77 thoughts on “Game 2010.035: Yankees at Tigers”

    1. JV is a horse and can throw 120+ pitches…….and that should get him to at least the 7th.

  3. Looks like it is shaping up to be a typical Verlander outing – lots of pitches after 3 – 56. I hope he can go at least six innings. Meanwhile Sabbathia gearing up to go about 12 – 28 pitches so far.

  4. What’s with walking Miranda on four pitches? Were they at least debatable strikes?

        1. Agreed. Is he trying to get too cute with his stuff–trying to paint the black, etc.? I mean, 70+ pitches in 4 innings is not the way to go. He can get cute with the upper-half minus Gardner.

          1. He doesn’t have what he had two starts ago, but I think he wants to pitch like he does. If he hasn’t already, he’ll soon learn that being a #1 means pitching within your stuff from game to game.

            Note, not trying to criticize JV, just commenting.

            Even w/o his best stuff, he has the ability to get us to 7 against the best hitting lineup in the AL with a great chance of winning.

            1. Totally, I love JV as much as anyone. But with the bottom half of the line-up he needs pepper the strike zone and get some quick outs.

  5. JV is right at 4.5 pitches per batter – his season average, which I think I heard is far and away the most in the AL for a starter.

  7. OK Miggy. Let’s tack on some more here before we have to turn it over to the bullpen.

    1. Agreed. Hope Leyland’s deferral to veterans doesn’t freeze out BB, until the kids stopping hitting at least.

      Guillen can’t field or run and has diminished power. He’s a sunk cost at this point. There is no incentive to play him, honestly.

      1. I agree — Guillen has been a great player at times, but who do you sit in order to get his bat in the lineup? Think he could play short again? Catcher?

        He can’t field the positions where he’s better with the bat than the incumbent. He can’t hit better than the guys playing in the spots where he can play the field. It will be tough to work him in. It’s starting to look like he’s going to be the league’s most expensive utility player.

      2. I tend to disagree… I mean, Carlos was absolutely raking to the tune of a .365 wOBA. I mean, sure he doesn’t really play defense all that well, but considering the other options, he’s just as good as anyone.

        Boesch is due to regress — he’s a good ballplayer that will contribute the rest of the year. I’m all for letting him get his hacks in when he’s on fire, but he’ll cool off and then I think it will be time to let Guillen work his way back into the lineup. Damon and Guillen will always need days off and a DH spot is always available for Boesch when one of them gets a day off. It’s not fair to write off a very solid Guillen because the kid can’t miss right now. Let him get healthy and then see where Boesch is at — we may be singing a very different tune.

        1. Of course he is going to “regress”–his numbers project to 27 home runs and 145 ribbies in playing half the games. That does not mean then we have to place him into the 4th outfielder position and have him platoon with Guillen. This kid looks to be the real deal. Guys around the league are effusive about him. He has a fantastic swing, keeps his head down, quick compact swing, and with his frame means longer than the normal compact swing. Plus, he has a cannon for an arm. Guys like this don’t grow on trees. The real question is, once Guillen does come back and let’s assume he can play second without pulling his hammys constantly, it then comes down to who would you rather want in the line-up: Boesch or Sizemore? Not too difficult a choice.

          1. The choice is complicated a little by the fact that one of the two of them has the potential to play second for the Tigers for a very long time.

            1. Sure “potential” is great, but that is what is great about baseball–you can stick the guys with “potential” down in the minors a bit because it is a long season, and call them up when the circumstances dictate.

              Also, I think everyone looks at Sizemore as this future second baseman, a cornerstone of the franchise. The reality may be that he was just law school hot–he was the best position player available because the pickin’s are mighty slim in our farm system. I have seen him play three times now, and I have come away completely unimpressed. He commits too many errors; he swings way too hard for a small guy who should be concentrating on making contact; and has not shown any flashes of brilliance that would necessitate us pegging him as the “wave of the future” for the Tigers. Again, if there is no Boesch, then he fills in and we ride it out with him. But man keeping a guy in there for his potential when we have a puncher’s chance of winning the Central (assuming, again, that Carlos can play second) is not the way to go.

      3. Mike,

        I don’t know how deferential to vets he’s been recently. Situations regarding Ordonez, Guillen and Sheffield have shown a willingness to put team needs above reputations.

        Guillen’s (presumed) eventual call-up shouldn’t arbitrarily spell demotion for Boesch, but at the same time a sample size of less than 100 ABs shouldn’t trump Guillen’s track record when healthy.

        Thankfully Boesch’s performance should go a long way to ensuring that Guillen ins’t called up until healthy.

  13. I’ve been thinking a lot about Guillen. At this point in time, I’m wondering if it would be worthwhile to give up the runs at SS or 3B, and put him in one of those positions. Alternatively, perhaps Sizemore could be moved around, to the left side, and Guillen could play 2B. He can’t possibly be any slower that Polanco was.

    Our team is definitely better with Maggs, Damon, Jackson and Boesch in the lineup, so that eats up the OF + DH.

    Alternatively, Guillen might make sense to a contender looking for a LH power bat (though we’ll have to eat some of that salary), and perhaps we could get a serviceable catcher in return.

    1. I am with you on this. Boesch obviously needs to be playing full time. I know there are some Sizemore fans here, but seriously, he really does not impress me at all. Yes, he’s a rookie, but so are Jackson and Boesch…but for Boesch’s emergence, Sizemore is a fine fill-in, but we need to put the best line-up out there, and if Carlos’ hammys can take the constant bending over to field ground balls, second base should be in play for him.

      1. I understand you point of view here, but Sizemore is actually having a very respectable rookie campaign. He’s been very sure-handed in the field, and his .225 average, while certainly not lights-out, ain’t bad for a man’s first six weeks in the bigs. There’s plenty of reason for optimism there, and with some adjustments and confidence, he could certainly heat up.

        Guillen is a good bat, and I’m sure Leyland will find ways to get him into the lineup. I’m guessing that Guillen will be taking Raburn’s role, and that Boesch has taken Guillen’s.

        So far, Boesch has been nothing short of a revelation, and if he keeps swinging like he has, you can have a good argument about who is Detroit’s best rookie.

        1. I’m all for giving a guy a chance to work his way into a grove, but the music is about to stop and in my book Sizemore is the guy without a chair to sit in.

        2. I agree to an extent — Guillen needs at-bats and so does Raburn. Kelly needs to be the one sent down and Raburn needs to start spelling Sizemore at 2nd. Sizemore’s year has been poor for the most part, though. One plus is that his OBP is right where Polanco’s is, but his defense leaves something to be desired. I think bringing Raburn back up and giving him some of Sizemore’s time makes the most sense, as Raburn will produce much more offensively while not losing as much defensively.

          Guillen is still a fantastic hitter and I’ve never really understood the hate from some fans. He still hits for power, won’t strike out a ton and gets on-base at a good clip. He was raking before the injury (wOBA ~ .365) and should still have a spot when he gets back. Boesch will probably cool off and then it’ll make it easier to make him the 4th OF (what a 4th OF to have). With Guillen’s balky body, Boesch will still see a lot of time in the lineup. It’s a tough decision all-around, but I think that’s the best way to go about it.

        3. Whoa, sure-handed in the field? Doesn’t he have five errors? I’m not saying they should send him down, but he hasn’t been sure-handed. But they don’t have anyone better so I say keep playing Sizemore.

    2. Texas has a surplus of catching, but I don’t know off hand what their DH status is.

      In any case a move won’t happen right away – Guillen needs to get some ABs under his belt, and do well, before he becomes expendable. Inn the meantime maybe they can rotate Damon, Ordonez, Guillen D.O.G.s(!?)) and Boesch through the three lineup slots. D.O.G.s aren;t exactly spring chickens and could probably do with the regular day off (plus there is the Ordonez vesting option to consider).

      1. They just called up Smoak, and they already have one very serviceable DH who can’t play in the field (Vlad). I’m thinking Guillen might fit in LAA, I wouldn’t mind Mathis.

      2. Guillen has zero trade value. He can’t stay healthy, he can’t play in the field, and he’s got another year on his contract. Unless the Tigers are going to eat 90% of his salary, you’re not going to get a can of pine tar in return. Maybe at the trade deadline, you’d get a middling prospect, but only if Tigers assume all of his 2011 salary.

        1. Guillen will definitely get ABs. The real problem is that having him back does nothing to address the problem(s) of the Mendoza Quadruplets hitting in the 6-9 slots.

        2. The Mariners need a DH upgrade BADLY. They might take him once they decide to do with Rip Van Griffey and Mike Sweeney.

          1. Exactly. I think Guillen would currently lead SEA in HRs.

            I don’t know Stephen, he swings the bat well for another month and we eat 1/2 of his salary, and we just may be able to get that C in here for the 2nd half of the season.

            Realize, that every team (SEA and LAA included) are likely to be “in” the AL West hunt through August, at least.

  14. It will be very interesting none-the-less to see how JL handles the return of Carlos?

  15. These are the kind of games we gotta win……with Girardi giving u a “B” lineup to face. So far so good.

    2. A “B” lineup with A-Rod, Jeter, Posada, Cano, Texeira? I’d take that lineup and 4 Mud Hens against just about anyone.

  16. JV should be good for at least one more inning. I would be nice if he could go 8, although that might be stretching it, and then follow up with an inning of Valverde to tick off the Yanks.

  18. I guess the Tigers game plan was to swing early in the count against Sabbathia. At first it didn’t look like it was going to work out, but it has caught up to him now.

    1. Well, don’t get over-excited, let’s wait and see how they do when they have to play some real teams 🙂

    2. Certainly, this was the best starting pitching they’ve had in a series, especially when you consider the bats on the other side.

  24. Sloppy play at 2nd……you’ve got to concentrate and make the plays ……never mind youy’re up 6 -0.

  28. TWO shutouts in the 3 WINS of the just concluded 4 game series against the Yankees shows that the Tigers can rock with anybody!!!!

  29. spank the Skankees 3 of 4 games with 2 shutouts…..excellent! I hope we see ’em here again [that means postseason play]. Now, Tigers gotta work on that road record: 8-11 isn’t cutting it. As for Guillen….as long as Boesch keeps hitting, he keeps playing. Guillen’s knees are shot; he can’t play the field anymore….especially infield. Which is too bad. SS, C and 2B are the weakest offensive positions, with 3B close behind. So until one of the OF’s goes into a funk, I guess Guillen just sits….or he’s relegated to DH. He can’t play the field; his knees won’t hold up…..anyway, ROCK ON, TIGERS…let’s beat up some Bosox next…. 🙂

  30. We beat-up the Yankees pretty good. NY didn’t good at all. Really, they stunk. I just can’t figure how they have more wins than us.

    2. Oh Mr. X, they have more wins than us because they have more talent than us. It’s baseball, the Tigers played great this week, but c’mon.

    3. I think it might be the +66 run differential they are sporting. The Tigers are +4.

      Detroit played good to be sure, and to hold off that offense the way the pitching did was very impressive, but passing judgment after one series probably isn’t productive.

      As for beating them up pretty good, the Tigers outscored NY by 1 run over the 4 games. That’s not really a thrashing.

      1. Run differential just doesn’t tell the story of this series very well. We blanked them 2 out 4 games. 6 of the 12 runs the Yanks scored were in the 9th inning of 2nd game Yesterday. Half their runs came cheaply and didn’t even matter. They could of scored 10 more runs off of Figaro in that inning and it still wouldn’t of helped them win the other 3 games. We spanked them good. We can put a feather in our cap for how we played.

        I’m not impressed with what I saw from the Yankees. Especially AROD and Jeter. IMO, they didn’t look like the dominating players that they once were. To me, it looks like they are on the decline. Jeter currently has a .314 OBP. That’s the lowest it has ever been during his entire career. AROD has .440 SLG and .801 OPS. That’s the worst he’s ever done. It’s either they are off to slow starts or this an indicator of their inevitable decline.

        1. Each team won a game comfortably, and the Tigers a 1-run and 2-run game. I’m happy with what Detroit did and they deserve credit for playing well and shutting down a very potent (even shorthanded) offense, but this wasn’t a spanking.

          And it’s easy not to be impressed when someone goes 1 for the series. It’s why you don’t make evaluations of players on 4 game sample sizes. I’d expect that Jeter and A-Rod would start declining but I don’t know that their progress as of the second week of May is indicative of that.

          1. And that bum Texiera is only hitting .200. I’d take Aubrey Huff any day 😉

        2. Well, Mr. X, I’m sure there’s a lot of people who aren’t impressed that none of our #6 through #9 hitters have an OBA above .300.

          Hm, Arod and Jeter slightly slowing down or chronic .230 hitter Inge and Everett, worst hitter in the AL.. I’m pretty sure I’d rather have the Yankees’ problems on the left side of the infield.

          Every year, I look forward to Opening Day and the point in the season when I once again wonder if Mr. X works for the Tigers. Thank you Mr. X.

          1. I take everything back. Tigers suck. We just got lucky against the Yankees. Is that better for everyone?

            1. Nobody is saying that at all. I think everybody is thrilled with the series. Playing even with a team the caliber of the Yankees is still good, and everybody is happy. I just didn’t agree with a)saying the Yankees aren’t that good and b)saying the Tigers spanked them.

              1. Sorry Billfer, but I gotta go with Mr. X here.

                After all, this is the internet and there’s no room for subtlety or nuance. Its either black or white. You’re either for the Tigers or against them. If you’re not first, you’re last…

                😉

              2. I’m of the mind the Tigers played really well (best ball I’ve seen them play this season) and the Yankees didn’t play their best. I know Johnny Damon is happy we got 3out of 4.

              3. The Tigers spanked the Yankees AND sent them to their rooms without dinner.

                That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

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