PREGAME: It’s the third series of the season, and the Tigers are facing a team for the second time. Where would we be without the unbalanced schedule? Dare to dream.
If the Luke Hochevar and Max Scherzer pitching match-up seems like deja vu, it’s because we’ve seen it before. I’m going out on a limb here, but I bet there are more runs scored this time than in last week’s 2-1 11 inning affair.
Fun fact of the day: the Tigers lead the league in batting average and on base percentage. I’m sure yesterday’s 29 baserunners had something to do with that.
Your Sizemore-got-3-hits-yesterday-so-we’ll-rest-him-today lineup:
Jackson, CF
Damon, DH
Ordonez, RF
Cabrera, 1B
Guillen, LF
Inge, 3B
Avila, C
Raburn, 2B
Santiago, SS
Oh yeah, and Amber Grand is singing the National Anthem today. I’ve got a good feeling.
POSTGAME: No part of this game made sense. Amber Grand sings and they lose. Magglio goes hitless. Scherzer gets rocked. Yuniesky Betancourt continues to get on base. The Tigers made 4 errors. There’s nothing good to report here. Well, except for the third leg of the Veneuzuelan tripod getting his first homer and Brandon Inge playing well with the glove and the bat. But the rest was bad. Let’s move on. Nothing to see here. Amber will get ’em back next game.
PREGAME: Well here we are. Game 162. Will there be an ALDS Game 1 or a Game 163 or is this it? We all know the deal, the Tigers haven’t been out of first place since May 9th. Yet way too eerily much like 2006 the Tigers could find themselves looking up at the Twins for the first time on the last day.
The Tigers do have some things working for them today. Justin Verlander is pretty good and he’s been very good when the Tigers have most needed him. It’s a matter of whether or not there is a limit on how many times the Tigers can go to the well.
John Danks is going for the the White Sox. The Tigers have only faced Danks once this season and could only muster 2 runs. The Twins faced the Danks 2 weeks ago and rocked him for 7 runs and it was the only time he had allowed more than 3 runs since August 6th.
Finally, I thought it was a waste when I heard that Amber Grand would be singing the National Anthem today. It turns out that this may be the Tigers best move with Grand posting a 6-1 record this year.
The Tigers finally played the game that fans had been looking for. Too bad it took them 4 tries to get it right, but they got it right just in time to extend the season.
Justin Verlander came up big. He was unusually efficient. Whether that was Verlander or a White Sox lineup that saw Scott Podsednik DH’ing remains to be seen. Regardless, and despite the fact that Jim Leyland left him in a couple batters too long, Verlander only enhanced his status as a staff ace and an elite arm in the American League.
The offense was led by the corner outfielders with Ryan Raburn and Magglio Ordonez both having big games and big hits. Raburn homered twice, walked, and singled. After his second homer he trotted out to left field and received a standing ovation.
Ordonez came up his 4th time needing a triple for the cycle. That was going to be highly unlikely so he settled for a single and took his 4 hit day.
If the pitching and hitting weren’t enough, the Tigers even played some of their old fashioned solid defense. Curtis Granderson made a game-saving catch in the 8th inning laying out to catch a shallow pop-fly. Adam Everett looked exactly like the elite defender the Tigers thought they were getting. Everything was good.
Even Fernando Rodney, asked to get 4 outs actually got 5. And he did so efficiently not allowing a ball out of the infield in the 9th inning and only the bloop that Grandy snagged in the 8th.
And Amber Grand raised her record to 7-1.
Below are a couple shots from the game today (click for bigger images).
Justin Verlander was dealing
Raburn acknowledges a salute from the fans when he heads to left field after homering
The Tigers are 6-1 in 2009 when Amber Grand sings the National Anthem. Leyland is a fan.
On Sunday the Tigers went into the game mired in a 5 game losing streak. I jokingly (well, half jokingly anyways) mentioned that the Tigers would win because Amber Grand was singing the National Anthem. It seemed that the Tigers have had decent success with Grand on the microphone this season (yeah, I try and take it all in when I’m at the game). That was later confirmed when after Sunday’s game she had pushed her record to 6-1 in 2009.
Here at DTW we are big fans of Grand. She’s got a tremendous voice and a wining record this year and we’d like to see more of Grand belting out the National Anthem. This is meant as no disrespect to the other singers in the rotation who all do an excellent job (especially my friend Cliff Erickson who you can check out around the metro Detroit area). But we’re in a pennant race here people.
DTW: How long have you been doing the National Anthem at Tigers games? Do you know your overall record and is it in line with your 6-1 mark this year? Why have you been so effective in bringing the Tigers wins this year?
AG: This is my 9th season with the Tigers now. I started right out of high school because Dan York who was one of the in house announcers also announced for my hometown’s high school sporting events which I also sang the anthem for. He gave the Tigers one of my basketball game tapes, and the rest is history.
To be honest, I don’t know my record, my dad keeps a good eye on it, so I do know that it’s normally pretty good and not too far off from this seasons, give or take a few. I don’t know why I’ve been so effective in bringing in wins this year, Jim Leyland has come up to me a few times though and told me he really enjoys when I sing…it’s probably just luck, but wouldn’t that be great if it wasn’t? LoL!
DTW: Do you sing the Anthem for any other teams? Do you have any other singing endeavors or are Tigers games your main gigs?
Grand aspires to be like Karen Newman (that's Grand in the picture, not Newman)
AG: I have done the Anthem for The Wings and Lions as well, but my home base is definitely with the Tigers. Other than sporting gigs, I sing for my hometown city in support of Veterans Day, Memorial Day, and the Christmas tree lighting ceremony. I also sing at weddings and other events when asked.
DTW: What do you do when you’re not singing the National Anthem?
AG: I am in my last year at University of Michigan Dearborn studying Elementary Education. I also work as a server/bartender at Chelis Chili Bar. I’ve been there since we’ve been open (6 yrs now) and absolutely love Chris and everyone I work with. Chris has helped in getting me a few of my singing gigs too.
DTW: How about that Michigan-Notre Dame game?
AG: Oh Boy! You asked! I’m Michigan all the way, but I’m from and Irish Catholic Family whose love runs deep for those Irish. We survived the game through our love for one another…it wasn’t easy, I was there and had 10th row seats. It was a great game… and their broken hearts will mend right around January I’m sure!
DTW: Who’s your Tiger?
AG: Curtis Granderson all the way…I do love them all though!
DTW: Are the Tigers making the playoffs this year and if they do how far are they going to go?
AG: The Tigers are definitely making the playoffs this year, and they’re going ALL the way. Are you crazy asking me that question? This is our year baby!
DTW: Sparky Anderson or Jim Leyland?
AG: I have the utmost respect for Sparky…but I think Jim Leyland is amazing. I just love him!
DTW: Karen Newman became a local celebrity singing the National Anthem for Red Wings games. Do you have dreams of hearing “…the Tigers own Amber Grand” before every home game?
AG: That is my main goal. I’ve been at this for 9 years now, I love Karen…I’ve actually sang with her before at a Dearborn Fundraiser with the Red Wings and firefighters. She did the Anthem, I did the Canadian. She is so nice and it was so fun. I would love to follow in her footsteps for the Tigers. All they have to do is ask!
PREGAME: I was worried last night. The Tigers lost 5 in a row and not even the backwards post could fix things. But this morning I’m at ease. I see that Amber Grand is singing the National Anthem. This is in the bank. No worries. If it seems strange to put the fates of a team in a pennant race on the vocal chords of the National Anthem singer, well then you just don’t understand baseball.
Rick Porcello and Ricky Romero reprise their debut match-up from the first week of the season. But it doesn’t matter because Amber Grand is singing the National Anthem.
Your “Amber Grand is singing the National Anthem so the batting order is largely irrelevant” lineup is:
POSTGAME: How ’bout that National Anthem? Money. Money I say. Sure, Porcello pitched pretty good (although he did allow quite a few balls in the air for the 2nd game in a row). And the Tigers hit the ball pretty well up and down the lineup. And the bullpen faced 9 guys and recorded 9 outs (it did take 2 GIDPs but I’m not complaining). But how about that National Anthem?
Magglio Ordonez had 3 hits and has pushed his average up to .294
Gerald Laird had a couple of big hits, which is nice because he doesn’t get a lot of hits.
Brandon Inge seemed to be making a concentrated effort to go up the middle and to the opposite field, and he got himself a couple hits.
Cabrera with an infield single and a stolen base. Typical day for the speedster.
The Tigers played some nice defense with Ryan Raburn getting it started in the 1st with a nice play going into the wall. Eeverett and Inge also made some nice picks on the left side of the infield.
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