2009 Season, Game Post

Game 2009.146: Royals at Tigers

95 Comments

PREGAME: Edwin Jackson and Zach Greinke today. Prepare to be amazed.

Kansas City vs. Detroit – September 17, 2009 | MLB.com: Gameday

POSTGAME: So was everyone amazed that Josh Anderson was actually able to hit a ball to the wall, let alone over it? Your amazing factoid for the series is:

The Royals have hit 13 3-run homers this season. Five of them came in this series.

This one isn’t worth dissecting. I’ll have more in a “state of the team” type post before the Minny series starts. In the meantime feel free to fret, complain, rationalize, give-up, and stay optimistic in the comments here. I’ll be watching the Ernie video until I’m ready to write.

95 thoughts on “Game 2009.146: Royals at Tigers”

  1. Batting Order – Name & Position – Season OPS

    1. Bloomquist, RF .672
    2. Maier, LF .696
    3. Butler, 1B .834
    4. Jacobs, DH .715
    5. Callaspo, 2B .799
    6. Olivo, C .766
    7. Gordon, 3B .652
    8. Betancourt, SS .618
    9. Anderson, CF .575

    Goodness gracious.

  2. Tigers lineup:
    Granderson, CF
    Polanco, 2B
    Guillen, LF
    Cabrera, 1B
    Huff, DH
    Avila, C
    Kelly, RF
    Inge, 3B
    Santiago, SS

    A 5 game lead would feel a whole lot better than a 4 game lead heading into the Baggy Dome.

  3. Anyone else share the same sentiment that Rod Allen does about Billy Butler? I think he’ll be a real good big leaguer once someone pays him big money to leave KC.

  6. OK ump, Greinke is good enough to where you don’t have to give him a little league strike zone. He doesn’t need help.

  7. Goodness. I sure hope they don’t get another cheap one. We’ve been killing ourselves with misplays these past few weeks.

  8. It’s amazing, over the last week Willie Bloomquist turned into Wee Willie Keller and Alberto Callaspo has been possessed by the ghost of Rogers Hornsby.

    (At least Greinke won’t pitch a no-hitter.)

  14. OMFG….Yeah, I’m amazed…I’m amazed at how this team always finds away to fall apart in the last couple weeks of the season… I’m seeing a repeat of 2006, just that we won’t have the ability to get in on the Wildcard. This poor play against the Royals is inexcusable and utterly absurd….

  15. Yikes, I guess we’ll be up 4 going to MIN. We’re still in good shape overall, but they better figure this crap out.

    2. Porcell vs. Duensing…

      Verlander vs. Pavano… (No Hitter, I’m sure, for Pavano)

      TBA vs. Baker…(Possibly Robertson for the Tigers)

  17. The season now firmly rests on our preformance this weekend. Going in five games up would have provided some wiggle room.

    This game is toast. Imperiative that we take at least one game in the Metrodome.

  18. Color me concerned about Edwin Jackson. He hasn’t pitched well for a month now. With our #4 and #5 spots in flux, Jackson’s struggles are really a concern right now. I am officially concerned/scared right now about our ability to hold onto this division. None of the starters have been consistently lights out lately, and the hitters continue to struggle. This upcoming weekend has all the makings of a nightmare. Nothing is going well right now.

  19. So, got back to my desk from lunch and planned to catch a few innings on Gameday before my next meeting. I turned it on to 5-0 Royals. And promptly turned it off. So glad I bothered.

  20. Wow…it’s 5-0 and Inge thrown out by a mile on a botched hit-and-run. Brilliant managing. Brilliant.

  24. Billfer says to be prepared to be amazed…. I am amazed that KC is one of the worst teams in the AL the way they dominate us.

  25. What infuriates me is that Guillen AB. Two on, two out and he swings at the first pitch in the dirt to groundout.

    Meanwhile every KC at-bat goes as this — ball, strike, ball, ball, foul, foul, foul, foul, blooper/home run.

  26. Inge wasn’t trying to steal, they tried a hit and run….unfortunately Santiago thought the whiff-and-run was on,

    Is it just me, or does it seem like our hit-and-run attempts NEVER work

  27. In better news, Inge now back to adequate at the plate. Still no doubles in almost 50 days, but progress is being made!

  28. I am going to be the pessimist guy and say that we can officially kiss the postseason goodbye.

    And that sentence even rhymes, I surprise myself some of the time.

  30. I know it’s getting ahead of things, but Carl F’N has has the same amount of walks and runs allowed in four starts vs. the Tigers this season — one. Good times in the dome on the horizon.

  33. If they bring in Chen, this is a game that the Tigers have to go out and take. That’s what playoff teams do.

    1. Agreed, but Hillman will try to coax another inning out of Greinke to qualify for the win. I just looked it up, assuming it’s not a serious arm injury for Greinke, he should be in line to pitch twice against the Twins down the stretch.

      1. With Twins’ luck, the Royals will put Grienke on the shelf for the rest of the year and they will have gone THE ENTIRE SEASON without facing him.

  35. This is officially comical. Three run blast off the bat of Josh Anderson.

    You gotta just laugh at some point.

  36. Sheesh…the Royals are going to outscore the Tigers by nearly 20 runs in a 3 game series at home. Think about this – the Royals, who are second to last in runs scored in the AL.

    This doesn’t feel good…the boys are pressing…hopefully they can refocus to avoid a total weekend collapse.

  37. How can Washburn, Jackson and Galaraga all go into such a tailspin like this in the same year. Is it bad luck, or a Detroit hex, or what exactly?

    This team really needs to want the pennant come this weekend, but they really could use some help from the front office in the pitching dept.

  38. the timing of Detroit’s team slump is just incredible, and it just seems that K.C. usually has a hand in it . . . What looked like a favorable schedule down the stretch has turned into a nightmare.

    1. I’d like to believe that perhaps the twins sweeping us this week and coming w/in .5 game would wake up this team and make them perform, but I just don’t think even that would shake them lose of whatever funk they are in.

      I say again . . . if the unions allowed owners to right in performance clauses in the contracts, this type of nonsense would be reduced dramatically!!!

  41. At this moment, Tigers are at a minus 1 run differential for the season! And yet they lead division by 4 games. This is awesome and disturbing.

  42. I know it’s crazy, but Chen really, really sucks. They put four runs up in this inning, its not impossible for them to come back.

    1. I actually wrote that last post before the HR. The Tigers could really go and steal this game 10-8. It’s not impossible. The Royals are absolutely terrible. Put some pressure on them and they’ll find a way to lose.

  44. Who really wanted to face the Yankees in the playoffs anyway. At least this way I can focus on football without the distraction of the Tigers getting crushed in the playoffs.

  45. Wait….it’s now 8-2!

    Come on Tigers! Let’s pull this one out!!!

    (P.S. – this is sarcasm.) BTW – Do Rod and Mario heap a little too much praise on the other teams? I mean, don’t get down on the Tigers, but a little TRUTH about how they are screwing the pooch every once in a while would make me feel like they actually CARE if we win or lose.

  46. so, since i am following the game via internet, why is greinke out already? he didnt even crack 80 pitches.

  47. Who the #$% scouts the pitching talent for this team, Matt Millen? This team is pathetic and quite honestly, a total waste of time to watch any further.

  48. Do the Tigers dare go with a four man rotation for the final weeks remaining of this pennant drive and patchup by committee the fourth starter in the rotation (depending of course upon who is healthly enough to pitch)? Which would allow Detroit to lean more on the big three (Verlander, Porcello and Jackson) for the final stetch drive. At this point your fighting for a playoff appearance and you need to go with your best guns otherwise you will have the soft spots in the 4th and 5th spot starters of the rotation that make it hard to win from a team that does not score many runs.

    1. Monday is the only remaining off day this season, so a 4-man rotation would mean 2 consecutive go-arounds on 3 days rest.

      If Porcello and Verlander can get us wins in the first 2 games in MN, the world will sure look a lot nicer. Heck, at this point I’ll settle for a split and just taking 2 games off the calendar!

  49. No. You don’t want to start a routine their arms/bodies aren’t accustomed to. I don’t have an answer, but maybe Bo9 for one spot and Miner/Bonderman split game for the 5th?

    What’s Robertson’s status? They just said he might start Sunday.

    1. Robertson seems to be confirmed for Sunday.

      I wouldn’t go reducing to a 4-man rotation yet, but perhaps if things start to look really bleak. The problem is that our top-3 superstar pitchers have not lived up to expectations recently…

      1. Yes, I’d say only if we’re down to the last 8 games and we’re tied or behind.

        But in general, there’s a good chance they’ll be much less effective. A rested Bo9 or Robertson should probably outperform a short-rest Porcello. Also, you’re suscepting them to long-term injury by pitching tired. Not to mention all these guys are seeing their biggest workload ever this year. It’s not like they’re Johnson and Schilling on the Diamondbacks – pitchers who are used to a huge workload and you know will be solid on short rest.

  50. I’m calling it: if the Tigers get swept in the Poop-dome, that’s it. They will lose the central.

    Tiger struggles always begin with losing to the horrible Royals. Every year it happens.

  52. I have been reading this site for well over two years (and have been a Tigers fan for most of my 27). I’ve never had the desire to comment because I’m not sure what I can add to the discussion. Why would you be a fan of a team that you are ready to give up on so easily? I see people who comment on here who basically spend all of their time talking about how awful the Tigers are and how they will inevitably fail. I understand that everyone is entitled to say what they think, but why would you want to have such a negative outlook on something that is essentially fun. Sure the Tigers have had two mediocre series against the Royals, so what? The Yankees and Red Sox will occasionally have a bad series against the Orioles or Jays, or even the Royals. Even the best teams still lose. I would think that after enduring so many terrible seasons, other Tigers fans would be dying, like me, to be optimistic about this teams chances every night. When they fell behind the Jays the other night I spent the rest of the game telling my dad (a borderline Toronto fan) that my team would inevitably find a way to win. In that case they did, but even if they hadn’t I would still stick by them. Why bother following the team if you just expect them to fail? I like sports because they are a mostly meaningless and fun form of entertainment, and they give me something to get excited about in my free time. Although this seems like a personal attack, it’s really just an open question to those who follow this line of thinking. I really can’t understand it. If the Tigers won the World Series would you even celebrate? Or would you complain that the on field celebration wasn’t good enough, or the parade route was wrong?

    1. there have been a few times on this board it has been mentioned that a lot more people come out to comment when the chips are down than when the tigs are winning. I agree anyone is allowed to express their opinion but i think everyone needs to remember A.) it’s only a game, albeit a game we all love very very much and B.) the boys still have a 4 game lead heading to the house of horrors its not anywhere close to over theres a reason they have been in first since may and have rarely had more than a 4 game lead

    2. I’m sure we’d all celebrate if the Tigers won the World Series.

      The negative comments are stemming from the fact that — RIGHT NOW — the Tigers have no shot at winning the World Series.

      To your point, we don’t expect the Tigers to fail. We expect them win – every night. Is that fair or even possible? No. But as fans that’s what we expect.

      And we certainly expect them to beat the Royals.

      Remember, we’re not just talking about two bad series against the Royals. We’re talking about a Tigers team that has played 140-some games and have collectively outscored the opposition by… wait for it…. ZERO runs.

      So while your optimism is commendable, the rest of us are having trouble picturing how this team will win the World Series, or even survive the first round of the playoffs.

      Sure, there are those that say “just enjoy the ride” but let’s face facts: Based on payroll and budget decisions, this team was built to win now. The window is closing fast. And – like it or not – it hurts to see this team squander chances to win when the window is closing.

      1. Matt,

        “The negative comments are stemming from the fact that — RIGHT NOW — the Tigers have no shot at winning the World Series. ”

        Neither do any of the other teams, seeing as — RIGHT NOW — no team is in the playoffs.

        I’m not going to delude myself into thinking they have a fantastic chance of winning the WS, but lets concede that there are plenty of unpredictable things that can happen in the playoffs, and in short-series especially. The Tigers don’t look like WS-team, but that’s not a requirement to making the playoffs. If they can make the playoffs, those WS odds go up significantly.

    3. I think there is unbridled optimism and optimism based on facts and experience. Optimism based on the facts say the Tigers have a four-game lead and if they can take one out of three in Minnesota they are in great shape and two out of the three and the race is over. Optimism based on the facts suggest that while many thought the Tigers would finish down the standing this year, the fact that a team with this large of payroll has played .500 ball over the last 90-95 games isn’t really worth celebrating to an extreme level. The Tigers have spent once-in-a-lifetime money on this team and if the 2009 Tigers go 85-77 and get swept that will be a disappointment not a cause for ‘hooray, at least they played meaningful baseball in September’ celebration.
      Then again, to each his own level of misery/contentment. Your question of why follow baseball if it doesn’t bring you pleasure was, I think, first posed to the Sphinx in 3500 B.C. It is one of life’s great mysteries.

      1. “The Tigers have spent once-in-a-lifetime money on this team”

        What’s your basis for that assumption? If money were really going to be an issue (which I thought it would be), I don’t think they would have added payroll (Wash, Huff) or let Magglio vest for 2010.

        I’ll be disappointed if they make it into the playoffs only to get swept, but I’ll still look at this season as a success, given all the issues this team overcame.

        1. That’s my opinion, but if you think this kind of payroll is sustainable long term or without the revenue of a world series run and the subsequent half million bump in season ticket sales, I’d have to disagree with you.

        2. Like I said, I didn’t think that Illitch would be willing to absorb Magglio’s contract next year in light of all the economic factors and Magg’s unlikely return to All-Star-level contributions…but I was wrong.

          I have no idea what the owner’s financial threshold is, I just think it must be much higher than I would have guessed. Just calling out your guess 😉

      2. Well said. But if the Tigers win the central and get swept by the Yankees in the 1st round, I’ll be ecstatic. This team has been so bad for so long at getting into the playoffs, just to see them get in there will seem like progress for a franchise that has accomplished so little.

  54. I think we win the Central – heck even if Minny goes 12-4 over the rest of the season, all we need to do is have a winning record to win the division…9-7. Let’s remember, we still LEAD the division. Minny and Chi have at least 4-5 games more of problems than we do….hence the 4 and 5 game lead.

    GO TIGERS!

    1. MIN can’t go 12-4 without, best case scenario (for us), winning 3 of 7 from us. This assumes that all 4 losses the rest of the season would be to us, and they would sweep the White Sox, and KC twice–a fairly unlikely scenario. In which case we would only need to go 5-4 in the non-Twin games.

      If the Twins actually finish 12-4, it is more likely than not they won the majority of the head-to-head games with us, and more likely than not they win the division.

      1. All true, so I’ll choose to focus on the unlikelihood of the premise that the Twins go 12-4. Ghosts of prior Twins September rampages notwithstanding, this year’s edition has a considerable body of work as a .500ish, near-zero run differential team.

        And at least they’re done with the Indians.

        1. If they lose in/to Minnesota, it happens, but with Justin Mourneau done for the season, lets not let the likes of Jose Morales, Matt Tolbert and Delmon Young and god forbid Nick Punto deliver the deciding blows. (And let’s try to keep Denard Span to under 10 hits for the series. Seems realistic, no?)

          1. Believe it or not the Tigers have increased their lead over the Twins since 9/1 — we’re 9-7 this month, they’re 8-7. Obviously they can do a lot with 7 head to head games left and I don’t mean to minimize that. But, for my money, their sweep of Cleveland doesn’t mean they’re likely to start winning at a greater rate any more than our sweeps of the Tribe and TB signalled that we were. As Denny Green might say, both of these teams are who we thought they were — and there’s a good chance that means they both play out the string around .500, we all get some ulcers and/or lose some hair in the process, but the Tigers come out on top.

  55. I actually follow the CFL much more closely than the NFL and don’t have a team down south. The “can’t win the World Series” point is compelling, except that just about any team that makes the playoffs can win. The Tigers did lose to a St Louis team that had a pretty mediocre regular season. Being disappointed is a perfectly rational response to a loss, but giving up on the entire season, when it seems pretty likely they will make the playoffs, seems like a bit of an overreaction. In an opening round series against the Yankees, it’s entirely possible that JV, Porcello, and Jackson could be lights out and give the team a reasonable chance to win. The opportunity for just about anything to happen is part of the beauty of modern sports. Now if it was KC in the first round I might be singing a different tune.

    1. The CFL is the best. I’m all for a league that can pay Casey Printers 500 grand and keep Jarrett Payton and the immortal Michael Bishop employed.

  56. Season Record :83-78 Post season: 3-1/4-3/4-1 World Champs ( Saint Louis 2006)
    :87-74 :3-2/4-2/3-2 ( Yankees 2000)
    :85-77 :4-1/4-3 ( Minnies)
    :116-46 :3-2/ 1-4 No WS ( Mariners)
    :114-48 : 3-0/4-2/4-0 WC ( Yankees)
    :116-36 : 2-4 Lost WS ( Cubs)
    :111-43 :0-4 Lost Ws ( Tribe)
    Yes , they have chance

    1. You realize the exception doesn’t prove the rule, right? If I spend the roulette wheel and put my hundred dollars on green, it’s going to come up once a month, but I’d much rather have my money on red or black. I’m pretty sure the Tigers used up their ‘play crappy in September and still make it World Series’ card in 2006. That doesn’t happen twice in four years.

  57. Maybe the older fans, remembering the good teams from their youth, expect more from their Tigers and are less optimistic this year. I on the other hand as a 27 year old Tiger fan, too young to remember 1984 or 1987, have very little experience with teams over .500, let alone in a playoff chase. Therefore, I will suspend my disbelief and engage in the blissful ignorance of believing in the 2009 Tigers.

    I think this team can make the playoff, but perhaps it is just the ignorance of youth.

      1. I am old and remember the good teams. There is no way in hell I can predict what this team may or may not do. Just gotta take it one game at a time. It’s easier to just lose and not have very many expectations. The winning is nerve wracking and some folks don’t handle it too well.

  58. I’m firmly among the optimists. Without Morneau, the Twins don’t have enough horses to win the Central. Their starting pitching is a huge sore spot. Duensing, Pavano, Baker, and Blackburn is a Quad-A rotation. We have our own troubles, but Verlander is in fine form and Porcello has rebounded nicely.

    Remember July 24? We were down to zero – not four up, but a flat tie – against the White Sox and came through in the pinch. I was there. Certainly our Tigers can take two in the Dome.

  59. Key game is Friday night. Porcello has to pitch well and we need to give him reasonable run support (five runs). If we win that game, all the pressure goes onto the Twins’ shoulders the remainder of the weekend.

    In fact, I’d skip Verlander on Saturday vs. Pavano if we win or lose Friday and go with Nate Saturday (why waste JV versus the Unhittable One(Pavano). I’m not kidding. Why fight City Hall? Pavano owns us and why waste our best pitcher going against him? I’d rather sacrifice that game and come back with JV on Sunday vs. Baker where our odds to win go up significantly. This way you still get JV pitching in the Whte Sox series the following weekend as well as in both series at home with the Twins and White Sox. The second White Sox start for JV would be on the final day of the season on three day’s rest, and you would obviously only pitch him there if needed. If we had already clinched by then, you save him for Game 1 of the Yankees series. This is so elementary that I’m sure Ol’ Smoky will fail to grasp it. Instead he will stubbornly pitch JV in his normal slot Saturday and we will all be pissed as we lose 3-0 to the Twins on Saturday. Sometimes you need to play matchups and it makes zero sense to me to pitch Verlander on Saturday. None. It will be a waste of our best pitching resource. Please Ol’ Smoky, don’t be a stubborn, mumbling fool for once in your life. Put Nate in Saturday and please, please, please go with JV on Sunday. I’m scared right now (thank you KC), but I’m still going to root like hell for my Tigers these last 2.5 weeks.

  60. I am all with Jerry on pushing JV back by one game. These 7 games VS the Twins is going to determine our fate and would much rather tilt the match up in our favor on Sunday. My only question would be that of Robertson’s health I thought he left his last start hobbling. I have dismissed all this worst division in baseball stuff for a very long time but this recent slide is putting it to the test.

  63. Pavano will not own us again. He can’t be that bad against every other team in the league and then pitch like Cy Young against us every freakin’ time.

    Something’s gotta give and I say Tiger’s hitters beat him up good on Saturday.

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