PREGAME: With that pesky first win out of the way, the Tigers can now focus on splitting the 4 game set. It will be a matchup of Jeremy’s with Bonderman taking on Sowers.
Bonderman returned strong from the disabled list with 2 solid starts against the Angels and Rays.
Jeremy Sowers had a rough start to his season, but actually turned in a couple decent performances his last time out. He still has more walks than strikeouts on the season though. He’s had more success at home this year with a 4.74 ERA at Jacobs Field and a 7.13 ERA everywhere else.
Game Time 1:05pm
POSTGAME: Sorry for being so quiet this weekend. I was out late watching the Pistons and Tigers Saturday night, and up early to head to Cleveland for Sunday’s game. I’ll have more on my trip and thoughts on the state of team tomorrow night.
For now I’ll just say that things feel a lot better today than they did 48 hours ago.
Sheff is in RF and Ordonez is DHing today. Any reason for the switch?
They did it 2 Sundays ago against the Cardinals. I think it is to give Maggs a rest and keep Sheff active in the OF.
-Sam
I like it. It keeps Sheff out there in plain view all the time, irritating the opposing fans!!
We are basically playing with a NL lineup (Perez at short is comparable to having a pitcher bat)…
I guess I’m missing something here…will somebody PLEASE explain to me WHY Neifi Perez is playing short? How did this guy even make the team?
I also like Infante over Inge at third. In my mind, this injury is actually an advantage. Yes, Inge may be better defensively; yes Inge has more power, but I still say Infante is a better offensive player than Inge. Everytime Inge comes to the plate two works come to mind: “rally killer”… As for Neifi Perez, the Tigers should release him immiedately… I would prefer Roman Colon over Perez… I think ANYBODY would do better than Perez. He’s just an instant out… and he hasn’t been flawless defensively either.
T Smith:
Perez was named starter over Guillen a few days ago. Leyland praised his work ethic, hitting ability, and Power numbers when making the announcement. /sarcasm>
Guillen’s out for a few days with a groin problem.
Infante is better than Inge? Inge is my anti-tiger but come on, hes better than Infante. How much baseball have you watched?
It seems like Infante is on the rise and will continue to get better, while Inge had his career year last year and will steadily decline. I do think Inge is a better fielder than Infante, but I do not think T Smith’s comment was that far off.
I am going to come out and say it; I kinda like Neifi.
Bash away.
“I kinda like Neifi”
I started getting the same feeling a few weeks ago. It was possible I had a temperature, though.
fyi Lou Pinella is on indefinite suspension, meaning that Alan Trammell is now the defacto Cubs manager
Thanks for the info Sam. I like the switch too. I think it should be done more often, since Maggs is not the best defensive RF we have ever seen.
Was it just me, or did Bondo look PO’d when he got yanked?
LET’S GO TIGERS!
I would like to pose a question that’s free to anyone who has an opinion.
Is it possible that the Tigs are showcaseing Thames in order to trade him in the future for a reliever/first baseman?
It seems that by giving him a lot of work at first it would show that he can be a corner power guy instead of just an outfielder. I know Jim says he replaces him for defense but it seems that only happens after he does something good at the plate. My thoughts are a bit scrambled so I hope you get the point. Give me some feedback on the idea.
It’s entirely possible Chris, but then I don’t see them trading Thames as long as 1B remains such a black hole of production
Nice outings by Ledezma and Grilli
Does Neifi ever swing like man? I see stronger swings by little leaguers.
I hate to pile on, but Perez has played in this series about as poorly as any MLB regular I’ve ever seen.
As mad as I was Friday night…I’m feeling much better about the situation today. These guys could have gotten down on themselves with all the things that have gone on in the last few weeks…but they came out the last 2 days and MASHED the ball and have gotten some decent pitching as well. I think it’s a good sign that they can hit the ball like they did on the road against a good club and get 2 important wins. At the end of the day, it’s a split and we are only 2 and 1/2 out of 1st…things are looking up again!
When this rain delay ends, you’ll see who the real baseball fans are in Cleveland. They will be there to the bitter end.
Anthony:
I’ve watched ALOT of Tiger baseball. Almost every game this year thus far… what I haven’t seen live I have always checked out on the MLB condensed game.
I stand by my words. I realize it’s a controversal statement — I don’t have the stats to back this… if somebody else does, by all means, put it out there… but it just seems Inge (besides just being above the Mendoza line) is absolutely unclutch. RISP number must be horrible. It seems he’ll knock up the occassional double or homerun when the game’s not on the line. I can’t remember ever feeling confident when Inge steps to the plate when we really need him.
Dave Wagner:
I have no comment. I would bash you on your “kinda liking Neifi Perez” statment, but I generally don’t steal candy from babies, either. 🙂
T Smith
Oh, goodie! They’re warming up again.
Who knows what the official rule is when you call an incomplete game a win or a loss? It seems I posed the same question on this blog last year but nobody responded.
I’m confused because I read the Indians were one strike away from a victory (I believe on their season opener), and the game had to be called. They had to make-up the entire 9 inning game?? Anyway, just wondering what the rules are on this one…
good win. Friday hurt badly–very badly, but coming back from what happened and winning the next two should send a message to Cleveland for down the road.
amazing that we score 34 runs in 4 games (8.5 a game!), yet only split the series.
This is all I could find:
(a) A regulation game consists of nine innings, unless extended because of a tie score, or shortened (1) because the home team needs none of its half of the ninth inning or only a fraction of it, or (2) because the umpire calls the game. EXCEPTION: National Association leagues may adopt a rule providing that one or both games of a doubleheader shall be seven innings in length. In such games, any of these rules applying to the ninth inning shall apply to the seventh inning.
(b) If the score is tied after nine completed innings play shall continue until (1) the visiting team has scored more total runs than the home team at the end of a completed inning, or (2) the home team scores the winning run in an uncompleted inning.
(c) If a game is called, it is a regulation game:
(1) If five innings have been completed;
(2) If the home team has scored more runs in four or four and a fraction half-innings than the visiting team has scored in five completed half-innings;
(3) If the home team scores one or more runs in its half of the fifth inning to tie the score.
(d) If a regulation game is called with the score tied, it shall become a suspended game. See Rule 4.12.
(e) If a game is called before it has become a regulation game, the umpire shall declare it “No Game.”
(f) Rain checks will not be honored for any regulation or suspended game which has progressed to or beyond a point of play described in 4.10(c)
4.11
T Smith Inge beat Minnesota with a ninth inning homer about three weeks ago. The Tigers went on a tear the next week. Enough negativity about this team. Except for Sheffield, these are the guys who brought us to the dance last year.
The Tigers can win! The Tigers can win!
T Smith –
I’d hate to see where we’d be this year without Neifi’s magic bat in our lineup!
The rule of thumb I’ve always heard for rain delays is that the losing team has to bat in the 5th inning. If the game is called before they get their three outs, it’s no game and has to be played over again. However, I didn’t realize the actual rule was so involved, thanks for posting it Kathy.
And wow, what a difference two wins can make. The sky may not be falling after all. 🙂 Plus, if you can look past the discouraging losses Thursday and Friday, you realize the Indians gave up 34 runs in this 4 game series. They are absolutely hittable, they are very beatable, and they are no way pitching like a division-winning team. Neither are the Tigers (yesterday and today maybe excepted) BUT we can look forward to getting Rogers and Zumaya back. This season is just getting started, IMHO.
And finally, can I just express my love for Jeremy Bonderman one more time. He is the ace of this team, no doubt in my mind. He at last seems to be turning into the pitcher we’ve been hoping for.
Well, we probably would have been happy with a split going in. 3 out of 4 sure would have been nice, though.
I note that we’re not the only AL Central team with bullpen problems:
White Sox relievers are 2-6 with a 9.06 ERA and five blown saves in their past 22 games while Chicago batters have one hit in their last 65 at-bats against opposing relievers.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=270603114
Ron:
Who is being negative? I’m just pointing out a whole, as I see it, in the team that “brought us “to the dance,” (I presuming you will agree that this team is not “perfect”, especially given the results at “the dance” last year — at which, incidently, our esteemed nine-whole hitter struck out to bring up the lights).
Everybody likes to bash Casey and there is talk about trading for first base… I’m just balancing those discussions… I know third base isn’t tradionally a power position like first; although Casey certainly isn’t perfect either, I like Casey over Inge. And… even more radical, Inge may be trading at a premium right now, which other’s have correctly suggested on this thread. Why not trade Inge while he’s trading higher than his worth? In my opinion, it would be a smart move.
Trade Inge!!!- Excuse me, but WHAT ARE YOU SMOKING. Trading Inge would be one of the worst things that has ever happened to the Tigers, Inge makes so many unseen contributions to the team. And his defense is so good. my respect for DD would drop 80% if he ever trades Inge
Mark S: Inge is a career .240 hitter with an OBA of .303. He makes the spectacular play in the field and then throw away easy balls. The reason you can’t trade him is because no one wants him. He’s a borderline major leaguer who should be seen as merely a stopgap for any contending team.
It sounds like you have a personal interest. Are you his brother/cook/dog walker?
4 years $24 Million is quite a bit for a “stop gap” 3B to get
“I know third base isn’t tradionally a power position like first”
It is, actually. It’s a high-slugging, relatively low-OBP position all around the league.
Anyway, Inge will not be traded, and thus Inge-haters might as well just get off the subject. You will be seeing him in the lineup almost everyday for at least the next 4 years. As I love Inge, this makes me very happy.
Agree with Wagner.
I love watching Inge play.
1. This week’s edition of Tigers Weekly has a nice highlight reel of Inge’s acrobatic plays.
2. Tigers release Mesa:
http://www.detroitnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070603/UPDATE/706030360
Jose Mesa: Released! I knew this was going to be a good day today.
http://vimeo.com/203921
I like Inge’s spirit, too. He hustles and plays with joy. He just isn’t very good. Mark my words: The Tigers will eat, at the very least, the last year of his contract. Or, by 2010, he’s gonna be the Six Million Dollar 200 at-bats man.
mesa gone! mesa gone! the seasons back! we can do it!
Smart decision re: Mesa/Miner. Obviously would have been much better if Mesa had actually given us something from the pen, cause we could use a little extra juice back there.
Real nice to get the split after Friday night, esp. with this lineup. That may have made more of a statement than simply having handed the Tribe 1/3 of their total ’07 home losses in the back end of this series.
Leyland blew the tactical stuff, but he turned it around with a little kick in the pants.
And with losses by Minny and the Black Sox, we’re looking OK for now.
Smith and a few others are definitely smoking something illegal. Inge’s defense is spectacular and we certainly can put up with his average. His arm is one of the best for a third baseman and he brings hustle and intensity that the other players feed off of. Every team needs a player like him.
It is good news! From his comments, he already knew he was dragging down the bullpen, plus he still gets paid.
As far as Inge, I love the guy and so do the majority of the fans. His hitting is miserable, at times, but he is a dependable 3rd baseman and, with the exception of the broken toe, plays every day. He’s very strong.
Guys,
I also love Inge’s defense. But, Infante has played real well down there in a limited sample this year and has not made an error.
Omar is 4 years younger than Inge and at age 25 has alot more potential to improve.
I HATE Brandon’s approach to hitting. He does nothing but try to jack the ball out to LF. I can get him out, throw him an outside fastball and watch him hit a lazy flyball to CF.
I really agree with Stephan. I wouldn’t be suprised that by the end of his contract in 2010, he is no longer a regular.
-Sam
Look: Inge is an outstanding athelete, has an outstanding arm, is an above-average third baseman, defensively, and a WELL-below average hitter. I’ll give him props for what he does, but I completely agree with Stephen & Sam. He had the best year of his career last year. Now is the time to unload him — I’m not saying trade him for nothing — you can get better offensive production from Infante without sacrificing that much on defense. Or, you can bring in somebody entirely different. Doesn’t matter. If we can get something good for Inge, it would be a good move. And the fact that there are Inge lovers on the blog just supports an argument to trade him… that implies, to me, that other teams would have genuine interest and be willing to give up something good. 24M is way too much for Inge.
Yes, Inge makes spectacular plays, but he also commits more errors than a gold-glove third baseman would ever commit. That is why he is not (and will likely never be) a gold glove.
If Inge starts to really produce offensively, and in clutch situations, I will be the first to eat my words. But it ain’t gonna happen. He’s a .240 hitter at best.
You guys talk as if Inge has been playing third base for a decade.
I love Inge and he’s great for the highlight reels, but I’ve got to side with the Inge Haters here. The thing is, his contract for what he’s actually worth is untradeable unless we’re eating a lot of it. It would’ve been nice to be able to give him a 2 year deal at max.
Then again, I’m also a huge Infante supporter and I would love for him to round into the player I think he’s capable of being.
But Inge isn’t going anywhere soon with that contract so even discussing the fact, to me, seems pretty pointless.
But Jose Mesa’s gone, we should’ve taken 3 of 4 in the Jake, the last week was the darkest week for the Tigers of the season, Rodney’s back for the Texas series, and we just managed a split with the division leaders with a bottom of the order of infante and Neifi Perez and proved that the Indians bullpen can be roughed up.
All in all, we should be in good spirits. Just keep plugging along playing .550 ball or so untill Kenny and Zumaya get back and I like our chances.
WORLD SERIES PREVIEW STARTING FRIDAY.
T Smith your claims are idiotic.
Inge has outstanding range, and an outstanding arm. His 398 assists were 59 more than the suburb defender Joe Crede. He stopped a ton of big innings last year.
Errors are a very poor stat in terms of measuring ones fielding, or lack thereof.
Your Gold Glove argument is also weak, because many people who watch baseball know that Gold Gloves are often received by the best hitters (which is also subjective) at their respective positions. IE Andruw Jones, Rafael Palmerio, Eric Chavez, Derek Jeter etc.
You cannot find a better defender at third.
Inge finally got his payday at 6mil/year; according to “The Hardball Times” he had 18 win shares last year.
Arod had the most for a third sacker at 25…
Arod’s making around 22 mil, Inge is at around 6 (was only 3 in ’06.) Adrian Beltre is making’ 13 mil, Chavez 9.5 mil, Melvin Mora 7.8 mil, Mike Lowell 9 mil, Troy Glaus 10.5 mil
Looks like a bargain to me.
On the Tigers 2006 roster he was only trailing Guillen 26, Pudge 25, Granderson 20 and Ordonez 20 in win shares.
I cut him some slack in April, when most of the best hitters in the game had trouble starting up due to frigid temps, postponements w/e
Anyways, the AVERAGE OBP for the AL is right around .330 and the AVERAGE SLUGGING is right around .420.
In May Inge’s OBP was just under .380 and he slugged .472.
And I don’t even think that was a very good month for him.
And wait was the walkoff HR against the Twins not clutch? Was his 2 run bomb against the Cards to go ahead not clutch? Was his HR to break a tie against the Red Sox not clutch?
He hit over .250 BA (another useless stat) in ’04, ’05 and ’06 and will repeat this year.
I could go on, but you just seem like someone who does not watch the Tigers, an idiot, a fair weather fan or all three.
You shouldn’t eat your words, just don’t ever grace this board with your idiocy, lest you make yourself look like a complete tard.
Also with Inge’s contract:
In a couple years I bet it looks like a bargain.
Ba Zing
Look, I hate Inge’s approach to the plate and think he’s their third-worst regular player, but Infante is not an every day major-leaguer. Thats what I had contention with.
Personally, Inge and Monroe are my two least-favorite Tigers (Thames is not far behind. I don’t like guys that suck at the corner outfield positions).
I have more of a problem with Monroe’s contract than Inge’s. Inge brings them stability and consistency, even if its consistent poor hitting, decent power numbers, and Run-saving defense. So I can understand having him on the team. His at-bats make me want to drink, though.
The Tigers can get away with abysmal production out of their corner infield spots because the middle infielders are so good at the plate. Kind of an anomaly.
Monroe, to me, brings nothing to the table.
And David is in the clubhouse with the lead on blogger most likely to be confused with Rasheed Wallace. Dude, take a chill. We’re talking sports here. Anthony’s point are well made: Inge is tolerable as long as we’re getting production from ss and second base. That’s unlikely to continue for the length of his contract. The facts are Inge’s strikeout to walk ratio is a soul-crushing 3 to 1. How can that be rationalized away? So, if you’re making the argument that Inge is the AL’s premier 9 hole 3rd baseman, that i can agree with. If you’re making the argument Inge is a good teammate and a gamer, that i can agree with. But if you’re making the argument that Inge is a good enough 3rd baseman to start for a playoff contender, I would say you’ve got your hometown blinders on and are seriously in need of a nap.
Inge had an .815 OPS last year in the second half.
That couldn’t make the cut for a playoff contender?
Also if you want to talk playoffs, as was evidence last year and is on almost all baseball teams all time, the teams with the best pitching and D win the most games.
Look at Oakland, look at Minny, look at the Angels etc.
Inge brings his glove, his great range, and his gun every day. Although I will admit hasn’t really done as well as last year so far on the defensive side or offensive side, he will pick it up and has as of late.
I’m sure I have my hometown blinders on, but lets just say I think Inge is a very important piece to this team.
And please don’t confuse me with Rasheed, I’m not a big fan of his to say the least.
Oh yea and I am in need of a serious nap.
Nity nite! 🙂
Third baseman on some playoff contenders and their park adjusted OPS+ for 2006, 2007. Subject to change, of course.
The people in bold made the playoffs last year. Inge, by this measurement, (and, of course, it isn’t the be all and the end all of player assessment) isn’t great, but he’s on the high end of bad, creeping into average territory. Last year he was close to the definition of average (OPS+ 99, 100 is average). Apocalyptic statements like “no team will make the playoffs with Brandon Inge at third base” overstate the case. Anaheim is leading their division with a third base platoon that makes Inge look like Harmon Killebrew.
I hope Inge comes around too, but so far this year there have more 3 pitch whiffs than clutch hits. If Dromboski had a way to upgrade this position he would have done it by now (by why Nefei is still around befuddles me unless it is those pictures he has of Leyland).
I’m glad the exit door opened .Good ridance jose mesa thanks for nothing, maybee todd jones can find the exit door with you.
David:
Nobody’s arguing that Inge is not an outstanding defender. If he was flawless, or even below-the-error threshold, your arguments would hold more weight. Aside from my points about his offensive contribution, he’s not below the error threshold…he commits more errors than a defender should who is on the roster mainly due to his defensive capabilities — and If I’m not mistaken, I recall one error in particular during the WS that determined the outcome of the game.
I appreciate your passion — but it would seem you do have the hometeam blinders on and are completely defensive when it comes to Inge. I’m just looking at the facts…you can throw all the insults at me you want, but it doesn’t change the facts: Of the the bad third basemen (defined as below 90 OPS+ in 2007) on a last year’s condending teams, here is what I’m talking about:
Eric Chavez (Oak)
AVG:
Bases Empty .263
Runners On .288
RISP .311
RISP w/ 2 outs .208
Bases Loaded .409
Nick Punto (Minn)
AVG:
Bases Empty .219
Runners On .247
RISP .250
RISP w/ 2 outs .273
Bases Loaded .400
Inge
AVG:
Bases Empty .242
Runners On .192
RISP .190
RISP w/ 2 outs .190
Bases Loaded .200
Inge is the least clutch of all of them. The stats don’t lie. My whole points in previous threads were that Inge was not producing in clutch situations… yes he had the homerun against the Twins, yes he had the homerun against the RedSox, Cards, etc…. I’m not saying he’s Neifi friggin’ Perez! Of course he has the occasional clutch hit; I’m talking about clutch production in the aggregate… and those stats are not subjective — and they don’t lie. If you’re going to hurl vitriol, rage against the stats… not against me. I also think nobody will argue that Inge’s situational stats are pretty dismal.
Incidentally, here are Omar Infante’s career situational stats:
AVG:
Bases Empty .251
Runners On .259
RISP .265
RISP w/ 2 outs .251
Bases Loaded .207
Food for thought.
T Smith:
You seem to be doing a little stat cherry-picking here. It looks like you’re using 2007 stats for Inge and Punto, but I have no clue where those Chavez numbers are coming from (it’s certainly not 2007). Chavez’s actual 2007 numbers are:
Bases Empty: .224
Runners On: .242
RISP: .197
RISP w/ 2 outs: .200
Bases Loaded: 0.00
For a second I thought you might have mistakenly used the Mets’ ENDY Chavez, but no dice. Regardless, many of the 2007 situational numbers are currently based on as few as 21 at bats, which is statistically irrelevent. I find “clutch” situations to be a dubious category, myself, but here’s Inge’s career numbers:
Bases Empty: .242 (interesting that this number is the same)
Runners On: .238
RISP: .229
RISP w/ 2 Outs: .193
Bases Loaded:.238
Those are scarcely inspiring numbers, but certainly better than those created by his tiny sample size in 2007. It appears that – the “RISP w/2 outs” category excepted – Inge and Infante are similar enough offensively as makes no difference (though it should be noted that Inge’s numbers are based on a whole lot more at-bats)
Dave Wagner:
Points taken. The Eric Chavez stats are actually from 2002 (input error on my end).
I like Inge’s situational stats career-wise much better. Again, not stellar, but there is at least consistency across the situational at bats… that’s what key in my mind.
Agreed, the small 2007 sample isn’t enough to make a strong argument. Inge’s career stats paint a more accurate picture. Then again, for most of Inge’s carreer it really didn’t matter what the situation was — e.g. there really was no pressure at bats regardless (2006 excepted) — and maybe except for that last six game stretch in 2003 when the Tigers refused to take the season loss record from the 62 Mets team.
In other news: Freep chose to play up Perez’s only hit of the past ten day in their story. That write must be on 800 mg of Prozac. Maybe it was because it was his birthday.
Does someone who knows a lot about baseball know of another utility infielder either languishing at AAA or on a MLB bench that could replace Perez? I’m ready to stop bitchin’ and propose soultions.
How about looking at your best IF prospect, convert him to a utility infielder, and move him up? And of course there is always Ramon Santiago…
Not sure who the best IF prospect would be, but my God, I could scout a handful of little league teams within a ten mile radius and be able to find a couple candidates more promising that Neifi Perez.
Hey T Smith,
Stop being sooo negative. Sure, Perez isn’t the best guy in the major leagues, And inge isn’t either. So what. This team isn’t built on superstars. We don’t have an Albert Pujols or a Vladimir Guerro or Manny Ramirez. We have what we have, don’t complain. Perez is a major league player. He doesn’t play to his full potential because he doesn’t get to play every day. Thats not his fault, its not anyone’s fault.
Stephen:
The Tigers are pretty weak on infield prospects. Kody Kirkland is probably the most MLB-ready infielder with UT potential, but he’s frustratingly inconsistent at the plate.
Mark and David are right on about Inge.One good thing about this discussion is the passion. It’s good to see. Go Tigers.
At the risk of being accused of being negative, I shall refrain on any more Inge discussion. It is what it is — I appreciate and respect the pro-Inge contingent… but to start backing Neifi Perez simply because he wears a Tiger’s uniform — that’s where I draw the line… it has nothing to do with being negative; it has to do with reality. No amount of rose-colored glasses will ever convince me that Neifi Perez is even a major league player. He’s more akin to the guy in the Mega Millions lotto commerical who bought the team to play third base. Since we can illiminate that possibility, given Ilitch owns the team, I’m just racking my brains to figure out the angle at play here….
At the risk of being accused of being negative, I shall refrain from any more Inge discussion. It is what it is. I appreciate and respect the pro-Inge contingent. But to start backing Neifi Perez simply because he wears a Tiger’s uniform — that’s where I draw the line. It has nothing to do with being negative; it has to do with reality. No amount of rose-colored glasses will ever convince me Neifi Perez is even a major league ball player. He is more akin to the guy in the Mega Millions lotto commerical who bought the team to play third base. Now: It’s fair to say we can illiminate that possibility, given we know Ilitch owns the team… so I’m just racking my brains to try to figure out the angle at play here. And that’s all I’m gonna say about Neifi Perez.