Baseball Reference Game Preview

David Price vs. Alex Cobb

GREAT game last night. There’s something to be said for dinosaurs and pitchers written off as perpetual #5 starters. Not only did Ricky P toss his third complete game shutout of 2014 (a feat that has never been accomplished before in baseball’s 900-year history), but he was also part of a couple nicely turned plays where he covered 1B, and almost part of what was almost a double play except for his part. And don’t forget Rajai Davis, Center Fielder of the Future.

Good times. I can see the Kansas City whatever-they’re-calleds in the rearview mirror already.

David Price facing the Rays. Hmmm. I like it. I like it a lot.

Baseball Reference Game Preview

Rick Porcello vs. Jake Odorizzi

Don’t mind me, just throwing this up early in case I work late tomorrow and/or the random word generator breaks down again. Carry on.

Say, how about some lineups, early birds?

…..

So, good win last night. Down but not out. Bend but don’t break. Runs are runs, and 5 to 8 of them is a very good thing. Aren’t the Tigers about due for a winning streak?

Hey, where did Melvin Mercedes go? Ah well, it’s almost September.

Wil Myers makes his return for the Rays.

Baseball Reference Game Preview

Max Scherzer vs. Chris Archer

Things aren’t going well for the Detroit Tigers these days. Not only are they not playing well as a team, but in addition to the DL-injured Anibal Sanchez and Joakim Soria, and the non-DL injured Justin Verlander, now speed demon and dropper of fly balls Rajai Davis is day to day with a bruised thumb. Sunday’s 8-1 loss to the Mariners was another notable low point in a season with too many already. It was a drag to watch that literally put me to sleep. Yes, there have been both ups and downs, to wit:

27-12
9-20
17-6
13-18

… and we currently find ourselves in a down. What’s next? Up, maybe?

Melvin Mercedes and Jim Johnson are the latest efforts to shore up the bullpen. We’ll see, eh? The Tigers are up to 26 pitchers used this season, and not a lot of that can be chalked up to injuries.

There was a bit of initial buzz about the opportunity for Ezequiel Carrera, and I kept an open mind myself. He is quite a good defender, and on top of that, well… um…  he really is quite a good defender.

No one’s on fire*, and no one is going down in flames. We can blame whoever – it’s really quite the team effort at failure when they fail these days, isn’t it? And is 66-56 so surprising? When you consider how little has changed over the course of the season? Bullpen the same, offense the same, defense the same, starting pitching about the same (a bit challenged by injuries lately, but not such a big factor in the post-break funk). Maybe Detroit’s streaky way of getting to such a pedestrian record is the surprising thing. I suppose it will take some kind of magic to again rise above. Not a question of “going out and getting someone” anymore (such as Nathan? Soria? Price? Johnson?). No. Team magic.

In the meantime, I like Vince’s idea of pondering the rebuilding – or the retooling, or whatever you see fit – ahead for 2015. I think it would make a good off day discussion in advance of Tuesday’s game. Let’s fire ’em and unload ’em in the offseason now and get all that out of our system in advance of the new 2014 season that begins August 19.

*Well, OK, you could say that Max has been on fire – in a good way – and David Price ain’t been too shabby himself. Victor keeps rolling. The rest of  ’em need to pick it up in a big way.

Gotta win series’ at home.

A few thoughts on last night’s game (repost from yesterday’s thread)

A few questions about the Vince/SL exchange from last night [regarding Nathan coming out for the 9th].

1) If Price doesn’t struggle in the 8th, does Ausmus bring him out in the 9th? Let’s say he’s at 100 pitches after a quick 8th. I feel that the right move would be to bring him back out, but based on Ausmus’ brief managerial history, I’m pretty sure he would have brought in Nathan regardless b/c “the 9th is the 9th.”

2) Assuming the 9th is the 9th, at what point in time does Ausmus bring in someone else. If Soria is healthy, does he get a chance? How many more lives does Nathan have? Statistically, I think Nathan is the worst regular reliever in the majors (no research done prior to asserting that claim). I mean, objectively, how can this be our answer? Are DD and Ausmus sharing a drink every night praying that Jim Johnson or Soria or Hanrahan are ready to take a shot?

Other thoughts:

1) Who pitches game 163? Price or Scherzer?

2) Holy cow is anyone watching the Angels? Do the Tigers have a streak like that in them? They’ve done it before (albeit 4 months ago). The Royals, Angels, and Mariners have done it.

3) Sick as Felix is, is it a relief getting to that bullpen? Tigers hit tonight like we expect them to.

4) I’ve been meaning to say this before, I don’t get ever pulling Castellanos late. Is Kelly that much of a defensive upgrade considering our bullpen liabilities? Wouldn’t it be smarter to keep that bat in the lineup?

5) The ads in between the MLB.com highlights kill me. I pay for the subscription, I should be able to skip those.

6) How awesome is beer?

Robbie Ray versus the resurgent Chris Young in the rubber match today. Game preview here.

1. Ian Kinsler, 2B
2. Ezequiel Carrera, CF
3. Miguel Cabrera, DH
4. Victor Martinez, 1B
5. J.D. Martinez, RF
6. Nick Castellanos, 3B
7. Alex Avila, C
8. Andrew Romine, SS
9. Rajai Davis, LF

If the playoffs started today, the Tigers would be swinging and missing at golf balls, not baseballs.

Game Preview Here.

1. Ian Kinsler, 2B
2. Ezequiel Carrera, CF
3. Miguel Cabrera, DH
4. Victor Martinez, 1B
5. Torii Hunter, RF
6. J.D. Martinez, LF
7. Nick Castellanos, 3B
8. Alex Avila, C
9. Eugenio Suarez, SS

(“I got this”)

The scorching hot Mariners roll into the D tonight, winners of 4 in a row and 8 out of their last 10. In fact, the Mariners are 9-3 in the Austin Jackson era, and he recently accounted for all 4 RBIs in a 4-2 Mariners win.

The Tigers counter with an impressive streak of their own, having won 2 in a row, 2 out of their last 6, and 3 out of their last 9.

What looked like an innocuous Austin Jackson returns series a few weeks ago (and should have been), is now a crucial one, as the Tigers maintain a scant .5 game lead on the Mariners for the do or die playoff spot. In fact, every game from here on out is going to be critical since the Tigers, well, you know, aren’t in first place.

There was a lot of buzz yesterday surrounding the fans booing Joe Nathan after Nathan walked the first two batters he saw on Wednesday night. I think the easiest way to appease everyone but Joe Nathan would be to release Joe Nathan, but I don’t think that is going to happen.

Nathan did not take kindly to the booing, as he Corleone-d a fan or the fans in general on his way off the mound after closing out the game. Nathan apologized Thurs morning, but I find his chin flick to be immature and indicative of a lack of focus and confidence.

Victor Martinez commented liberally on the boos after the game on Wednesday. I only heard Dan D’s recap of Martinez’s comments, but it sounded like Victor was disappointed, though understanding of the fans’ reaction. Victor, in case you haven’t figured it out, the fans are incredibly disappointed and are not understanding of the team’s sub.500 performance over the past 3 months.

I firmly believe that paying the price of admission gives any fan the right to cheer or boo, in a reasonable manner. Athletes, like CEOs, celebrities, and public figures, are well compensated (in pay or power), and absorbing frustration from constituents is part of the job. I applaud the fans that gave Nathan what he deserved, and only hope that they booed Ausmus as well. Neither have been performing to an acceptable level as of late and that type of reaction is warranted. When players and the team perform well, we cheer.

Praise needs to be earned. The players shouldn’t be surprised by the boos given the struggles over the past three months. Expectations are high because, on paper, this is the most talented team in the Majors. By a long shot. We have the past three Cy Young winners and Miguel Cabrera for goodness’ sake. Ausmus should be able to win with this team, no matter who he has in the bullpen. Other managers have made lesser bullpens look much better.

The whole team needs to look out into that sold out stadium tonight and realize that playing for such loyal and passionate fans is a blessing. They need to look at each other and recognize that playing with the teammates, and for an owner like Mr. Ilitch, is an opportunity. At the professional level, oftentimes the difference between winning and losing is effort. Not talent, not circumstance, but effort. If this team goes out and gives all the effort they have, they’ll get all the cheering they want.

****

–  Grantland recently rated Ausmus 25th out of 30 in a “manager meddling index.”

– Tigers lost 2/3 in Seattled May 30 – June 1

Baseball-Reference Game Preview here:

Rick Porcello v. M’s lefty James Paxton

1. Rajai Davis, CF
2. Ian Kinsler, 2B
3. Miguel Cabrera, 1B
4. Victor Martinez, DH
5. Torii Hunter, RF
6. J.D. Martinez, LF
7. Nick Castellanos, 3B
8. Bryan Holaday, C
9. Eugenio Suarez, SS