overstuffed.

Could Galarraga go on the disabled list with a "tired arm"? (I put that in quotes, because the Tigers have made moves like this before, but maybe an injury really is behind these struggles.) Could he be sent to the minors? I believe he's out of options, however.

I'd bet on the DL option, as I'd find it hard to believe the Tigers would just let him go. Maybe he just needs a rest, and the pitching staff might suddenly have the depth to accommodate that.

Comment of the Day:

I wish Ramon would do something.

He’s such a slacker lately.
by wepri31

Morning Prowl: Grandy Talks Chicago, Verlander's Inner Monologue, Santiago the Pitcher, and Let's Go Wings!

Ian Casselberry — Fri, 15 May 2009 12:30:12 -0000

Curtis Granderson talked to Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago about his beloved hometown, including his favorite local foods, why Chicago should host the 2016 Olympics, the differences between Sox fans and Cubs fans, and whether or not he sees himself eventually playing for the White Sox or Cubs.

Hmm... who do you think he's rooting for in the Red Wings-Blackhawks series?

Could Curtis be too nice of a guy? After forcing Jesse Crain into a balk in Wednesday's game by faking a steal attempt of home, Granderson sent Crain a text message saying, "It wasn't my idea." (But apparently, they're buddies.)

What could Justin Verlander have said to his teammates (especially the bullpen) after a 5-0 lead became a 6-5 loss? Roar of the Tigers takes a look at an open letter Verlander could've written (with, as usual, a very funny cartoon), maybe during the flight back to Detroit.

Mack Avenue Tigers takes a closer look at Dontrelle Willis's performance on Wednesday night. What did he do well, and what does he need to work on for his next start?

Umpire Paul Schreiber is not expected to be suspended after he apologized for making contact with Magglio Ordonez in Wednesday's game.

I don't have a problem with that, as I buy Schreiber's explanation that he was trying to prevent Ordonez from getting himself ejected. However, I still think Ordonez would've been penalized had he done the same thing, and that double standard bugs me.

Old English D wishes a position player had gotten to pitch in the 13-inning game vs. Minnesota. Brandon Inge seemed like the ideal candidate, but it turns out that Ramon Santiago would've gotten the nod had the game gone to a 14th inning. (This was also mentioned in the comments yesterday.)

By the way, Jim Leyland told the press that Nate Robertson injured himself last weekend in Cleveland while doing squats.

The Detroit News's Tony Paul wonders if Kirk Gibson will ever get a chance to be a major league manager, after he was passed over in Arizona for A.J. Hinch.

I think that might be why he agreed to stick around after Bob Melvin was fired. If Hinch can't cut it (though Josh Byrnes gave him a pretty long leash, with a baffling four-year contract), Gibson might be next in line.

And now that the Detroit Red Wings are in the NHL's Western Conference Finals after beating the Anaheim Ducks, click on over to our SB Nation sister site Winging It in Motown to show another Detroit sports team your support.