Detroit Tigers, 37-40, 5 games behind Chicago. Tiger record against AL East: 9-9.

Yesterday we had a long intro and few comments, and the Tigers lost. Today looking to change things up.

It’s Earth, Wind & Fire night at Tropicana, as Rick Porcello takes the mound against the Rays in game 3 of 4 in Tampa.

It’s also pine tar and takedown night, as Tampa regains the services of relievers Joel Peralta and Kyle Farnsworth for tonight’s game.

Stat of the Day: Tampa Bay is mysteriously bad against the AL Central: 4-10, including a sweep by the Royals. In fact, remove the AL Central games from all the AL East teams’ records, and the Rays are comfortably in first place.

Today’s Player of the Pre-game: Delmon Young. Delmon is having one of those mini-hot streaks that can make him seem like an actual threat, hitting .346 with a home run over the last 6 games. Let’s see if he can keep it up another game or two.

Today’s Back-To-Jacksonberry Lineup:

1. Austin Jackson CF
2. Quintin Berry LF
3. Miguel Cabrera 3B
4. Prince Fielder 1B
5. Delmon Young DH
6. Alex Avila C
7. Brennan Boesch RF
8. Jhonny Peralta SS
9. Ramon Santiago 2B

Detroit Tigers, 37-39, 4 games behind Chicago. Tiger record with Toby Harrah as Special Co-Hitting-Coach-Consultant-Guy: 2-0.

So what kind of genius thing was that anyway, the Toby Harrah deal? I’m not talking about the 32 hits in 2 games, that is most likely mere coincidence.  But there was this dilemma:  the Tiger offense was woefully underperforming, and fans wanted the head of Lloyd McClendon, if nothing else to “send a message” (although to whom, and about what, was less clear).

On the other hand, there was Leyland’s legendary loyalty to his coaches (and players), so at the same time, the scenario of a McClendon firing was almost unimaginable.  Then someone had a truly brilliant insight:  you don’t need to fire McClendon (loyalty intact)–just hire another hitting coach.  In fact, they may be hiring more, who knows?  There are no limits on the number of hitting coaches you can have (although they can’t all be in the dugout)…just wish I knew whose idea it was.

Or maybe the key to the offense is more hitting slumps. Leyland seems to think they are a good thing.

Max Scherzer leapfrogged Justin Verlander back into the AL strike out lead.  This is a less frivolous thing than you might think. With Detroit’s gloveless wonders in the field (sorry Austin, but you can’t cover the entire field), every ball not put into play is a blessing.

Alas, poor Max, your lead will be short-lived, for The Man himself takes that mound tonight:  it’s V-Day again. Justin Verlander is not in the mood to lose games. You can see it from his Game Post picture.

But Verlander will have to contend with Batman; former Tiger Will Rhymes (who we jettisoned because we had too many second basemen) is in the Rays’ lineup.

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It’s not V-Mart day though:  the news on Victor wasn’t bad per se, but it doesn’t look like an August return is in the cards . More mid-Septemberish.

And what’s up with Andy Dirks? This one has flown a bit under the radar. But Andy Dirks is actually 4th on the team in OPS (right between Cabrera and Fielder…think about that), and can actually glove it in the outfield. I think his absence from the team is vastly underrated.

Things are looking better for Al Alburquerque. If Al-Al could actually come back as anywhere near the pitcher he was last season, the Tiger bullpen could turn into something very special

*****

Stat of the Day: Detroit and Texas are the only AL teams without a single at bat this season by a player 36 or older. Where have all the old dudes gone?

(The Tigers blow the tie with a September call up of their hot shortstop prospect, 43-year old Cale Iorg).

Today’s Player of the Pre-game: Toby Harrah.

Today’s Berry-Stays-In-With-A-Lefty Lineup:

1. Austin Jackson CF
2. Ramon Santiago 2B
3. Miguel Cabrera 3B
4. Prince Fielder 1B
5. Delmon Young DH
6. Ryan Raburn RF
7. Jhonny Peralta SS
8. Gerald Laird C
9. Quintin Berry LF

Detroit Tigers, 36-39, 4 games behind Chicago.

The Tigers may not have been able to keep up with the Ranger scoring onslaught last night, but the offense did finally have a big game.  Maybe there will be more of the same now that Detroit has another hitting coach, ex-Ranger Toby Harrah, Detroit’s minor league hitting coordinator.  Harrah will probably “come and go,” and will be working alongside Lloyd McClendon.

More help for the offense may–or may not–come later in the season from Victor Martinez, who is undergoing an MRI today, which should give some clues as to his progress.

Hopefully the hot Tiger bats don’t cool in air-conditioned Tropicana Field, where the Tigers take on Tampa Bay in a 4-game series. The Rays are fresh off of a sweeping at the hands of the Royals, who have snuck up to within one game of Detroit in the Central.

Stat of the Day: Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer are #1 and #2 in the AL in strike outs with 113 and 107.

Today’s Player of the Pre-game: Ramon Santiago.  Santiago has quietly been heating up (hitting .310 over the last 2 weeks).  Look for a Santiago-Jackson-Berry rally, and a respite from clown antics.

Today’s Indoor Lineup:

1. Austin Jackson CF
2. Quintin Berry LF
3. Miguel Cabrera 3B
4. Prince Fielder 1B
5. Delmon Young DH
6. Alex Avila C
7. Jhonny Peralta SS
8. Brennan Boesch RF
9. Ramon Santiago 2B

36-38, 3rd place, 3 games behind CWS

Dombrowski said today that “he did not think that 2B is going to be the reason why we win or lose the division.” Was this an endorsement of Santiago? Santiago’s hitting .286 in June and as long as Ramon gets the majority of the ABs, then I agree with DD. Despite that, Tigers 2B are hitting .202 this season, which is why Lowrie remains a trade rumor.

Fister climbs the mound tonight the 9th time, looking for his 7th quality start…and 2nd win. He’s the mark of consistency, having posted 14 quality starts in his 18 career Det starts. Fister is 2-1 with a 2.91 ERA over his last three against Texas, including 2 runs in 7 and 1/3 in last year’s ALCS. Nelson Cruz is a lifetime 7-14 with one dinger off of Fister.

The Tigers will face Roy Oswalt (remember him?) on a scorching Texas night (hit 104 here today). Oswalt went 6 2/3 allowing 9 hits, 1 walk, 1 run and striking out 6 in his first game back since injuries cut his season short last year. Oswalt has dominated Cabrera (3-15) and Fielder (5-36) in his career; with few ABs against anyone else.

A few notes:

– AJax has the AL’s top OBP from the lead -off spot at .402
– JV is up for two ESPY’s – Best Male Athlete and best MLB player
– Did you know that the Tigers are 24-18 when Raburn starts, but 6-12 when Worth starts?
– Good article on MLive today which discussed Scherzer opening up about his brother.

Tonight’s Series Taking Season Turn-arounding Lineup Is:

1. Jackson, CF
2. Berry, LF
3. Cabrera, 3B
4. Fielder, 1B
5. Young, DH
6. Avila, C
7. Peralta, SS
8. Boesch, RF
9. Raburn, 2B

36-37, 3rd place, 2 games behind CWS.

Rick P climbed the mound last night against the same team that battered him for the worst performance of his career eight weeks ago, and turned in his best performance of the year. He threw first pitch strikes to 19 out of 27 batters, and used the Texas heat to consistently threw his best sinker of the year down in the strike zone. Now, he still walked 3 and gave up 6 hits before being pulled 1 batter into the 7th, but he was charged with only 1 run (due to Villareal’s only bad pitch of his outing). I think that Porcello still has a lot to learn about the art of pitching, but that sinker can win a lot of games.

Smyly back up today and will make his first start in 15 days. Smyly’s brief career can be defined by the number 6 – as in 6 brilliant starts to begin his career, and then 6 mediocre ones. He started his career 4-2 with a 1.59 ERA (including 1 ER over 6 IP against Texas), but is 1-2 with a 6.67 ERA since. Let’s hope that this begins a devilish 6 game win streak and brings his 6 streak to 6 – 6 – 6.

No word on how debilitated Yu Darvish has become from hearing the intro to Soldier Boy over and over.

I’m wondering if it may make more sense to bat Berry 1st, and Jackson 2nd. With Jackson’s ability to go the other way, I think that he can develop into a great #2 hitter; and Berry’s speed and base stealing ability almost mandate that he bat 1st.

A few notes:

– Dave Cameron demonstrates how pitchers are successfully pitching to Josh Hamilton.
– Fangraphs posted an argument that JV could have entered the 7th on Sunday with a no-hitter on the line, but for Cabrera’s defense. (Video replays included, makes for healthy debate).

PoPG is Cabrera. He mashes against Texas – .378 BA and 1.033 OPS over his career. He leads the AL in hits since May 10th with 60, and has posted a 1.065 OPS during that time.

Tonight’s Seemingly Rational Lineup Until I Looked at Order Splits:

1. Jackson, CF
2. Berry, LF
3. Cabrera, 3B
4. Fielder, 1B
5. Young, DH
6. Boesch, RF (2012 OPS batting 6th – .615, 2012 OPS batting 7th – .839)
7. Peralta, SS (virtually identical 6/7 order splits)
8. Avila, C
9. Santiago, 2B

35-37, 3rd place, 3 games behind CWS.

I realize that runs were a luxury over the weekend, but the Pirates are now 23-13 at home with a 2.28 ERA and 1.07 WHIP, all of which are best in the bigs.

Quentin Berry’s 2 run home run yesterday was just the 22nd Tigers home run with runners on base this season, which is 13th in the AL. Only the Royals have hit less HR with runners on base this season. Let’s take a closer look at the solo HR phenomenon.

The Tigers have now hit 44 solo home runs this year out of 66 total. Yes, the 67% solo HR ratio is worst in the AL, but the average solo HR % in the AL this year is 59%, and the Yankees, Blue Jays, Angels and Rays all have solo HR percentages at 60% or greater. So we’re not too far from the mean. FYI – the average AL team HR so far is 77, with a median of 71. So we’re 11 home runs off of the average pace, or about one every 6-7 games. Since 59% of those would be solos, it’s really not that many runs.

In conclusion, solo HRs are not the problem.

Our BA with runners on is .277, which is 3rd in the AL, but our slugging with runners on dips to .406, 7th in the AL. And slugging overall is .408, 7th in the Al. This looks be be a much bigger problem – we hit for average, but we don’t hit for any power. Why not? Let’s look at the lineup:

1. Jackson is slugging over 100 points higher than his career average. He’s not the problem.

2. Berry is slugging .423, which is almost 100 points higher than his MiLB average. I don’t think he can keep this up.

3. Cabrera is down slightly (.524 from .554). Not a big deal, though his walks are way down (understandably considering Fielder), but he’s not taking advantage of the increases ABs. That’s a tiny contribution to the problem.

4.  Fielder is down to .493 from .536. This is a problem. Some of this may be park effects, we’ll have to take a deeper look soon.

5. Delmon is down to .384 from .424. This is a problem.

6. Peralta is down to .394 from .426. This is a problem.

7. Boesch is down to .360 from .419. This is a problem.

8. Avila is down to .396 from .444. This is a problem.

9. Santiago is down to .318 from .341. This is funny.

Rayburn is down to .245 from .436. Did you know that RR has more walks (9) than RBIs (8) or runs (8). He also has more Ks (42) than TB (35).

Every hitter from 3-9 is down this year in terms of power, and most of them by a substantial amount. I expect the Tigers to be very active in the Quentin/Thome market.

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The Tigers begin a 67 game swing through Texas (3) and Tampa Bay (4), against two clubs who are a combined 15 games over .500 at home. The Rangers are 8-2 in their last 10 and have the league’s best record at 45-28; 17 games over .500. The slated Rangers pitchers are Grimm (a rookie), Darvish and Oswalt, the recent signing who looked spectacular in his first game back this season. The Tigers are countering with Porcello/TBDSmyly/TBDFister. This could be a long series. I’m worried about Porcello, nervous about Smyly, and cautiously optimistic about Fister.

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A few notes:

– Tigers are looking at Matt Garza (see ya Porcello?) and Jed Lowrie (to play 2B)
– The MLive Detroit Tigers iPhone app is worth a download (it’s free)

Tonight’s Lineup will be Posted Later:

1. Jackson, CF
2. Berry, LF
3. Cabrera, 3B
4. Fielder, 1B
5. Young, DH
6. Boesch, LF
7. Peralta, SS
8. Laird, C
9. Santiago, 2B

Detroit Tigers, 34-37, 3 1/2 games behind Cleveland.

The Tigers couldn’t touch Cy Lincoln, McCutchen got an 0-2 fastball he liked very much, and that was that, a quick tidy victory for the Pirates.

Well, the Tigers got the obligatory solo home run, and have still not been shut out this season.  So there’s that.

Also Delmon Young got a walk, for those of you have have been holding your breath since his last one (May 22).

At any rate, the Pirates have the brooms out, ready to sweep Detroit out toward Arlington with their Tiger tails between their legs.

First they will have to deal with Justin Verlander.

The last time Verlander faced Pittsburgh, he threw a memorable one-hitter.  This time he also gets to bat, looking to break a career 0-for-22 slump.

Stat of the Day: Prince Fielder has 11 home runs; 10 of them are solo home runs. He has 1 HR in 146 plate appearances with a man on base.  His career average is 1 HR for every 23 PA with men on.

Today’s Player of the Pre-game: Ryan Raburn.  With the middle of the lineup slumping horribly, Raburn gets a key hit off of Cy Young candidate Kevin Correia and the surprise POPG nod.

Today’s Burnberry Lineup:

1. Austin Jackson CF
2. Quintin Berry RF
3. Miguel Cabrera 3B
4. Prince Fielder 1B
5. Delmon Young LF
6. Alex Avila C
7. Jhonny Peralta SS
8. Ryan Raburn 2B
9. Justin Verlander P

Detroit Tigers, 34-36, 3 1/2 games behind Cleveland.

The last game had a little of everything–Pitcher Fielding Follies, Clownman antics in left, strange double-shifting–and a lot of nothing.

Friday night the Tigers continued to help Pittsburgh gain ground in the NL Central, this time by losing to the Pirates 4-1.  The Pirates tried to be sporting about it by sending Jason Grilli and his weak s*** out in the 8th inning to face the heart of the Tiger order, but nothing doing (yes, I realize Grilli is having a good season).

In fact there was a hole in the heart of the order all night:  the Cabrera-Fielder combo was 0-4 with RISP, and had an overall OPS of .000. Over the last 3 games the duo is a combined 2-for-24, and, significantly, 0 walks.

Today that may change against Pirate starter Brad Lincoln, who is has a 10.83 ERA in 3 starts since entering the starting rotation, and has yet to make it through 5 innings.

The offensive support would be helpful: Max Scherzer understandably may not be on the top of his game today. Scherzer is rejoining the team after two days away. There is speculation as to the reasons for the absence, but the official word is just that he was off for “personal reasons.”

Stat of the Day: Over the past 14 days Miguel Cabrera has put up this Inge-like line: .227 BA, .320 OBP, .354 SLG, .684 OPS. Fielder has hit .237 during that time.  I blame the All-Star Campaign Jinx.

Today’s Player of the Pre-game: Max Scherzer, you are our player of the game today, no matter how your outing turns out.

Today’s Underwhelming Lineup:

1. Austin Jackson CF
2. Brennan Boesch RF
3. Miguel Cabrera 3B
4. Prince Fielder 1B
5. Delmon Young LF
6. Alex Avila C
7. Jhonny Peralta SS
8. Ramon Santiago 2B
9. Max Scherzer P

Detroit Tigers, 34-35, 2 1/2 games behind Cleveland, Consecutive Interleague Series Won: 4.

You’re welcome Pirates fans, you’re welcome.

The Tigers head into Pittsburgh to close out an interleague swing that has seem them take series against the Pirates’ division rival Reds and Cardinals. The surprising Pirates are now just 2 games behind Central leading Cincinnati.

The Pirates open the series with the hot hand of A.J. Burnett, who has won 6 consecutive starts, beginning with a 5/19 victory over the Tigers in Detroit.

Doug Fister looks to continue his strong comeback and put Detroit back to the .500 mark. Following his thrilling 10th-inning walk off single, Quintin Berry gets the start in RF in place of the struggling Brennan Boesch. Boesch is 3-7 lifetime against Burnett, but playing Boesch would mean either sitting the Q-Berry, or sitting Young, and apparently we can’t spare his .615 OPS against RHP.  Or maybe it’s his glove we can’t spare, I forget.

In other news, Wednesday may have seen Jake Westbrook stymie the Tiger offense, but it was a day to celebrate for Ryan Raburn.  On Wednesday Raburn reached his 5-year service time milestone, which means that even though the Tigers still have one more option to send Raburn to Toledo, Raburn can decline to report, which would force the Tigers to either keep him on the roster or release him (and still be on the hook for his salary).

Stat of the Day: Prince Fielder leads all active players with 28 home runs against the Pirates, including 9 at PNC Park.

Today’s Player of the Pre-game:  Prince Fielder.  See above.  And the last time Fielder faced Burnett he hit a 2-run HR–his only non-solo HR of the season.

Today’s Young Jacksonberry Lineup:

1. Austin Jackson CF
2. Quintin Berry RF
3. Miguel Cabrera 3B
4. Prince Fielder 1B
5. Delmon Young LF
6. Alex Avila C
7. Jhonny Peralta SS
8. Ramon Santiago 2B
9. Doug Fister P

33-35, 3rd place, 3 games behind Cle.

The Jacob Turner Experience 2012 kicks off this afternoon. Smyly has been pitching well and looks to be ready for his next start, so this is likely just a spot start (or could it be an audition?). Though Turner had a great ERA at Lakeland (1.66) and a good one in Toledo (3.43), his lack of strikeouts (44 in 63 2/3) and high walk rate (4.07 at Toledo) are cause for concern. The Cardinals are one of the most free-swinging teams in the league (they swing at more first pitches than the Tigers), so that should help. But we should have a pretty well rested pen (other than Valverde – who is not available) should Turner get into any trouble. Turner has been awful at Comerica in his young career, posting an 8.53 ERA over three starts.

The Tigers need to win today to increase their series streak to 4.

A few notes:

– Avila up, Holaday down.
– Putkonen down with Turner’s call-up.
– Smyly is slated to throw three innings tonight in Toledo.
– No word on Laird’s hamstring, yet.
– Cabrera is 4-10 lifetime off of Lohse with 2 HR.

Today’s Could Berry Be the Everyday Left Fielder? Lineup is:

1. Jackson, CF
2. Berry, LF
3. Cabrera, 3B
4. Fielder, 1B
5. Boesch, DH
6. Raburn, 2B
7. Avila, C
8. Santiago, 2B
9. Kelly, RF

33-34, 3rd place, 2 games behind Cle (Jake Peavy says watch-out to his CWS teammates)

Justin Verlander was fantastic yesterday. Even though he walked more than he struck out for the first time since June of 2010, Verlander allowed 1 ER on 5 hits over 7 innings. There was that tense moment in the 7th when Berry’s two base error plated two runs, and then a walk loaded the bases, but JV responded with the one of the best sliders of his career to get out of the jam. Before Saturday, the Tigers had won only two games where they led start to finish, got a quality start, and the tying run did not come to the plate in the 9th. They have now won three in a row like that.

Kevin Goldstein of ESPN wrote an article last week (you’ll need Insider) where he asked 12 ML execs who they would pick if they needed a pitcher for just one start. JV dominated the vote totals with 7 votes. The next highest was two.

Verlander was the runaway winner, but some might be surprised to see him get just more than half the votes. “He just walks to the mound like he owns it,” said an American League scouting official. “You’re talking about 95-100 mph to both sides of the plate, a hellacious curveball and a plus change.”

 A National League scout agreed, while focusing on the thought of just one game. “He’s capable of no-hitting anyone at any time, in any place,” said the talent evaluator. “Every time you see him you wonder if you’re going to see something special.”

 A National League front office member also focused on the one-game aspect but took a different angle. “Verlander has been the most consistent when it comes to maintaining plus-plus stuff deep into games, which for me is really what you ask for when looking for the best player to start one game,” the front office member said.

I love the line about “owning the mound.”

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Could there be trouble brewing in the clubhouse? Leyland came out yesterday and said that the team needs more “dirtbags”, Leyland’s affectionate term for players scrappy players. In truth, these guys usually have little major league value and Leyland uses their “dirtbag” role to justify playing them well beyond their expiration date. At the same time Leyland mentioned that his team needs to play with a “mean streak.” I don’t think he intended for them to go Laimbeer on anyone, but rather dive, slide and hustle. But Prince Fielder didn’t respond too well to the comment, saying that he doesn’t have time for that.

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The Tigers have been playing their best ball since the beginning of the season, and their playoff chances are looking better every day. That said, their schedule is only going to get tougher, as only 19 games of the remaining 96 are against teams under .500. They still have 31 games against the White Sox, Rangers, Angels, Yankees and Rays. 10 of those are against CWS and I’m guessing that Cle is going to falter, so those 10 against the White Sox could decide the division. Let’s not forget that the Tigers have only finished above .500 post All Star break once under Smokey.

Injury notes:

– Smyly is slated to throw three innings in Toledo tomorrow night.
– Valverde is going to rest his sore wrist for 3-4 games.

A few other notes:

– The Tigers have not been shutout in 135 games, the longest streak in club history.
– The Tigers have signed undrafted first baseman Andrew Allen, son of Rod Allen. I see you son.
– Keep an eye out for 21 year old reliever Bruce Rondon, as he was just promoted to Erie.
– Phil Coke drenched a few fans last night. Not everyone was pleased. Though those sitting next to Ashley may have been.

Tonight’s Series Clinching Does Smokey Know that this is the Same Lineup as Last Night Lineup:

1. Jackson, CF
2. Berry, LF
3. Cabrera, 3B
4. Fielder, 1B
5. Young, DH
6. Boesch, RF
7. Peralta, SS
8. Santiago, 2B
9. Laird, C

32-34, 3rd place, 2.5 games back (picked up 1.5 games since the last DTW post)

Your Detroit Tigers have scrambled to win 3 straight series (after losing the opener in each), and are 7-3 over their past 10 games. The Cinci series was a nice one as they look to be the cream of the crop in the NL Central, but the Rockies and Cubs series were sweep-able. So let’s not get too excited, but hey, you have to win series, and hopefully the boys are getting used to doing that.

The Tigers look to continue their interleague dominance (.650 since 2006, 2nd best in the majors) against our old foes the Cardinals. That’s gonna be a tough task against Cardinals phenom Lance Lynn. In his first year as a starter, Lynn is 10-2 with a 2.42 ERA and a.209 BAA. His success has been a little perplexing, as he had control issues in the minors, but his K rates have always been good. In fact – he’s averaging more than a strikeout per inning in his big league career. So maybe it’s just a matter of batters getting used to him. He’s also been the benefit of 7.27 runs per game this year, which I don’t expect to happen against JV. Lynn throws a low  to mid 90s fastball and has a cut short curve. 8 of his 22 ER allowed his year have come in the 2nd.

JV was back to his dominating self last time out (as opposed to just above average in the few starts prior) allowing only 2 ER and 5 H over 8 IPs against the Cubs last week. A win today and JV will have his 114th W as a Tigers’ starter, tying him for 14th with Virgil Trucks.

Injury Update:

– Dotel back from the DL, Weber optioned down.
– Avila went 0-2 last night, his 15 days are up on Thursday.

A few notes:

– Don’t forget to vote 25 times for your Tigers on the All Star Ballot. Fielder is in the lead at 1B, Miggy will need some help if he’s going to start at 2nd.
– Brad Eldred’s AAA power got him a ticket to Japan. Good luck Brad, fun getting to know you.
– Drew Smyly’s ebola seems to be healed.
– Berry with another start, Boesch batting 6th against the righty.

Today’s Let’s Win an Opener Lineup:

1. Jackson, CF
2. Berry, LF
3. Cabrera, 3B
4. Fielder, 1B
5. Young, DH
6. Boesch, RF
7. Peralta, SS
8. Santiago, 2B
9. Laird, C