2008 Detroit Tigers Thread

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Sun Mar 23, 2008 2:10 am

todd's favorite thread is back for another season...

Big news leading into the regular season...Miguel Cabrera close to signing a huge contract extension. The announcement could come on Monday. It's reportedly a 8 year deal at around $19-million per season.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3307289" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

RACK Dombrowski on locking up another key member of this team long-term...Verlander has to be next in line to get a new deal.

:bode:

Also, from MLB.com, the Tigers appear to be in the market for some relief help with injuries to Zumaya, Rodney and now Cruceta.

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd ... p&c_id=mlb" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Sun Mar 23, 2008 5:14 pm

Granderson to start the season on the 15-day DL after breaking a finger from being hit by a pitch. :x

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd ... p&c_id=mlb" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

He'll probably miss the first week and a half of the season. Interesting to see what they do in center for the time-being. Do they move Jones to center and play Thames in left? Thames has 4 homers in spring ball. Perhaps Raburn or Freddy Guzman play in center. I'd imagine Guzman makes the opening day roster with Granderson on the DL. He's hit .355 and has 4 steals in spring...could be an option to as a leadoff man.

EDIT--Inge likely will get the CF job while Granderson is on the shelf...

http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/news/arti ... p&c_id=det" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

War Wagon · Post by **War Wagon** » Tue Apr 01, 2008 2:57 am

So, how does it taste to have your opening day payroll of $137 mil trashed by a measley $57 mil payroll?

That has to suck.

$80 mil doesn't buy what it used to.

Royals 1-0 motherfucker.

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Tue Apr 01, 2008 3:16 am

Yeah, now the Tigers can get thrown in the payroll smack...wouldn't have believed that 5 years ago.

Kudos to the Royales with cheese...

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Sat Apr 05, 2008 7:20 pm

Early gut check time for the Tigers...Willis makes his Tigers debut this afternoon on FOX. The bats woke up a little yesterday but of course, the pitching failed. I'd hate to see these guys make it through one turn in the rotation without a single win.

A lot of those guys in the White Sox lineup are traditional thorns in the side of the Tigers...Thome, Crede, Pierzynski, etc. This is one of the biggest reasons I think the Sox can contend in the Central...they will give the Tigers fits all year. They've got to get quality starting pitching but I certainly think they can score runs as well as Cleveland and Detroit will. I think Chicago has the best overall bullpen in the division...these guys won't lose many games when they have a lead in the late innings.

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Sat Apr 05, 2008 11:11 pm

It's here for your enjoyment, dear...what's your problem?

I don't think missing Granderson is making that big of a difference but if it wasn't for that, Inge wouldn't play and Thomas would've been in AAA. Low and behold, they've been the two best Tigers so far. The effort out there is sickening to watch...Renteria getting doubled off first on a fly ball to LEFT FIELD!?! Willis had the makings of the ugliest no-hitter in baseball history with 7 walks and no strikeouts into the 6th inning. The only word I can use to describe this start is "letdown". They've scored first in 3 of these 5 losses and have had 3-0 twice...it's pathetic. Verlander needs to put on a show tomorrow night...to go 0-6 leading into the home opener in Boston? Yeesh...

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Mon Apr 07, 2008 2:03 am

Pathetic...

I hope the Wings can make a long run in the playoffs because I don't know if I can stomach an entire summer of this crap. Sucks for those who coughed up money on season tickets...

Prototype · Post by **Prototype** » Mon Apr 07, 2008 10:09 pm

Dammit, I probably have more Tigers on my fantasy teams than you do Shoalzie, they are killing me. I don't mind the losses, but at least score some runs. Luckily, grounded into double play is not a fantasy stat.

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 2:42 pm

Prototype wrote:Luckily, grounded into double play is not a fantasy stat.

That and they're average with RISP...both pathetic stats so far. They are getting themselves out more than the pitchers are fooling them. A lot of one or two pitch at bats and they either fly out and lightly ground out. Sheffield, Guillen, Ordonez and Polanco are known for their good pitch selection at the plate and working the count but I've not seen many quality at bats from any of the top guys so far. Dice-K versus the Roastah today at Fenway...with the Sox getting their rings, maybe the Tigers can steal a game from them...if they can show some plate discipline.

The good news is that Granderson is probably a week away from returning...I wonder what becomes of Inge. He's been the best player in the first week. Cabrera is healthy enough to play third, Sheffield's finger injury wasn't serious enough land him on the DL...I personally think they should try him out in left. He's got a great arm and that left-center territory quite large and he's had the ability to cover a lot of ground back when he played third and obviously Granderson is one of the best defensive centerfielders in the game.

battery chucka' one · Post by **battery chucka' one** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 2:50 pm

Wow. We have more wins than you guys do. That's scary.

Btw, we'll gladly take Inge off your hands, if you don't know what to do with him.

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Wed Apr 09, 2008 1:09 am

I'll be the first to admit I know the Red Sox were better than the Tigers going into this season so losing any games to them isn't a disappointment but another shutout...oddly enough, both times after days off. RoyalFan obviously remembers that gem that Bannister threw last Wednesday in a 4-0 win at Comerica. Thankfully there are no more days off until the 28th...hopefully they've won a game by then.

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Thu Apr 10, 2008 3:03 pm

Bronx cheer for the Tigers...1-7! :|

Decent start by Bonderman, middle relief was solid...disappointed that the top of the order was quiet but when this lineup is considered dangerous 1 through 9, you should be able to get away with a couple guys having off nights and still be able to generate enough offense to win. Jones had to make interesting in the 9th inning but that's just what he does.

Embarrassing start to this season regardless of when this first win was to occur but it's hopefully a step in the right direction. It would be a nice boost for the team to win tonight and win a series going into the return matchup with the White Sox this weekend at U.S. Comiskular.

WolverineSteve · Post by **WolverineSteve** » Thu Apr 10, 2008 7:12 pm

Hopefully the guys can relax and just play ball now. The long awaited first win is in the books and the focus can be on just playing ball. Leyland said it best, There's no reason to panic, it's not like these guys just forgot how to hit. They've all got track records and will have the numbers by seasons end. I think Granderson being out is huge. Whomever you plug into the top spot is a dropoff and there is a hole in the spot vacated by the substitute leadoff hitter. The ripple effect if you will.

Go Tigs!!

M Club · Post by **M Club** » Thu Apr 10, 2008 7:51 pm

they're six games under .500 early in an interminable season. these things work themselves out over the long haul. and for all the disaster of an 0-7 start, they're only five games behind a team that's going to finish below .500 anyhow and, more importantly, only 2.5 games behind the indians. i'm only on this ledge because i like the view.

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Mon Apr 14, 2008 5:11 pm

What a disaster this weekend was...shutout two more times; 4 shutouts in 12 games. Guillen is ailing but not bad enough to go on the DL. Cabrera, Sheffield, Rodriguez and Polanco are still below the Mendoza line. Outside of Bonderman, the other 4 starters have an ERA over 6.50. Willis goes on the DL with the freak injury he suffered on Friday. I don't know how the bullpen pulled 9 innings of solid relief out of their ass to get that win.

Through it all, they are still just 5-1/2 games out of first...there's still plenty of season in front of them but you don't want to put yourself out of the hunt with a bad start. It doesn't really get much worse than this but Granderson should be back within the week and we'll see if he can provide a spark. If they have another brutal week, I think someone on the coaching staff should get a pink slip. Hernandez and McClendon better watch their backs.

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Wed Apr 16, 2008 3:26 pm

I don't have any idea...most yellow mustards taste the same to me.

A couple comeback wins over the Twins to bring their record up to a sultry 4-10. They head to Cleveland for two games to face the 5-9 Indians. Who would've thought the Tigers and Tribe would start the season a combined 9-19 be in 4th and 5th place in the division?

Armando Galarraga gets the start tonight in Willis' spot against 0-2 C.C. Sabathia.

WolverineSteve · Post by **WolverineSteve** » Wed Apr 16, 2008 5:28 pm

The bats are thawing out finally but the injuries are depleting the starting pitchers. Robertson may miss a start, Willis out for a couple weeks. Porcello is ripping up the minors, he may get a spot start here soon. Especially if someone else goes down.

It would be nice to dominate a game from the beginning instead of needing late inning heroics, but I'll take the W's in any form.

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Wed Apr 16, 2008 9:55 pm

WolverineSteve wrote:Porcello is ripping up the minors, he may get a spot start here soon. Especially if someone else goes down.

That's pretty crazy that he can have a sub 1.00 ERA and be 1-2. He's an option only because Dombo traded away all of the decent minor league arms with the two big trades this winter. Normally, you let him season for a couple years but maybe you give it a try because the depth in the organization is so bad right now. Galarraga was 2-0 in Toledo so he was pitching pretty well so far.

WolverineSteve · Post by **WolverineSteve** » Thu Apr 17, 2008 3:48 pm

WolverineSteve wrote: It would be nice to dominate a game from the beginning instead of needing late inning heroics, but I'll take the W's in any form.

Wow, how was that for foreshadowing? The bats are now smoking, a rookie 1-hits the tribe through 6 2/3, while outpitching the Cy Young winner (granted he's been aweful thusfar) and things are getting rosier by the day. I expect this team to win alot of softball type games this year.

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Thu Apr 17, 2008 5:22 pm

Big game for Verlander today going against Carmona and the Tribe is going to want revenge after getting thrashed last night. I'm really excited to see Cabrera putting things together. That huge innning that ultimately knocked out Sabathia was an illustration of the potential this lineup has.

It's great to hear about Granderson getting closer to returning. I'd imagine he'll be in the lineup by early next week. The question is...who do you sit? I personally think Inge should move to left field and keep his bat in the lineup.

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Thu Apr 24, 2008 3:37 am

I know Texas probably has the worst pitching staff in the AL but it's cool to see the Tigers bats go off. 29 runs in the first two games plus Granderson returned to the lineup tonight. 9-6 after the 0-7 start and now just 3 games behind the White Sox. The pitching still scares me but the bats are definitely warming up.

M Club · Post by **M Club** » Thu Apr 24, 2008 9:22 pm

as erg as that start was, it was still just a bad stretch, though i admittedly had trouble convincing myself of that as it happened. the thing that's kept me from becoming relatively despondent has been that they've only been five or so games out and, more importantly, neck and neck with cleveland. kc's predictably come down to earth, minnesota's a solid .400 club, and the sox will also finish below .500. basically, we're ahead in the standings right now.

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Thu Apr 24, 2008 11:25 pm

Definitely happy to see the Tigers pick up a 3-game sweep...albeit against the worst pitching team in the A.L. if not in all of baseball. The Yankees did the Tigers a favor by beating up on the White Sox. Granderson has looked sharp since his return but the x-factor for this team is Polanco who has been battling a bad back and uncharacteristic slow start. Once he's right and back to being the best contact hitter in the lineup and arguably the hardest out, the Tigers will have their two table setters in front of the big boppers.

The Indians are going to get better...they got a strong start from Sabathia the same night Verlander got his first win and Lee, Carmona and Westbrook have great so far. I don't think the White Sox are a team to rule out by any means. Crede appears to be back to 100% and is leading them offensively. It's been the back of their rotation that has been the surprise...Danks and Floyd have outperformed Buehrle, Vazquez and Contreras in the early going. The additions they made this winter have been solid so far lead by Quentin. The Tigers are going to have a hard time winning the division if they don't play better against the Sox...1-5 so far.

War Wagon · Post by **War Wagon** » Fri Apr 25, 2008 2:58 am

M Club wrote:basically, we're ahead in the standings right now.

Well shit, might as well just cancel the regular season and call them AL Central champs right now.

Who needs to play games?

See you in October.

MgoBlue-LightSpecial · Fri Apr 25, 2008 1:33 pm

I'm gonna head down to the game tomorrow and try to buy some scalper tickets. Those dudes ain't too bright, so it works out for the buyers.

M Club · Post by **M Club** » Fri Apr 25, 2008 2:21 pm

War Wagon wrote:
M Club wrote:basically, we're ahead in the standings right now.
Well shit, might as well just cancel the regular season and call them AL Central champs right now.

Who needs to play games?

See you in October.

Sorry, the Tigers are now 1/2 game back. The Royals, yeah. And I'm all for the regular season just to see who's better, Detroit or Cleveland.

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 2:25 pm

The Tigers are definitely reaping the benefits early on from being in a division where no team has really gotten off to a great start and if they had a better record in the division up to this point, they probably would be in first. They're three games out of first place but their in last place. Every last place team in the NL are at least 6-1/2 games out. There's more seperation in the NL than there is the AL...a lot of that has to do with the Cubs and Diamondbacks having the best records and the Nationals and Pirates having two of the three worst records in baseball. Take Texas out of the discussion and the entire AL is within 5 games of each other.

WolverineSteve · Post by **WolverineSteve** » Fri May 02, 2008 6:39 am

One of the greatest nights ever for a fan of Detroit sports.

Pistons crush Sixers to advance.

Wings humiliate the hated Avs 8-2 to complete a dominant sweep and move to the conference finals.

The Tigers complete their first Yankee Stadium sweep since the mid-60's in their final visit to the house that Ruth built.

The Tiger bats have turned the corner. Grandy is the lynch pin. Polonco has awaken, Sheff is on the mend. Maggs is regaining last seasons form. Miggy is being Miggy. Guillen is the consomate pro hitter. With any pitching this team is in the divisional race. With solid pitching it's all but over. Horrendous start (2-10) yet only 1.5 out of first on May 1st.

Go Wings!!
Go Pistons!!
Go Tigers!!

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Fri May 02, 2008 3:52 pm

Yesterday was a beautiful for sure but I'm trying to keep things in perspective. The Pistons should've had an easier time with the Sixers, the Yankees were without A-Rod and Posada and their pitching stinks and then with the Wings over the Avs, the Avs were a broken team and beating them doesn't quite have the same juice as it used to have. In reality, the Pistons won't be able to sleepwalk in any of their other series and expect to win, the Tigers still have work to do but things are turning around and things won't be quite as easy for the Wings in the next round. Still was a nice night to enjoy though...

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Sat Jun 14, 2008 3:27 pm

Baseball season officially starts for me after the Red Wings season is over and they just happened to play a little longer than usual and certainly I'm not upset about that. The Tigers dropped their game on June 4, the night of the Wings championship but since then...they're 6-2 including a current 4-game winning streak to get them to within 8 games of the White Sox. With both Willis and Bonderman out of the rotation for the foreseeable future, Galarraga definitely will be able to hang onto his spot and today is Eddie Bonine's MLB debut. Bonine had a 9-2 record with the Mudhens, so he seemed like the natural choice to be called up for a spot start.

The midway point in the season isn't far away and by now, I would've expected this team to surpass or at least reach the .500 mark. They're still 7 games under...hard to pinpoint just one problem for this team but needless to say it's been a major disppointment up to this point. I'd say poor return on the two big offseason trades and disarray in the pitching staff are two good places to start. I'm honestly surprised that there hasn't been a shakeup in the coaching staff. Chuck Hernandez still having a job up to this point is a slight upset in my view. Then again, McClendon could've been thrown on his ass for the way the offense has been sputtering for stretches of the season. To think that lineup has been shutout 9 times is stunning to me.

In his blog this week, Buster Olney the Cabrera/Willis trade one of the biggest busts in baseball history. Considering how many players it cost them, the money they shelled out to the two guys before either of them played a regular season game with the team and for how the team has performed...it may very well be one of the biggest flops of a trade in any sport. Cabrera has been okay in spurts this year but for as good of a hitter as he's been...this has been a bad start for him. Willis has been a disaster of a pickup and he might have more confidence and mechanic problems than just the nagging injuries he's had. To me, the Renteria trade has been a big disappointment as well considering Jurjjens has 6 wins over in Atlanta and that's as many wins as Verlander and Bonderman have this year combined.

It's a month away from the All-Star break...27 games including today. Would it be too much to ask for this team to get within a game or two of .500 by then? They have 4 more interleague seasons following this series with the Dodgers and this team has done will in the last couple years against the NL...excluding the '06 World Series of course. They have 9 games with Cleveland and Minnesota and they've gone 6-8 against them so far. They also have three games in Seattle with whom they've won 5 of 6 games against them. In these upcoming 27 games, I'd want no fewer than 15 wins. A 15-12 stretch shouldn't be too much to expect but more wins would obviously be ideal. The second half of the schedule is not as brutal as the first half so if they can end this upcoming stretch on a high note, I don't think it's unrealistic to think they can hang around in the division race. At this point, they're closer to the White Sox in the Central than they to the surprising Rays for the wild card.

bbqjones · Post by **bbqjones** » Sat Jun 14, 2008 5:50 pm

i was at a tigers game a few weeks ago. they blew turds against the twins. couple of observations...

their defense is real bad.
i havent followed sheff since, but he was under the mendoza line until he hit a meaningless late solo shot.
tiger fans love ordonez, and he seems to reciprocate.
why are there carnival rides.
very poor defense.
dontrelle did not pitch well. i was bummed. i always liked that kid.
the ten dollar tickets were a bargain. the 65 dollar sweatshirt was not. it was cold then.
detroit is not as scary as i thought it would be, but we did haul ass out of there as soon as the game ended.

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Sun Jun 15, 2008 5:29 pm

bbqjones wrote:their defense is real bad.

It's been near the bottom third of the league all season long in the major categories. There's been a lot of juggling with positions throughout the season. Guillen and Cabrera have been in middle of that. Leyland is stuck with a team full of good hitters that are poor in the field or are just not as good as they used to be. Guillen has been moved to the third and left field because Cabrera has been so bad at third and he's ended up at first where Guillen was at the start of the year. He ended up there full time after they picked up Renteria. Ever since Jacque Jones was shown the door, left field has been a revolving door. Pudge is near the end of his career and he's been splitting time with Inge at catcher for a little while now.

Screw_Michigan · Post by **Screw_Michigan** » Sun Jun 15, 2008 6:03 pm

bbqjones wrote:why are there carnival rides.

to keep tards like MgoBlow entertained while the team is busy getting their shit pushed in on the fiedl.

M Club · Post by **M Club** » Mon Jun 16, 2008 7:47 am

Shoalzie wrote:In his blog this week, Buster Olney the Cabrera/Willis trade one of the biggest busts in baseball history. Considering how many players it cost them, the money they shelled out to the two guys before either of them played a regular season game with the team and for how the team has performed...it may very well be one of the biggest flops of a trade in any sport.

you're a little ahead of yourself here. we're only 70 games past this trade. the tigers gave up prospects for two proven, young players. true, willis has been a joke so far, but he was basically thrown in so the tigers could take his salary off the books. cabrera's 25-years-old and working his way through a new league with alright numbers; it's not like the tigers sold the farm for barry bonds' 20 home runs. they could feasibly get 15 years out of the guy. regardless, i'd at least wait till maybin's in the hall of fame and miller's had at least two seasons with an era below 4.50 before i call this the worst trade ever. plus, there's always the chance the tigers might remove donuts from the pre-game buffet table and our two clowns can slim down a bit. [i like how people are calling for willis to lose his bell so he can resume the high leg kick "so essential" to his delivery.]

i went to the sunday game when the tigers were in seattle. i was getting my tickets from will call and the dude at the next window was trying to pick his up that renteria left for him. i told him to tell ol' edgar to stop hitting like shit. he said, "edgar renteria is my friend; we are from columbia."

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Mon Jun 16, 2008 12:15 pm

Cabrera's average is inching its way up...it sits at a very respectable .285 right now but of his 4 full seasons in Florida, he never hit below .294. He and Magglio both have matching 10 HR and 42 RBI years right now...which are projected out to be 23 or 24 home runs and 99 RBI. Good seasons for most guys but we would expect more from them. Much like judging the NFL draft...you can't judge a trade on early returns, I'll give you that.

As far as team success is concerned, they pick up their 6th straight win and finish an important homestand 8-2 and have trimmed the division lead down to 6 games from 11 games a week ago. I don't expect them to make up 5 games again in a week's time but this was probably one of more significant weeks of the season. They now go on the road to face two more struggling NL West teams, the Giants and Padres. Interesting matchup in the opener...Verlander vs. Lincecum. Big difference in terms of record but Verlander has pitched better of late. The great thing with the Padres' series, they avoid facing Peavy. I think they can very easily take 2 of 3 in each series before returning home for a couple tough series with the Cardinals and Rockies.

M Club · Post by **M Club** » Mon Jun 16, 2008 8:08 pm

definitely expect better numbers from cabrera considering his paychecks, but hopefully this has just been him adjusting.

these next couple of series are especially important considering the way detroit has answered any sort of decent run this year with inexplicable piss poor play. it's been nothing but one step forward, two steps back. verlander has a chance to reclaim his status as ace tonight by beating lincecum. he has something like a 2.50 era his last six or seven games, so perhaps the bats will show up as well. in any case, hopefully this domination of the nl continues and i remember what .500 smells like. at least it can't be worse than their last trip through california, though. i'll take 3-3 as long as it doesn't mean four walk-off losses.

M Club · Post by **M Club** » Tue Jun 17, 2008 4:43 am

i wish they'd just give up on rodney. he sucks when he's not on the dl. give me zach miner any day.

Shoalzie · Post by **Shoalzie** » Tue Jun 17, 2008 12:21 pm

M Club wrote:i wish they'd just give up on rodney. he sucks when he's not on the dl. give me zach miner any day.

When F-Rod is right, he's very good but when he had his control problems last year and had trouble throwing strikes, you definitely wince whenever he goes out there. He eventually ended up on the DL with arm problems though. That's definitely not the way to make a return to the bullpen when you're team is playing so well. It sucks to see them lose that game last night when they were able to touch up Lincecum...namely Thames. He had only given up 3 homers all year and then Marcus' hot bat knocks out a pair and put them in a good spot to steal the opener of this series.

Did I hear correctly that Zumaya could be called up Friday for the Padres series? Very interested to see what he's got...reports throughout his report have said he's still got his velocity. They definitely need to find a sure-fire 8th inning guy to go in front of Jones. They've kind of got a setup man by commitee...Seay, Bautista, Dolsi, etc.

Screw_Michigan · Post by **Screw_Michigan** » Wed Jun 18, 2008 5:03 am

Shoalzie wrote:reports throughout his report have said he's still got his velocity.

who gives a shit? can he get his breaking ball over the plate 10% of the time? that's the factor.

i've said it before and i'll say it again: the tigers blew their opportunity to trade zumaya for his peak value. it's all downhill from here. another BRILLIANT move by dumbrowski. any scrapheap major league hitter can eventually catch up to a 100mph fastball if they know he doesn't have anything else, which zumaya doesn't. the day he starts getting his breaking ball (or his second pitch, even if he has one) near the strike zone, look out. other than that, just another heat throwing, overrated dumbfuck.

WolverineSteve · Post by **WolverineSteve** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 4:32 am

Zoom plans on being back to play in front of his homies in SD.

Tigers definately rolling now, if the bully doesn't blow the first game in the Giant series it's another sweep. The bats are alive (finally). Polanco back from a dismall start is above .300 now. If Granderson comes around this is stil an absolutely dominant 1-6 lineup.

As bad as most of the starting pitching has been Verlander seems to be coming on, Rogers has been filthy his last handful of starts, and Gallaragha (sp) has been the most consistent starter all year. Nate is an inning eating bulldog who rarely sees any run support but he's been tough the last few weeks. That leaves a hole in the 5-slot. I would have liked to have picked up Ponson off waivers (damn Yanks). I'm pulling hard for D-train, he's such a quality person, I hope he regains his form (unorthodox as it may be).

I'll be at the CoPa July 9th vs. the Tribe. Hopefully the Tigers will still be on the climb.

Go Tigers!