SB Nation User Blog: Ian Casselberry

16 Innings! Tigers Win, Sleep Loses!

Ian Casselberry — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 04:26:28 -0000

More photos » by Tom Olmscheid - AP

You know the drill. We'll have a proper recap tomorrow. We think. I mean, that's a lot of baseball to go over again.

But this picture of Brandon Inge seems to say so much about this long, tortured slog of a game. (Not that we're complaining about the final result.) It was painful, it was freaky, but we are all better people for having endured it.

Has there ever been a Comeback Player of the Game award handed out? Because Placido Polanco should really get one after taking a foul ball where no man should ever take it, but then shaking that off and driving in three runs, including the go-ahead score. It was an inspiring performance, for baseball and physiological reasons.

And hey, at least we don't have to worry about the Tigers getting swept at the Metrodome now.

Game 79 Overflow Thread #3

Ian Casselberry — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 04:44:00 -0000

The next Overflow Thread might just be the preview for Saturday afternoon's game. If this game ends before the next game. If it doesn't, there could be some warp in the space-time continuum. Who wants that?

Tigers and Twins still tied, going to the bottom of the 15th.

Game 79 Overflow Thread #2

Ian Casselberry — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 03:34:13 -0000

Will this game ever end? We weren't intended to spend the entire holiday weekend watching this game, were we?

Tigers and Twins still tied, going to the 12th inning!

Game 79 Overflow Thread

Ian Casselberry — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 01:53:08 -0000

The holiday weekend begins in the BYB GameThread, apparently!

Suddenly, this game has gotten far too interesting. Tigers and Twins tied in the seventh inning. (The Tigers had a 7-1 lead.)

Game 79: Tigers at Twins

Ian Casselberry — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:45:58 -0000

Luke French (0-0, 0.00) vs. Kevin Slowey (10-3, 4.41), 8:10 p.m. EST

Following a 1-2 stop in Oakland, the Tigers travel to Minneapolis to play the team right behind them in the AL Central. Will Detroit return to Detroit on Sunday night in sole possession of first place? Or will the Twins be alongside them in the top spot?

Much like the Tigers' pitching staff did when they visited Busch Stadium, the Twins' Kevin Slowey wilted in the St. Louis heat during his last start. Pitching just three innings (one of his shortest outings of the season), Slowey allowed five runs and six hits, including two home runs. (Maybe we should cut him a break on those homers, however, since both of them were from Albert Pujols. Sometimes, when you're faced with awesome, you just can't stop it.)

Slowey's record against the Tigers is 3-0 with a 4.57 ERA in four starts. A win tonight would give him the most victories in the American League.

Luke French makes his first start for Detroit tonight, the primary thinking being that a left-hander could be useful against the Twins' lineup. But it's not like French didn't deserve the promotion anyway. In his past three starts with Triple-A Toledo, he allowed four earned runs over 23 innings, with 26 strikeouts versus three walks. (Yet he didn't pick up the win in either of those games, which tells you how the Mud Hens are playing right now.)

With Toledo, French has compiled a 4-4 record and 2.98 ERA. He appeared in two games with the Tigers back in May, coming out of the bullpen to pitch three innings, posting three strikeouts and three walks.

Twinkie Town has your SB Nation opposing view for this three-game series. We hope your holiday weekend is off to an excellent start.

BYB Flash Poll: Magglio's Last Stand?

Ian Casselberry — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:19:53 -0000

More photos » by Charlie Riedel - AP

Browse more photos »

A dark could seems to be following the Detroit Tigers around right now, and it's hovering over Magglio Ordonez. Since returning from his "indefinite" hiatus, Maggs is 5-for-28 at the plate (.179), which has dropped his season batting line to .260/.330/.333. He has three extra-base hits in his last 28 games. And he's about halfway to reaching the 570 plate appearances that would trigger the $18 million contract option for next season.

I can't speak for the fanbase entirely, but there's a prevailing feeling in the Tigers blogosphere (or as we like to call it, "Tigersosphere") that Maggs is approaching his final days in the Old English D.

With the All-Star break just over a week away, this weekend's series in Minnesota could be Ordonez's last stand if he doesn't make a respectable showing. (Or perhaps the team will hold off until after the next six-game homestand, which might give the fans a chance to cheer on Maggs and thank him for what he's done for the Tigers one last time.)

So what do you think will happen? What do you expect to see? Please vote in the attached poll, and offer any opinions you have on the matter (or elaborations on the two poll choices) in the comments.

Poll

Will this Minnesota series be Magglio Ordonez's last with the Detroit Tigers?

What Do Bill Simmons and Keith Law Think of the Tigers?

Ian Casselberry — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:03:02 -0000

We're not sure how many people are in the office today, but if you're looking for something to listen to while stuck at work or during your holiday road trip, we recommend the latest episode of The B.S. Report with Bill Simmons podcast. Bill chats with Keith Law about the baseball season thus far, and a few Detroit Tigers-related items come up during the conversation.

Law counts the Tigers among the "clear" buyers at the trade deadline, along with the Red Sox, Yankees, Rays, Angels, and Rangers.
Both Law and Simmons love Edwin Jackson.
If you're still wondering why the Tigers struggled against the A's, Law thinks highly of their young pitchers, such as Brett Anderson.
The best AL rookie pitcher isn't Rick Porcello or David Price, but... Ricky Romero. (You might remember him from the Tigers' third game of the season.)
Neither Law nor Simmons are big believers in the Tigers, but concede that they might be the best team in the AL Central. (Though Simmons thinks Detroit will be under .500 by the end of the season.)
Law, however, appears not to have watched Armando Galarraga in quite a while, and is called out on that by Simmons.
Both Law and Simmons hate Fernando Rodney.

The two also discuss Cuban pitcher Aroldis Chapman, who came up in yesterday's Off-Day Open Thread. We're a little bit disappointed the two didn't talk a little bit about cooking, since it's a big part of Law's personal blog. (He writes a lot about books as well, for those who enjoyed yesterday's off-day step into literary discussion.)

You can listen to the podcast directly from the ESPN.com Podcenter page, or download it to your computer and MP3 player of choice.

BYOBYB: Off-Day Open Thread

Ian Casselberry — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 15:53:21 -0000

More photos » by Ben Margot - AP

Is Magglio Ordonez really running away from Kurt Suzuki's tag? Or is he fleeing the realization that he's just no longer the player he used to be, haircut or not?

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Once again, we find ourselves asking: What a difference a week makes, eh? The tumultuous nature of this Detroit Tigers team continues to frustrate and astound. Last Thursday, this team looked fantastic. Top o' the world, Ma! Now, the lineup can't score any runs again. And the possibility of being tied for first place in the AL Central with the Twins after this weekend seems terrifyingly real.

Welcome to "BYOBYB," the off-day open thread where you can chat about anything you'd like: Your Detroit Tigers, Major League Baseball, Detroit sports, movies, TV, food, Fourth of July weekend plans, etc.

Possible topics for the afternoon? Well, it's up to you, of course, but here are a few icebreakers:

Lots of talk about the need to release Magglio Ordonez in the comments to our last post. Are the Tigers finally at the point of no return with this?
BYB HQ is probably going to take a field trip to see "Transformers" this afternoon. Is it just an assault on the senses? And is it really two-and-a-half hours long? Will we regret giving up that much of our lives to fighting robots? (Or does that last question just not compute?)
A new FanPost has a suggestion for an outfielder Detroit should consider pursuing. But he has a past that could give the Tigers pause. Worth the chance?
Better holiday cookout food: Hamburgers or hot dogs? Or is that a choice we just shouldn't ask you to make? (We're not sure we can choose, either.)
Also worth your time is another FanPost about the Tigers' payroll, and how it's not quite the landfill of wasted money that it might appear to some. It's kind of a long read, but there's some fine analysis for you.
Has anyone listened to "Wilco {the album)" yet? That is also on today's agenda at BYB HQ.
Some of you might remember a GameThread from last weekend digressing into a discussion about books. Kurt has ~~demanded~~ requested that we pick up that conversation again, which sounds like a great idea to me. What are you reading now? Who/what are some of your favorites?

Did we miss any other Tigers-related topics? It kind of feels like we did. In the time since typing out this list, we may have talked ourselves out of "Transformers" and into "Public Enemies." The final decision might not be made until arriving at the theater, as the showtimes are pretty close to one another. Anyway, the thread belongs to you, BYB Bunch! Bring it!

P.S. Have you said hello in The BYB Introduce Yourself Open Thread yet?

No Runs, Still Traveling: Athletics 5, Tigers 1

Ian Casselberry — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 02:41:41 -0000

More photos » by Jeff Chiu - AP

Like most of his Tigers teammates on Wednesday, Don Kelly decided his bat was of no use to him and better off flung away.

Browse more photos »

I don't know how it was where you work and live, but in my business around town today, it sure looked like a lot of people had already checked out for the Fourth of July holiday weekend. Should we include the Detroit Tigers in that group?

The Tigers' lineup appeared to already be on the plane to Minneapolis, thinking about what they'd do on their off-day, mustering just five hits against Dallas Braden. (This is the same Dallas Braden, by the way, whom the Tigers bombed for six runs and nine hits back in May.) The top four hitters in the Detroit batting order - Curtis Granderson, Placido Polanco, Miguel Cabrera, and Marcus Thames - went a combined 1-for-14.

Look, we're fans of Adam Everett here at BYB HQ (and think he could be back next year), but when he's the Tigers' leading hitter for the day, going 2-for-3 at the plate, it probably wasn't a big day for the offense.

But Justin Verlander shouldn't be given a pass, either. He gave up four runs and six hits to an A's lineup that hasn't exactly been smoking the ball. And on some days, a strong effort by the Tigers' offense might bail him out. But let's consider that Verlander served up home runs to Jason Giambi and Jack Cust today. At face value, that might not seem so bad. Those are Oakland's big boppers, right?

Well... Giambi came into today's game batting .197/.339/.366. Cust had been pushed down to the seventh or eighth spot in the A's batting order. Yet both of them hit two-run homers off Verlander this afternoon. And that was pretty much the difference in the ballgame. Cust's gave Oakland a lead it never surrendered, and Giambi's just piled on from there.

At this point, do we just have to accept that the Tigers' offense runs hot and cold? (They've scored one run in each of their last three losses.) Are they just a bad road team right now? (20-23 overall isn't terrible, but they've lost eight of their last 12.) Neither question bodes well for the Tigers as they travel to Minnesota with just a three-game lead over the Twins.

Whimper:

Marcus Thames looked like the ideal man for the cleanup spot when he hit two home runs against the Brewers on June 19. Since then, however, he hasn't hit another homer in his last 10 games, driving in only one run during that span. And his batting average has plummeted 40 points to .256, and his slugging percentage has dropped nearly 200 points. Have the Tigers already gotten the best out of him? Or is he just in a cold streak?

Comment of the Day:

fail. this game was sposed to improve my day

not make it worse

by allikazoo

Game 78: Tigers at Athletics

Ian Casselberry — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 02:41:16 -0000

Justin Verlander (8-3, 3.40) vs. Dallas Braden (5-7, 3.26), 3:35 p.m. EST

After turning cold on Monday night, the Detroit bats showed some life last night with 12 hits. Can the offense keep it rolling, give their starting pitcher some runs, and get the Tigers out of Oakland with a series win?

Dallas Braden is winless in his past four starts, despite allowing two earned runs in each of those games. He gave up a lot more than that last time he faced the Tigers, however. During that May series in Detroit, Braden was knocked around for six runs and nine hits in five innings, one of his shortest outings of the season. In five career starts against the Tigers, his record is 1-2 with a 9.13 ERA.

Justin Verlander wasn't at his sharpest last Friday versus the Astros. Houston deserves some credit for a game plan that called for taking a lot of pitches and wearing Verlander out. (He threw 116 pitches in 5.1 innings.) But by only allowing three runs, he kept the Tigers in the game. And they probably would've won, had Joel Zumaya not decided to walk virtually every hitter he faced. Verlander has faced the A's six times over his career, compiling a 3-2 record and 2.61 ERA.