All posts by billfer

2010 Season, Game Post

You can’t spell Scherzer without K

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In honor of Max Scherzer’s 14 strikeout effort, here are 14 thoughts/items/factoids about today’s 10-2 much needed win against Oakland.

  1. The progress that Scherzer displayed in his 15 AAA innings was very much transferrable and nearly as effective. The velocity that came from his newly reacquired proper arm slot was the biggest difference. Just see the data from the pitch f/x system below which compares his last start to Sunday’s effort.

    image

  2. And just because I took the time to generate the chart, here is the plot of Scherzer’s horizontal and vertical movement. The larger the dot, the faster the pitch.image
  3. The one downside to all the strikeouts was an inflated pitch count in the 6th inning. While matching Mickey Lolich’s 16 K record would have been sweet, it was time for Scherzer to come out after the walk and the hit by pitch. The gaudy K total and the shorter outing meant that according to Baseball Tonight, Scherzer’s percentage of outs recorded via strikeout was the highest since 1900.
  4. Things were less tenuous though because the offense finally perked up against Dallas Braden and the managed to score early and late despite failing in R3L2O situations.
  5. The production came throughout the lineup, which was a welcome change. Two homers came from the bottom half of the lineup. Of course the fact that Carlos Guillen resides in the bottom half should certainly help things. Brandon Inge contributed with the bat as well with a homer and 2 doubles.
  6. This deserves it’s own bullet as well.  Gerald Laird had a multi hit game. It was just his 3rd multi hit game of the season.
  7. Meanwhile Miguel Cabrera made a case for player of the week, despite playing in only 3 games. He hit another homer as part of a 4 hit day and has driven in 8 runs the last 3 days padding his RBI lead which had narrowed and pushing his slugging percentage to .670.
  8. Magglio Ordonez continues to rip the ball, and had 2 well hit balls caught. It was only fitting that a jam shot fell for him in the 8th inning to make up for it.
  9. One guy who has had quietly had a few rough outings is Phil Coke. He was hit hard on Friday night but escaped. He gave up both runs in Sunday’s game.
  10. I said I was going to watch Joel Zumaya’s velocity after he was a little shy of his “normal” velocity in Los Angeles. Today he maxed out at 102.2 and averaged 99.78. I’m going to stop watching his velocity.
  11. When Zumaya struggles people complain that he gets too fastball happy. Today he threw the heater 29 out of 32 times and didn’t get the curve over for a strike. Yet nobody is complaining today.
  12. Baseball-Reference Blog » Blog Archive » Scherzer’s 14 Strikeouts
  13. Johnny Damon drew 2 more walks today (and picked up a hit). Coming into today Damon and Ordonez were tied for 10th in the AL. They both hit in front of Miguel Cabrera. Kind of makes you wonder about lineup protection and having a threat to insure guys get pitches to hit.
  14. I’m out of stuff. Good thing I got to 14.
2010 Season, Roster Management

Dontrelle’s End

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After two and a half years of  expectations, hope, patience, and frustration the Tigers have finally cut bait with Dontrelle Willis as he has been designated for assignment to make room for Max Scherzer. Is this decision a move towards less tolerance for failure, or just a matter of “enough is enough”?

It may seem curious to ask the question about less tolerance for failure given Dontrelle’s track record. There have been season long DL stints for knees and anxiety. There has been additional coaching and stays down at A ball to get him out of the spot light. There was the decision to bring him north this season despite the fact he hadn’t out-pitched his competitors in spring training. Through it all the Tigers stuck with him and his large contract, until last night.

Expectations

I think it’s fair to say the Tigers gave Willis every chance. While I don’t disagree with the move at all, the timing itself is a little surprising. After two seasons of implosions, Willis has an ERA, a FIP, and an xFIP that are all under 5.00. Not great or even good, but at least on the brink of serviceable. Given the contract it is disappointing to say the least, but he’s getting paid regardless.

Willis has at times looked good and at times looked out of sorts. Sometimes within the same game, sometimes even within the same inning. But the fact he looked good at times exceeded my expectations. His strikeout rate is the highest it’s been since 2003 and his walk rate is the best of his Tigers career (a still miserable 6 BB per 9).

So my question is, what exactly were the Tigers hoping for out of Willis this season? Dombrowski’s comments on the matter are rather gray, and I doubt we’re getting the whole story. Given his entire career arc, I think Willis is pitching as well as could have reasonably been expected.

Quicker to move

Here’s where I make a logical leap. I hope you can join me because it may be encouraging. Given the Willis DFA, the Sizemore and Scherzer demotions, and the commitment to Brennan Boesch is it out of line to think that the organization is looking to be more swift in swapping out underperformers and maximizing talent on the 25 man roster?

There are still gaping holes at catcher and Adam Everett has been awful as well. With the catcher situation there isn’t an upgrade readily available. With Everett he’s receiving less and less playing time (he and Santiago have evenly split SS duties) and my guess is the Tigers are keeping Everett around to hedge their bets in case Carlos Guillen can’t stick at second and Scott Sizemore can’t fully find his hitting stroke. Throw in Danny Worth and Everett’s leash may be shortening as well.

Margin for Error

The Tigers have made a payroll commitment to “go for it” this year and they have some terrific players to build around. But there are also enough question marks that the team has very little margin for error relative to the Minnesota Twins.

It isn’t time for rash decisions, but the team has to move swiftly if they have chances for quick upgrades. For now that means dipping into their minor league talent pool and they’ve done a nice job of extending the 25 man roster for several weeks now.

2010 Season, Game Post

Game 2010.048: A’s at Tigers

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Rick Porcello and the Tigers against Brett Anderson and the A’s. Here’s hoping for a win. It’s me and Mrs. billfer’s anniversary tonight so you cats are on your own.

Brennan Boesch gets the night off after not getting the ball out of the infield. Probably a good place to spot Ryan Raburn regardless.

  1. Jackson, CF
  2. Damon, DH
  3. Ordonez, RF
  4. Cabrera, 1B
  5. Raburn, LF
  6. Guillen, 2B
  7. Inge, 3B
  8. Laird, C
  9. Everett, SS
2010 Season, Game Post

Frustration 101

8 Comments

Well, at least Miguel Cabrera and Carlos Guillen made significant returns to the lineup. Beyond that the theme of the night was frustration. Despite Cabrera’s 3 homer heroics the Tigers managed to repeatedly come up short in most facets of the game.

Cabrera was spectacular. Each of the 3 homers were crushed no-doubters. Unfortunately the rest of the team didn’t follow suit.

And then there is Dontrelle Willis. Once again he wasn’t good, but once again he wasn’t the reason the team lost. It’s safe to say that the game was close in spite of Willis rather than because of him.

As for the bullpen management, I have a hard time complaining about this one. I like that Ryan Perry was thrust into a difficult 2nd and 3rd situation. Because of the 9th inning it’s easy to forget that Perry escaped the 8th without incident.

The 9th inning was just a disaster, but only one of those pitches I can hang on Perry and that was the Mark Ellis HBP. The double was a fluke. Ordonez was playing deep, Guillen was playing up the middle. It truly was no man’s land.

The swinging bunt was a fluke, though the fact that Fu-Te Ni gave up on the play was frustrating. I don’t know that they can get an out on that play, but Ni didn’t give himself a chance.

In the end the pitching wasn’t quite good enough, the fielding wasn’t quite good enough, and the hitting certainly wasn’t good enough. For the 4th time in 5 games the Tigers came up on the wrong end of a close game.

  • Magglio Ordonez didn’t have a particularly good game. It’s rare he strikes out twice. And while he was active in right field with 7 outs recorded, his inability to get to the double or gun out the runner on the sacrifice fly in the 9th hurt. I think Maggs catches too much flack for his defense as there is nothing wrong with being okay. But he didn’t play well last night. The 8th inning double he didn’t read well and the throw to the plate was accurate but without zip.
  • Phil Coke escaped scrutiny because nobody scored in the 8th inning but he faced 4 batters and all 4 laced line drives.
  • Alex Avila has often hit the ball hard right at people this season (he’s also struck out a lot so I’m not saying his batting average is all bad luck), but he managed 3 dribblers tonight and a catchers interference.
  • Not everything was bad though. Guillen played fine at second base and worked 3 full counts at the plate. The time he didn’t work a full count he ripped a double.
2010 Season, Minors

Tigers Minor League Wrap 5.28.2010

Toledo 7 Buffalo 3
Alfredo Figaro was roughed up for 5 runs on 10 hits and 4 walks in 4.1 innings. Ryan Strieby and Casper Wells each homered. Scott Sizemore doubled and singled.

Harrisburg 4 Erie 7
Andy Oliver fanned 6 and walked none, limiting Harrisburg to 1 run in 7 innings. Matt Hoffman struggled in relief allowing 3 runs while only recording 2 outs. Audy Ciriaco hit a 3 run homer and Josh Burrus had 2 hits.

Lakeland 7 Palm Beach 2
Kody Kaiser continues his hot hitting with 3 more hits including a double. Billy Nowlin also had 3 hits including his 2nd homer. Alden Carrithers walked twice and singled. Brayan Villarreal went 7 innings with 9 strikeouts and a walk and 2 runs allowed.

Dayton 5 West Michigan 4
Jamie Johnson tripled and singled. Jordan Lennerton had 2 hits and a walk and has reached base 20 times in his last 8 games including 5 doubles. Jade Todd went 8 innings and allowed 3 runs on 7 hits, 1 walk, and 4 K’s. Kevin  Faulk blew the save and took the loss.

2010 Season, Game Post

Game 2010.047: A’s at Tigers

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The Tigers have dropped 4 of their last 5 games. They’ll try to right the ship tonight with Dontrelle Willis on the mound as they welcome in the Oakland A’s.

Willis was good and bad in his start against the Dodgers last weekend. He was getting ground balls, and then he got wild. With Max Scherzer throwing bullets down in Toledo Willis may be in a competition with Armando Galarraga for a spot in the rotation. Willis has the advantage of contract status and left handedness, but one wouldn’t think he can’t afford too many outings like his last one.

The A’s send out a former NL pitcher turned reclamation project of their own in the form of Ben Sheets. Sheets hasn’t pitched through the 7th inning, but he is starting to rack up some strikeouts with 8 K’s in 3 of his last 4 games.

Oakland Athletics at Detroit Tigers – May 28, 2010 – MLB.com Preview

2010 Season, Injuries

Carlos Guillen is back

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Carlos Guillen has been activated from the disabled list. Danny Worth is the odd man out and will return to Toledo with an impressive week of MLB experience under his belt.

Guillen will slide into the 6th spot in the lineup behind Brennan Boesch. Worth meanwhile played defense that was impressive enough to give many pause about Adam Everett’s longevity with the team.

Everett isn’t expected to hit much, but like Gerald Laird he’s expected to hit more than he is. It’s one thing to trade some offense for defense, it’s another to forfeit a spot in the batting order. Despite Worth’s ability to pick up some singles in his short stint, he isn’t a good bet to hit much more than Everett. Worth has the benefit of being the new guy and the possibility of the new guy is certainly more intriguing than the reality of the current guy.

On the other hand we’ll see how much defense fans are willing to sacrifice for offense with Guillen moving to second base. I have a feeling the experience won’t be nearly as bad as many feel it will. At the same time I’d take slightly below average defense for Guillen’s offense at the position.

2010 Season, Minors

Tigers Minor League Wrap 5.27.2010

Toledo 6 Buffalo 7
Mike Hessman did in the Mud Hens with 2 homers. Ruddy Lugo allowed 4 runs on 5 hits on a day he didn’t strike out or walk anyone. Daniel Schlereth allowed 2 runs on 2 hits in .2 innings. Jeff Frazier his a 3 run homer. Ryan Strieby had 2 hits and a walk. Ben Guez doubled twice.

Erie – Suspended

Lakeland 4 Palm Beach 5
Alden Carrithers had 2 doubles. Kody Kaiser and Francisco Martinez each doubled and singled. Billy Nowlin homered. Mark Sorensen allowed 5 runs on 9 hits and 2 walks in 7 innings.

West Michigan 4 Lansing 2
Avisail Garcia went 2 for 3 with a walk. Jacob Turner allowed 2 runs on 7 hits, 2 walks, and he fanned 5 in 5.1 innings. Jose Ortega pitched 2.1 innings of relief and he walked 3 but struck out 5.

2010 Season, Minors

Tigers Minor League Wrap 5.26.2010

Toledo: It was an off day for the Mud Hens. But for those interested MILB.tv will have their Thursday game on at 10:35 this morning.

Trenton 7 Erie 6
Wilkin Ramirez seemed to enjoy himself immensely with a 3 homer day, bringing his season total to 13. Cesar Nicolas also had 3 hits but he was hitting behind Ramirez meaning the bases were mostly empty. Cale Iorg picked up 2 hits. Jon Kibler walked 4 and was knocked around for 8 hits and 5 runs in 5 innings. Luis Marte blew the save allowing 2 runs and a homer.

Lakeland 7 Tampa 2
Kody Kaiser notched 3 more hits and is hitting 476/531/667 over his last 10 games. For May his OPS is 1.011. Alden Carrithers and Gustavo Nunez each had 2 hits. Luke Putkonen went 7 innings and allowed 2 runs on 7 hits, 2 walks, and 4 strikeouts.

West Michigan 5 Lansing 9
Jordan Lennerton went 2 for 4 with a double and a walk making it 4 straight multi-hit games for the first baseman. Michael Rockett, Wade Gaynor, and Mike Gosse all had 2 hits.  Ramon Lebron was rocked for 8 runs in just 2.1 innings.

2010 Season, Injuries, Minors

Tigers Minor League Wrap 5.25.10

Toledo 6 Syracuse 3
Carlos Guillen picked up 3 doubles, and the dinner tab. Max Scherzer went 7 innings and allowed just 1 run on 3 hits and a walk with 7 K’s. Scott Sizemore was 2 for 4. Ryan Strieby had 2 hits and drove in 5.

Erie 0 Trenton 4
Thad Weber gave up 10 hits and fanned only 1 but allowed just 4 runs in 6.2 innings. Shawn Roof had 2 of the 3 hits for the Seawolves.

Tampa 3 Lakeland 10
It was yet another electric night for Charlie Furbush. He went 8 innings and allowed a solo homer along with 3 other hits. But he walked none and fanned 12! That’s 44 strikeouts and 2 walks in his last 28 innings. Brent Wyatt and Rawley Bishop had 3 hit nights. Kody Kaiser and Daniel Fields each went 2 for 4.

West Michigan 3 Lansing 0
Giovany Soto pitched the 7 inning complete game shut out notching 6 K’s. Michael Rockett doubled in 2 runs.

West Michigan 1 Lansing 7
Avisail Garcia, Luis Palacios and Billy Alvino had the 3 hits. Victor Larez didn’t make it out of the 3rd inning before surrendering 6 runs on 9 hits.

Scoreboard – MiLB.com Scoreboard – The Official Site of Minor League Baseball