2017 Season, Game Post

Game 2017.86: Tigers at Indians

13 Comments

That game last night was rather forgettable. But it could be worse: you could have been listening to it on the radio while stuck in an hour long delay on 23 North, like I was.

As HelpMeMakeItThruthe9th pointed out, this series is no longer a case of bemoaning bad base running or Brad’s decisions or bad at bats. We are just watching a good team play a not-so-good one.

HelpMeMakeItThruMyFifth.

Today’s Lineup:

  1. Ian Kinsler, 2B
  2. Alex Avila, C
  3. Justin Upton, LF
  4. Miguel Cabrera, 1B
  5. JD Martinez, RF
  6. Victor Martinez, DH
  7. Nick Castellanos, 3B
  8. Alex Presley, CF
  9. Jose Iglesias, SS

Pitching: Justin Verlander vs Mike Clevinger

Same lineup as last night.

13 thoughts on “Game 2017.86: Tigers at Indians”

  1. Yes, no sense splitting hairs, I guess. 38-47 is a team that has played poorly, however good they were supposed to be or could have been. What a hole they’re in, but one game a time.

    Verlander’s swinging strike and contact rates are way off career norms. Just read something about the hard contact off him, too, which certainly rings true so far for this game.

  2. The way we’re hitting so far tonight, I hate to think what Kluber will do to us tomorrow.

    1. Kluber only has 65 career wins, which means he’s not very good. I’m not worried.

  3. JV not super sharp but certainly good enough not to be losing. Offensive offense again.

  4. So much for a nicely-pitched loss and clean innings from Rondon. How low does the bar need to be?

  5. The announcer pointed out that in 9 appearances this year, Bruce has given up 3 runs in 3 of them. That’s low enough.

    1. My bar comment was about the team. Rondon had just pitched 6 appearances 6 innings in a row without giving up anything. Maybe the 9- and 10-pitch at bats before it fell apart indicated something. Couldn’t finish ’em off. Never a good sign.

  7. Other than ’08 & ’15, DET has had a really good run over the past 10-11 years, but they’ve become an overpriced/underperforming team like NYY a few years ago – but NYY (who has a much better farm system) made some good trades, dumped some bad contracts and they’ve gotten younger/cheaper and much more competitive.

    …now is when a great scouting system is essential – if/when DET starts trading for ‘prospects’

    1. 2012, 2013, and 2014 all ended with bitter disappointment. Especially 2013, in my view. 2015, 2016, and 2017… I’m not sure if these are as disappointing. Trying, for sure, but Win Now had worn down pretty thin by the time the Tigers choked against the Orioles. 2017 is starting to feel like 2008 did. Slap happy with losing, kind of.

      We’ll see how Detroit gets more competitive. Seems like a long road, but hey, look at the Astros. Only a few short years ago, we treated a series against the Astros as a joke.

      1. It does seem that a team can have too many “name brand” stars, doesn’t it? The Tigers have at least six. Paring that down to the two living legends might be the way forward. Zimmermann seems to be falling off the star chart, but unfortunately the contract isn’t falling along with it. $70MM+ through 2020 committed to an innings-eater kinda puts a crimp in any rebuilding plans.

        1. The Tigers will have a long road and they won’t be able to do it as quickly as the Astros because the Astros had tons of talent in the minors. One big concern for me is wondering if Big Al is the right guy to change the culture in Detroit. If Chris sells the club then the new owner will sweep the organization clean.

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