2014 Season, Game Post

Game 2014.24: Tigers 8, Royals 2

36 Comments

And now, another DTW Exclusive:

THE LINEUP

2B Ian Kinsler
RF Torii Hunter
1B Miguel Cabrera
DH Victor Martinez
CF Austin Jackson
3B Don Kelly
LF J.D. Martinez
C Alex Avila
SS Andrew Romine

P Rick Porcello

POSTGAME: At Kauffman Stadium this evening, the Detroit Tigers American League baseball club scored 8 runs, and the Kansas City Royals American League baseball club scored 2 runs. After some deliberation, it was determined that the Detroit Tigers had won the contest.

YOU SAID IT

Vince in MN May 2, 2014 at 10:36 pm

This is gonna be his breakout year. And if not this year, next year.

Meaning 4-1 Rick Porcello, of course, who earned the win with 7 IP, 0 serious earned runs, and 19 near-strikeouts, all while throwing only 50 pitches, give or take.

36 thoughts on “Game 2014.24: Tigers 8, Royals 2”

  2. I’m glad we are keeping with the “3rd baseman bats 6th,” wouldn’t want to mess with that formula.

    1. Keeps the R-L-R-L-R-L formula going too. Unfortunately we are stuck with the anti-formula R-R-R-R in the 9-3 slots.

  3. Wow the Indians are pounding Danks and the White Sox: 5 runs, 5 hits, 2 walks, 42 pitches…in the 1st inning!

  5. Hopefully the pressure Holaday is putting on him miight help Avila to actually produce some instead of the two year free ride he is on. I hate that we have to refer back two full years ago to a time he actually produced!

  6. Porcello at 87 pitches after 6. Another batter or two and then it will be time to go to the bullpen. We needs some runs here.

      1. Night Of The Living Martinezes. The key is to separate them in the lineup.

      1. The bats are heating up. One has to ask why the KC bats aren’t heating up, since it is their warm weather.

  9. Porcello is only 26 years old….Another nail in the Porcello bashers coffin…this isn’t the last time he is going to do this!!!!

    nice job AGAIN Ricky!!!

      1. Agree…most 26 year old pitchers are just learning pitching!!!. RICK Is a 5 year guy…

      2. Thats true also!!! Best part is the pen is at least making some progress despite the need for Coke to do well…we are going on a year and a half since the 2012 playoffs since he has contributed anything

    1. There is no lead big enough. I know everyone here already said that to themselves.

  11. Anybody know Cabrera’s avg number of pitches per at bat. It must be the lowest on the team.

      1. Can we get our reference librarian onto this one? I read somewhere a week or so ago that the Tigers are being very efficient at the plate – lowest in Ks in MLB(!) and best BA in AL, so they are putting the ball in play effectively. But I don’t know how that relates to pitches/PA.

    2. OK, here we go, pitcher per plate appearance:

      3.45 Hunter
      3.50 Kinsler
      3.63 Cabrera
      3.89 League average

      On the other side:
      4.43 Avila
      4.23 Martinez
      4.22 Jackson

      1. Thanks. So Cabrera is below league average. Is that less than his career average?

        1. A little, he is 3.75 career.

          A lot of the best hitters see the fewest pitches and vice versa–guys that strike out a lot see a lot of pitches (see Avila). Victor sees a lot of pitches AND hits well, no wonder the Red Sox wanted him.

          1. Well, it seems odd. Miggy has walked 6 times in 24 games, which puts him on pace to walk about 40 (!) times this season. However, the Tigers are 13th in the league in BB, so maybe the team hitting strategy has dramatically changed from previous years and they are just being much more aggressive in the box as well as on the base paths.

            1. It is odd that our three guys who see the fewest pitches are the 1-2-3 hitters. That must make for some quick first innings!

              1. Things haven’t changed much since last check. Tigers are batting .186 (.478 OPS) in 1st innings. And those BAs belong to the you know who’s.

                Contact and ball in play rates are things to look at in conjunction with pitches/PA.

              2. If I’m not mistaken, V-Mart hasn’t walked much this season, either.

  12. I hope not using Coke here is because when Hannrahan is ready Coke is gone…plus we need to keep getting Krol some work!

    1. Hanrahan won’t be ready for at least five weeks. I hope Coke isn’t taking up a roster spot for that long.

  13. An easy inning for Reed. That should secure his roster spot for an appearance or two. Maybe he’ll heat up with the weather too.

  14. Porcello was dynamite, and I was floored to see him back out for the 7th.
    Krol, 3 groundball outs, try to remember “Miggy = first baseman, not catcher.”
    Reed, fastest pitched 9th inning by a Tiger since 1903.
    Avila still makes it look easy when he takes one out.
    Cabrera had a good day, having lots of fun, even the outs were good ones except for the strikeout, and hey, it’s James Shields.
    Kinsler not really hitting and still on base 3 times.
    Romine smooth at SS and hitting some line drives.
    Kelly should really be in some of those Head and Shoulders commercials.
    J.D. was swinging it like Castellanos. Imagine two of those in the lineup.
    Jackson is so cool.
    Is Hunter really losing it in RF, or does positioning have something to do with it? I’ll take that bat nonetheless.
    Victor with multiple double doubles, not single doubles! Defenses always positioned so well against him, and still they can’t stop him.
    Porcello just owns Alciedes Escobar.
    Every team the Tigers face seems to have a better defensive CF, and yet Jackson remains our guy. Not complaining, just goes to show you how attached you can get to a player.
    We’ve seen it before – the Tigers can get to Shields, and it really seemed to get under his skin tonight, didn’t it? It’s good to see Detroit giving a really good starting pitcher a really hard time for more than an inning.
    A Tigers-Royals game without a stolen base attempt is to be considered an oddity, as is a margin of victory > 1.

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