Polanco Gets 1,000th Hit in Tigers' Win

Grand hit for Polanco: Placido Polanco doesn't keep a lot of baseballs from his career, but he has a few. They include his first Major League hit off then-Reds pitcher Brett Tomko at Cinergy Field on July 5, 1998, and his only career grand slam, hit April 23, 2000 against Colorado -- at Busch Stadium, not Coors Field.

His 1,000th career hit goes into the collection, even though he was tagged out with the same ball after rounding too far past first base and drawing a quick throw from A's second baseman Mark Ellis.

"It means a lot," Polanco said. "You look back and you start counting. Now the goal is to get to 2,000."

He might not keep another ball until then, because he's not exactly attentive to milestones. He didn't know this one was coming until he checked the back of one of his baseball cards one day in Spring Training and saw he had 981 career hits.

If Polanco really worried about statistics, though, he probably wouldn't play the selfless style that has made him a manager's favorite.

"It couldn't happen to a better guy," Leyland said. "He's earned it. He had a big night. He's one of those guys that, as a manager, you appreciate him. You just don't talk about him too much. You just come here and know he's going to be ready to play. You know he's going to give you everything he has every day. He's just a great person. You like to see good things happen to good people. It's a nice little milestone."

For now, though, it's not quite into record territory. "That really makes you appreciate Pete Rose and Ty Cobb," Leyland said Thursday. "I mean, I love Polly, but he's still got 3,000 to go. How in the world do you do that?"

This is somewhat big news, as it was assumed that Tata would be the one sent down. Tata's pitched well, but I'd like to see him continue to be developed as a starter. There's alot to be said for experience against big league hitters, but young pitchers like this need to develop all their pitchers, and working in a major league bullpen role they often only really use 2 of them.


Spurling sent to Toledo

Right-hander's woes make him the odd man out as Jones is activated from the disabled list.

Tom Gage / The Detroit News

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Only one player looked unhappy after the Tigers' dramatic 4-3 victory Thursday over the Oakland A's.

Then again only one player had a reason to be. To make room for Todd Jones, who came off the disabled list, the Tigers optioned pitcher Chris Spurling to Toledo -- electing to keep rookie Jordan Tata instead.

"We know that Chris did a good job here last year," said manager Jim Leyland, "but he's struggled so far. We just need to get him untracked. This isn't the end of the world, or the end of the season for Chris Spurling in my opinion.

"He needs to go down there and get himself going. We felt this was the best move to make."

Spurling had a 5.14 ERA in six appearances. Tata has a 3.12 ERA in three.

"At this point, he's one of the 12 best pitchers," Leyland said of Tata. "I don't know how it's going to play out, but right now, this is the move we decided to make."


http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060421/SPORTS0104/604210314/1129

Why do they only use 2 pitches? Especially long relievers (which is the role Tata's been filling if I'm not mistaken). Is it the limited times they see each batter per game?

Why do they only use 2 pitches? Especially long relievers (which is the role Tata's been filling if I'm not mistaken). Is it the limited times they see each batter per game?

They don't ALWAYS use two pitches, but they tend to rely on only 1-2 pitches as they usually only see each batter once per game.

Also, if they have a pitch that's underdeveloped, they won't use it so much in the big leagues, as it's a more high leverage situation where every pitch counts and mistakes are very costly. They may be encouraged to use that pitch in the minors even if it means giving up a run here and there in order to develop it further and make them a more complete pitcher.

Baseball and pitching is a very fickle game. Confidence can be as important as anything, and if a pitcher doesn't have as much confidence in a pitch as a go-to, they may be reluctant to throw it, and when they do throw it, they may not throw it as well as they can because they're not 100% mentally behind it.

This is somewhat big news, as it was assumed that Tata would be the one sent down. Tata's pitched well, but I'd like to see him continue to be developed as a starter. There's alot to be said for experience against big league hitters, but young pitchers like this need to develop all their pitchers, and working in a major league bullpen role they often only really use 2 of them.


Spurling sent to Toledo

Right-hander's woes make him the odd man out as Jones is activated from the disabled list.

Tom Gage / The Detroit News

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Only one player looked unhappy after the Tigers' dramatic 4-3 victory Thursday over the Oakland A's.

Then again only one player had a reason to be. To make room for Todd Jones, who came off the disabled list, the Tigers optioned pitcher Chris Spurling to Toledo -- electing to keep rookie Jordan Tata instead.

"We know that Chris did a good job here last year," said manager Jim Leyland, "but he's struggled so far. We just need to get him untracked. This isn't the end of the world, or the end of the season for Chris Spurling in my opinion.

"He needs to go down there and get himself going. We felt this was the best move to make."

Spurling had a 5.14 ERA in six appearances. Tata has a 3.12 ERA in three.

"At this point, he's one of the 12 best pitchers," Leyland said of Tata. "I don't know how it's going to play out, but right now, this is the move we decided to make."


http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060421/SPORTS0104/604210314/1129


[smilie=hammertime.:

Why do they only use 2 pitches? Especially long relievers (which is the role Tata's been filling if I'm not mistaken). Is it the limited times they see each batter per game?

They don't ALWAYS use two pitches, but they tend to rely on only 1-2 pitches as they usually only see each batter once per game.

Also, if they have a pitch that's underdeveloped, they won't use it so much in the big leagues, as it's a more high leverage situation where every pitch counts and mistakes are very costly. They may be encouraged to use that pitch in the minors even if it means giving up a run here and there in order to develop it further and make them a more complete pitcher.

Baseball and pitching is a very fickle game. Confidence can be as important as anything, and if a pitcher doesn't have as much confidence in a pitch as a go-to, they may be reluctant to throw it, and when they do throw it, they may not throw it as well as they can because they're not 100% mentally behind it.

I had the same concerns (still do) when Zumaya made the roster as a relief pitcher.

I had the same concerns (still do) when Zumaya made the roster as a relief pitcher.

I'm right there with you. I love the success Zumaya and Tata are having, I just worry about us losing two stud starters in exchange for two stud relievers. Starters are just worth so much more.

Bondo fine: Jeremy Bonderman said he was sore, but OK after Dan Johnson's comebacker up the middle hit him on his backside for the final out of the seventh inning Thursday in Oakland. Bonderman left the game after that, but more for his 99 pitches than his health. He's expected to be able to make his next start Tuesday against the Angels.

Another roster move: In addition to calling up Jones and sending Chris Spurling to Toledo, the Tigers made a procedural move on Craig Dingman, transferring the reliever from the 15-day to the 60-day disabled list. Dingman underwent surgery last month to repair a torn artery in his pitching shoulder.

Silence is golden: The Tigers entered Saturday having won three of four games since manager Jim Leyland's postgame tirade Monday at home. Yet no matter what happens from here, Leyland doesn't plan on repeating the display anytime soon.

"I won't rant and rave at them again for quite a while," Leyland said. "You have to be careful. You send a message, but if you try to send that message too often, it falls on deaf ears. I think the message has gotten across. Hopefully we'll carry that through for a while. Probably the next time we have to have that conversation, it'll probably just be a conversation. It won't just be me ranting and raving."

Asked how many times he's had to hold back such an outburst in his career, Leyland said, "Quite a few. The one thing about it is you can't really plan it. It just happens. When you get ticked off, you get ticked off."

I had the same concerns (still do) when Zumaya made the roster as a relief pitcher.

I'm right there with you. I love the success Zumaya and Tata are having, I just worry about us losing two stud starters in exchange for two stud relievers. Starters are just worth so much more.

I am not worried as much about Tata because I think the organization still looks at him as a future starter.

But Zumaya is another story. Throughout his career, he has been labeled as a closer/reliever due to his throwing motion and his fatball. With that in mind, I think the organization might be inclined to keep him in the bullpen if he is having success as a reliever. Also being a reliever means that he can't develop his offspeed pitches that he will need to be succesfull as a starter.

But... But... If Zumaya could start, we'd have a hell of a rotation when these guys get a little experience. Just imagining it makes me happy. Then again, I think him starting would lead to elbow/arm problems (as H1 said, the throwing motion). I don't know... But this kid is good.

But... But... If Zumaya could start, we'd have a hell of a rotation when these guys get a little experience. Just imagining it makes me happy. Then again, I think him starting would lead to elbow/arm problems (as H1 said, the throwing motion). I don't know... But this kid is good.

But the question is will he even get a chance to start. Both Dombrowski and Leyland have said that they see Zumaya's future in the bullpen. That worries me. I don't mind Zumaya being in the bullpen, but only if he proves that he is incapable of being a starter.

HIT MAN: Placido Polanco's next 1,000 hits might come a lot faster than his first 1,000. He got most of those for St. Louis and Philadelphia without holding a steady, full-time job.

The Tigers obtained Polanco last June from the Phillies for reliever Ugueth Urbina and immediately installed him at second base. Polanco got his 1,000th hit Wednesday night, then said: "I felt really relaxed when I came over here, and I was given the second-base job. And then signing for four years made it even better."

Tigers officials quickly realized what they had in Polanco, who was due for free agency last fall. The club signed him to a four-year deal a few months before season's end.

With his new feeling of relaxed security, the 30-year-old Polanco could just be getting started. "Exactly," he said. "I've just got to stay focused."

HERE'S A FIRST: In his long career, Ivan Rodriguez has never played anywhere besides catcher. But Leyland said he'd use him at first base if Chris Shelton needs a day off. "He played it in winter ball for four years," Leyland said.

The manager acknowledged that Rodriguez's career could last longer if he takes some breaks from catching and plays first base. But he added, "Pudge is trying to get to the Hall of Fame as a catcher, so you have to be careful there. If you can save him some rough days, that's one thing. But he's known for his catching, and that's where he'll probably be most of the time."

Contact fielder: Knowing that day games become an issue in Detroit and elsewhere once summer arrives, center fielder Curtis Granderson is looking for ways to deal with the sun. He spent part of batting practice trying out a pair of performance contact lenses, similar to those used by Orioles second baseman Brian Roberts last year. He did not wear them for the game.

Several players have taken to the contacts since Roberts' success, and other Tigers have talked about trying them out. However, Granderson normally doesn't wear contacts.

Maroth OK for next week: Mike Maroth's elbow is apparently OK two days after his win on Friday night, meaning he should be ready to pitch on Wednesday against the Angels. Maroth has tossed 13 scoreless innings over two outings since being pushed back in the rotation with elbow tenderness a little more than a week ago.

Zany outing for Zumaya: Games like Sunday are the periodic reminders that Joel Zumaya, for all his ability, is still a 21-year-old in the Major Leagues. He entered Sunday having allowed a run on five hits in eight innings this year, but the Mariners offense suddenly awakened once he replaced Justin Verlander to start the eighth inning.

Every pitch the Mariners hit was a fastball. It started innocently enough with an Ichiro infield single before Raul Ibanez and Richie Sexson belted hits off the wall for a single and RBI double, respectively. The fastball to Sexson registered at 98 mph, but was low and over the plate.

After Zumaya recovered to spot a changeup for a called third strike on Matt Lawton, Adrian Beltre hit another 98 mph heater for a two-run single. Zumaya threw all fastballs at 96 mph or better in a five-pitch walk to Jeremy Reed before Leyland replaced him with Fernando Rodney.

"Sometimes late-inning relievers live on a lot of adrenaline," Leyland said. "Sometimes, I think when you take that way, the concentration's not as good."

Zumaya wasn't going to use that as an excuse, saying he pitches with adrenaline all the time regardless of score.

"My pace was out of whack," Zumaya said. "I was going too fast and leaving my pitching up in the zone."

Young update: Dmitri Young, who went on the disabled list April 15 with a strained right quadriceps muscle, rejoined the Tigers Monday and took batting practice.

However, manager Jim Leyland doesn't have a timetable for Young's return.

"He's doing great," said Leyland. "He feels great. He can hit."

Asked about the two-week timetable, Leyland gave his stock answer: "I don't talk about players on the disabled list -- they can't do me any good."

Still, Leyland did call Young "a professional hitter" and said, "We need that bat."

Shelton slump: Chris Shelton, who had collected 17 extra-base hits and 64 total bases this month, the most by a Tigers player since 1960, went 0-for-Seattle (0-for-9). He came into Monday night's game batting .105 for the road trip (2-for-19), but was still hitting .371 with nine homers and 18 RBIs overall. (Shelton singled his first time up against the Angels.)

Leyland believes that Shelton is going through a learning process.

"I think he got a little drained" from the media blitz during his home run surge, said Leyland. "He's a young kid. He's not used to being the center of attention. That's not his style. To be honest, I don't think that was really good for him, but it goes with the territory and it's a learning process.

"I really shouldn't say that it wasn't good for him -- that's a bad choice of words. It was good for him in a sense that he deserved to be recognized for what he was doing. He should have been complimented by everybody. But it was bad for him in a sense that it happened so fast. He wasn't use to handling stuff like that.

"I think it may have overwhelmed him a little bit. He's not used to having 15 guys [reporters] by his locker every night," Leyland added. "You wouldn't even know that he was in the lunchroom. Now all of sudden, he has the bright lights on him and everybody wants a piece of him. I think he's fine and a wonderful person."
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060424&content_id=1416714&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

Stopping the running game: Opponents have stolen three bases in five attempts against the Tigers through the season's first 21 games. Both figures are tied for the fewest in the Majors with the New York Yankees.

Rodriguez, of course, has been a major factor. A year ago, I-Rod threw out 44.1 percent of baserunners attempting to steal.

However, Leyland feels that his pitchers have done a good job, not only in keeping the runners close to first, but throwing the ball to home plate.

"I think Pudge is a factor, but I think that [Justin] Verlander and [Joel] Zumaya and the guys [other pitchers] are 1.1, 1.2 [seconds to home]," said Leyland. "And that's pretty hard to run on that, especially with Pudge Rodriguez back there. It's a combination of things."

Still Leyland was wary of the Angels, who had stolen 15 bases in 19 attempts this season.

"[Angels manager] Mike Scioscia will run on anybody. He's not going to let anybody shut his running game down or at least attempt it, because he's an aggressive guy and he's smart. He's not going to be intimidated by anyone. We are aware of the fact that they want to run, and it's always a cat-and-mouse game."

A new song coming to Comerica? Bill Slayback, the former Detroit Tigers pitcher who penned the baseball song "Move over Babe (Here comes Henry)," has a new CD titled "Lady Dancing on Fire." Leyland, for one, wants it played at Comerica Park.

"I have something that I want the Tigers to play at Comerica Park," said Leyland before Wednesday's game. "'Lady Dancing on Fire' by Billy Slayback. It's outstanding; It has all the stuff; It's tremendous. He did all the music, all the instruments, he played them all.

Along with the CD, Leyland got a visit from an old friend.

"This is good, now, I listened to it [on Tuesday]," said Leyland. "[Slayback] came in to see me, he and John Young. They actually came to see me and Gene [Lamont] both. He gave Gene and I one of these CDs. We're going to play it on the plane [during Wednesday night's trip home]."

Young, an infielder, played with Slayback on the 1971 Tigers team.

"John's a real good buddy of mine," said Leyland. "He was one who always said that he never came to Spring Training in shape because if he did, they would find out that he couldn't play."
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060426&content_id=1419447&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060428&content_id=1422853&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

Young approaching return

Dmitri Young would rather not talk about when his brother could play again, but he's pretty upbeat about his own situation.

Since rejoining the team earlier this week at Angel Stadium, Young has progressed to the point where he's doing all pregame activities plus a special running program designed to test the strained quadriceps in his right leg. He's eligible to come off the disabled list Sunday, and it's looking more and more possible he could be activated soon after.

"Just have to get out this last little bit up in here starting and stopping," Young said.

Head athletic trainer Kevin Rand wouldn't put a timetable on his return, saying he has to do everything at full speed before they can look ahead to that. So far, though, they've increased the intensity of workouts each day, and he has responded pain-free each time.

The sooner he can come back, the sooner the Tigers can fill a void that has made "designated hitter" a relative term. Tigers DHs entered Friday with fewer RBIs this season (five) than any other position in the lineup. Meanwhile, Young's customary fifth spot in the lineup entered Friday with just four RBIs on the year, half as many as any other spot in the order.

Granted, part of those stats come from Young, who went 7-for-32 in eight games before being injured slowing up going into third base April 14. Young, though, is a notoriously slow starter who nonetheless carried the threat of a big hit. Marcus Thames, Alexis Gomez and Omar Infante were batting a combined 5-for-38 at DH with one double and no RBIs before Thames hit a solo homer in the third inning Friday.

Young's only comment on younger brother Delmon's situation was that he has talked to him since his infamous incident Wednesday, when he flipped his bat and hit a home-plate umpire in the chest after being ejected from a game for Triple-A Durham at Pawtucket. Delmon Young is currently under suspension from the International League until the league determines an appropriate length.


[B]Rondell back in Detroit: Rondell White, now a member of the Twins, can relate to his former teammates when it comes to slow starts. A year ago, he hit .325 in April in earning Tigers Player of the Month honors. By contrast, he entered this series batting .150 with no homers and five RBIs.

"I can't explain it," White said. "I feel good at the plate. And when I do hit it good, it's right at somebody. For like a week, it seemed like there's 14 guys out there when I come up, five outfielders and nine infielders."

It's hard to tell whether his return to Comerica Park will be much help. Though he hit .313 last year in his final season as a Tiger, he was 27 points better on the road (.325) than at home (.298). He hit just .230 at Comerica Park as a Tiger in 2004.

Nonetheless, he was happy to be back.

"It feels strange making that right turn [to the visitors clubhouse] rather than that left turn," he said. "I came here early, around two o'clock, talked to some of the grounds crew people. It's great to be back in the city."

New angle on Guillen's errors: Don't expect much alarm for Carlos Guillen despite a rough start in the field. His six errors lead not only American League shortstops, but all AL players. Most of the miscues have been on throws that either went wide or in the dirt.

Infield coach and longtime Major League shortstop Rafael Belliard said last weekend that he believes Guillen's early errors might be related to his low throwing motion. However, Belliard admitted, Guillen's a veteran shortstop who has had the same motion for several years and has had success with it. Short of that, they're doing more standard work with ground balls.

Manager Jim Leyland isn't overly concerned.

"I think they've all been those kind of tough plays that could go either way (hit or error)," Leyland said. "He's a good player. I have a lot of confidence in him. I like him. He's done a good job for us."

Good reads H1. I gotta remember to check this thread more often.

Robertson hones his slider

Nate Robertson has gained velocity on his fastball, which topped out in the low 90s Friday night. But to him, his success or failure as a starting pitcher will rest on the slider. It wasn't working in his start here two weeks ago against Cleveland. It has worked in his last two starts.

"My game has been getting the ground balls," Robertson said. "It always has been."

Robertson's ratio of ground balls to fly balls has dropped in each of his last three years since his late-season audition in 2003 set the stage for him to crack the Tigers rotation full-time. He had a 1.79 ground ball/fly ball ratio that year, 1.67 in 2004 and down to 1.59 last year.

So far this year, he has induced 39 ground balls compared to 17 fly balls. He actually has more strikeouts than popouts.

"He's getting more confidence as he goes along," manager Jim Leyland said.

Pitching coach Chuck Hernandez did some work with Robertson on improving his slider earlier this month, but Robertson believes it wasn't a terrible pitch in his previous starts. His bad third inning against Cleveland was powered in large part from six singles, many of them ground balls.

The difference lately, Robertson said, is in the consistency.

"It's a feel thing," Robertson said. "Sometimes guys don't have all their pitches working. These two starts, I've had it right out of the gate."

His fastball is more of a work in progress. He threw it in the low 90s two years ago before it dropped off last year. This year, Hernandez is making sure he pays more attention to it leading into his starts. He's not hitting the 90s consistently with it, but he's finding a few extra miles per hour at opportune times.

"Chuck got on me about getting out there and making sure I have a feel for my fastball first and not just come out of the gate just winging it," Robertson said. "If I needed to get something on it, I felt like I could. As long as I have that in the tank, it's nice to have.

"But it's really [about] establishing the zone, make sure your pitches are down, first and foremost. And then if you need to get up on it, get up on it. The biggest thing is to stay down. If you stay down, you get ground balls."

Red eye: Don't worry for Curtis Granderson if his eyes looked solid red on the field Saturday. He tried out his pair of performance contact lenses in a game for the first time as he tried to block out the glare of the afternoon sunlight. So far, they've worked out well for him.

Granderson had tried them out during batting practice in previous day games but hadn't taken them out for game action. They're the same kind of Nike contacts made famous by Baltimore's Brian Roberts last season.

Granderson normally doesn't wear lenses, so it takes some time to learn how to put them in his eyes and keep them from drying out. The red look to his eyes is another adjustment, especially for teammates.

"They were making fun of me and Brandon Inge, saying we look like two bats," Granderson said. "We were standing next to each other."

Granderson has yet to commit an error in 77 career Major League games in the outfield, the longest such streak for a Tigers player to begin his career since Danny Bautista posted 88 errorless games from Sept. 17, 1993, to June 28, 1995.

Verlander cruises: Leyland said Saturday starting pitcher Justin Verlander looked out of sync in his seven innings of work. Given the huge cushion he had, he didn't have much pressure to get into sync. He still scattered a run on six hits over seven innings.

Verlander said he focused more on location than velocity on his fastball while mixing in his changeup more.

"I was a little anxious for this one, because my last home start didn't go too well," Verlander said. "I wanted to get out there and do well at home, so it did me good."

Best month for blankings: Friday's 9-0 Tigers win was their American League-leading fourth shutout already this season, marking the most April shutouts in franchise history. They've already doubled their total for the entire 2005 season.

It's another of the many league-leading stats for the fast-starting Tigers staff. Its 3.46 ERA and .223 batting average allowed entering Saturday both were AL bests. Detroit's starting rotation leads the league with a 3.65 ERA, 7.93 hits per nine innings and 10.75 baserunners per nine innings.
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060429&content_id=1424223&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

Yeah, Big Nate's slider was absolutely sick last night. If he gets that pitch to work on a regular basis he'll be a stud.

Kenny Rogers Article:

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/5539582



Rogers has become a role model in Detroit For some, the perception will linger: Kenny Rogers attacked two unsuspecting cameramen, and that's that. Never mind Rogers' 193 career victories. His three All-Star appearances. His four Gold Gloves.

Never mind a conflicting view that exists among Rogers' new teammates in the Tigers' starting rotation, pitchers who have waited their entire careers to be mentored by such a veteran — and are now benefiting from his wisdom.
Consider Tigers left-hander Mike Maroth, a pitcher whose soft-tossing repertoire is similar to Rogers'. Maroth tried moving from the middle of the pitching rubber to the third-base side in the spring of 2005, but he quickly abandoned the idea. This spring, at Rogers' suggestion, Maroth gave it another shot.
http://msn.foxsports.com/id/5539828_36_2.jpgKenny Rogers has served as a mentor for the young pitchers on the Tigers' pitching staff. (Tim Umphrey / Getty Images)
Rogers, Tom Glavine and other similar lefties set up on the third-base side; it's easier to hit the inside corner against right-handed hitters from that spot. Maroth, who entered the season 40-58 lifetime with a 4.82 ERA, has learned to slow the game down mentally. Scouts say his stuff looks crisper. But clearly, Rogers' advice helped: After three starts, Maroth is 3-0 with a 0.49 ERA.
The Tigers, meanwhile, are off to a 13-9 start under new manager Jim Leyland — and though the season is little more than one-eighth complete, they lead the American League in rotation ERA.
"I didn't give it enough time (in 2005). I didn't have confidence in it. I didn't trust it," Maroth says of his adjustment on the mound. "Talking with Kenny gave me that confidence, that mindset that I needed to have to give it a chance."
Rogers, 41, might never live down the footage of his confrontations with the cameramen as a member of the Rangers last June — he was fortunate that an arbitrator trimmed his 20-game suspension to 13. Ugly as the incident was, however, it was an isolated occurrence. For most of Rogers' career, he has been a good pitcher and good teammate.
Still, the fallout from the episode hastened Rogers' departure from the Rangers as a free agent.
"I certainly expect him to go out and have a good year," Rangers general manager Jon Daniels says. "But with the things that had transpired in the past, we just decided that it was an appropriate time to go in a different direction."
Rogers' eventual price — $16 million for two years — also was too steep for the Rangers.
The Tigers saw it differently.
Active win leadersPitcherWinsRoger Clemens341Greg Maddux322Tom Glavine277Randy Johnson266David Wells227Mike Mussina226Jamie Moyer205Pedro Martinez201Curt Schilling196Kenny Rogers193

By signing Rogers and giving free-agent closer Todd Jones, 38, a two-year, $11 million deal, their idea was to add stability at the top of their rotation and back of their bullpen.
Jones spent the first 18 days of season on the disabled list with a hamstring injury. But Rogers' impact goes beyond his early performance — four quality starts in five outings, a 3-2 record and a 2.57 ERA.
Maroth, 28, had been one of the more veteran pitchers in the Tigers' rotation in recent seasons, but the term "veteran" was relative; Maroth's major-league service time was only slightly greater than that of right-hander Jeremy Bonderman, 23. Indians right-hander Jason Johnson, 32, pitched with the Tigers in 2004 and '05, but Rogers offers superior credentials and know-how.
Tigers lefty Nate Robertson, a harder thrower than Maroth, bears a closer resemblance to the old Rogers than the current version, but he, too, raves about Rogers' openness and willingness to teach. Last Saturday night, Robertson, 28, could be seen talking to Rogers in the dugout after escaping a critical seventh-inning jam to preserve a 1-0 lead against the Mariners. The Tigers won, 2-0.
"One of the biggest questions I approached him with was, 'When you're in a situation in a game when there's (a) threat of a big inning, guys in scoring position with less than two outs, what are you trying to do?' " Robertson said.
"When a pitcher gets in trouble, facing a situation that could get ugly, you hear about guys trying to do too much. It's, 'How do you get to the point of staying within yourself? How do you take that to the mound?' He's helped me understand how to do that."
And the lessons don't end there.
Maroth says he knew that Rogers was a good fielder, but he didn't realize how good until he watched him take PFP — pitchers' fundamental practice — in spring training. Maroth was stunned by Rogers' diligence. Rogers, he says, doesn't just talk about how a pitcher can influence a game with his fielding. He works at it.
Statistical analysts often point out — correctly — that the value of a "proven veteran" is overstated. The Tigers, though, signed a pitcher who was 58-33 the previous four seasons with ERAs below the league average. The Marlins intended left-hander Al Leiter to be the same type of addition when they signed him as a free agent before last season. Leiter provided the mentorship, but not the performance.
Rogers, in contrast, is still going strong.
http://msn.foxsports.com/id/5544476_4_1.jpg( / Associated Press)
He has never been considered a clutch pitcher; he flopped with both New York teams in the late 1990s, and his career ERA in nine postseason appearances is 8.85. But with the Tigers, Rogers already is emerging as a stopper.
On April 17, in a game started by Robertson, the Indians whipped the Tigers, 10-2, prompting a memorable post-game outburst from Leyland. The Tigers lost again the next day in Oakland at the start of a nine-game, west-coast trip. But Rogers beat the A's the day after that to trigger a five-game winning streak.
Will any of this make people forget what Rogers did last summer? Perhaps not. But Robertson says, "Kenny is shaking off all the negative problems from last year and everything that stemmed from that. Now in Detroit, a lot of that has been put to rest."
Maroth concurs.
"I had always heard nothing but good things about him before and after the incident last year," Maroth says. "He's very reserved, quiet, laid-back. It's hard to believe something like that could happen. But it could happen to anybody.
"I have nothing but good things to say about him. He has been a huge influence and has made a huge impact on us as starters, no question." That's part of the Kenny Rogers package, too. [I]Ken Rosenthal is the senior baseball writer for FOXSports.com.

Ordonez hits 200th homer
Tigers outfielder reaches historic plateau in win over Twins

Magglio Ordonez hadn't yet received the ball from his 200th career home run Saturday before he was ready to move on. Simply getting this far was a struggle down the stretch.

"Two hundred is not too many," said Ordonez. "I wish I could have 300, 400. Now I have to look for 201, 202. Two hundred was one of my goals."

He reached 175 homers in his sixth full season back in 2003 before he turned 30. He fell a home run short of his fifth straight 30-homer season that year, and it seemed inevitable he'd be aiming for 300 homers by his mid-30s.

That, of course, was before the series of injuries that derailed him over the last two seasons. Knee injuries limited him to nine home runs in basically a half-season of action in 2004, then hernia surgery cost him half of last season and left him sapped of his strength to drive the ball once he came back.

His 200th homer was an encouraging sign because it looked like his homers of old. He drove a Francisco Liriano pitch with authority into the left-field seats for his fifth homer of the year. All five of them have been pulled shots.

"I think it was just a matter of time," he said. "Once I get my rhythm, once I get used to playing every day, I can get my swing back."

Ordonez's homer Saturday was part of a 3-for-4, two-RBI outing. He went 0-for-4 Sunday, but is still batting .329 (25-for-76) over his past 18 games.

Young nearly back: Though Leyland said Dmitri Young isn't yet ready to return from the DL, he stepped up his baserunning again Sunday. Head athletic trainer Kevin Rand said that once he passes his stop-and-go baserunning drills and says he feels comfortable, he'll likely be cleared medically to resume baseball activities. Where Young goes from there depends on whether he accepts or declines a Minor League rehab assignment.

http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060430&content_id=1425838&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

The good news just keeps on coming

The Tigers' own Todd Jones writes a column for the Sporting News:

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=rookiesaremakingthemselv&prov=tsn&type=lgns



Rookies are making themselves heardBy Todd Jones - SportingNews

http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/us/sp/cn/headshots/todd_jones.jpghttp://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/us/sp/p/sportingnews_lo_70x24_2.gif

As I watch this year's crop of rookie pitchers, one thing comes to mind: out of the frying pan and into the fire.
Look at some of these kids. Jonathan Papelbon, the guy with the "Wild Thing" haircut, has been perfect closing for the Red Sox. Ryan Zimmerman is hitting fifth and playing third base for the Nationals. Francisco Liriano has been dominant as a setup man for the Twins but is headed for the rotation soon. Brian Bannister was in the first-place Mets' rotation until he went on the disabled list.
In the case of the Tigers, we have Justin Verlander and Joel Zumaya, who have been as good as advertised. In a start recently at Oakland, Verlander's 98th pitch was clocked at 101 mph. Think about that. His stuff is electric. He already goes deep in games, and he doesn't appear to be fazed by much. He's got a good curve and a changeup good enough to make his fastball seem faster.
Zumaya, or Zoom Zoom as he's called in the Motor City, has a similar fastball -- about 97 to 100 mph. He came out of Class AA, where he was a starter, and has made a seamless transition to the bullpen. Our skipper, Jim Leyland, wanted to see right off the bat what he had in Zumaya, so he called on him on opening day. With a 1-run lead against the Royals, Zumaya threw two perfect innings. In his next six outings, he had no more than a 2-run lead to hold and usually went two innings. He has played a big role in at least five wins.
No matter how well rookies do on the field, however, they still feel out of place off it. They often have to ride with an older player to the ballpark because they don't know where to go to enter the park. They don't know where the clubhouses are. They're always asking what to do on things like clubhouse dues and tipping at hotels. Talk to them and they tell you they aren't worried about fitting in on the field; they want to fit in on the team. But there is one problem with that: As a rookie, you play when you're told to play and you don't ask questions. You usually don't speak until spoken to. You don't want to ask stupid questions. Now if you're an everyday guy as a rookie, you're looked at differently. You can get away with more off the field. You're allowed to mess up, and guys won't bury you because they know you battle on the field and you help the team win.

Young set for rehab stint
Switch-hitting slugger will get some at-bats for Double-A Erie

Dmitri Young is headed on a rehab assignment.

The Tigers slugger will report to Double-A Erie on Wednesday for a two-game stint with the SeaWolves. Manager Jim Leyland said Young is expected to make one start at designated hitter, another at first base, before rejoining the team in Minnesota. Assuming all goes well, he could be activated as soon as Friday.

Young has been on the 15-day disabled list since April 15 with a quadriceps strain in his right leg. He has been taking batting practice and running in drills for the past week or so since joining the team on the tail end of its West Coast trip against the Angels.

Young and Leyland came to an agreement on a rehab assignment during a conversation on Tuesday. At this point in Young's career, he had the right to decline a rehab stint, and it was in question as of last weekend whether he'd accept one.

"Dmitri was great," Leyland said. "Dmitri talked to his teammates. He came in here like a man and he said, 'You know, I've been discussing it with my teammates. They encouraged me to get some at-bats. I want to do the right thing.' He's been great. I'm tickled, but I think it's to his benefit. And I think whoever those teammates were gave him some good advice."

Rehab work has benefited Young greatly before. He went down to Triple-A Toledo two years ago after missing nearly two months with a broken leg and hit for the cycle in his first game. He likely would've gone to Toledo again, but the Mud Hens have Wednesday off before beginning a homestand on Thursday night. The SeaWolves are at home against Altoona both days, with a night game on Wednesday followed by an 11 a.m. ET start Thursday.

If it was up to Leyland, he'd have all positions do a rehab stint before coming back off the DL, so they could get at-bats.

"You can simulate a game for a pitcher, but not for a hitter," Leyland said. "To me, it's for their benefit. If it was me, I'd go out. I'd want to get some at-bats. I'm not sure eight at-bats is enough, to be honest with you, but if that's what it is, that's what it is."


Zoom on idle: For a good stretch of April, Joel Zumaya was making headlines every time he pitched. He's been practically an unknown player lately because he's been out of games.

Much of the bullpen has been in storage since Detroit's starting rotation began this run of effectiveness, averaging about seven innings a start over the last 14 games. But until Zumaya retired the side in order in the seventh inning Tuesday night, he hadn't pitched since April 25, the next-to-last game of the West Coast trip. He entered Tuesday tied with Jamie Walker for the longest rest on the staff.

Unlike Walker, though, Zumaya is new at this. He would pitch once every five days as a starter, but he at least knew when his next outing was coming. He had rested longer than that without knowing when he'll pitch next.

The layoff didn't seem to bother him once he took the mound. He induced quick outs from Angel Berroa and Mark Teahen, the latter on a fastball that registered at 100 miles per hour on the FSN Detroit radar gun, before using four consecutive 99 mph fastballs to fan John Buck.

Rest is a balancing act for a 21-year-old fireballer who thrives on adrenaline. He says he can turn it off when he needs to, such as times like these, but he still jumps when he hears the phone ring in the bullpen during a game.

"It's a big change, because I'm so anxious picking up a ball," Zumaya said. "It's been a big learning experience for me."

Zumaya isn't complaining, saying it's been "real impressive" watching the starters at work. Still, it's an adjustment.

"This is tough, man," he said, "but it's my role. I have to learn how to do this."
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060502&content_id=1430220&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

My friend e-mailed this to me so I'm not sure of the source:



It was through a church that the Tigers' Joel Zumaya learned, for certain, that he was blessed, but this had nothing to do with holy water or wafers or wine. He wasn't even in the church, in fact. When he was 16 years old, Zumaya and his father were at a friend's house in his hometown of National City, Calif., in San Diego County, and the boy saw a church off in the distance. "Maybe about 350 feet away," Zumaya recalled.
He told his father he could reach the church with the lime he was holding. The boy was wrong; he threw it over the church. "It shocked me and my Dad," said Zumaya.
If scouts had seen Zumaya's Hail Mary, they may have considered drafting him higher in 2002. But Zumaya wasn't picked until the 11th round, when Detroit scout Rob Wilfong nudged the Tigers into taking the right-hander, who was mostly clocked in the range of 88-91 mph. A year later, Zumaya was pitching in Class A and came back to the dugout, and saw teammates looking at him oddly. "They all had little smirks on their faces," Zumaya recalled. He had hit 100 mph on the radar gun.
That was only the first time. Several talent evaluators who saw Zumaya in spring training believe he has the best fastball anywhere. "In the world," says a rival executive. "The best pure stuff of any pitcher in pro ball," says one scout. The conventional wisdom was that the 21-year-old Zumaya was likely headed back to the minors this season, to develop his off-speed pitches some more, but only a couple of weeks into spring training, new Detroit manager Jim Leyland strolled over to Zumaya in the outfield during batting practice and told him he was going to open the season in the big leagues, as a middle reliever.
Leyland has used him in a special role: late-inning power enforcer. He came into the Tigers' season-opener in Kansas City and blew away the Royals for two innings, his fastball reaching 101 mph. In his first six innings, he allowed only one run and struck out seven, and the converted starter could have a future as a dominant closer. "I prefer doing the bullpen now," he said. "It's just better for my arm. I do have a max effort delivery, and I want to have a long career." Hitters better start praying.

http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=5050


May 6, 2006
Prospectus Today
Growling Again

by Joe Sheehan
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Author http://www.baseballprospectus.com/images/button_email.gif I’ve been writing about surprises good and bad this week, and the topic wouldn’t be complete without a column devoted to the team with the second-best record in the American League, the Detroit Tigers.
The 20-10 Tigers have been led by the best rotation in baseball, a full win better than the White Sox’ fivesome at 6.3 SNLVAR. All five starters have ERAs below 4.00, led by former 20-game loser Mike Maroth at 1.78. The rotation’s cumulative ERA in 3.26, and has an strikeout-to-walk ratio of 121-49, just shy of 2.5:1. At each end of the age spectrum, the Tigers are getting good starts: 41-year-old free-agent signee Kenny Rogers has kept the ball in the park (three HR in 46 2/3 innings), while 23-year-old rookie Justin Verlander has impressed with his velocity while being a bit more prone to the longball (six in 36 2/3 innings).
The Tigers’ bullpen has been nearly as impressive, third in MLB in WXRL. Fernando Rodney has yet to allow a run in 13 innings, rookie Joel Zumaya has adjusted so well to the pen that he might be there for a while, and the team never really missed the winter’s other big investment, Todd Jones, who opened the season on the DL.
The key for the Tigers staff has been eliminating home runs. They’ve allowed just 22 in 30 games, second only to the Yankees for fewest bombs allowed, a figure that has helped them to the second-lowest slugging allowed in MLB. There are ballpark and scheduling effects contributing to that number, but the fact is the Tigers have done a very good job of reducing their exposure to power, and that’s been the key to their run prevention.
Well, from the mound, anyway. The Tigers have been getting good pitching, and absolutely terrific defense. They lead the majors in Defensive Efficiency with a .748 mark, turning nearly three-quarters of the balls in play against them into outs. The combination of a low home-run rate and a great defense is a powerful one. More on that in a minute.
At the plate, the Tigers got off to a fantastic start, led by first baseman Chris Shelton. They’re now fifth in the majors (and the AL) in EqA, a mark lower than you might think. Their offense is actually light on OBP and heavy on slugging; their .335 OBP is actually below the AL average of .338, while their .204 ISO and 47 homers lead the majors, and their .483 slugging is third. They don’t run; just 12 of 20 on the bases.
Does any of this sound familiar? An AL Central team off to an unexpectedly good start, one driven by good starting pitching, great defense, and a ton of home runs? Ring any bells? How about if I add in the unimpressive team OBP, mostly no-name bullpen and the excellent health record, save for an overweight, past-prime DH?
Setting aside the “smallball” image and the real value of their stealing bases, the above is essentially the formula last year’s White Sox rode to a championship. The 2005 Sox were a low-OBP, high-slugging team that scored by hitting home runs with men on base. This Tigers team has a better offense—more OBP and power—but not a lot more, and that shows up when you compare them to the league. The Sox were six points below the AL average OBP and a point above the AL average slugging. The Tigers are three points below the AL OBP and 50 points above slugging.
The defensive comparison is obvious. The White Sox were second in the league in raw DER last year, and first in James Click’s park-adjusted figures. The Tigers are first in raw DER, and their edge is big enough that they’d remain in the top three after adjusting for Comerica. That defense, coupled with a low home-run rate (the Sox were below-average after adjusting for The Cell) and a low walk rate (second in MLB to the Twins), are why the Tigers have allowed an AL-low 100 runs. The Tigers are taking away all avenues to scoring right now: no free passes, no longballs, no hits on balls in play. If that continues, they’ll play more than 162 games this year.
Can it continue? The Tigers have probably benefitted from an early-season schedule that featured a below-average set of offenses. Their numbers aren’t entirely a product of that slate, but they are influenced by it; Clay’s Adjusted Standings show a one-win difference based just on the adjustment for opponents. The Tigers will face better teams from here on out.
The Tigers have a stronger roster than the Reds, and probably the Brewers, just to mention one more surprise team. Of the teams having unexpected starts, the Tigers are best-equipped to sustain their success. The power is definitely real, so the offense should be average to above average. The real question is whether they can prevent runs the way they have. The team on the field isn’t substantially different from last year’s, with the biggest difference that the starters have been on the field the whole time. Injuries and roster changes kept that from happening for most of 2005. If this defense is for real, so are the Tigers.
Can they continue to prevent home runs and walks the way they have? The history of the pitchers on their staff would indicate otherwise, but you would have argued similarly about the 2005 Sox a year ago. Verlander and Jeremy Bonderman are the real thing, but it’s not clear whether the reduced home-run rates of Mike Maroth and Nate Robertson are sustainable, or whether guys like Rodney, Zumaya and Bobby Seay can continue shutting down opponents in the late innings.
The Tigers’ great start has forced us to think about them arriving a year early. What looked to be the core of a contender in 2007—Granderson, Shelton, Bonderman, Verlander—may not wait that long. Even if they’re not a .667 club, they’ve served notice in the last five weeks that the AL Central is even deeper and more talented than most observers realized. It may not have been the most direct road there, but GM Dave Dombrowski looks to have arrived at another contender.
Joe Sheehan is an author of Baseball Prospectus. You can contact Joe by clicking here or click here to see Joe's other articles.

Forgotten man? Rookie reliever Jordan Tata has pitched only 14 innings this season, and three of them came Sunday in Minnesota. But that doesn't mean Leyland has lost any confidence in the right-hander.

"It's kind of a catch-22, but a good situation that he hasn't had to pitch a lot," Leyland said. "None of [the bullpen] has had to. No one's been overpitched, that's for sure, because ... our starters have done a good job."

The Tigers have had internal discussions about sending Tata back to the Minor Leagues to increase his workload, but he's still on the 25-man roster. Tata is 0-0 with a 3.86 ERA in seven appearances.

"We keep toying with it and talking about it," Leyland said. "We just can't decide what to do or when to do it, for sure."

Toledo-bound: Outfielder Alexis Gomez, who was designated for assignment May 5 when Young came off the disabled list, cleared waivers Tuesday and was outrighted to Triple-A Toledo.

Guillen's woes: Leyland isn't worried about defensive lapses from shortstop Carlos Guillen, either. Guillen committed two errors leading to three unearned runs, including the decisive tally in Detroit's 7-6 loss Tuesday night.

"I don't think there's any question that what he's doing is correctable," Leyland said. "[Infield coach Rafael Belliard] and I talked about it. He's getting the ball at a little different angle."

Because of Guillen's positioning, Leyland believes, Guillen is being forced to field and set up to throw from an awkward side angle. That may help to explain Guillen's difficulty in transferring the ball from his glove to his throwing hand.

"You don't expect that on a consistent basis," Leyland said.

Polanco's back: A day after his planned return was shelved at the last minute, second baseman Placido Polanco was back in the Tigers lineup Wednesday after missing four games with a back strain.

"I figured I'd take my ground balls, do my hitting and do my running and see how it felt the next day," said Polanco, who was in and then out of Leyland's original lineup Tuesday. "I'm not going to think about it. I'm just going to play."

Still, Polanco is aware that even minor back injuries tend to follow a player around.

"I still have it, so I still have to think about it," he said. "It's there, but it's playable."

Leyland said the injury wouldn't force him to use Polanco less or schedule regular days off.

"I think it's been bothering him most of the season," Leyland said. "Hopefully, we can go forward."

Roster move:Rookie Jordan Tata knew it was coming. Therefore, it was no surprise when he was optioned to Toledo after Wednesday night's game so that he can return to a starting role.

To replace him on the roster, the Tigers recalled right-hander Roman Colon .

"I guarantee you," said manager Jim Leyland , "Tata didn't get sent out because he did anything wrong. He got sent out because we think he has a future and we want to get him going a little bit.

"This was great for him. He got a month or so in the big leagues, seeing what the hitters are like and what it's all about. Plus my wife wants to adopt him, so he'll be back."

“I had to tell her at breakfast to put the adoption on hold because I’m sending him out.”

Of Colon's role, Leyland said "he'll pitch anywhere from the second inning to the seventh."

In seven appearances, Tata was 0-0 with a 3.86 ERA.
Kinda suprising that they are sending Tata straight to AAA instead of AA but I don't disagree with it.

A couple good reads on the Tigers.


The Detroit Tigers Deserve More Respect

What’s in a name? Well, in regards to the sports betting market, public opinion, and that of the mainstream media, more than you would think. The Detroit Tigers have quietly turned in to one of the best teams in all of Major League Baseball. Yet accourding to odds makers, bettors and the pundits of shows like Sportscenter and Baseball Tonight, the Detroit Tigers hardly exist. Why not?

I suppose there is a certain level of shock involved when the Detroit Tigers, the lovable losers of Major League Baseball, finally start winning. In the past two seasons, we have seen two teams, the Red Sox and White Sox, overcome past traditions of losing (the Red Sox more so in the playoffs than the regular season, although both teams won the World Series after a drought of 50+ years) and capture the public’s and the media’s attention. During the last eight seasons, the Tigers have lost 866 games. That averages out to about 108 games per season. I will give everyone the benefit of the doubt of the shock involved in seeing that same organization now go 10 games above .500 through almost 30 games this season. But seriously, it’s time to believe, we’re 30 games into the season! If this team was adorning jerseys that read “Yankees” or “Boston,” everyone would already be conceding the World Series. It would be a forgone conclusion with a start like this.

Speaking of the Yankees and the Red Sox, the Tigers have better numbers in a lot of key categories; in fact they have some of the best numbers in baseball in terms of offense, defense, and pitching. So I have compared the stats from all three of these teams. They are as follows: The Tigers are batting .281 as a team as compared the Red Sox at .260, and have an OPS of .822 with the Red Sox lagging at .769. The Tigers have 270 hits that have led 142 runs, and have hit 44 home runs. The Yanks have 249, 151, and 34 comparatively, and the Sox have 241, 130, and 27. Edge: Tigers

How about defense? The Tigers are playing as good of defense as anyone in baseball. They have a .985 fielding percentage have committed 16 errors. The Yankees have a .989 fielding percentage with 10 errors. Where is the advantage? The Tigers have turned 70 double plays, where the Yankees have turned only 43. Edge: Tigers

And now the bank-buster, pitching. The Tigers team pitching stats are phenomenal. Team ERA is a miniscule 3.01. They are touting a 1.07 WHIP a .213 batting average against, and a K:BB ratio of 2.4 to 1. The Yankees staff is in with an ERA of 3.76, a WHIP of 1.25, and a BAA of .245. The Sox staff has an ERA of 4.69, with a WHIP of 1.36 and a BAA of 2.64. The worst ERA of the Tigers starting pitchers is 3.99. That belongs to Jeremy Bonderman. No starter for the Yankees has an ERA of better than 4.00 except Mike Mussina. Big-Time Edge: Tigers

So, why are the Tigers only a -135 favorite tonight against the Angels? The Tigers have the second best record in baseball at 19-9, they have a young stud starter in Justin Verlander taking the mound, they have won six in a row and they are at home! The Angles are four games under .500 have lost six in a row, including a 2-1 loss to these Tigers last night, and the Tigers are only a -135 favorite?

The Yankees are ON THE ROAD at 14-11 facing a Tampa Bay squad who, as of last season, has played them beat for beat and actually leads the head to head series, and the Yankees are a -260 favorite! Explain that to me.

My hypothesis is as follows: If the Detroit Tigers had a “change of laundry” and suddenly were wearing the uniforms of a NY Yankees team, or a Boston Red Sox team, everyone would be jumping up and down with hysteria with regards to how good this team is. Instead of being a -140 favorite at home, they would be seeing lines like -240. So what’s in a name? I’d say about a buck, buck ten maybe! So, I’ll continue to cash great value tickets while the market ignores Detroit.
http://www.sportsmemo.com/handicappers/trushel/articles/568/


Tigers' improved play is speaking volumes
Detroit riding high so far in '06 after near-record low in '03

Three years ago, the Detroit Tigers were the talk of baseball.

Not in a good way, though.

In 2003, the Tigers flirted with infamy, posting a 43-119 record while finishing 47 games out of first place. They challenged, and came up just short, in matching the 1962 New York Mets for baseball's worst record of the past 50 years.

Those Tigers were filled with fresh faces, and in many cases, they didn't belong in the big leagues. The next two seasons they improved but couldn't surpass the 72-win mark. Mixed in with all of those lumps, however, was promise.

"They suffered through some years with some good young kids," Orioles manager Sam Perlozzo said. "We talked about it last year. I felt like they were on the verge of turning things around if they could add a couple of quality players."

In the past three offseasons, the Tigers have added veteran free agents with risks attached to their resumes. There's catcher Ivan Rodriguez (durability), outfielder Magglio Ordonez (injuries), pitchers Kenny Rogers (irascibility) and Todd Jones (age).

The veterans have mixed with a group of young talent, including 25-year-old hitters Curtis Granderson and Chris Shelton and 23-year-old starters Jeremy Bonderman and Justin Verlander.

Now, just three years removed from embarrassment, the Tigers are being talked about again. After last night's 6-3 win over the Orioles at Camden Yards, the Tigers have the second-highest winning percentage (.618) in the American League, trailing only the defending World Series champion Chicago White Sox.

"We are playing great ball, and everything is great," Bonderman said. "But it's still too early in the season to get too excited about it."

With three consecutive losses before last night, the Tigers had encountered just their second streak of three or more straight losses this season. Manager Jim Leyland is not worried that his team will revert to its struggling ways of the past.

"There's no losing culture here anymore. I can guarantee you that ... " Leyland said before last night's game. "There's no losing attitude and no one here ... pouting around."

If there is a discernible change in the Tigers' mind-set, it's come from Leyland, the Marlboro-smoking, gravelly voiced career manager who hasn't been on a big league bench since a one-year, fifth-place stint with the Colorado Rockies in 1999.

"I know he is going to deny it, but I think 95 percent of [the credit] goes to Jim Leyland," said Hall of Fame player and Baltimore native Al Kaline, a special assistant to Tigers president Dave Dombrowski. "From Day One in spring training, [Leyland] stressed that this has been a bad ballclub, there's been a reason for it and we have to change that. ... To a man in here, they know what he has brought to the table."

True to form, Leyland downplays his involvement in the quick start. He singles out Dombrowski, who was Florida's general manager when Leyland led the Marlins to the 1997 World Series title. And he also credits the Tigers players, including a surprising pitching staff that leads the majors in ERA.

"We have pitched pretty good. That's always the answer," Leyland said. "That will be the same in October as it is in April and May."

Three Tigers entered yesterday in the top 11 in league ERA, including 41-year-old left-hander Rogers, a 195-game winner who is best known for shoving two television cameramen last June.

Rogers was signed to a two-year, $16 million contract this offseason to anchor the Tigers' young staff. He has pitched well - and provided leadership.

"I think Kenny has rubbed off on a lot of us already," Bonderman said. "Little things like how to change games, how to play defense on the mound, where to pitch guys and not worrying about the other stuff going around you."

It all adds up to a club with increasing confidence in the tough American League Central. It's a long season, however. And, as the Orioles showed last year, a fast start doesn't always translate into a successful season. So these Tigers are keeping perspective after 12 consecutive losing seasons.

"The talent is definitely there, the chemistry's there," Granderson said. "If we are still sitting in this situation come September, then I will probably look back at it a little more. But I think as soon as you start to step too far ahead of where we are right now, we will automatically stunt ourselves."
http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/baseball/bal-sp.tigers11may11,0,6803326.story?coll=bal-sports-headlines

http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060512&content_id=1450399&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

Young remains frustrated
With injury recovery not progressing, DL trip more likely

Dmitri Young might've been the only player at Jacobs Field hoping for rain Friday night. The more rainouts, he reasoned, the fewer games he misses.

"That's good news," he said. "That's time to stay off the leg."

It worked out Thursday at Baltimore. After a rainy afternoon, though, Mother Nature couldn't stop Friday's game. It might not stop Young's likely return to the disabled list, either.

Young's quad was feeling better Friday, said manager Jim Leyland, but still not good enough to play. The rainy weather is expected to linger all weekend, but if Young's injury does the same, it won't matter.

Both Leyland and Young agreed they want to see some progress in the injury by the end of the weekend, or else they might have to make a move. He came off the 15-day DL a week ago Friday and played two games before an awkward slide into second base Saturday at Minnesota aggravated his injury.

The slide, Young said, was late. Worse, he said his right foot hooked onto the bag as he slid by, bending his right leg.

"It wasn't a fluid slide," Young said. "The base [needed] to be an extra five feet away from me."

Because of that slide, Young estimates his leg is in about the same condition it was when he went to Double-A Erie a week and a half ago for a two-game rehab stint. Asked if he was frustrated, Young said that was a mild way of putting it. It's a similar sentiment for Leyland.

"I'm not really sure how it's going to play out," Leyland said. "I don't want to go seven, eight days or whatever. I guess we're going to find out something this weekend, but I don't know if we're going to get out on the field much."

The worse the weather, the less chance of taking batting practice on the field, which is where Young would test his leg. So in the end, the weather might work against him, too.

This is one of the reason why I hoped we didn't release Pena. Even though he is inconsistent as a hitter, he still would've provided a left-handed bat to the line-up. And more importantly, we would've been able to give Shelton more rest.


Colon returns: Roman Colon made just two starts at Triple-A Toledo after coming off the DL before being recalled to the Majors to replace Tata. But with 3 2/3 innings covering 76 pitches in his last outing Sunday, he was stretched out in his limited work.

Colon, who missed April with biceps tendinitis in his right arm, said his arm feels fine now after his rehab program. Though Leyland wouldn't specify Colon's role Friday, Leyland said earlier this week he'd like to fill the seventh inning behind Fernando Rodney instead of extending Rodney for two innings each.

Pretty in pink: The Tigers' pink bats for Mother's Day arrived in the visitors' clubhouse at Jacobs Field Friday. And while they might look funny at the plate, all the Tigers asked said they're going to use them.

Curtis Granderson, for one, said he'll gladly use one as part of Major League Baseball's effort to raise breast cancer awareness. He said his grandmother, Mary Granderson, passed away of the disease when he was 10 years old.

"It'll be interesting," Granderson said. "If I end up leading off [Sunday], I'll be the first guy using one."

Hurt by heat

It turns out the fastball thrown Wednesday night by Joel Zumaya that hit former Tiger Chris Gomez on the left hand broke a bone in the hand -- and that Gomez will miss at least the next eight weeks.

The Orioles placed him on the 60-day disabled list Thursday.

The Tigers were not surprised to hear about the injury.

"There was no doubt that he broke it," manager Jim Leyland said, "because you could hear it -- and I don't hear real good. I shouldn't say I knew it was broken, I'm not a doctor, but if Joel Zumaya hits my hand with a fastball like that, I would assume my hand was going to be broken."

Zumaya said he was sorry to hear about the break but that the pitch just ran in on Gomez.

"I knew I got him pretty good," he said. "That two-seamer ran more than I wanted it to at a pretty decent speed. I sent my apologies to him, but that's baseball. I didn't mean to do it.

"I broke a guy's jaw in rookie ball with the same kind of pitch -- a two-seamer that ran in on him. I have a tendency to hit someone once in a while, but I have pretty good command of my pitches."

"I wouldn't have moved up this fast if I didn't have good command."

Not all fastballs would inflict such damage, though. Asked if he's ever broken a bone with one of his, Mike Maroth said: "I don't even break many bats."

I wonder how many batters Zumaya has hit in his career (including the minors)? He does go wild with his control at times.

I'd cry if he hit me with a fastball.

Fox Sports' Rookie Ranking:

Justin Verlander, SP, Tigers

Age: 23
Top 100 Prospects Ranking: 25
2006 Stats: 43 IP, 3.77 ERA, 27 K, 14 BB, 6 HR, 1.04 GB/FB

Verlander has a legendary fastball, and he's used that with much success thus far in 2006. Since drafting Verlander in 2004, the Tigers have reconstructed his delivery and fleshed out his repertoire. He's made a deft leap to the majors this season (six quality starts in seven outings), and he's on pace for 17 wins (for what that's worth) — a nifty rookie season by any standard.

Grade thus far: B+


Joel Zumaya, RP, Tigers

Age: 21
Top 100 Prospects Ranking: 38
2006 Stats: 16.1 IP, 2.76 ERA, 20 K, 5 BB, 2 HR, 1.07 GB/FB

Zumaya, like Papelbon, came up through the ranks as a starter but is now being deployed as a reliever. He's been one of the most effective setup men in the AL thus far, showing good control and whiffing more than 11.0 batters per nine. Zumaya boasts a blazing fastball and a solid knuckle-curve, but he's never been able cultivate his off-speed stuff. As a result, he may have found his home in the Tiger bullpen.

Grade thus far: A

Trade bears fruit: Roman Colon was the better known of the two pitchers acquired from Atlanta in exchange for Kyle Farnsworth last year. Colon pitched 35 games in the big leagues last season, and earned a promotion to Detroit last week. On Sunday, he said that Zach Miner, the other pitcher that came over from the Braves, could easily join him in the big leagues. Miner is 5-0 with a 2.03 ERA at Triple-A Toledo.

"He's ready to be here," Colon said. "It's not like he's throwing the ball and hoping something happens. He's pitching."

Miner is 23, young enough that he could develop into a major league pitcher -- although he is not on the Tigers' 40-man roster.


The Tigers aren't going anywhere, says an AL executive: "You know they're going to score runs, but I'm also convinced that their pitching is for real. Kenny Rogers has proven over the last few years that he can still be a top pitcher. Justin Verlander and Jeremy Bonderman are the keys -- they're young, but they've shown they're ready to be top pitchers right now. Mike Maroth is solid. In the bullpen, if Todd Jones blows up, you've got Fernando Rodney right behind him. And Joel Zumaya can throw 100 mph; he's pretty special. They've got a good team over there.":)

GB/FB is Ground Balls per Fly Ball? What's considered a good ratio?

GB/FB is Ground Balls per Fly Ball? What's considered a good ratio?

I think having a ratio higher than 1 is considered good. Generally speaking though, the bigger the number, the better.

Here's a little quick stat for you guys:

The Tigers have all 5 of their starters in the top 16 in ERA in the A.L. 3 of them are in the top 7.

I know this can't keep up - but damn!

For a comparison, teams like Boston, Texas and Baltimore have none of their starters in the Top 20. That's freakin' amazing if you ask me.

Here's a little quick stat for you guys:

The Tigers have all 5 of their starters in the top 16 in ERA in the A.L. 3 of them are in the top 7.

I know this can't keep up - but damn!

You MUST believe. We're more than just last years Washington Nationals. We have the bats, we have the pitching, and we have Minnesota's number for sure. Now if we can just take it to Chicago.....

A few more updates:

Special assistant out: Ramon Pena's 22-year tenure in the Tigers scouting department is over. The team announced Wednesday it has relieved Pena of his duties as special assistant to the general manager over what assistant GM Al Avila called "a different set of philosophies" in a statement.

Pena had been in charge of the Tigers' scouting efforts in the Dominican Republic as well as the team's baseball academy in San Cristobal. Not only did he sign current Tigers Omar Infante and Fernando Rodney, he also inked former Tigers Frank Catalanotto, Francisco Cordero, Juan Encarnacion, Bobby Higginson, Jose Lima and Danny Bautista to their first pro contracts. He was the Tigers' Scout of the Year in 1997.

Manny Crespo, the director of Latin American operations, and Tom Moore, assistant director in charge of international and professional scouting, will share Pena's old duties on an interim basis.

Makeup game in Baltimore set: The Tigers will return to Baltimore Sept. 21 to make up their rainout from last week with a 4:05 p.m. ET contest at Camden Yards. Tigers player representative Mike Maroth said the team had a choice between two September dates and two August dates.

The Sept. 21 game means they'll fly from Chicago to Baltimore for one day, then to Kansas City for a weekend set. Given the choice, however, the players preferred that to playing 31 consecutive days, which they would've done had they sacrificed one of their two off-days in August.

Ad-Vance-d hitter: Wilson doesn't have to feel like a spare part this year.

A year ago, Wilson was playing little and hitting less, on his way to a .196 season. With Wednesday night's game-winning homer, Wilson already has as many hits (10) as he did the entire first half last season despite about half as many at-bats.

"I didn't help this team much last year, and it was embarrassing," Wilson said. "And I was mad at myself all winter. I worked my [rear] off to get my swing back. I started hitting in November. It's one of those things where now, it's paying off. It makes it exciting. You do something like that, it's hard to hold back the joy."

It helps that he's playing more often. Ivan Rodriguez's willingness to DH on occasion and at first base last week has allowed manager Jim Leyland to play both instead of an either-or situation.

"He's a regular player for me," Leyland said. "They're all regulars. That's just the way it is. They're all going to play. They're all going to get their opportunity. Is he going to get the headlines very often? No. Is Pudge our catcher? Absolutely. But Vance Wilson's a regular player for me."

No 'E' in Granderson: If there was supposed to be an adjustment for Curtis Granderson playing center field every day in the big leagues, he hasn't shown it yet. Not only is he one of three American League center fielders left without an error this season, joining Minnesota's Torii Hunter and Chicago's Brian Anderson, but Granderson has yet to commit an error in his Major League career.

Wednesday's start extended his errorless streak to 91 games, the longest ever by a Tigers outfielder to start his career. Danny Bautista held the previous record with 88.

And the Tigers are now #1 on the Fox Sports Power Rankings.

I love the media attention!

I love it when the media kisses our ass. It feels really good.

(i mean that in a very heterosexual way)

Also, I think Zoom and Verlander should trade grades in that article above. He's pitched well, but not better than Verlander.

Notes: Jones reaches club milestone
Closer poised to pass former teammate Henneman in saves

Hard as it is to remember, Mike Henneman once replaced Todd Jones.

It happened in 1995, when Jones was a first-year full-time closer for the Astros and Henneman was in his last year with the Tigers. Detroit traded Henneman that August for Phil Nevin with the Astros in the pennant chase, and Henneman took over.

"They didn't have a lot of confidence in me, because I was young and I didn't really know what I was doing," Jones said. "So I got to know [Henneman]. He was a really fun guy to be around. He knew a lot about pitching. He was at the stage of his career where I'm at now. He wasn't a power guy, and he relied on his mix of pitches."

Jones remembers listening to Henneman talk about his days in Detroit, but he couldn't have imagined replacing him. With one more save, he'll be where Henneman was at until Thursday, atop the Tigers saves list on his own. Both have 154.

It's a significant enough feat that Jones had it as a goal when he came back as a free agent last winter. For a closer, a role with arguably the least stability of any job on a roster, it's a sign of longevity, a sign of permanence. Plus, it puts him in the record books for an organization he has grown to appreciate as well as anyone in the game.

"For me, it's pretty big," he said. "It's a big number, not like it's 20. Selfishly, that was one of my goals I wanted to do when I came back. But it's so much more satisfying watching what we're doing now."

Jones wouldn't have had the chance to get to the record this quickly if his club wasn't winning as often as it has been. The Tigers opened Friday having entered the ninth inning ahead in 27 games and winning 26 of them. Jones pitched the one game they couldn't close out, falling in a Minnesota comeback on May 6 at the Metrodome.

Other than that, he has converted all 12 of his other save chances. Only Boston's Jonathan Papelbon entered Friday with more saves among AL pitchers, and only Papelbon has converted more than 10 save opportunities without blowing one.

Jones sees a lot more similarities between himself and Henneman than statistics. He views himself in the same role now as Henneman was then, the veteran closer who isn't going to overpower anybody or doesn't have a consistent out pitch. He accepts the "Roller Coaster" nickname he received from Ernie Harwell years ago, because he isn't going to dominate an outing. He has allowed 18 hits in 13 1/3 innings, but only the two he allowed in Minnesota resulted in a loss.

"I've become more easy to figure out when it's a three-run lead," he said. "You know what you're going to get, because I'm going to throw it. If you hit it out, you hit it out. I don't care, but I'm not going to walk you."

To him, it's the challenge that comes with being a closer in his mold.

"I feel a lot more comfortable talking about myself with Henneman and Wickman," he said. "Most guys like me are not closers. I've fought it my whole career. I'm not the sexy closer. I don't have the trick pitch. My trick is, you don't know what's coming."


[B]Young out until Sunday: Dmitri Young was out of the lineup for the third consecutive game on Friday, and he's not expected to play on Saturday. Manager Jim Leyland said he plans to start Young at DH on Sunday against his former club.

Until then, Leyland wants Young working in the batting cages with hitting coach Don Slaught and trying to regain his swing, which looked lost during his last game on Tuesday against Minnesota. He went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts.

"I don't think he's in a situation at this point where he can hit the way he can hit," Leyland said, "and we need him to hit. ... He's not getting to the ball. If you don't get to the ball, you can't hit it."

And if he can't hit, it's unlikely he can play.

"I'm waiting on him," Leyland said. "I've said it 100 times and I'll say it again -- we need him. But at the same time, you've got to be in playing condition."

Gold Glove for Kenny: Kenny Rogers was presented with his Gold Glove Award on Friday from Rawlings. He won the award last year while with the Rangers, making him a four-time winner. Tigers great and 10-time Gold Glove Award winner Al Kaline presented Rogers with the trophy.
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060519&content_id=1461727&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

There's only three teams that the Tigers need to watch out for this season: the White Sox and either the Yankees or BoSox. The West isn't going to send the wildcard, so all they have to do is stay ahead of ONE of those teams. If they can do that, it'll be some October fun Motown.

Mike Maroth will appear in the jungle on ESPN. The Tigers have gotten a shitload of attention the last fews days(or weeks). So yeah, watch Mike Maroth on Jim Rome, or die.

GOOD NIGHT NOW!

I should read up and see how I should post this...sorry if wrong.


http://www.oursportscentral.com/services/releases/?id=3312591

Maybin, Sborz placed on the DL
05/18/06 - Midwest League (MWL) West Michigan Whitecaps
PEORIA, IL - West Michigan outfielder Cameron Maybin has not played in a Whitecaps game since May 7 due to an injury to his right index finger. On Thursday was placed on the disabled list, retroactive to May 16. The Detroit Tigers have also moved right-handed relief pitcher Jay Sborz to the DL.

Maybin has been scratched from the Whitecaps starting line up three times since the problem with his finger first appeared on May 8. He has missed the last eight games did not make the trip to Peoria with the team.

This is the first professional season for Maybin who was the top draft pick of the Tigers in 2005. Maybin was the 10th overall selection last year and currently is fifth in Midwest League with a .330 batting average and is tied for the league lead with 4 triples. He is tied for the team lead with 6 stolen bases and has 7 doubles, a home run and 19 runs batted in.

Sborz was chosen by the Tigers in the second round of the 2003 draft. He last pitched on Saturday in game one of a doubleheader in Lansing. Sborz was injury-free Saturday, but since has developed pain in his right shoulder.

This is the second season for Sborz with the Whitecaps. He pitched in 21 games for West Michigan last year. This season, Sborz began the year at extended spring training and joined the Whitecaps on April 29.

In three relief appearances Sborz has gone 1-0 with a 5.40 ERA. He has allowed 3 runs on 8 hits in five innings with 4 walks and 4 strikeouts.

No players have been added to the Whitecaps active roster, which currently stands at 23, two below the Midwest League maximum.

The Whitecaps play at Peoria Thursday night. First pitch is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time. The Whitecaps Pre Game Show begins at 7:20 p.m. on 1340 AM WBL, the Whitecaps Radio Network and at wbbl.com.

Notes:Young back on disabled list
Hannahan called up from Triple-A Toledo

With Dmitri Young bothered by a strained right quad and struggling with a .169 batting average, the Tigers made a move on Tuesday that they hope will provide them with another potent left-handed bat.

Young was placed on the disabled list and infielder Jack Hannahan was brought up from Triple-A Toledo, where he hit .282 with four homers and 23 RBIs through 38 games.

Manager Jim Leyland said Hannahan can play first base, second base and third base, with third being his best position.

"Hopefully, he can hit," Leyland said.

Young will eventually go on a rehab assignment, but not before he removes himself from baseball activity for a period of time and works to strengthen the quad so that it is no longer an issue.

"He's got to get it right first," Leyland said. "He won't go on a rehab assignment before it gets better. Those tweaks can turn into weeks."

In the meantime, the Tigers will be looking for Hannahan to make some timely contributions.

"I do know this kid is supposed to be a real good third baseman," Leyland said. "If I want to give Inge a day off, I've got a left-handed bat and a very good third baseman. I'm anxious to see him."

[B]Monitoring the innings: It's a pleasant problem, but Justin Verlander's success early this season has meant he's piling up the innings.

After Monday's complete-game shutout, Verlander had a team-high 60 innings. Leyland said he has a plan for making sure the 23-year-old Verlander stays strong over the course of the 162-game season.

"It's a concern and I'll take care of it," Leyland said. "You can be a little creative. The way off-days fall sometimes, you can have a power arm skip a start and still have everyone else fall on their regular day."

Verlander worked a combined 130 innings in 2005 at the Minor and Major League levels.

Another opportunity: After filling in for starting shortstop Carlos Guillen on Monday and going 3-for-4 to raise his batting average to .306, Omar Infante was in the lineup again on Tuesday as the designated hitter.

"He's 6-for-14 against this guy [Runelvys Hernandez]," Leyland noted.

Infante went into Tuesday's game hitting .364 in seven games during May.

Young at heart: At 61, Leyland doesn't like being characterized by some in the media as an old manager.

"I've got a lot of energy," Leyland said. "I can play basketball. I can throw a football. I can play golf. And I've got two kids I chase around the yard. Everybody acts like I'm an old goat. I can probably stay out later than anybody in this room if you want to know the truth."

Around the horn: Heading into Tuesday's game, center fielder Curtis Granderson had yet to commit an error through 96 games in the Major Leagues. That's the longest streak ever by a Tigers outfielder to begin his career. ... The Tigers clubhouse was a lively place after Monday's win over the Royals as players had a good time watching the end of the San Antonio-Dallas NBA playoff game. Leyland didn't come into the clubhouse because he felt it was the players' time to enjoy themselves together. But the camaraderie was something to savor from the manager's office. "I was thinking, 'we've got something going'," Leyland said. ... Leyland finally got through to Barry Bonds to congratulate the Giants outfielder on his 714th home run. "We had a nice chat," Leyland said.
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060523&content_id=1468135&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

No big deal: Leyland went into Monday's game needing two wins to hit the 1,100 milestone for his career. He would be the 45th manager in Major League history to get 1,100 wins and one of just five active managers to reach that plateau.

But Leyland said No. 1,100 won't have any special significance for him.

"One thing it means is that you've been around awhile," Leyland said. "But I don't think the guys in the business pay attention."

Power vs. finesse: Joel Zumaya has shown a skill this season to learn from his rough outings. After Ken Griffey Jr. took him deep for a seventh-inning grand slam on Saturday, he was already thinking about what he would've done differently when the game was over.

"I had a good breaking ball," Zumaya said. "I should've thrown the breaking ball to [Felipe] Lopez and [John] Valentin. And I should've thrown some changeups to Griffey."

Leyland saw irony between Zumaya's outing and the 1 2/3 perfect innings from Reds lefty Chris Hammond.

"It's amazing, really, Hammond came in and shut us down and Zumaya got roughed up," Leyland said. "Zumaya was throwing 98 and Hammond was 78. That's why it's a great game. He's still a heckuva pitcher with just changeups to keep you off-balance. That's why it's a great game. They come in all shapes and sizes. Some of them throw hard. Some of them throw soft."

Grandy, meet Griffey:Curtis Granderson's much-anticipated meeting with childhood hero Griffey came on Friday, when Griffey's old Reds teammate Dmitri Young introduced him.

The two said hello and chatted for a couple minutes before Griffey had to go.

"Nothing major," Granderson said.

Griffey already has a connection to Tigers center fielders. He has been a mentor of sorts to Cameron Maybin, the Class A West Michigan center fielder who was the Tigers' first-round pick in last summer's First-Year Player Draft. Maybin played summer ball in Cincinnati, and the two players share the same agent.

Leyland on Bonds: Leyland had a special phone call planned for Sunday morning to congratulate his former Pirates slugger, Barry Bonds, on his 714th home run. He had planned on putting himself and the former Pirates on his coaching staff on speakerphone to give their congrats. When he tried prior to Sunday's game, though, he couldn't get through.

"I didn't get him today," Leyland said. "I'm going to try to call him at some point. But yeah, I'm pulling for him all the way."

Chuck Hernandez is the only Tigers coach who didn't play with or coach Bonds. Gene Lamont was on Leyland's staff in Pittsburgh. Andy Van Slyke Don Slaught, Rafael Belliard, Lloyd McClendon all were Bonds teammates at some point there.

Speaking of leadoff: Polanco's night at the leadoff spot came with a day out of the starting lineup for Curtis Granderson, who might be the anti-Polanco the way he takes pitches. Between his 23 walks and 44 strikeouts entering Saturday, nearly 40 percent of his plate appearances have ended without him putting the ball in play.

Manager Jim Leyland talked Friday about wanting Granderson to cut down on his strikeouts, which currently outnumber his hits. To that end, Slaught has been working with Granderson on cutting down unnecessary motion in his swing. But despite a .351 on-base percentage through Friday that ranked right where most teams expect their leadoff hitters to be, Leyland isn't expecting Granderson to be a prototypical hitter to top the order.

"We don't have a pure leadoff hitter," Leyland said. "So I don't think you can worry too much about that if you're Curtis. I think you just have to hit. He's worked some walks, but we don't have an ideal leadoff hitter."

Leyland said he can envision Granderson hitting in more of an RBI spot as he matures, kind of like what he did with Barry Bonds during his days in Pittsburgh. Part of that progression, Slaught said, involves simply getting comfortable at the plate and learning pitchers around the league. The rest involves knowing situations and what they call for as a hitter

Get used to seeing Tigers in the hunt

Coming into this season, in this space we tabbed the Detroit Tigers for a second-place showing in the brutal AL Central.

A flurry of angry emails (mostly from the good folks in Cleveland and Minnesota) followed, and there's nothing wrong with that — vigorously defending the hometown nine is part of a fan's job description. However, we're more than a quarter into the season, and it appears we may have actually been selling the Tigers a bit short. Yes, at this writing Detroit has the best record in baseball, and they're on pace for a franchise-record 110 wins. They're defying even the lofty expectations we laid out for them, but the question is whether the Tigers can keep this up. Let's explore.

First, let's take a look at how the Tigers stack up against their American League peers in a number of key indicators.

http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/5984/tigers7eq.jpg

As you can see, the Tigers are winning with pitching, defense and power. As for the power component, it's impressive. Keep in mind that the Tigers play their home games in Comerica, which historically has reduced homer and doubles rates to a meaningful degree. So while the Tigers might not be doing a bang-up job of getting on base, they are pounding the ball.

However, the pitching staff and the defense behind them are the true keys to their success. The Tigers, of course, play in the DH league, but they still lead all of baseball in runs allowed. In fact, the next stingiest unit — St. Louis — has given up 25 more runs on the season. Let's get some further perspective on just how dominant Detroit has been on the run-prevention front ...

• The Tigers currently have a 3.18 team ERA. If that holds up (granted, a fairly wild assumption to be making before the calendar flips to June) it would be the lowest team ERA in the AL since Oakland's 1989 mark of 3.09.

• Speaking of those A's, keep in mind that the AL ERA back then was 3.88, while thus far in 2006 the AL ERA is 4.72. If the Tigers keep this up, they'll have one of the great pitching staffs of all-time. Relative to the league average, their team ERA would rank behind only the 1906 Cubs since the dawn of the 20th century. Yeah, they've been that dominant.

• Pitcher wins and losses, as meaningful statistical indicators, have weaknesses too numerous to mention right now. Still, it's sort of cool that Justin Verlander right now is on pace to become the AL's first rookie 20-game winner since the Yankees' Bob Grim in 1954.

• And don't forget about Kenny Rogers. He's on target to break Warren Spahn's 1963 record for most wins in a season by a pitcher age 41 or older.

• As a team, the Tigers are on pace to give up only 549 runs on the season, while the remaining AL teams, on average, figure to give up roughly 830 runs. If the Tigers maintain such a pace relative to the AL rate of runs allowed in 2006, they'll tie the aforementioned 1906 Cubs for the best post-1900 mark of all-time. Again, it's difficult to overstate the Tigers' level of dominance thus far in keeping runs off the board.

As tremendous as they've been thus far, the matter at hand is whether the Tigers are to be taken seriously as a genuinely great team. Coming into the season, the Tigers had a shot at getting above-average production from every lineup spot. That hasn't happened thus far, so you can make the case that the Detroit offense has mildly under-performed to date. They're safe bets to continue scoring runs at a reasonable pace.

As for the pitching and defense, obviously such historic excellence is going to be difficult to maintain. In the rotation, Mike Maroth and, to a lesser degree, Nate Robertson may be in for low-grade regressions. Meanwhile, Verlander and Rogers may well continue at this pace, and Jeremy Bonderman figures to improve. In the bullpen, Fernando Rodney and Jamie Walker will certainly backslide to a degree, but Joel Zumaya may have modestly better days ahead.

If there's a primary concern going forward, it's that the Tigers, in terms of defensive efficiency, have vaulted from eighth in the AL in 2005 to tops in the circuit in 2006. For the most part, this has been accomplished by swapping Nook Logan for Curtis Granderson in center and replacing Rondell White with Craig Monroe in left. That's certainly an upgrade for the outfield defense, but bear in mind that the Tiger pitching staff is one of the most groundball-inclined in the AL. So that improved glovework in the outfield should have less of an impact on this particular club. The upshot is that Detroit might come back to the pack in terms of defense as the season deepens.

Overall, however, the Tigers remain what they were coming into spring training: a certifiable contender. They have a well-rounded squad that's capable of winning 95 games this season, and at the present juncture, Baseball Prospectus gives the Tigers an 83.6% chance of making the playoffs. While that sounds a bit hefty, it's not overly so. Detroit will be among the best teams in the game all season. It's a strange notion for those accustomed to years of listless baseball from the Tigers, but it's an idea we'd better get used to. The Detroit Tigers are absolutely for real.
http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/5633562

Nice stats, H1.

Maroth has been put on the 15 day DL, and Spurling has been called up. Let's see what Colon(at least it should be him) can do.

Here's some good, quality fluff from SI:

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=cnnsi-theyreforreal&prov=cnnsi&type=lgns



They're for realTom Verducci, SI.com

http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/us/sp/cn/headshots/tom_verducci.jpghttp://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/us/sp/p/si_lo_70x24_1.gifGo ahead and admit it: You think the Tigers, fresh off back-to-back shutout losses, are on their way to becoming this year's version of last year's Orioles, a team that was in first place with a three-game lead on June 19, only to finish 21 games out of first place.
It's easy to scoff at the Tigers, especially if you think the Yankees, Red Sox, White Sox and Blue Jays will school them over the next two weeks. Detroit's pitchers don't strike out many batters (they have the sixth-worst strikeout rate in baseball). The Tigers beat up on a relatively weak schedule for the first 50 games of the season, they won nine out of 13 one-run games (a stat that won't hold pace) and, well, it's Detroit, a franchise that hasn't fielded a winning team in the wild-card era, that built a ballpark that put fans farther away from the action than the old one and that employs a mutant, shrunken-head tiger mascot that might be the lamest mascot in baseball since that crab thing in San Francisco.
Just forget all that. The Tigers are for real. Maybe not playoff kind of real, though it would be great if somebody forced the Yankees and Red Sox to sweat a little at the end of September instead of letting them treat the wild card as their annual get-out-of-jail-free card. The White Sox, after all, are the defending world champions who added a $10 million pitcher as their fifth starter and an MVP, 60-homer candidate as their DH.
But the Tigers can hang in there to win in the neighborhood of 90 games. Here are five reasons Detroit is for real:
1. Pitching. Detroit allowed zero or one run in half of its first 30 wins. Its ERA is more than half a run better than every other team in the league. Its bullpen is spectacular, fashioning the lowest ERA (3.08) and lowest opponent's average (.214) in baseball while losing only two games all year. Two. The Tigers are 26-1 when they lead after the sixth inning. They win games they have in hand.
2. Jim Leyland. He doesn't miss a thing. Last Friday, Leyland yelled to Magglio Ordoez at second base as Cleveland center fielder Grady Sizemore chased a fly ball to the warning track. "Run hard! Run hard!'' Leyland said in an obvious tag situation. "They might drop it!" The Indians botched the relay and Ordoez scored from second base.
This team does not have a dominant player or personality, so Leyland is a perfect fit. How many other managers run the clubhouse? He always has been one of the best managers around at putting his players in the best position for them to succeed, and that includes his roles for relief pitchers and the right spots to use his bench players.
Here's my sub-list of additions who have done the most to change the personality of their team this year: 1. Leyland, Tigers 2. Aaron Rowand, Phillies 3. Carlos Delgado, Mets 4. Rafael Furcal, Dodgers 5. Troy Glaus, Blue Jays
3. History. Before being shut out in the last two games, the Tigers were the 30th team in history to win 35 of its first 49 games. Twenty-seven of the previous 29 teams made the playoffs, the lone exceptions being the 1911 Tigers and 1942 Dodgers. To put it another way, every team in the past 63 years that started 35-14 or better made the playoffs.
Here's one more way to look at it: 94 wins is a virtual lock for the playoffs. With the 35-14 start, the Tigers need to play barely above .500 baseball (59-54) to get to 94.
4. Defense. There is a reason Detroit pitchers can flourish without many strikeouts. The defense has been extremely reliable, especially with shortstop Carlos Guillen and second baseman Placido Polanco in the middle of the infield. In that sense the Tigers have much in common with the 2005 White Sox: premier pitching and defense carrying what is a middle-of-the-road offense.
5. Justin Verlander. The rookie is 7-3 while giving Detroit a quality start in nine of his 10 outings. Verlander is the kind of young impact pitcher who can make a good rotation into a playoff rotation, the way Kevin Millwood did for the 1998 Braves, Kerry Wood did for the 1998 Cubs and Rick Ankiel did for the 2000 Cardinals. The downside of such early success is that all those pitchers regressed from the stress of throwing too many innings too soon.
Verlander, 23, threw only 130 innings last season. He shouldn't throw more than 160 this year, but he's on a pace for more than 200, and Leyland will have a hard time cutting back on his innings when Verlander is pitching in a pennant race. Leyland said he will use a sixth starter occasionally in the second half of the season to ease the workload, but that might not be enough to protect a guy who throws 101 mph.
Every team has some soft spots, and the Tigers' points of vulnerability are obvious. The offense lacks left-handed power, especially with DH Dmitri Young out for what probably will be more than a month with personal issues. Kenny Rogers, while a positive influence on the young pitchers, never has been reliable in big games. And the White Sox are so good that the Tigers will have enormous pressure every week of the season to stay away from long losing stretches.
But the Tigers' pitching and defense will allow Detroit to play consistent baseball. And if the Tigers can just play around .500 baseball between now and late September, they will have a shot at the postseason. Here's another reason the Tigers will be there at the end: They finish the season with six of their final nine games against the Royals.

Spurling set: Spurling said he realized the source of his early season struggles about as soon as he arrived at Toledo last month and worked with pitching coach Jeff Jones.

"I knew something was off, personally. I just didn't know what," Spurling said. First day I pitched down there, he found it," Spurling said. "For some reason in game situations, I would tense up and just [throw] rapid-fire."

By rushing his throws, Spurling would throw himself out of whack mechanically. Once he fixed that problem, he was back to his old form. He allowed two runs in 19 1/3 innings over 12 outings.


Mantei gone: Triple-A reliever Matt Mantei was given his unconditional release on Thursday, but Leyland indicated that the decision came from Mantei, who put a stop to his comeback attempt after a series of injuries since Spring Training kept him out of action.

Mantei, whose career has included injuries nearly every year, said during Spring Training that he would retire if he suffered another long-term injury. He had been on the DL since May 6 with soreness in his right elbow.

Verlander piles up pickoffs
Rookie right-hander tops the big leagues

Justin Verlander can't explain it. The people around him can.

"That's God-given athletic ability," pitching coach Chuck Hernandez said of Verlander's pickoff move. "Just like his 100-mph fastball."

The Tigers knew they were going to improve at holding runners this year when they signed free agent Kenny Rogers, whose 86 career pickoffs rank second in Major League history. But it's not the 41-year-old left-hander leading the team in pickoffs. It's the 23-year-old rookie right-hander, who also happens to lead the Major Leagues.

When Verlander caught Casey Blake leaning off first base in the first inning on Saturday night for his fourth pickoff of the year, he moved into a tie atop the big-league leaderboard with White Sox ace Mark Buehrle, a left-hander. Only one other AL right-hander entered Sunday with more than one -- Jeff Weaver had two. Two NL righties, Matt Morris and Russ Ortiz, had two each.

No right-hander, rookie or not, has led a league in pickoffs since Chan Ho Park and Todd Ritchie tied for the NL lead with seven in 1999, according to STATS, Inc. No righty has won an American League pickoff title outright since knuckleballer Charlie Hough picked off 16 runners for Texas in 1988. But few righties, especially rookies, have boasted a pickoff move as quick as Verlander's.

"It's kind of a lost art for right-handers," catcher Vance Wilson said.

It's a natural one for Verlander. The Tigers haven't done anything with his move, nor has Verlander spent an abundance of time with it. It's something that simply developed.

"He's got quick feet," Hernandez said. "He's an excellent athlete, and he gets the feet moving."

He helps the process by timing his moves. He picked off Blake on Saturday on a quick move before Blake had settled in. Likewise, he nabbed Kansas City's Aaron Guiel last Monday just as Guiel was stepping out to his lead off from first base. Minnesota's Nick Punto was victimized a week and a half ago, when Verlander went to his best move immediately after Punto had singled to reach base, leading off the eighth inning in what was then still a scoreless game.

That, plus the velocity he can put on a ball -- even from a relative standstill -- makes up for the extra movement required from a right-hander.

"It's hard to short-arm the ball and throw it like he does," Wilson said. "It's a good one."

Optimistic on Maroth: Mike Maroth should have an answer once and for all next week as to what has been causing irritation in his left elbow off and on since Spring Training. Neither he nor Leyland is not expecting the news to be drastic, the kind that involves a ligament tear.

"To my knowledge, that's not even a [question]," Leyland said. "His ligaments and all that are totally fine."

Maroth concurred. "I don't think it's a major issue," he said, "but we'll find out Wednesday."

Infante to the outfield? It's a possibility that was discussed in Spring Training, but hasn't been touched since then. With Dmitri Young on the disabled list and Marcus Thames as the Tigers' only reserve outfielder, however, manager Jim Leyland said he might try Omar Infante in the outfield, possibly even in a start.

With Infante, Ramon Santiago and Jack Hannahan all on the bench, Leyland said he's probably overloaded in the infield right now. On days like Sunday, when Thames starts at DH, the Tigers don't have a reserve outfielder on the bench. Using Infante in the outfield would alleviate that problem.

"If we think he's good enough to catch a fly ball and hit the cutoff man, I'll use him," Leyland said.

Rodney in reverse: With one of the nastiest change-ups in the Majors, Fernando Rodney often works hitters to set up his offspeed pitch for a swing and miss. When he needed a big out Saturday, however, he went in the opposite direction.

With the potential tying run on third, one out and Blake at the plate in the eighth inning on Saturday, Rodney used his change-up to slow Blake down for a 3-2 fastball, which he spotted on the outside corner at 96 mph. It came just one batter after Grady Sizemore jumped on a fastball for an opposite-field shot that took Craig Monroe to the left-field fence.

The strikeout seemed to follow the pattern of Rodney's best pitches coming when he absolutely needs them. Leyland, however, doesn't buy the notion that Rodney needs pressure to be at his best.

"He's got ice water in his veins," Leyland said. "He's tough. He's not going to get excited. He's aggressive. He's a real tough guy and a real smart guy. It's a pretty good combination."
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060528&content_id=1476136&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

Grand effect

For those of you who still aren't sure what exactly Curtis Granderson brings to the leadoff spot, Monday was a good example. Without Granderson in the lineup, the only hitter in the Tigers lineup who was really making 42-year-old Randy Johnson work on a 92-degree day was Brandon Inge, whose 10-pitch walk in the third inning came after Johnson needed just 21 pitches to retire the other eight hitters in the lineup. Placido Polanco followed his lead and took a five-pitch walk, his first walk in 186 plate appearances since Scott Elarton walked him on Opening Day.

Part of it was Johnson, who was spotting his pitches much better than he supposedly was in previous outings and frequently moved ahead of hitters. But Jim Leyland wasn't very happy with his team's at-bats, and the relatively quick outs continued after Johnson left. Granderson's strikeouts are more than you want to see out of a leadoff hitter, but he's fourth among Major League leadoff hitters in pitches per plate appearance, and he's one of just three Tigers above 4.00 in that category (Inge and Chris Shelton are the others). The next-highest regular is just above 3.5. And while Granderson leads the team in strikeouts, he leads in walks, too.

I'm not saying that Granderson should've played Monday, because the way Johnson was pitching, he would've been awfully tough on him. That said, a game like this shows what Granderson contributes to this team. He's an underrated table-setter who knows how to make pitchers work surprisingly well for a rookie. Without him Monday, the Tigers looked more like last year's lineup.


Verlander honored
Walker succeeding; Bonderman changing things up

So much for wondering how Justin Verlander would handle success. The first of what could be quite a few awards in his Major League career came in Tuesday, and he didn't know about it.

Team president/general manager Dave Dombrowski was the one who gave Verlander the news on Tuesday afternoon that he had won a split of the AL Player of the Week award. Verlander didn't know how to react because he didn't know he had won in the first place.

"He was walking around here saying congratulations," Verlander said of Dombrowski. "And I shook his hand and said, 'Thanks! ... For what?' He said it's a pretty big deal, and he said congratulations."

It's not the kind of award a rookie pitcher comes to expect. No Tigers rookie pitcher had ever won the award, and Verlander is just the second Tigers pitcher of any kind to win it since Walt Terrell in 1991. Jason Johnson won it two years ago. It generally requires a pitcher to have two starting assignments in the same week and pitch dramatically well both times.

If Verlander keeps pitching like he has lately, he'll have plenty of awards where that came from, many of them involving more than a watch. With a 4-1 May record and 1.77 ERA, he has an outside chance of challenging Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon, who actually has given up a run this month compared to his scoreless April, for AL Rookie of the Month later this week.

"With the equipment that he's got, he should have a nice future," Leyland said. "He's one of those guys, a young guy has to learn how to handle some failure and has to learn how to handle success at the same time. It's still going to be a process. It's not going to be perfect."

With most rookie pitchers, though, learning how to handle failure usually comes before the success. He hasn't lost a game since May 4 at the Angels, and he's given up one run in 24 innings over his last three starts.

The key, Leyland said, is always keeping in mind that those fortunes will turn at some point.

"I want him to understand that it's important to be able to take compliments, that it's important to also keep everything in perspective, because this is a very humbling game," Leyland said. "It's a process for a young guy as well as a veteran guy, to learn how to handle both. I think he's doing very well. I'm not talking about Justin, but usually if you see a little trend of a player comes up here and all of a sudden tears it up a little bit, they'll all get humbled. It's not easy to do, but I think he'll do just fine."

Get off his back: Jamie Walker said his back is feeling better than earlier in the season now that he has rededicated himself to his stretching exercises, though he doesn't cite that as the reason for his recent success.

"I was stubborn-headed and wasn't getting my stretching done every day," Walker said. "Now that I've finally realized I'm going to have to do it the rest of my career, it's definitely better now."

Instead, Walker said he's been effective this season by mixing his pitches well enough to throw off hitters' timing. He hasn't given up a run in his 14 outings, covering 13 innings, since giving up a run in his first outing of the season April 5 at Kansas City.

He also credits manager Leyland's bullpen use. Twelve of his 15 appearances have come at the start of an inning, and he has worked with just two inherited runners all season.

Leyland "tries to put you in a place to succeed," Walker said.

Changeup for Bondo: Leyland thinks Jeremy Bonderman made a step in the right direction with his pitching Monday. Though it went down as a 4-0 loss, the progress on Bonderman's changeup was seen as a victory.

"Yesterday was a lot of progress for Jeremy Bonderman in my opinion," Leyland said, "maybe the best of the year. He had a great start in Cleveland, but yesterday his changeup was better. He threw more of them, which as his third pitch he needs to master. I think there was a lot of progress made yesterday, and that's what we're trying to get here."

Sometimes it takes defeat for that progress to break through. Asked whether Bonderman was stubborn, Leyland said, "He's stubborn in a good way, because he's aggressive and he'll battle you and he's as tough a competitor as you'll get, but sometimes that stubbornness works against him. He knows [he needs to progress], but he's one of those guys who gets so wrapped up in it, he's such a competitor, that sometimes it works against him.

"You want your competitiveness to work for you, not against you. And at this point in his career, probably his aggressiveness at times has worked against him instead of for him."

Miner up, Hannahan down: After using every reliever but Jamie Walker in Tuesday's 11-inning loss, the Tigers found themselves short on rested arms if they needed any on Wednesday. Enter Zach Miner, whose contract was purchased from Triple-A Toledo.

"I'm sure it's temporary," manager Jim Leyland said. "We've added a pitcher, because we need one for tonight."

Temporary or not, it came just in time for Miner, who was suppose to drop his wife off at the airport so she could fly back to Florida. Once he got the call, not only was she staying back a while longer, but he was trying to find a way to get his mother and brother up here as well.

Once Miner got to the ballpark, he said: "I don't think I felt my feet touch the ground. It's surreal. I'm on two hours of sleep, but I don't think I've ever felt any better."

Miner has spent all season in the Mud Hens rotation, going 6-0 with nine starts with a 2.82 ERA. He'll be a reliever in Detroit. To make room, the Tigers optioned infielder Jack Hannahan back to Toledo, leaving the club with just three hitters available on its bench.

Another step for Zumaya: Even though it came in defeat, Joel Zumaya called Tuesday's performance the game of his life. That's how it felt to throw 100-mph fastballs against hitters like Bernie Williams and strike out All-Stars like Jorge Posada and Derek Jeter.

"My mom, my dad and my family, they were going insane," he said. "They were watching the game back home. My little brother [16-year-old Richard] called me and said, 'Man, that's the best game I've ever seen you pitch in your life.'

"To tell you the truth, I think this is going to be one of the best games I've ever pitched. I went out there and pitched against one of the best teams of all and struck out a couple of the best hitters of all. I was just going right after the guys. I wasn't backing down at all."

Zumaya admits to peeking at the radar gun readings after his fastballs. Even knowing his velocity, though, he got an extra charge hearing the reactions from the crowd each time he hit triple digits. He still mixed in two or three changeups and shook off a fastball sign for Rodriguez to go with a curveball for a strikeout.

Confused Colon: While Tuesday might've been Zumaya's greatest game to date, it was one of the most perplexing games of Roman Colon's career. He felt fine in the bullpen and saw the movement in his pitches, but the Yankees hit him around for five runs on seven hits in 2 1/3 innings.

"I had my best stuff last night," Colon said, "and it didn't work."

It's expected Colon will get at least another start on Sunday against the Red Sox. Leyland said earlier on Wednesday that he wouldn't dare pull a pitcher from a rotation after one start.

Picking up a scoop: Tigers' wives will act as celebrity ice cream scoopers for charity on Friday from 4:30-6:30 p.m. at the Ben and Jerry's location inside downtown Detroit's Compuware Building. The wives will serve hand-scooped Ben and Jerry's ice cream to customers in support of the students enrolled in Ben and Jerry's PartnerShop program, an effort through Goodwill Industries of Greater Detroit to provide jobs and entrepreneurial training to kids and young adults who face barriers to employment. Proceeds will benefit Goodwill Industries.
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060531&content_id=1480987&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

Spurling going back donw



Tigers: Notebook
Spurling disappointed with demotion
Relief pitcher will head to Toledo as the Tigers try to find an additional left-handed batter.
Lynn Henning / The Detroit News


DETROIT -- Considering that the Tigers were carrying 13 pitchers, a roster move was inevitable as manager Jim Leyland's team got ready for its big three-game road series with the White Sox beginning Tuesday ahead of a three-game meeting against the Blue Jays next weekend at Toronto.
Chris Spurling had no issue with a pitcher being demoted -- until he found out it was he who was headed for Triple-A Toledo.
"I don't know what the reason is," said Spurling, who started the season with the Tigers before being sent to Toledo in April, only to be recalled on May 26.
The Tigers have yet to announce who will take Spurling's spot, although general manager Dave Dombrowski acknowledged Sunday that it would likely be a left-handed hitting position player. A decision was not expected before today. Dombrowski and his front-office associates will be preparing today for Tuesday's first day of the 2006 amateur draft, while Leyland, his staff, and the Tigers players will get the day off.
The Tigers have no obvious left-handed hitting candidates. Third baseman Jack Hannahan had a brief -- and hitless -- stint filling in as a bench player at the end of last month. Alexis Gomez, an outfielder who spent time with the team earlier this season, is a candidate.
Dmitri Young is still in limbo as a quadriceps injury and unresolved legal issues (domestic violence) have conspired to leave him in temporary exile.
Spurling's demotion was likely temporary and was in part spurred by the fact that he is not out of options, which would be the case for several relievers.
"I pitched my (tail) off last year," Spurling said afterward, snorting his words. "I was projected to be used in certain situations, I was supposed to be a set-up man, and I go to being a mop-up man. It's kind of disappointing."
Spurling's response to a suggestion he would likely be pitching soon in the big leagues, whether Detroit, or elsewhere: "The way it looks, it'll be somewhere else."

http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060605/SPORTS0104/606050329/1129

New Bonderman: Congratulations to Jeremy Bonderman and his wife, Amber, on their birth of their first child, a baby girl. Mailee Blaize was born Thursday, weighing six pounds, 10 ounces.


Notes: Maroth eyes return this year
Left-hander will not rush back as he recovers from surgery

Tigers southpaw Mike Maroth had only undergone surgery one time previously, a scope on his knee in 1998.

Two days after undergoing arthroscopic surgery to remove bone chips in his left elbow, Maroth doesn't know quite what to expect, but he knows that with the help of Dr. Lewis Yocum, he made the right decision.

"Dr. Yocum said he wouldn't recommend it unless it was going to help, so obviously he felt like it would be really tough for me to get through the year," Maroth said.

Maroth was in orbit during his time in the recovery room, thanks to the anesthesia.

"[Doctors and wife Brooke] said I was talking about Neil Armstrong and walking on the moon," Maroth said. "I have no idea where that came from."

Now, however, he's simply relieved to have the nervousness of wondering about his elbow pain over with.

"I was anxious to find out," he said. "Now that it's over, I can work my way back."

One thing Maroth wants to be clear about is that while he is eager to get back to help his team, he will not hurry his return. He still believes he will be back this season. If it's as a starter or reliever, he's willing to do whatever helps the team.

"I'll try to come back as quick as I can, but I don't want to rush it," Maroth said. "I think the best way to do it is not to set a time frame, because if you don't make that time frame, then you're going to be disappointed or you're going to go out there -- and because you think you're ready you're supposed to be ready -- you're going to go out there and mess something up. I feel pretty confident that I'll be back sometime this year."

Meanwhile, he will play the role of the fan, following his teammates at the ballpark or on TV. Actually, he already has been watching, starting with Thursday night's rally against the Yankees.

"Oh yeah, I watched the whole thing," he said. "It was great. To see us come back from five runs down was exciting. You try to keep up with them, whether it's on your phone or on the bottom line."

Miner feat: Maroth's injury gave right-hander Zach Miner his first Major League outing Sunday afternoon. Acquired in a 2005 deadline deal that also brought Roman Colon from the Braves in exchange for Kyle Farnsworth, the right-hander is the first Tigers starting pitcher to make his Major League debut at Comerica Park since Jeremy Bonderman in 2003.

Miner, along with Justin Verlander, gives the Tigers their first pair of rookie starting pitchers since 2003, when Bonderman and Nate Robertson were among a handful of Tigers rookies to make starts.

Miner allowed the Red Sox three runs on seven hits over four-plus innings. He also punched out two batters and issued two free passes.

Rodney rolls on: Red Sox slugger David Ortiz made quite the first impression in his first meeting with Fernando Rodney last August when he hit a game-tying home run off the then-Tigers closer. One night later, Rodney induced a groundout from Ortiz.

Round 3 on Saturday night went to Rodney as well. Ortiz's World Baseball Classic teammate got a fly out this time on a 1-1 changeup that ended the eighth inning.

"I'm not the same this year. Now every time I go out there, I'm ready to go," Rodney said.

This year, manager Jim Leyland says, he appreciates Rodney's stoicism.

"He's one of my favorites, because he doesn't say anything. He doesn't talk to me very much. But he's got nerves of steel," Leyland said. "He just goes out there and he's got the same expression. I think he's been absolutely fantastic."

Notes: Rodney earns skip's praise
Leyland recognizes righty's success with All-Star endorsement

Jim Leyland doesn't vote online. And if he did know how to use the Internet, or even a computer -- more on that later -- he sure wouldn't be selecting who should make the All-Star Game.

But that doesn't mean the Tigers manager thinks fans should abstain from voting; he just wishes they knew a little more about who deserves to be there this season, rather than who was good in years past.

"I'd like to see it [stay] the way it is, because it's for the fans," Leyland said. "We try to do everything in this game to promote our fans. And if that's what they want, that's what they should do. I'm not complaining about it. It's just not a true testament to who the real All-Star team is -- the guys who had an All-Star year up to this point. That's all I'm saying."

And in that vein, if Leyland could pick one Tiger to make the team automatically, it would be a guy whom few fans outside of Detroit would recognize.

"If somebody told me that I could pick one guy from my team that would be definitely be on the All-Star team, as we speak today, it would be Fernando Rodney," he said.

Rodney, as only Tigers fans and opposing hitters would know, has been the unsung hero of Detroit's top-ranked pitching staff. The 29-year-old reliever is 4-1 with seven saves and a 1.03 ERA over his first 26 1/3 innings. He hasn't let up a run in his last nine appearances, spanning 10 1/3 innings, and he has held opponents scoreless in all but two of his 24 games.

"I think he's an All-Star for what he's done so far," said Leyland, who could host the Dominican Republic native in his Pittsburgh home. "He should be a slam dunk. We've got a ways to go yet, so I don't want jinx the guy, but as we speak today, Fernando Rodney should be on the team."

Ivan Rodriguez is the only Tiger within sniffing distance of being voted in by the fans. Rodriguez is second among catchers, 50,042 votes shy of Boston's Jason Varitek. The 12-time All-Star has started the Midsummer Classic 10 times, including his first year with Detroit in 2004, joining Johnny Bench and Mike Piazza as the only catchers to start the game that many times.

Chris Shelton is fifth among first basemen, with 208,045 votes, more than 400,000 votes behind Boston's David Ortiz. Former All-Star Magglio Ordonez is 13th among outfielders with 195,475 votes. If Ordonez, the team's Triple Crown leader, gets selected as the Tigers' representative, he'll be reunited with his former White Sox manager, Ozzie Guillen. With their feud behind them now, he'd love to play under him again.

"It would be nice to play for Ozzie and for the All-Star Game," Ordonez said. "It would be exciting. I have to put up good numbers first so he can take me to the All-Star game, so we'll see."

Grand man: Curtis Granderson got an early wake-up call on Tuesday. Actually, he got a bunch of them. The south suburban Chicago native came home as a full-fledged Major League starter on the best team, record-wise, in baseball. Friends, family and former teammates all wanted a chance to see him play.

"I tried to tell people to contact me the day of, and they do, but they don't realize that when they go to work, I go to sleep a lot later," Granderson said. "People were giving me phone calls at 8:30 a.m., and I'm answering them."

Granderson played here the past two seasons during callups from the Minors. He got his first Major League hit in Chicago on Sept. 19, 2004, two years after compiling a .483 average at the University of Illinois-Chicago, located just a long home run from U.S. Cellular Field. His cheering section has been quite vocal in the past, and for good reason. Granderson has to pay for these tickets. He figured he gave out 26 for Tuesday's game, with similar amounts ready for the next two games.

"It's going to be costly," he said. "I'm telling everybody these are their Christmas presents, so don't try to come at me in December, trying to ask for something."

Granderson, off to an impressive start this season, walked to lead off the game, but he was stranded on third with the bases loaded. In the fourth, Granderson doubled and stole third.

Maggs not a memory: Ordonez was booed his first time up on Tuesday, not that he didn't expect it. But a year, and two trips, after his first return to his old stomping grounds on the South Side, his arrival was rather muted.

"It's a little different," Ordonez said. "This year, we're in first place, I feel healthy and things are going great. It's always nice to be back."

Ordonez had admitted that watching the White Sox win the World Series after eight years with the team was difficult, but the Tigers' success makes it easier to digest. He got a glimpse of Carl Everett's ring in Seattle this year and liked the look of it.

"We have a good chance," Ordonez said of the Tigers. "I saw last year what they did, and I saw the ring. I know everyone on the team wants to do the same thing."

Ordonez hit a ground-rule double in his first at-bat on Tuesday, just missing a home run. He came into the game a lifetime .309 hitter at U.S. Cellular Field with 116 doubles and 109 home runs.

Where's Morticia? Outfielder Alexis Gomez was recalled to the Tigers before the game, replacing right-hander Chris Spurling. Gomez, who hit .222 in 13 games with the team earlier in the year, started the game in left for Craig Monroe, who got the day off. Gomez popped out with the bases loaded and two outs in the first inning and singled and stole second in the third.

"We have some flexibility in the outfield now," Leyland said. "Now that I'm DHing Marcus [Thames] a lot, we needed an extra outfielder. So it seemed to make sense."

To make room for Gomez on the 40-man roster, the Tigers transferred Mike Maroth to the 60-day disabled list after arthroscopic surgery on his left elbow, as expected.

Gomez had hit just .235 with two homers and 15 RBIs in 28 games with Triple-A Toledo.

Unfrozen caveman manager: Leyland got an early look at the Tigers' first-round draft pick, left-handed pitcher Andrew Miller, in the comfort of the visiting manager's office. The problem was he had to use a, gasp, computer.

"I don't like computers," he said. "I don't want to show my ignorance, but I don't like them. It doesn't make me old-school. I just don't like them."

That trepidation aside, he had a "clubhouse kid" turn on a laptop so he could watch footage of Miller pitching for North Carolina. He liked what he saw, but as he said, he's not an expert at evaluating amateur talent.

"He looked big," Leyland said of the 6-foot-6 southpaw. "He's 6-foot-7 or something. He looked all right."

Leyland was dumbfounded that the team had a chance to draft him at all.

"I don't know how the [heck] that happened," he said. "Last I read, he was going to be the No. 1 guy taken. Next thing I know, we got him at six. I probably shouldn't be making any comments. I don't know anything about him. I'm shocked. I thought it was a slam dunk he was going No. 1."

I-Rod out: Rodriguez, who left Tuesday's game after two innings with lower back spasms, is considered day-to-day. Rodriguez struck out swinging to end the second inning and caught the bottom of the inning, but he didn't come out in the third. Vance Wilson replaced him.
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060606&content_id=1492067&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

Read at the DSR that DFN says that DY is at the BFC.

(DetroitSportsRag, 1130 am radio station, Dimitri Young, Betty Ford Clinic)

http://www.detroitsportsrag.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1959

lol@drugs

Hopefully he goes on a diet as well.

On the run: Before this past Sunday's series finale against the Red Sox, Leyland talked about wanting to push the tempo and have his players on the move, taking extra bases and going on hit-and-run plays. But it wasn't just a one-game trend. It's part of a long-term wish list for this organization.

In that aspect, Leyland said on Wednesday, the Tigers have work to do, especially after Tuesday's loss.

"If you want to win, you'd better be able to do more than hit solo home runs," he said. "I'm talking about winning. When you're talking about having some numbers that look decent for your agent, that's one thing. When you're talking about winning games, that's another thing. I don't want to certainly downplay the home run. We had three of them last night. We should've won the game. We walked a couple guys, and we lost the game. It wasn't the hitters' fault we lost the game. But the fact of the matter is our offense is not hitting well in my opinion.

"I think it can be deceiving sometimes. We hit home runs, and we beat up on somebody. It's when you get the hits, if they're two-out, tough hits, stuff like that."

It's hard for them to manufacture offense, Leyland said, because they don't have the speed for it.

"I wouldn't call them slow," he said. "We don't have a lot of guys who can go from first to third. They're running. We just don't run very well."

That, Leyland added, can be compensated for with smart, aggressive baserunning, and that's what he wants to instill.

Some of that can be coached, but some of it can't.

"We need to make some adjustments from within with what we've got," Leyland said, "and we probably need to add some things."

It was the strongest hint yet that the Tigers could be in the market for offensive help. What Leyland is talking about, though, goes beyond a short-term trade. He also seemed to mean development to build a team that can have success every year.

"What we've got to do if we're going to maintain this with what we have right now," he said, "is we have to get more big hits in big situations, we have to move runners, and if we get the bases loaded, we've got to get more than one run once in a while. I'm not being critical. Right now this is the team we have, and I'm very, very happy with it. But we have to start doing some things a little better if we want to maintain our winning ways."

Notes: Monroe could return soon
Tigers hopeful outfielder can play this weekend in Toronto

Craig Monroe's sprained right ankle wasn't as bad as expected, and it could allow him to play at some point during this weekend's series at Toronto.

"Hopefully it's only a couple days," Monroe said.

Manager Jim Leyland and head athletic trainer Kevin Rand said pretty much the same thing. If so, it'll be far fewer days than were originally feared when Rand and Leyland were helping Monroe off the field Wednesday night following his third-inning collision with the left-field fence.

Monroe was still limping around on his right foot Thursday afternoon, but it was an easier time getting around than he had Wednesday night. He could put weight on the ankle, Rand said, the swelling was minimal, and his range of motion was good. He walked out to the field Thursday for batting practice, his ankle heavily taped, but didn't do much beyond that.

"The fact that he did show improvement in this time period, in most cases they go south before they go north," Rand said. "He didn't do that. I wouldn't say he went north, but he didn't go south. I was very, very pleased with what I saw coming in today. I saw a guy with minimal swelling and decent range of motion."

Because of that, Rand is optimistic they can get Monroe back to action without having to put him on the 15-day disabled list.

"That's the plan," Monroe said. "But at the same time, I don't know that for sure, either. Worst case, hopefully it's the weekend and then when we get back to Detroit [for next week's four-game series against the Devil Rays] I'm able to play."

Assuming he can avoid the DL, it'll be a blessing for the Tigers, who do not have much outfield depth to be able to replace him for a huge length of time. Marcus Thames started in left field Thursday with Omar Infante at DH and Alexis Gomez as the reserve outfielder. As long as Monroe is out, Leyland said, that increases the chances of seeing Infante playing in the outfield, something that has been discussed since Spring Training but has not been put into game action this season.

Pudge back in lineup: The Tigers gained one key member back Thursday when catcher Ivan Rodriguez returned behind the plate. He missed Wednesday's game after lower back spasms knocked him out of Tuesday's game in the third inning.

"Still sore," Rodriguez said, "but I'll play."

That's pretty much the attitude Leyland expected to hear.

"I'm not sure I'm doing the right thing," Leyland said, "but he wants to play. He's OK, but he's not 100 percent."

Pitch now, rest later: News of Justin Verlander's shoulder stiffness in the days leading up to Wednesday night's start was the first sign of any fatigue on his arm. Leyland treated it by planning to hold him around 100 pitches, and he removed him Wednesday night at 103.

Leyland has said he'll take steps to ensure Verlander doesn't undergo the stress of 200 innings in his first full big-league season. He has openly discussed calling up another pitcher from the Minors to make a spot start, but he said Thursday he probably won't use that strategy until the second half of the season. For now, though Leyland is not a fan of pitch counts, they would appear to be his most likely option.

Chicago not so Grand after all: For someone who grew up on the south side of Chicago, Curtis Granderson and friends aren't exactly feeling welcome on the White Sox home turf.

On Tuesday, two of Granderson's friends were removed from the ballpark for a dispute during the game with White Sox fans. Another problem nearly happened Wednesday, Granderson said, before a friend's mother stepped in and stopped it.

It's not the first time Granderson has played here. He recorded his first Major League hit here two years ago and played a four-game series here last September. With the White Sox coming off a World Series, however, tickets are harder to come by, meaning his friends have been scattered into several smaller groups around the ballpark rather than one big contingent behind the plate. Plus, they have several more White Sox fans around them.

"Stuff's going on, because they're telling me the stories," he said. "But there's just so many people and I'm so far away. I can hear stuff, but I can't tell what's going on."

He'll have many of the same people cheering him on next weekend at Wrigley Field, where the Tigers will visit the Cubs as part of Interleague Play. He's not expecting any problems on the north side.

"It should be a lot of fun," said Granderson, whose family and friends started sending in requests for tickets to that series as soon as the schedule was released.

Granderson has been impressed with what White Sox fans have said to him.

"They do their homework," he said. "I've heard a lot of my high-school chants and the rival high schools."

Tigers react to Grimsley: News that Jason Grimsley was under investigation for his involvement in a federal drug case and admitted steroid use was a topic of conversation in the Tigers clubhouse. Some players said they had never heard of human growth hormone until it entered the news. Others said that as with steroids or any illegal drugs, it's up to individual players to do the right thing.

"There's a lot of good men playing," said Jamie Walker, who like Grimsley makes his offseason home near Kansas City. "Unfortunately, one bad apple can ruin the whole bushel. But you know what, this situation, I wish Grimsley the best. Until the truth comes out, I don't judge Jason Grimsley. He's still a good dude."
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060608&content_id=1495744&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

Tigers react to Grimsley: News that Jason Grimsley was under investigation for his involvement in a federal drug case and admitted steroid use was a topic of conversation in the Tigers clubhouse. Some players said they had never heard of human growth hormone until it entered the news. Others said that as with steroids or any illegal drugs, it's up to individual players to do the right thing.

"There's a lot of good men playing," said Jamie Walker, who like Grimsley makes his offseason home near Kansas City. "Unfortunately, one bad apple can ruin the whole bushel. But you know what, this situation, I wish Grimsley the best. Until the truth comes out, I don't judge Jason Grimsley. He's still a good dude."
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060608&content_id=1495744&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

Juicers.

A little off topic, but theres something about Jamie Walker that I really like. Not even his pitching so much as something about him. Dude looks like a cool cat

Rogers makes strong statement in the statement game
Rogers worth every penny to Tigers

The ace of the Detroit Tigers is closing in on his 200th win and his third straight all-star team. And who out there has noticed?

The ace of the Detroit Tigers has virtually an identical career record (198-134) to Curt Schilling (201-133). But who out there has noticed that, either?

The ace of the Detroit Tigers is also the answer to an amazing trivia question: Name the only left-handed pitcher selected for each of the last two All-Star Games? But we bet nobody out there has noticed that, too. Right?

Well, the answer to that trivia question would be ... (here comes that drumroll, ladies and gentlemen) ... Kenny Rogers.

But Kenny Rogers isn't looking for any attention. After all, last June, he got noticed plenty. For all the wrong reasons.

So no matter how low we place the radar screen tracking his 18th season in the big leagues, Kenny Rogers will be happy to fly beneath it. As far as possible. Even if he needs one of those amphibious vehicles that can fly under water.

Dodging that radar screen gets tougher and tougher these days, however, because the ace of the Detroit Tigers just keeps on winning.

Rogers won for the eighth time Thursday night. And that ties him for second in the American League (behind only Schilling). But this wasn't just another win. This one came against the White Sox, a team the Tigers hadn't figured out a way to beat all year.

But Kenny Rogers figured it out, and won a 6-2 game that the Tigers absolutely had to win, no matter how many times their manager said it was no big deal.

He did what aces do. He let NONE of the last 17 hitters he faced reach base. He kept his team from getting swept by the White Sox and giving up first place. And whether there were 100 games to go or 1,000 games to go in this season, this felt like a statement game.

So Kenny Rogers made a statement.

"I knew this was a big game," Rogers said afterward. "I mean, we didn't want to be swept again."

Six months ago, you might recall, the Tigers weren't exactly being viewed as geniuses when they signed this man to a two-year contract worth 16 million bucks.

He was (and is) 41 years old. He was coming off a season in which he won just four times after the All-Star break and had an ERA close to 5.00.

And let's just say he wasn't quite baseball's most beloved figure, after that regrettable burst of camera rage just about wrecked both his season and his long-time gentlemanly image.

But the Tigers saw past all the obvious reasons not to sign this guy. What they saw was exactly the kind of steadying veteran presence they needed to inject into a rotation that otherwise projected to have an average age younger than Britney Spears.

So $16 million later, he was all theirs. And if you're wondering how many pitchers who changed teams this offseason have more wins than Kenny Rogers does, you won't need a lot of paper to list them all.

Because the correct answer is: Zero.

"You know, that's what we got him for," said his manager, Jim Leyland. "I think everybody seems to have this fetish about clubhouse atmosphere and what does a guy like that do in your clubhouse and does he help your young pitchers and all that stuff. Well, I'm sure he does some of that. But we got him because he's a good pitcher."

How good? Well, Rogers is undefeated (4-0) after a Tigers loss. He has allowed one earned run or none in five of his 13 starts. He has given up five hits or fewer in six of his 13 starts. He has pitched into the seventh inning eight times in those 13 starts.

"He's the same old Kenny, man," said Pudge Rodriguez, his catcher now in Detroit, his catcher another lifetime ago in Texas. "Kenny's Kenny. Kenny knows he can still pitch."

But to pitch well THIS year, for THIS team, after all that's gone down around him in the last 12 months, feels like more than just a major pennant-race development.

It also feels like a career rebirth -- for a man whose few weeks as baseball's No. 1 whipping boy last summer didn't jibe with the peaceful, low-key fabric of the rest of his career.

So Rogers describes all this as "extremely satisfying." Being underestimated, after all, is nothing new to a guy who was a 39th-round draft pick and didn't win his 100th game until age 33.

"I don't get overestimated very often," Rogers chuckled. "My career basically should never have happened. I'm proud of what I've done. I've got a lot of aspirations to do more. But I'm not a guy who goes out and dominates anybody. I just try to find a way to win with whatever I've got. Some days it's enough. Some days it's not. Some days it's just chucking and ducking."

But after the second inning Thursday, there was no ducking, only some serious chucking.

All six hits Rogers allowed came in a span of seven hitters in the first and second innings. After that, he was an automatic 1-2-3 inning machine. And that allowed the Tigers to settle down, tie the game at 2 in the third inning and win it with a wild four-run sixth that included the sight of Carlos Guillen stampeding home from second on an infield single.

"When you play the top teams, if you tiptoe against them, you're going to get your butts beat," said Leyland. "There's no sneaking into second place or first place. You've got to go out and beat teams like this. It's that simple."

But none of that hustle would have meant anything without the ace doing his thing. And he has done it relentlessly, starting with six three-hit innings opening day.

No one knows what lies ahead. But he looks like their perfect missing piece. He was exactly what they needed. They were exactly what he needed.

They needed an ace who had been around and could pitch in games like these without hyperventilating. He needed a new start, with a team that was just as interested in forgetting the recent past as he was.

They fit. He fit. What a concept.

"I kind of knew what I was getting into when I came here," Rogers said. "I researched these guys. I knew they had a lot of talent. But I didn't know how much. I didn't know about the [Justin] Verlanders and the [Joel] Zumayas and guys like that. Those are some talented young guys.

"I knew a little bit about [Leyland], and very little about [pitching coach] Chuck [Hernandez]. But I knew, once I met them, that I'd be comfortable here, and they'd appreciate what I did. And that's all players want."

Much as Leyland says it's all about the winning, it's also about more than that. Kenny Rogers has more career wins (198) than the rest of this rotation combined (114). So they needed him, maybe more than he even comprehends.

"We've needed a guy like that for a long time," said fellow starter Jeremy Bonderman. "I'm glad we went out and got him. You know, when you bring in a guy like that, I didn't know what he was going to be like. But first time I met him, I thought, 'This is going to be great.' Just his personality. He clicked with all of us. ...

"He means a lot to our team and to guys like me. He's a guy who's willing to teach and share advice with you. Anything he's been through, he's willing to talk to you about. He's had to overcome some stuff. He's just one of those guys you know you can always count on to help you out when you need him."

He has four months to go in his 18th season. And his body clock is ticking. And Leyland is the first to admit that "I don't know if he recuperates as fast as he ever did. But when he's feeling right, man, he's pitched great."

If he keeps feeling right for another couple of weeks, he is going to join the 200-Win Club, a group that includes just four other active left-handers: Tom Glavine, Randy Johnson, Jamie Moyer and David Wells.

And if he can just win a couple of more games in the next three weeks, Rogers is almost certainly going to get named to his third straight all-star team. Which is pretty amazing when you consider he made just one All-Star team before he turned 39.

He's already one of the best baseball stories of 2006. But if he makes it back to another All-Star Game, he might be the most riveting story there -- because this All-Star appearance figures to feel a lot different than the last one.

"Maybe this time," laughed Kenny Rogers, "they won't hoot on me so much."

Well, it would be hard for them to hoot on him any MORE than last year. But this time, maybe Kenny Rogers can return to the scene of his All-Star crime to make the case that everyone in life, and in baseball, deserves a second chance. Even at age 41.
http://proxy.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=stark_jayson&id=2476301

Tigers' Granderson has arrived

By the time Curtis Granderson woke up for the Tigers' first game in Chicago last week, his arrival was a lead story in the local newspapers,m his cell phone voicemail was filled up and his bank account was about take a hit because practically everyone he knew wanted tickets.

The Chicago Tribune had a story profiling him that bemoaned the fact that both the White Sox and Cubs had passed on the homegrown star after he was second in the nation in hitting in 2002 at the University of Illinois-Chicago.

Granderson was jarred awake several times by the persistent ringing of his phone that morning, as the Tigers prepared to take on the White Sox for a three-game series that pitted the top two teams in the American League Central against each other.

That the Tigers were in first place meant the White Sox series was about more than personal glory for him, unlike his previous trips home. It also meant more friends and family members were making ticket requests.

Welcome home, Curtis. You have arrived. Not just as a hometown hero, but as a key player on one of the Major Leagues' top teams.

"It's a lot different looking at it from the last two years coming in, both times at the end of the season, where it didn't really mean too much for us, more for them," Granderson said. "Now it means a good amount for both teams."

The Tigers lost two of those three games against Chicago, and Granderson's exploits were limited to a solo home run in a 4-3 loss. But the Tigers still led by 1 1/2 games in the Central after the series, a margin Granderson has helped keep steady for the past week.

On Monday, he had a game-winning single in the 13th inning as Detroit came back to beat Tampa Bay, 4-3. Granderson went 4-for-6 in the game, also driving in a run in the team's two-run ninth.

The fast-tracking center fielder -- who made his first Opening Day roster after hitting .272 with eight homers in 47 games last year -- is putting up strong numbers and providing excellent defense through his first two-plus months. And if it wasn't for breakout seasons by fellow leadoff hitters Alex Rios of Toronto and Gary Matthews Jr. of Texas, he might be heading to Pittsburgh next month as an All-Star.

More importantly, he's one of the reasons why the Tigers are competing for a division title for the first time since 1993, when they finished tied for third in the old AL East at 85-77. The team hasn't had a winning season since.

Granderson has shown that he's a better than average leadoff hitter, compiling a .285 batting average, nine home runs and 31 RBIs. His 38 runs and 39 walks lead the team, as does his .385 on-base percentage. His play in center has been outstanding as well.

"This kid's a jewel," Tigers manager Jim Leyland told reporters after Granderson's extra-inning single Monday.

Granderson could eventually develop into a middle-of-the-order threat, too. He's better with runners in scoring position (.372, 16-for-43) than with the bases empty (.260, 40-for-154), and he's hitting just .230 when he leads off an inning. He has the second-most doubles on the team (14) and is third in hits behind two former All-Stars in Pudge Rodriguez and Magglio Ordonez. He's not perfect, however. Granderson's 71 strikeouts also lead the team by a good margin, so there's plenty of room for improvement.

Born in the Blue Island suburb of Chicago, Granderson prepped at Thornton Fractional South, before heading to University of Illinois-Chicago, just north of U.S. Cellular Field. He hit .483 during his junior year, rocketing up the draft charts. He was drafted by the Tigers in the third round in June 2002.

Now 25, Granderson has gone from project to potential star. And he is as well-liked off the field as he is on the field.

"Well, I'll say this, if I had a daughter, I'd let him marry my daughter, that's how much I think of him as a person," said first base coach and outfield instructor Andy Van Slyke. "He's one of the reasons why I love coming to the ballpark.

"He's a terrific guy, he's got a good work ethic and he wants to get better. He's going to get better. He has a desire to play the game right. Those are all the things you look for in a player."

Granderson feels likewise about his coaches, who came in this season with Leyland. Van Slyke, an All-Star outfielder under Leyland in Pittsburgh, and new hitting coach Don Slaught, another former Pirate, have been instrumental in teaching and cajoling the up-and-coming team.

"Andy Van Slyke has definitely helped me out in the outfield from the amount of work he forces me to do, in a good way," Granderson said. "The only way you're going to get better is keep working with the mentality he has. And then Don Slaught, hitting-wise, working with his staff, the combination of those two have helped a lot."

The Tigers have three more trips to Chicago, including a June 16-18 series at Wrigley Field, and Granderson already had dozens of ticket requests.

"It's going to be costly," he said. "I'm telling everybody these are their Christmas presents, so don't try to come at me in December, trying to ask for something."
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060613&content_id=1502768&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

Notes: Pudge closing in on All-Star start
Catcher is batting 51 points higher than first-place Varitek

Ivan Rodriguez might still give the Tigers a starter in the American League All-Star lineup.

Although Rodriguez remains in second place among catchers in All-Star balloting, according to the latest update released Tuesday, the deficit between him and Boston's Jason Varitek has narrowed from 50,042 votes in last week's release to 35,525 now. It's the closest race going on for an AL starting spot.

Rodriguez is vying for what would be his 11th All-Star start at catcher, which would break him out of a tie with Hall of Famer Johnny Bench and Mike Piazza for the most all-time. He lost out in his bid to start last year when Varitek was voted into his first All-Star start.

While the two entered Wednesday relatively even in production categories like home runs and RBIs, Rodriguez is batting .310, 51 points higher than Varitek. His 104 total bases are nearly 50 percent more than Varitek. Defensively, Rodriguez has thrown out 8-of-17 would-be basestealers, while Varitek is 5-for-22. Rodriguez's 23 assists from behind the plate are nearly as twice as many as Varitek.

At this point, Rodriguez appears to be Detroit's only chance at an All-Star starter after its first-half success. Second baseman Placido Polanco and first baseman Chris Shelton are the only other Tigers who rank among the top five in balloting at their positions. Polanco is up to fourth among AL second baseman, while Shelton remains fifth.

Pudge is also among the few chances the American League has at making the All-Star Game something other than a Red Sox and Yankees invitational. If the balloting ended today, Angels slugger Vladimir Guerrero would be the only starter not from New York or Boston. Guerrero leads AL outfielders with 1,115,476 votes, but the other two outfield spots would go to Manny Ramirez and Johnny Damon. Magglio Ordonez, whose resurgence has helped fuel Detroit's offense, ranks just 13th at 315,390.

Run producer atop the lineup: Manager Jim Leyland foresees a point down the road in Curtis Granderson's career when he moves out of the leadoff spot and becomes a middle-of-the-order hitter. In terms of productivity when it counts, he's already putting up numbers like one.

The Tigers' best hitter with runners in scoring position this season is the leadoff man. With two hits in as many opportunities on Monday night against the Rays, Granderson raised his runners-in-scoring-position batting average to .372 (16-for-43), good for ninth among all AL hitters. He's 9-for-16 in such situations since May 22.

The first of Monday's two hits with runners in scoring position was a case of Granderson catching the Rays defense off-guard. With runners on first and second and nobody out, just about everyone in the ballpark expected Granderson to lay down a sacrifice bunt, especially once third-base coach Gene Lamont had a long conversation with him before he stepped into the batters box. In reality, Lamont was relaying a message to swing away, the same message Leyland gave Granderson earlier.

"One or two [in the order], in that situation, you've got assume he's going to bunt there," Granderson said. "Anybody in the stands probably thought I was bunting there. If the situation were reversed, I'd assume defensively we'd react the same way, too."

So did Rays first baseman Ty Wigginton, who charged in as Tyler Walker delivered a fastball. Granderson delivered a hard bouncer that would've knocked Wigginton on his back had it hit him. Instead, it missed by inches.

"I was trying to get it over him," Granderson said.

Leyland doesn't want to think of him now for the middle of the order for several reasons. First, he doesn't have another patient hitter who naturally fits atop the order. Second, he doesn't want Granderson thinking he has to pull the ball at this point in his career.

Day off for Shelton: Shelton was out of Tuesday's lineup following his 0-for-6, four-strikeout game on Monday night. It's the first off-day since June 4 for Shelton, who's 6-for-46 at the plate over his last 13 games and showing the strain of it.

"I'm just getting him away from it for a day," Leyland said. "I'm just going to let him have a day to clear the cobwebs, work with [hitting coach Don Slaught] a little bit, maybe watch some film. The poor guy's really struggling."

The struggling carries over mentally.

"He's a little whipped right now," Leyland continued. "I feel bad for him. There's a catch-22 for a manager. The guy wants to be in there so bad because they always think this is the night they're going to correct it, or it's going to turn around. But on the other side of the coin, from a manager's standpoint, sometimes you don't know for sure if you're doing him a favor or not by playing him right now.

"If it was a different business, and he only worked five days a week, he's in one of those situations now where you'd probably finish work on Friday [and] go to the lake until late Sunday night."

Monroe sits: Craig Monroe's return to the starting lineup lasted one day. After going 0-for-3 with two strikeouts on Monday, Monroe was out of the lineup for the time being. He's not ready to play the field, both he and Leyland said, and his ankle still bothers him when he's swinging.

Leyland played Monroe on Monday because of his history against Rays starter Scott Kazmir, batting 3-for-7 against him for his career.
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060613&content_id=1503035&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det


Infante in a groove: Leyland predicted before Sunday's win that the key to his lineup would be Omar Infante batting second. He didn't go that far on Monday, but with Guillen out, Infante's two-hit performance on Sunday was enough to earn him another start. It marked just his second start of the year at shortstop.

Though Infante went 0-for-5 Monday, Leyland has said many times he likes Infante as a hitter, including the power he can provide with a good swing. His recent appearances at the plate, however, have shown more ingredients of an overall hitter.

That's by design. He's taking examples from fellow Venezuelans Guillen and Magglio Ordonez and working during batting practice on hitting the ball to the opposite field. He's still primarily a pull hitter, including his recent stretch, but he wants to become more of a threat to the right side.

"Before I was pulling too much," he said. "That was hurting me. That's why I'm trying to get inside the ball."

Infante, who was regarded more as a defensive infielder coming through the farm system, has 27 home runs since the start of the 2004 season. However, he has never hit above .264 in a season. He entered Monday with a .294 average, due in part to a .333 (16-for-48) performance over his last 12 games. He followed Leyland's prognostication on Sunday with two hits, two runs scored and an RBI.

Chew on this: The Tigers didn't have to worry about rallying on Tuesday night thanks to a six-run inning. Not only did the 7-1 win give the bullpen a rest, it allowed the clubhouse to stock up on more gum.

What began as a way for Nate Robertson to entertain a television audience on a night when he was wearing a microphone in the dugout has become a team obsession. Not only did Robertson have a mouthful of Big League Chew in the late innings of Detroit's comeback victory on Monday, so did Alexis Gomez, Vance Wilson and Jeremy Bonderman. Even Shelton tried it, and he was playing in the game.

"We're having fun with it," said Robertson, who started the trend during the last homestand in a game against the Yankees. "It was something that started off real innocent. And it took off, man."

It's now at the point where he has fans asking him where his gum is, and not just in the late innings. He was working on his yard one day when someone drove by, rolled down his window and asked him that same question. He has autographed dozens of packs of gum, including one for the Tigers Care auction that supposedly went for $90.

Tigers recall Ledezma, designate Seay
Detroit swaps one left-hander for another southpaw

The Tigers made a shift in their bullpen Wednesday, though it didn't have anything to do with what unfolded in the game that night. They recalled left-hander Wilfredo Ledezma from Triple-A Toledo and designated for assignment the contract of fellow lefty Bobby Seay.

In exchanging one southpaw for another, the Tigers swapped two pitchers who nonetheless fit different roles and whose seasons were going in opposite directions. While Seay has struggled over the last two weeks in what was expected to be a second lefty reliever's slot, Ledezma reclaimed his once-dimming promise with two solid months as a starter for the Mud Hens.

Manager Jim Leyland partly blamed himself and the Tigers' success for the troubles Seay has faced. He made the club out of Spring Training because Leyland wanted a second lefty to call upon out of the bullpen. However, all but two of his 14 appearances lasted an inning or more, and he faced more right-handed batters than left-handed ones.

Those outings were also few and far between. He pitched in just eight of Detroit's last 41 games, including three times from April 30 to May 24, while Jamie Walker received the bulk of the Tigers' assignments versus left-handed hitters.

Leyland told reporters over the weekend that one of his hopes for the season was to keep Seay in the big leagues all year. It did not work out.

"It's a little unfair to Bobby Seay," said Leyland. "Really, he was kind of the victim of our pitching staff doing so well. He really didn't get to pitch in the ideal spots that I probably should've used him in. But I didn't use him in those spots, obviously, because up to this point we've been getting pretty late into games with leads, so I've basically gone to [Fernando] Rodney, Walker, [Joel] Zumaya and [Todd] Jones.

"I like Bobby Seay. I hope he gets back."

Despite the workload, Seay had put together the building blocks to prove he belonged in the Majors. He threw seven hitless innings in April and headed into Memorial Day weekend with a 2.53 ERA over 10 2/3 innings and four hits allowed.

That's where Seay's season split. He gave up a Jason Michaels grand slam on May 28, against the Indians, with all four runs on his record, and seemingly never recovered. He gave up a run on three hits and three walks in two innings against the Yankees on Memorial Day, surrendered a two-run inning to the Red Sox on June 4, and then yielded a run on two hits in two-thirds of an inning trying to clean up the eight-run eighth-inning bullpen mess last Friday at Toronto.

"After that series against Cleveland, I really didn't pitch well," an emotional Seay said. "I'm really not a guy who can afford to not pitch well at this level. It's just the game. We have such a dynamite bullpen that innings for me were few and far between. Fifteen innings in 2 1/2 months, it's not always easy to be on top of your game, but that's not an excuse. Hopefully I can go down, get some innings and come back here."

That's pretty much what Ledezma did when he was optioned to Toledo midway through Spring Training. The former Rule 5 Draft pick, who lost his rotation spot in Detroit when he was sent out just over a year ago, put together a 4-3 record and 2.52 ERA starting for the Mud Hens. He allowed 60 hits over 71 1/3 innings with 66 strikeouts against 23 walks.

"He's improved a lot," Leyland said. "He's pitched well. I know it's Triple-A, but left-handers have not hit well against him this year and they have in the past. The thing I like about him is if that's the case, he's always been able to use his fastball and changeup and get right-handers out. So if his breaking ball's better and he's getting lefties out, he's coming up because he can do that, plus we think he can get righties out with his fastball and changeup."

How he will adjust to a bullpen role could prove an interesting transition. He hasn't filled that role on an extended basis since 2003. However, he's not exactly filling Seay's old role.

"I can use Ledezma in a lot of different ways," Leyland said. "I think he's a little more versatile. He can come in and give you more innings, throw more pitches."
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060615&content_id=1506111&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

When the gun hits triple digits, one name rules: ZOOM-AYA
Tigers rookie takes city, rest of baseball by storm

All that's missing is the music. But Joel Zumaya admits he's finally giving that some thought, too.

The rookie pitching sensation of the Tigers thinks he's found just the right tune to accompany his relief appearances. Now all he has to do is convince the staff at Comerica Park that his selection -- System of a Down's "B.Y.O.B.", an anti-war anthem with thrash-metal guitar riffs and some objectionable lyrics -- is suitable for a wider listening audience than just his own iPod.

"It gets the blood flowing," said Zumaya, a 21-year-old fireballer who has turned the pitcher's mound at Comerica Park into his own private mosh pit. "There's gotta be a radio version of it somewhere."

Of course, introductions really aren't necessary anymore. Zumaya, already a fan favorite in Detroit just three months into his big league career, has quickly made a name for himself with his 100-mph fastball and his demonstrative, fist-pumping antics in the late innings.

Zumaya calls it his "bulldog mentality," and he says it's that alter-ego that fuels his rocket arm.

"When I get in between those lines, my whole personality changes," said Zumaya, a San Diego native who proudly hails his Mexican-American heritage. "I go from being the nicest guy -- I would say I'm a sweetheart -- (outside) the lines. But when I get in there, everything just changes. It turns up another notch, another switch turns on."

So does the radar gun, as everyone -- teammates included -- has noticed.

Last weekend, Zumaya's fastball was clocked at a jaw-dropping, mitt-popping 102 mph as he earned his first major league save with a three-inning relief outing against the Toronto Blue Jays.

The pitch that had everyone talking afterward came with one out in the ninth inning against cleanup hitter Troy Glaus. In center field, Curtis Granderson swiveled around to check the damage on the scoreboard where the radar gun readings are shown to the crowd. This has become a game within the game for Tigers outfielders, waiting to see how long it takes Zumaya to hit triple digits after he enters the game.

"When he hit 102, I was trying to signal it to Marcus (Thames) and he just waved me off like it was a mistake or something," said Granderson, who shares a two-bedroom apartment with Zumaya. "We were both laughing about it.

"I remember (manager Jim) Leyland telling Joel in spring training when we were playing the Yankees, 'Don't try to throw it 110 (mph). You're gonna throw hard naturally. So just let it happen.' And that's what he's doing. It's fun to watch."

If you're wondering where that overpowering stuff comes from, though, don't bother asking Zumaya, who threw only in the upper-80s when the Tigers made him an 11th-round draft pick -- he'd expected to be drafted as a hitter not a pitcher -- in 2002.

The velocity has climbed steadily since, right along with Zumaya's ascent through the minor leagues. But it wasn't until he shed a few pounds and improved his training regimen, he said, that he started to turn heads -- from scouts and opposing hitters.

Zumaya's 199 strikeouts (in just 151 1/3 innings) last season at Double-A Erie and Triple-A Toledo was the second-highest total in the minor leagues. He held opponents to a .189 batting average while being used exclusively as a starting pitcher.

"The light switch just turned on, I guess you could say," Zumaya said, reaching into his locker to knock on wood. "And I haven't blown a gasket yet."

That is not to say there haven't been a few sparks. The first came in the season opener against the Kansas City Royals, when Leyland surprised Zumaya with a call to the bullpen to relieve starter Kenny Rogers in the seventh inning.

"They said, 'Zumaya, you're in,' and I was like, 'Holy smoke,' " said Zumaya, who promptly fired a 98-mph fastball past Reggie Sanders.

Zumaya later struck out Emil Brown with a 79-mph curveball that also found the strike zone.

Joked Rogers: "I think his curveball is faster than my fastball."

With veteran closer Todd Jones struggling of late -- he's 1-4 with a 15.58 ERA in his last seven appearances -- Zumaya's red-hot right hand has Tigers fans clamoring for him to get a shot as the closer. Leyland insists he's "not ready" for that role, and Zumaya -- who admits his days as a starter are likely over -- is fine with that.

"I feel like my role is maybe in the future as a closer -- I don't want to be a starter -- but we've got a great bullpen right now," Zumaya said. "I mean, I'll do whatever Detroit wants me to do. But I just like that Leyland knows if we're in trouble, he can call down and just say, 'Zumaya, let's go.' "

On Wednesday night against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Zumaya struck out five in two innings as he extended his personal scoreless streak to 10 games (15 innings). He leads American League relievers with 43 strikeouts this season and opponents are hitting just .155 against him. He also hit 99 mph on the Comerica Park radar gun on several occasions before stalking off the mound after escaping a bases-loaded jam in the 10th inning.

"He's got the confidence, he's got the stuff and he executes," Tigers catcher Vance Wilson said. "You can throw 100 miles per hour, but if you're all over the place, it doesn't do a lot of good. The fact that he can control it, and that he wants the ball -- he's not intimidated by anybody -- makes him special. He's one of those guys you're glad he's on your team."
http://www.detroitnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060616/SPORTS0104/606160343

A little off topic, but theres something about Jamie Walker that I really like. Not even his pitching so much as something about him. Dude looks like a cool cat

Looks like he's your Tiger.

I think there's a couple better Tigers to have man-crushes on. Walker scares me when he's in there sometimes....

The rookie pitching sensation of the Tigers thinks he's found just the right tune to accompany his relief appearances. Now all he has to do is convince the staff at Comerica Park that his selection -- System of a Down's "B.Y.O.B.", an anti-war anthem with thrash-metal guitar riffs and some objectionable lyrics -- is suitable for a wider listening audience than just his own iPod.



Fuck yes. Zumaya's my Tiger.

Thrown a curve: Bonderman's nasty strikeout totals and nastier slider are making him one of the more feared pitchers in the American League over the last few weeks. Yet the biggest difference manager Jim Leyland and others see in the 23-year-old right-hander is a renewed enjoyment in the game and a lifting of the weight of expectations since he jumped from Class A to the Majors at age 20.

"I think you're seeing the product of a kid who was probably rushed a little bit," Leyland said, "and who was probably under a lot of pressure early."

Leyland treaded carefully with his answer because he didn't want to critique the decision to call up Bonderman at such a young age. After all, Leyland made the call to put Verlander in a Major League rotation is his second full professional season and add 21-year-old Joel Zumaya to his bullpen. Leyland also wasn't faced with filling out a roster for a 2003 Tigers club en route to 119 losses.

But in Bonderman, he sees a guy now learning how to better use what he has.

"I think you're seeing maturity at its best," Leyland said. "You saw electric stuff early, and now you're seeing a pitcher with electric stuff. His competitive spirit probably worked against him."

The biggest step in maturity, Bonderman believes, was parenthood. He became a father on June 1 when daughter Mailee was born. Through the challenges of caring for his baby, Bonderman has still thrived in his job.

"I think a lot has to do with the arrival of my girl," Bonderman said Monday night after his second consecutive 12-strikeout performance. "I cherish every moment I can spend with her. I still put a lot of pressure on myself, but I'm not taking this game [home] with me."

Bonderman's victory Monday made him Detroit's fourth seven-game winner of the season. It's the earliest date on the calendar that the Tigers have had four pitchers with seven wins since at least 1957, according to research from the club's media relations department and on retrosheet.org.

Additionally, Bonderman was the third Tiger in the last 23 years with six consecutive strikeouts. The last Tiger to fan six straight also did it at Milwaukee, though Nelson Cruz's feat on July 8, 2000, came at County Stadium. Juan Berenguer did it on May 12, 1983. The team record is shared by Denny McLain (June 15, 1965, vs. Boston) and John Hiller (October 1, 1970, vs. Cleveland).


New Dominican scouting director: The Tigers announced Wednesday they've hired Ramon Perez as the director of Dominican scouting. Perez spent the last five years with the Pirates, most recently as their Dominican scouting supervisor. He also worked in scouting and player development for nine years each with the Astros and Dodgers.


Seay outrighted: Lefty reliever Bobby Seay, designated for assignment by the Tigers last week, cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Toledo on Wednesday.

Rogers a diamond in the rough
Veteran grateful for coaches' early insight, support

Every once in a while, when a pitcher comes to Kenny Rogers for a tip or advice, he has to smile inside.

He's a 41-year-old pitcher with almost a quarter century in professional baseball. He was an 18-game winner the year he turned 40, and he was the American League's first 10-game winner this year. He's a full-fledged member of the group of ageless, crafty pitchers that includes Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux and Jamie Moyer.

He's the kind of pitcher most any young hurler would love to tap for advice. Yet in his mind, he's the last person who could've been in this spot. His smile inside traces back to his first day in instructional ball, a kid trying to be a pitcher.

"I think back to that day," he said. "There wasn't one soul that would ask me a question about pitching. No chance."

If not for a pair of former coaches, one of whom is now a Tigers scout, he probably wouldn't be pitching now. As Dick Egan put it, "This is one of those stories you make a movie about."

Like most kids, Rogers played during the summer, but when spring came around, he was working on the family berry farm. Once he reached his senior year in high school, he wanted to play, and his father gave his blessing. His brothers would help in the fields.

He was a starter for Plant City High School, but he didn't make a single pitch. Instead, he was an everyday position player. He was playing right field on the day he was discovered. Plant City had a game against Tampa's Robinson High School, which had a highly-touted hitter named Stanley Boderick.

"I'll never forget his name," Rogers said, "because he's the reason I'm here."

By Rogers' estimate, at least 15 scouts came to see Boderick. The reason one actually took his eyes off of him, Rogers believes, was that Rogers' coach introduced him.

"My glove broke when I met the scout that day, he was watching Boderick," Rogers said. "My glove happened to break, so I had to get it fixed by the coach, and my coach was talking to the scout. That was when I met him and said hi."

The closest Rogers came to making a pitch that day, he said, were two throws from right field, one of them nabbing a runner. Soon after, the scout located his phone number and called to ask to see him pitch.

Boderick went in the first round with the 27th overall pick to the Cubs in the amateur draft that June. He never played in the Majors. Rogers went in the 39th round to the Rangers.

Getting noticed should've been the toughest part. For Rogers, leaving the farm and entering the farm system was the start of another challenge, and it hit him in the Gulf Coast League that summer.

Rogers threw hard. He didn't know the techniques of pitching, and he was still 17 years old. Once he arrived in camp, he was grouped with pitchers, several of them college arms, and coaches wanted to see them pitch. So they lined them up and had them throw.

"These guys are throwing breaking balls, changeups, curveballs, sliders -- I didn't know what a slider was," Rogers said. "I didn't have a pitch. I just grabbed a ball, I didn't even care how I grabbed it, and I threw it. I didn't know where it was going to go, didn't have an idea where I wanted to throw it. I didn't know anything else but grab it and throw it."

Rogers pitched three innings that summer, then repeated the same level the next year. That's around the time he met Egan, then a coach in the Minors, and eventual Rangers pitching coach Tom House.

By then, Egan saw a kid with pitches, but no idea how to use them. He couldn't hold his own in pitching drills, but as Egan put it, he could run like a gazelle.

"Everything was a new day for him," Egan said. "It was kind of fun, because when you're an instructor it's fun to watch progress. He's by far the best athlete I ever coached.

"From where I was sitting, it was easy to see how good he was, but he really didn't figure out how good he was for a while. He has an intellect, as far as pitching right now, but at that time he was nothing but an athlete who survived with athleticism and determination. It was never easy for him, until he got to be older."

Part of the learning process was physical. Rogers was still raw enough as a pitcher that he had few bad habits to break. Still, his lessons included pitching out of the stretch and warming up in the bullpen.

The rest was mental.

"I can't overstate the importance they [Egan and House] had on my career," Rogers said. "[I] can't do it. But mainly for the confidence and the faith they put in me early on. I mean, they even saw talent when I didn't really see it or know what I was going to be capable of doing."

Once Rogers understood it, he was going to work tirelessly on it. Rogers' athleticism impressed them, but his enthusiasm won them over.

"Kenny didn't know how to pitch," Egan said. "But because he had the changeup and the curveball and because he was left-handed and the great athlete, he was just really fun. You could see it happening. It just took a long time."

It took seven seasons, including three stops at Double-A Tulsa. Once he made the Rangers in 1989, though, he never went back. It helped that Egan and House were there, too.

The trust Rogers formed with them remains long after Texas. Though Rogers had a knack for learning from nearly everyone he met, nobody has been able to duplicate what he has learned from Egan and House, who have always been a phone call away.

"He and I have been doing this long distance for years," Egan said. "Not that other pitching coaches haven't helped him, but we have this relationship where it seems like he understands even over the phone what I'm talking about, where some other guys, even in person, can't get through to him. He just seems to understand.

"When Kenny calls or when somebody else calls, it makes me feel like I'm in uniform again."

It was Egan who helped get Rogers into a Tigers uniform last winter when he became a free agent. He knew Comerica Park was one of Rogers' favorite places, and he'd been trying to convince the Tigers to pursue him. With the club looking for a veteran pitcher who could win, the decision was really up to Rogers.

"It really was easy to convince him to come over," Egan said. "I really believed it would be a good fit."

He couldn't have imagined it would go as well as it has so far, of course. But given where Rogers stood nearly a quarter century ago, in right field, Rogers is long since beyond anything he could've dreamed.

"Unbelievable," he says with a smile. "I wasn't the one controlling all those things. No matter how much I tried to screw it up, it still worked out."
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060622&content_id=1518314&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

Maroth throws for first time
No timetable scheduled for lefty's return to the mound

Mike Maroth came back to Comerica Park on Friday expecting to feel nervous and awkward. It didn't take him long to feel back at home.

Though the three weeks since his elbow surgery have felt more like three days for him, he grasps how long he's been out every time he watches righty Zach Miner pitch in his spot. The starts are racking up in Detroit, and until now, Maroth was back at his house in Florida.

"Every game, I've felt a little out," Maroth said.

That changed a little when Maroth walked into the clubhouse, then into the training room, then out to the field. A few weeks after having bone chips removed, he was cleared to start his road back, beginning with a simple game of catch.

Maroth threw from 60 feet away for about 25 minutes. Though he doesn't know what it means for his timetable, he has had a smile on his face ever since.

"It felt a little weird," he said. "I hadn't thrown in a few weeks. But as far as any pain -- no pain, no problem."

Probably not as weird as the throws he had been imagining while he was at home -- doing the pitching motion without a ball or a hitter. His first major injury since coming into the Majors has been a completely different feeling for him, being at home for the start of Florida's hurricane season and watching games on television. He would do everyday tasks like picking up his son, Tate, and feel nothing in his arm that would suggest he had surgery.

Now that he has at least returned to the ballpark, he's not going back. He said the training staff hasn't given him a timetable for return, so he has no idea whether or not he's ahead of schedule. But whatever the schedule is, he's expected to keep progressing here. He hopes he can make the next road trip ahead of the All-Star break, though he's not sure that's going to happen.

That way, he can at least watch the games in person and jump in on Nate Robertson's new rally fad. Asked about his gum-chewing skills, Maroth said: "I'm pretty good."


Best of both: The question of whether to play Craig Monroe or Marcus Thames is over for at least a week. With the Tigers back home and the DH back in play, manager Jim Leyland could write both of them into his lineup, though it took an adjustment to get used to it again.

"I screwed up my first lineup card tonight," Leyland said. "I got confused, and I had the pitcher in the ninth spot, because the last few days I've been doing it with that. It was what you guys call a typographical error."

As for Monroe and his left quadriceps tightness from Wednesday, he said he's fine.

Robertson update: Robertson said on Friday that his right knee, which he twisted trying to swing on Wednesday, shouldn't affect him going into his next scheduled start on Tuesday against Roger Clemens and the Astros.

"I'm just glad I don't have to get in the box again," he said. "I got the hit. I got the RBI. I'm out."

[B]Polanco on Pujols: Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols left Placido Polanco with the use of his car last month when the Tigers came into Kansas City after the Cards just left. Polanco is returning the favor this weekend by hosting Pujols at his house.

The fellow Dominican natives became close friends as teammates in St. Louis, where they were roommates in 2001. As housemates for the weekend, Polanco got a reminder about how hard Pujols works when he was ready to go to the park around 1 p.m.

Tigers getting ferocious under Leyland
Both manager and team experiencing simultaneous renaissance

The small visiting manager's office is standing room only and reporters spill into the small hallway to hear the man speak. Or try to hear him speak, anyway.

Jim Leyland is giving a gravel-voiced soliloquy about his life, right now, as the back-from-semi-retirement manager of the similarly resurrected Detroit Tigers.

Both Leyland and the Tigers had been out of the limelight for years but are now back on top of baseball, and it's turning into the biggest story of the season. People are starting to notice.

On this day, Leyland's voice is firm but quiet throughout a wide-ranging half-hour chat that lasts longer than the fire-flavored jawbreaker he held in his cheek. His Detroit Tigers have the best record in the Majors, at 48-25 (.658) entering the weekend, a 180-degree turn from the past 13 years of Tigers baseball.

He is typically gruff, and occasionally hilariously deadpan. Leyland is honest and as authentic as any manager in baseball. No different than when he was guiding the Pirates to new heights in the '80s or taking the Marlins to a World Series championship nine years ago.

"I've just been myself," he said. "I haven't tried to push myself on anybody, I'm having a good time. I love baseball and I'm managing the way I think is the right way to manage. I don't think I deserve any credit. I'm just being myself. I don't want any credit, I'm not looking for credit and you know what? I don't want any blame [if we stink]."

Leyland is a lifer in baseball, with more than 40 years in the game. But in 1999, he suddenly quit while managing the Rockies. He turned to doing some scouting and instruction for Tony La Russa and the Cardinals out of his Pittsburgh home and the Cardinals training camp in Jupiter, Fla. He also spent time with his wife Katie and still-young children, Patrick, 15, and Kellie, almost 13.

But after the 2004 season, he decided he was ready to return. He interviewed for the Phillies job during that offseason, then found a fit this past offseason. Tigers president Dave Dombrowski had been Florida's general manager when Leyland won the World Series with the Marlins.

"I didn't miss it," he said. "I missed the competition, but I would have been very happy if I never managed again."

So why come back?

"Because I want to try and win. I wanted to get back in it. I can have a conversation on the phone with my kids now ... I'm into it. ... I'm into the whole thing. Believe me. If I wasn't, I'd go home."

Leyland's arrival has made a sea change in a Tigers' clubhouse culture that had experienced nothing but mediocrity. After speaking with the media, Leyland puts on his hat and his wraparound sunglasses and makes his rounds through the clubhouse, taking the temperature of the team.

"We know it's business, but he makes it so much fun," said outfielder Craig Monroe. "He makes it fun to come into the clubhouse. He's a jokester -- he likes telling jokes.

"He walks through the clubhouse and he gives you little bits, like, 'Hey, it'll be easy to let one get away today. Let's make sure we prepare and let's play nine innings.' His insight on how to get into the mental aspect, making sure that you're prepared is for me one of the best things I've experienced."

Leyland is as excitable as ever in the dugout, no matter what the score or situation. Like he says, he's into it. Don't think the players don't notice.

"If you watch the game, he has his spikes on," Monroe says, laughing. "I'm like, 'Skip, why do you have your spikes on?' 'Because I'm ready, I'm game-ready.' He's ready to go and it rubs off. Because you see the excitement in his eyes, you know the love. You see the passion in his eyes about this game and what it means to him."

Leyland says he's crustier than he used to be. He'll snap at reporters' questions, he disdains the rise in TV and sports radio reporters. He said he doesn't have time for "silly" stuff. But, really, he hasn't changed.

"He no different, he's just got more wrinkles," said first base coach Andy Van Slyke, who played an All-Star center field for Leyland's NL East champion teams of the early '90s.

Van Slyke is joined on the coaching staff by other former Pirates like Don Slaught, Rafael Belliard and Lloyd McClendon, and Gene Lamont, who's twice coached under Leyland. These are people he's comfortable with, and they know how to communicate his simple message: Play hard and have fun.

"If you just come to play the game correctly and are mentally ready, you'll never have a problem with Jim Leyland," Van Slyke said. "He will not accept mailing it in or not being prepared."

The players are buying in, but it's not just Leyland's exhortations that turned the tables. He has real talent on this team.

There is a mix of young talent (Curtis Granderson, Chris Shelton) and veteran presence (Magglio Ordonez, Pudge Rodriguez) in the lineup. Justin Verlander and Joel Zumaya have been revelations on the mound. Kenny Rogers and Todd Jones are defying middle age. Nate Robertson and Jeremy Bonderman are frontline starters to go with Verlander and Rogers. This is a far cry from the 119-loss team from 2003.

"I like them, they're good guys," Leyland said of the young players that fill out the roster. "They're still in the process of learning how to get over the hump to win and how to handle winning and handle losing. We've got a long way to go."
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060623&content_id=1519368&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

'V' for Verlander victory: Justin Verlander showed the value of grinding out innings on Friday and was rewarded with some history for his trouble. Not only are his nine wins the most by a Tigers rookie before the All-Star break since Mark "The Bird" Fidrych won nine en route to his magical 19-win season in 1976, they're the most by any American League rookie before the break since Freddy Garcia won nine for the Mariners in 1999.

If he can win once in his next two starts before the break, he'll not only pass Fidyrch, but join some elite company. No American League pitcher has won double-digit games before the break since Rolando Arrojo won 10 for the inaugural 1998 Devil Rays. The last National League rookie pitcher to do it was Kaz Ishii, who won 11 for the 2002 Dodgers.

Verlander called it a convergence of pitching well for a good team right away, though Arrojo might disagree after racking up 14 wins on an expansion team that went 63-99.

"There have been a couple games this year where I've given up three or four and gotten a win out of it," he said. "And there's been a couple times when I did do a lot of the work, like against the Twins. I think it's just a good mix and being on a good team. We're scoring runs, but you can't expect that all the time."

Bottoms up: Don't look now, but the Tigers' home-run leader is batting ninth. Brandon Inge's second-inning two-run home run on Friday night, his fourth homer in his last 14 games, pushed him into the team lead with 16. Only Toronto's Troy Glaus entered on Saturday with more among AL third basemen with 21, though four came on days when he wasn't playing at third base.

Inge's average, .225 heading into Saturday, remains the lowest among Major League third baseman, with Glaus next-to-last. Yet, Leyland sees potential as a hitter, and he's watching Inge take steps towards getting there.

"When he figures a few more things out about hitting," Leyland said, "this guy has a chance to be a heckuva player, in my opinion. Will he do it? I don't know. He's got the capability of doing it. This guy's got a chance to be a heckuva player when he starts figuring out on a more consistent basis when to take a base hit the other way. He's done some things this year that show signs. He's bunted for some base hits. This guy's got a lot of talent.

"I'm a big Brandon Inge fan for one reason: This guy has a chance to be a heckuva two-way player [offense and defense], and I love two-way players."



Hitters gear up for Zumaya
Opposing teams sitting on Tigers reliever's 100-mph heat

Joel Zumaya had enough adrenaline going Saturday night after the Tigers' ninth-inning comeback that seven of his 10 pitches in the next inning were clocked at 100 miles per hour or harder. He'll have to put up more numbers around 83 or 84 to keep his success going.

Zumaya added to the story of his rookie season Saturday by overpowering the bottom of the Cardinals lineup to retire the side in order. But both he and manager Jim Leyland noticed Cardinals hitters gearing up for his fastball, evidenced when Hector Luna put his first-pitch 101-mph heater in play.

Even in the National League, Zumaya's name is getting around.

"They're going to want to cheat on that fastball," Zumaya said. "The first batter jumped on that fastball, and I was locating my fastball pretty well last night."

All three pitches the Cardinals put in play off Zumaya were fastballs. Of course, he threw just one pitch other than his heater all inning.

"He's going to have to make adjustments," Leyland said, "but he's the real deal. Everybody in the league has scouted him. They're all charging him. If one of those big guys charges him and run into it, they hit it over the fence. So he's going to have to start getting his breaking ball over and use his changeup a little bit."

He used that strategy well Sunday in his first meeting with Albert Pujols. Zumaya started off the Cardinals slugger with back-to-back breaking balls -- the first for a ball, the second for a strike. The 81 mph offering set up Zumaya's 101 fastball that Pujols fouled off for strike two.

Zumaya went to his breaking ball from there, getting Pujols to swing and miss at it off the plate for the first out of the eighth.

"That first breaking ball that he threw him caused that swing that hit the ball down the right-field line foul," Leyland said. "If you're just pumping and Pujols is just thinking fastball, he might hit it in the seats. And that's happened this year a few times. That's pitching."

That's part of the answer. The other, as evidenced Saturday, will be for Zumaya to locate his fastball so that when hitters do make contact, it stays in the park.

"I was staying down," Zumaya said. "That's going to be the key for me. I know these guys are going to cheat, but if I can keep that ball down, it's going to be real hard for them to get that ball up."

Twin defensive gems: Brandon Inge made two diving stops down the third-base line Sunday. The one he didn't turn into an out might've been the biggest play of the game.

Inge made network highlight reels in the fourth inning. He dove into foul territory to stop Gary Bennett's bouncer, then fired a one-hopper across the infield from one knee to beat him at first.

He nearly made the same play in the fifth, this time against Albert Pujols. Again, he dove to the line to stop a hard-hit bouncer, but he couldn't grab it in time to make a throw. By stopping the ball, however, he prevented what would've likely been a run-scoring double to that would've given St. Louis a 2-1 lead.

"If I would've gotten a grip, I would've thrown it," Inge said. "A couple years ago, I probably would've gotten a grip and thrown it, and I would've rushed it."

Protecting against Pujols: When Leyland called for Grilli to enter and pitch to the right-handed-hitting Pujols with the bases loaded and two outs in the eighth inning Saturday, he told Vance Wilson to cross his fingers while he was laying down signals. The Tigers had no base to put him on, and two runs down, they had no room to give up any more runs and realistically have a chance in the ninth.

"The biggest thing is you want to gear guys to try to think what you're going to try to do," Wilson said. "I wanted him to think we were going to try to offspeed him something away. Grilli's got a good sinker, so we tried to double up with it."

After falling behind on the slider, they went to Grilli's sinker on the two biggest pitches of the at-bat, on both 2-0 and 2-1 counts. Pujols watched the first one go by, then went after the second, only to pop it up into center field.

"You could tell the way he swung," Wilson said, "he was going to the big part of the field, which told me he was probably looking for [something] offspeed. In our ballpark, that's a good thing. Grilli made a great pitch. I think Pujols might've been expecting something soft away."

Had the game continued past the 10th, Leyland would not have played the same game with Pujols, who would have been up third in the 11th. Had Zumaya or another pitcher retired the first two batters of the inning, Leyland said Sunday, he would have intentionally walked Pujols and taken his chances with Scott Rolen.

Pudge plays: He wasn't behind the plate, but Ivan Rodriguez was still in the lineup after missing Saturday's game with a bruised right wrist. With Chris Shelton slumping, Leyland started Rodriguez at first base for the third time this season.

Leyland was also concerned with Magglio Ordonez's knee, which was sore enough that he was lifted for pinch-runner Alexis Gomez in the ninth inning. Ordonez started at designated hitter on Sunday.

Maroth still throwing: Mike Maroth, three weeks removed from surgery to remove bone chips from his left elbow, played catch for the third straight day Sunday, making 45 throws from 60 feet away without problems. He'll have Monday off before proceeding in his rehab from there.

Turnstiles whirling: The three-game series against the Cardinals resulted in 125,417 tickets sold, the largest total for three consecutive games in Comerica Park's seven-year history. All three games were announced as sellouts, including a crowd of 40,644 for Sunday's finale.

DETROIT -- Tigers designated hitter Dmitri Young, who faces a domestic violence charge in Michigan, is headed to Florida for a workout and conditioning program.

Dmitri Young
Designated Httr
Detroit Tigers

Profile
2006 SEASON STATISTICS
GM HR RBI R OBP AVG
15 0 4 5 .222 .169

Young was traveling Wednesday to Lakeland, Fla., and is scheduled to play at some point for Detroit's Triple-A affiliate in Toledo, Ohio.

He was placed on the 15-day disabled list May 22 with a quadriceps injury and granted permission to leave the team to deal with personal issues.

"I don't anticipate him being back for three, four weeks at the earliest," Tigers president and general manager Dave Dombrowski said. "He's been out a long time. He hasn't played a lot."

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2502970

I don't think DY belongs he is the new Higginson, I feel bad for the guy but sorry your time is over.

Back behind the plate: Eric Munson and Brandon Inge were considered the future of the Tigers three years ago, only at different positions. Munson, a catcher in college at USC, was on his second position switch, becoming a regular third baseman. Inge, a shortstop and closer in college, was the regular catcher.

Neither one quite made it there, but they've found new life switching spots. Inge is now Detroit's everyday third baseman, and a surprisingly adept one at that. Munson, non-tendered by the Tigers after the 2004 season and cut the Twins after that, has resurfaced in Houston as a backup catcher.

Munson realizes the irony.

"It's crazy how it works out," Munson. "That's baseball."

Maroth rehab continues: Mike Maroth stretched out his throwing session from 60 to 90 feet Tuesday as he works his arm back into shape following surgery to remove bone chips last month. No official timetable has been released on his return, though case history suggests he could be back in August or September.

I hate Rob Parker, and this smells of feel-good story, but there are some note-worthy quotes from his article on DY today.


Young said he worked out during his rehabilitation, but he hadn't touched a ball, glove or bat in quite some time.

"Actually, I kept myself in good shape," said Young, who said he weighs around 255 pounds, the same as when he left spring training in April. "I have to get into baseball shape."

To do so, Young will stay in Lakeland a few days, working with minor-league instructors. He'll take batting practice, run the bases, shag fly balls and field grounders.

After that, according to Young, he'll probably go to Double-A Erie to face live pitching.

If all goes well, Young said he could rejoin the Tigers after the All-Star break. The Tigers' first game after the break is July 13 at home against the Royals.



Young said he has kept up with the Tigers. He said he's thrilled by the success of Marcus Thames, who essentially got his break because of Young's absence.

"I kept saying that guy can play," Young said of Thames, who is hitting .298 with 15 home runs and 30 RBI. "I felt totally great for Marcus. He finally got the opportunity to show that he's a great hitter."

Young said he's aware of talk about the Tigers' need to acquire a left-handed bat.

"I'm ready to get back up there and be that left-hand bat they need," said Young, who hit .169 with no home runs and four RBI in 15 games this season.

"I'm going to be as good as anyone they can make a trade for," he said. "My track record speaks for itself. Best of all, my head is clear now."

How can he be a good baseball player from a jail cell?

Detroit is deep in pitching
Rogers' impact being felt through entire rotation

Chris Carpenter, Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte came to town in the past week. All three were outpitched.

Johan Santana met the same fate last month. So did Cincinnati's Aaron Harang. Scott Kazmir was basically pitched to a draw two weeks ago. All of them have become evidence in the story of the 2006 Tigers, that Detroit is deep in pitching.

It's an idea almost three years in waiting, but finally, the Tigers rotation has become the strength of the ballclub. For that matter, it's the strength of the league.

"The constant you have to have to go up against a guy like him," manager Jim Leyland said after Tuesday's win over Clemens and the Astros, "is your pitcher has to pitch good, or you've got no chance. If [Nate] Robertson gives up three or four runs, we've got no chance. He met that challenge. That's what I'm impressed with."

The numbers are impressive on their own. As an entire pitching staff, the Tigers' 3.45 ERA is nearly a half-run lower than any other team in the big leagues and three-quarters of a run under the next-best in the American League. The Padres' are next lowest at 3.89. The Yankees are second-lowest in the AL at 4.18.

Whittle the numbers to starting pitchers only, and the difference is even more dramatic. The Tigers lead the Majors with a 3.39 ERA. The next-best team, the Giants, come in at 4.14. The A's are next-best in the AL at 4.31. They also boast the most wins, lowest WHIP ratio, lowest slugging percentage and second-lowest on-base percentage allowed of any Major League rotation.

For the past month, they've been even stingier than that. They've posted a 15-2 record and 2.55 ERA in 25 games since June 2, holding opponents under a .240 average. It has gone on so long that Leyland has openly wondered if his starters are trying to top each other as much as the opponent.

He might be right.

"We're all competitive people," Justin Verlander said after his eight scoreless innings against the Astros on Wednesday afternoon. "We wouldn't be here if we weren't. So I think there is a little competitive nature between the starters here, which I think couldn't be better. Us competing against ourselves is, I think, what makes us go to the next level."

They're going there with very different styles of pitchers up and down the rotation.

Though the Tigers added free-agent Kenny Rogers in the offseason, Leyland and others in the organization knew the key to success would have to involve Detroit's young pitchers taking the next step in their development. Jeremy Bonderman, Robertson and Mike Maroth had essentially been together in the rotation since the tail end of the 2003 season. They had progressed slowly since then, making small steps sometimes, taking setbacks at other times.

There was enough promise there that former pitching coach Bob Cluck forecast that 2006 would be the year that the rotation became the strength of the club. As the 2005 season closed down, however, they looked far from that.

Robertson ended up with 16 losses and a frustrating season of close games, unearned runs and jams he couldn't escape. Bonderman was sidelined with an elbow injury that, while not requiring surgery, wasn't a comforting sign from a 22-year-old with three full big-league seasons under his belt. Maroth accomplished a .500 record for the first time in his career, but had a 5.44 ERA after the All-Star break. As Spring Training neared, Leyland talked about them needing to step up. And all of them did.

Bonderman, with help from Rogers, honed a changeup after several previous tries had failed. Robertson regained velocity on his fastball that he had lost last year, and his aggressiveness to hitters returned in kind. Maroth, who had tried to study finesse lefties like Tom Glavine and Jamie Moyer from afar, looked more and more like Rogers while watching him every day, before bone chips in his elbow required surgery. Zach Miner has starred in his place, winning his last four starts.

No one could've forecasted how quickly Verlander has emerged to join them. The first Tigers rookie pitcher in modern history to reach 10 wins by the All-Star break, Verlander entered Thursday tied with Rogers and Boston's Josh Beckett for the AL wins lead. Verlander owns Detroit's only complete-game shutout, came an inning shy of doing it again Wednesday, and has lost just once in his last 10 outings. All the while, he has overcome blister problems and shifted from one breaking ball grip to another.

He has shown none of the confidence wanes expected from a rookie starter.

"Everybody talks about that," Leyland said, "but when you've got stuff like that, it's pretty easy to have savvy and confidence."

Yet all of Detroit's young starters have had at least two common factors. All of them have found a way to learn from Rogers, whether pure pitching or an enthusiasm for fielding.

"I can't say enough about what he's done for us," Leyland said after Rogers' 200th victory.

The other common denominator has been the presence of new pitching coach Chuck Hernandez, who has taken the tools they have and given them the game plan to use their strengths against opposing hitters' weaknesses.

"These guys are growing up a lot," Leyland said. "I think that's a big issue. Guys are not losing their cool. They're gaining confidence. I think Chuck Hernandez has just done a tremendous job of preparing guys and keeping them calm and knowing what to say. I think he's really been kind of a calming influence on our staff. When they get in big situations, they're really not panicking. They're pretty much staying within themselves and doing what they do best."
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060629&content_id=1529591&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

Cool Colon: Leyland has said all season that all his relievers would be called upon to get big outs. Friday was the second consecutive outing for Roman Colon in which he made what Leyland called the biggest outs of the game.

Coming off his performance against the Astros on Monday, when he struck out Craig Biggio with two on in the sixth inning of a three-run game, he entered Friday's affair in the middle of the Pirates' comeback, with Jason Bay -- the potential tying run -- at the plate in the fifth inning. Colon retired Bay and Jose Castillo on fly balls to escape that situation, then retired the side in the sixth with back-to-back strikeouts.

With every situation like that, Colon says, he's gaining confidence.

"You're thinking, 'This is what I've got to do to show my coaching staff that I can get in any situation,'" Colon said. "I have to be able to do it and I'll be more consistent in games. That's what happened. He got me in to face one hitter [Monday], and then they got me to face two hitters and another inning -- and I did it."

In turn, Leyland is gaining more confidence in him.

"I think it's a combination of a few things," Leyland said, when asked what makes Colon an effective reliever. "I think he's got an arm that responds pretty [well]. I think he's still in the process of refining his slider a little bit, and you can get away with that a little bit more relieving than you can starting. He needs a little better slider, better offspeed stuff, but he throws hard enough with plenty of arm that he gets you through an inning or two, particularly a predominantly right-handed hitting lineup.

"I think he's got a nice little air of confidence in him," said Leyland. "I made sure I talked to him after the game last night, complimented him on a good job. Those were huge outs that he got."

Maroth update: Mike Maroth threw a light session of catch Saturday to ease up on his arm before he throws another session of long toss from 120 feet Sunday. He'll continue doing that with the team on the West Coast before taking the next step in his rehab from surgery to remove bone chips in his left elbow.

He has not been told about a potential timetable for his return. Still, the fact that he has not felt irritation in his arm is a sign he's progressing.

"If everything goes well," Maroth said, "I'll be back sooner before later."


Thames, Bondo earn June honors: Bonderman and outfielder Marcus Thames were selected by media voting as the Tigers pitcher and player of the month, respectively, for June. Thames hit .309 (30-for-97) for the month with eight doubles, eight home runs, 20 RBIs and 18 runs scored.

Bonderman's 2-0 record for June didn't reflect his dominance. He held opponents to a .201 batting average to go with a 1.77 ERA. His 44 strikeouts for the month over 35 2/3 innings tied for the AL lead.


Considering how well Zach Miner has been pitching filling in for Mike Maroth, what happens to the Tigers' rotation when Maroth is ready to pitch again? Will there be a trade? Would we consider a six- man rotation? It would give guys like Justin Verlander, Nate Robertson, and Kenny Rogers an extra day of rest in between starts.
-- Tony K., Warren

That's going to be one of the bigger questions if Maroth is ready in late August and Miner is still pitching well. Maroth was one of the most effective starters the Tigers had early in the year, but Miner has done nothing to suggest he shouldn't be in there. I'm not sure Leyland would use a six-man rotation for a lengthy stretch, but he has hinted plenty of times about inserting a spot starter on occasion and giving the rest of the rotation an extra day of rest. I think spot starter/long reliever is a possible role for one of those guys if it gets to that point, either as a way to ease Maroth back into pitching or to keep Miner with the big club. It could also be a way to ease the workload on Verlander if it gets to the home stretch and the innings have gotten too high.

Tigers: Notebook
Young ready to play again
DH starts long road back to the Tigers in Class A after nearly two months out of the game.
Lynn Henning / The Detroit News

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Dmitri Young's return path to Comerica Park began in earnest Wednesday when the Tigers switch-hitter joined Single-A Lakeland, Fla., for a rehabilitation stint.
Young, who has been on the disabled list since May 22, will move up the Tigers' organizational chain as he attempts his comeback from injuries and problems associated with addiction and depression.
"The reports from Lakeland are that he's in great shape and really busting his butt," Al Avila, the Tigers' assistant general manager, said before Wednesday's game in Oakland.
Young, 32, is scheduled to play tonight for Lakeland before moving to Double-A Erie (Pa.) for games Friday through Monday. He will join Triple-A Toledo on July 13 and, if Young's recovery is complete, he would rejoin the Tigers at a later date.
Tigers manager Jim Leyland said: "All I know is he's in great shape. Hopefully, we can get him going. If we can get Dmitri Young to hit the way he can hit, that's a bonus with me -- like a Christmas present. I like Dmitri Young a lot."

Rogers to start?
Ozzie Guillen , the White Sox manager who will be at the American League helm for Tuesday's All-Star Game in Pittsburgh, said Wednesday he was leaning toward Kenny Rogers as his starting pitcher against the National League.
"I'm going to talk to Jim Leyland in the next couple of days and see how (Rogers) feels," Guillen told the Associated Press.
Rogers got the victory Wednesday in Detroit's 10-4 romp over Oakland, which pushed Rogers' record to 11-3.

Ordonez, Guillen reunited
Tigers right fielder Magglio Ordonez said Wednesday that it would "be cool" to play for Guillen, his former manager, in Tuesday's All-Star Game.
Guillen called Ordonez on Tuesday with news that he would be joining the AL team as a likely replacement for Boston left fielder Manny Ramirez , who might choose to use the All-Star break as recovery time for his sore knee.
Ordonez said the All-Star assignment was particularly gratifying for a single reason: "You don't go there because of your name," he said, "You go there because you had a good first half."
Ordonez played for the White Sox from 1997-2004 but left the team after a contract dispute that centered on his surgically repaired knee.
He signed with the Tigers in 2005 and drew his share of Guillen-brand verbal abuse, all before Guillen calmed down. The two are now at peace.

Trade talk
Avila acknowledged Wednesday that the Tigers have been asked by plenty of clubs about the possibility of trading a pitcher from one or another team in Detroit's organizational system.
The Tigers could have six starters on their Detroit club when Mike Maroth returns from elbow surgery, likely in August.
They have had two International League pitchers of the week in the past month: Humberto Sanchez , a hard-throwing right-hander and Jordan Tata , who was with the Tigers earlier this season and who has pitched exceedingly well since being returned to the Mud Hens to get more regular work.

Leyland on Verlander
Even the Tigers manager is some days awed by what rookie right-hander Justin Verlander has accomplished. Leyland said Wednesday that one fact, in particular -- Verlander only signed a big league contract 20 months ago -- has made his gaudy numbers (10-4 record, 3.01 ERA) all the more impressive.
"This guy's something special," Leyland said in reference to Verlander's candidacy to be one of five AL players voted onto the AL team when fan balloting ends at 6 tonight.

Viva Italia: Although Detroit lost on Tuesday (2-1), one Tiger was celebrating a victory.

Reliever Jason Grilli has held dual U.S.-Italy citizenship since being invited to pitch for the Italian Olympic team in 1996, and wasn't above letting his Tigers teammates hear about Italy's 2-0 win over Germany in the World Cup semifinals.

"I've been taking a lot of grief from everybody in the room here, but the team is doing quite well," Grilli said.

The 29-year-old reliever, who was born in Michigan and went to college in New Jersey, strengthened his Old World ties by pitching for Italy in this year's World Baseball Classic.

"The WBC, that whole experience for me just being with the guys, I never felt more Italian," he said. "When you're around Italians, you become more Italian."

But that doesn't mean you learn a whole lot more about that country's favorite sport.

"I know nothing about soccer, but I can root for 'em," Grilli said, adding he doesn't yet know enough Italian to trash talk his Detroit teammates.

"I know a few things, but not the good stuff," he said. "You always learn the bad words first."


LHP Mike Maroth has been throwing off level ground for more than a week with no negative results but still has no timetable for a return to the Tigers. The trainers have one, he said recently, but they're keeping it out of his sight. Maroth has begun throwing from 90 feet and will gradually step up his long-toss before returning to the mound to rehabilitate his arm strength. Initial estimates had him returning in August or early September.


BY THE NUMBERS: 43 -- Years since a pitcher age 41 or older has won 20 games in the major leagues. Detroit's LHP Kenny Rogers is halfway there. LHP Warren Spahn won 23 for the 1963 Milwaukee Braves.

According to research by the website hittrackeronline.com, Carlos Guillen's 10 home runs this year have traveled an average of 410 feet. The website said that's the fourth highest average in the American League, behind Alex Rodriguez (416.3 feet), Troy Glaus (411.4) and Jim Thome (410.7)

Call on Rogers: As expected, Leyland received a call from American League All-Star manager Ozzie Guillen on Friday regarding the possibility of Kenny Rogers starting Tuesday's All-Star Game. Leyland would not go into details on the conversation.

It's not expected that Leyland would stand in the way of Rogers making the start. He has repeatedly expressed sympathy for what Guillen and NL manager Phil Garner have to do in laying out their roster and lineups, having done it himself back in 1998. More likely, Leyland's reticence revolved around the fact that Guillen won't formally announce his starter until Monday.

Asked how Rogers' All-Star work could affect Leyland's pitching plans coming out of the break, the skipper said, "It will have an effect. If he goes nine innings, he won't pitch the second day back."

No rotation yet: On that same topic, Leyland said he won't release his pitching order until after the All-Star Game. How he shapes it will have a lot to do with resting some of his pitchers, especially Justin Verlander.

But as Leyland pointed out, Verlander is not the only one who could benefit from rest. If he sticks with his current order coming out of the break, Verlander would start the first game of the second half Thursday against the Royals and still pitch on eight days' rest.

"You could find a case for anybody," Leyland said. "We're going to do what we think is best for number one, the health of the pitching staff, and number two, the Detroit Tigers organization."

There's also the possibility Leyland could use a sixth starting pitcher for a spot assignment sometime during the Tigers' second-half stretch.

Maroth throws in bullpen: Another Tiger working his way back, Mike Maroth, threw an eight-minute bullpen session of fastballs and changeups Friday at Safeco Field. It marked the latest step in his return from surgery last month to remove bone chips in his left elbow. Assuming Maroth's arm feels fine, head athletic trainer Kevin Rand said, he'll throw another bullpen session of some sort Sunday.

Leyland, who normally does not pay attention to players on the disabled list, watched Friday's session out of what he called "being respectful."

"Early signs show there's no question [Maroth will pitch again this season]," Leyland admitted, "but I have no idea what's going to happen. Things like Dmitri Young and Mike Maroth [coming back] are like Christmas presents."

Sunday of '69: The Tigers will have a rare throwback day here Sunday, joining in on the Mariners' promotion to celebrate the 1969 Seattle Pilots. Detroit will don 1969 style gray road jerseys, featuring the city name in block blue letters across the front.


Infante in center: It had been almost two years to the day since Omar Infante started a game in center field. Then, he was an emergency option with Alex Sanchez and Monroe injured. Saturday was far from an emergency, but it's something Leyland had been pondering for a while.

"I wanted to do it," Leyland said, "find out before the second half how he looks out there for a game."

Only one ball came Infante's way before Curtis Granderson entered as a defensive replacement. Infante handled it smoothly.

Infante said he's been working with outfield coach Andy Van Slyke and everyday center fielder Granderson to get accustomed to the role again.

"I like it," Infante said. "It's fun."

Plus, it gets him a start, which has been hard to find lately. He entered Saturday having played in just six of Detroit's last 19 games.

Leyland, meet Ichiro: Leyland had a chance to meet Mariners All-Star Ichiro Suzuki before Friday's game, something he had been looking forward to doing. They'll have a chance to talk again Sunday night when they're on the same charter flight heading to Pittsburgh -- Ichiro for All-Star festivities, Leyland to go home.

"He's fun to watch," Leyland said. "He's worth the price of admission. He's an exciting player."

Nobody's stopping you: Leyland will not have a formal workout for his club on Wednesday as everybody returns from the All-Star break. He doesn't believe in them. However, he said, the facilities at Comerica Park will be open that day for anyone who wants to work out.

Radar man of the half-year

If your stadium radar-gun board doesn't reach triple digits, you'd better hope the Tigers don't come to town -- because rookie infernoballer Joel Zumaya hits triple figures on the MPH board about as regularly as Jeff Gordon.

Just in one May 30 outing against the Yankees, he threw five pitches at 100 MPH and five more at 101. But the best description of what it's like to face him came from Royals first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz, after having to hit off him in the shadows during a day game:

"He was throwing 100 mph in the dark," Mientkiewicz told the Kansas City Star's Joe Posnanski. "All you can do is swing early and use Jedi mind tricks."
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=stark_jayson&id=2511510

Not ready to walk: After 15 years in pro ball, Jamie Walker can finally look forward to being able to choose his team at year's end, when he becomes a free agent. Yet if Walker has his way, he'll have that settled by season's end.

Walker hopes to sign a contract extension and remain a Tiger. If he can get it done before the season ends, all the better.

"I would love to finish my career in the English D," he said. "I think they know that. I'd love to break John Hiller's career record for appearances."

Hiller appeared in 545 games. Walker's next appearance will be his 300th as a Tiger.

"That would mean a lot to me," he said. "It shows that I don't give up and I try to be here every day. I don't call in sick. If things are going good or going bad, I'm going to try to be the same guy I've been since the first day I came in this clubhouse."

It's a trait manager Jim Leyland can appreciate almost as much as his pitching. Walker's scoreless sixth inning on Saturday, his third straight appearance of an inning or more after six consecutive shorter outings, lowered his ERA to 1.13. All three runs Walker has allowed in his 24 innings of work have come on solo homers.

"I can't tell you how impressive he's been," Leyland said.

It's not just the pitching that impresses Leyland, but the preparation. Walker watches and studies the game from the bullpen, whether or not he's expecting to pitch. He's into the games, and he doesn't complain when he doesn't pitch.

"The ultimate complement for me is when I say 'a guy is a heckuva teammate,'" Leyland said. "He's a heckuva teammate."

Said Walker: "I feel that when I'm done playing, I can honestly say I did everything I could."

I've always liked Walker. He's bad ass.

Walker is an absolute horse. He's our bullpen MVP.

Young's been called up for Santiago.

http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060721&content_id=1567876&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

Question has anyone heard anything about Troy Percival? I thought he was effectively retired and working as an advanced scout for the Tigers, since he felt like he wanted to be part of the team since he was getting paid.

I ask However because their was recently talk by Joe Maddon TB's manager former bullpen coach and Rex Hudler Angels former teammate and announcer that Troy is trying to keep in shape and has been throwing lately. I know he is on the 60 DL right now but is this just wishful thinkng by TP or real?

Tigers: Notebook
Polanco OK after getting hit by a pitch
http://info.detnews.com/pix/sports/2006/tigers/tigers_20060723_athletics/6.jpg


Second baseman leaves after beaning, but he didn't suffer concussion and status is day-to-day.
Lynn Henning / The Detroit News
DETROIT -- It could have been worse, much worse.
There were no fractures, there was no concussion, after Placido Polanco took an Esteban Loaiza pitch off his jaw in the first inning of Sunday's 8-4 Tigers victory over Oakland at Comerica Park.
The Tigers second baseman was batting following a leadoff single by Curtis Granderson when he was hit on the jaw -- and, fortunately, on the left earflap of his batting helmet -- by an up-and-in Loaiza cut fastball.
Polanco stood to the left of home plate, dazed as Tigers trainer Kevin Rand and manager Jim Leyland arrived to examine a player who told them he was staying in the game.

"He stumbled back three of four steps," said Leyland, which told the manager Polanco was going nowhere but to the clubhouse. "I'm not gonna have that on my conscience. I don't care if it's the World Series."
Polanco was hustled into an X-ray lab, which showed no fractures of his left jaw.
"He's got some soft-tissue swelling on the side of his face," Rand said.
"He's got basically a left jaw contusion. He'll be day-to-day. It'll be how he responds to the treatment. Hopefully, he may be ready (tonight in Cleveland)."
Leyland has been up front with his praise of Polanco, a steady player who plays the game in a fashion managers respect.
"He's a ballplayer," Leyland said. "If you can't love that guy, you don't like baseball."
Big, bad lead
Most teams -- and pitchers -- will happily accept a 6-0 first-inning lead.
But it can be a double-edged sword, as the Tigers found out Saturday, when they jumped ahead 5-0 only to dissolve en route to a 9-5 loss.
The Tigers were on top 6-0 Sunday, which invited flashbacks to Saturday -- for Leyland and for Nate Robertson .
"We had to win this game today," the Tigers manager said, "particularly after yesterday."
The challenge for a pitcher riding a big lead is to throw strikes without throwing batting practice.
"There's always a fine line," Leyland said. "I want 'em to pitch like it's a one-run lead."
Robertson, who gave up four runs -- three of them during a shaky third inning -- on five hits, tries to follow the advice of teammate Kenny Rogers .
"In your mind, you're at zero," he said of the psychological approach a pitcher uses to avoid getting overly comfortable. "You've still got to make pitches."
The big thumb
Frank Thomas made a brief appearance Sunday, long enough to strike out twice against Robertson and subsequently get ejected by home plate umpire Adam Dowdy for arguing a called third strike in the third.
"The first time up, there was a pitch that wasn't even close, and Pudge (Rodriguez ) kept yapping that they needed that pitch," Thomas said after the game. "Then he (Dowdy) calls me out on a back-door breaking ball, and the next time it's a pitch that was five or six inches inside.
"I know the strike zone, and it isn't that big. I'm up there to do a job, not waste my time."
Thomas continued: "It's a hard job (umpiring), I understand that, but I feel like he got worked by Pudge."
He'll take it
Rodriguez ran his Tigers hitting streak to 13 games with a first-inning attempted sacrifice bunt that turned into a base hit when the ball popped high into the air off his bat and came to a stop against the chalk line in fair territory.
It loaded the bases ahead of Magglio Ordonez 's two-run single.
"I was really surprised to see Pudge bunting on me," Loaiza said. "He's never done that against me, and he never did it when we were teammates (Texas)."
Young starts at first
Dmitri Young got the start at first base Sunday and was 0-for-3 before being replaced by Chris Shelton as defensive insurance. Leyland said he will continue to "mix and match" his lineup in an effort to use Young.

That was some scarry shit.

BTW, I know this is going o sound mean, but how the hell can he tell that Polanco has swelling in his face?

Notes: Intimidating runners
Pudge, Wilson leading the league in nailing basestealers

Ivan Rodriguez isn't one who enjoys sitting around the dugout with a day off. Sitting behind the plate waiting for a baserunner to try something he shouldn't is a little easier to take.

Not only do Tigers catchers lead the Majors by throwing out 45.7 percent of would-be basestealers this season, they've had fewer tries than anyone else in the big leagues. The latter isn't even close. Twenty-five teams have given up more stolen bases than the Tigers have even had tried on them.

That the Tigers can hold down opponents' running games isn't a major surprise for a team with Rodriguez behind the plate. He led American League catchers by throwing out 26 of 59 would-be basestealers last year and added a league-best six pickoffs to boot. Yet this degree of shutting down opponents' running games is something he hasn't seen in a while.

More than halfway through the season, just 19 runners have tried taking off on him, with 10 of them thrown out. He has retired eight of the last nine, enough of an out rate that only three have tried in the past month, all of them unsuccessful. That doesn't include an extra base taken on defensive indifference in the ninth inning Wednesday.

If his pace sticks the rest of the year, he'll have encountered just 34 steal attempts and fewer than 20 stolen bases. Both would be season lows in a potential Hall of Fame career that began in 1991.

Rodriguez said he feels good behind the plate, of course, but two other factors have helped. Backup Vance Wilson, who has thrown six of 16 runners himself, pointed to manager Jim Leyland's instincts on knowing when to call for pickoffs and pitchouts.

"Leyland has a really good instinct of when to throw, when they're going to steal, when they're not going to steal," Wilson said.

The trick for Leyland isn't about trying to guess right on when opponents would run, he said. It's about trying to discourage them from trying at all.

"In one sense, you do it because you don't want to get caught with your pants down," Leyland said. "With Pudge back there, if you pay halfway attention to it, you'd hope you can shut it down some. But when you're manager, you try to cover all the tracks, and you just don't want to get surprised because you weren't ready for something."

The other factor is improvement from Detroit's starting pitchers in holding runners. Replacing Jason Johnson with Kenny Rogers and promoting Justin Verlander made instant improvements in that regard. Beyond that, new pitching coach Chuck Hernandez has tried to push Detroit's young starters to quicken their deliveries.

"We have guys that have the ability to slide step and go quick to the plate," Nate Robertson said. "There's some factors that are involved when you put runners on."

Nearly everyone agreed, however, that the primary factor is Rodriguez.

"All of us have the utmost confidence in Pudge," Verlander said. "I've never really worried that much [about runners] out there [on the mound]."


Glaring deficiency: With summer almost halfway over and most Tigers games now starting in the evening, the problem of glare coming into hitters from empty outfield seats and from center field has resurfaced. Even Leyland, reluctant to cite excuses for hitters, acknowledged it's an issue.

"There's no question about that," Leyland said. "It's tough to see for the first four innings. And it's definitely tougher because you hear remarks from both teams."

That said, he's not sure what all can be done about it. "We can't move the sun, that's for sure," he said.

Notes: Maroth rehabbing
Left-hander is getting closer to returning to action

Mike Maroth pitched to live hitting for the first time Friday in his rehab from elbow surgery, throwing everything but his cut fastball in a five-minute simulated game on the mound before batting practice.

The five-minute session was the next progression in his road back after a handful of bullpen sessions over the past couple of weeks. He threw another side session on Friday as a warm-up before he took the mound.

"It wasn't like a in Spring Training," Maroth said. "It was closer to almost a first start in Spring Training, where you go out and throw two innings. After you throw a couple bullpens and throw BP to hitters, it's nice and easy. This one, I was letting it go, treating it like I was facing hitters in a game."

It was the first time he could throw at game intensity with his pitches, and it came with manager Jim Leyland watching. Once he's freed up to throw his cutter in his next session next week, he'll have his full arsenal. From there, it's a matter of ratcheting up intensity and building up his stamina before approaching a Minor League rehab stint.

"I'm very happy," Maroth said of his progress. "I feel strong. I got a little tired at the end of the five minutes on the mound facing hitters. I started leaving pitches over the plate a little bit. There were signs I was getting a little fatigued, which is a good thing. Next time, we'll probably go a little longer than five minutes, and I'll probably get tired. But that's the whole point, to build up."


[B]So long to Santiago: When Leyland was asked earlier in the week whether he was married to the idea of carrying two middle infielders on his roster, Leyland didn't want to answer, sensing a reporter trying to figure out who could go to make room for Dmitri Young.

Instead, the answer came Friday, when the Tigers optioned Ramon Santiago to Triple-A Toledo.

In practical terms, the answer was becoming evident in Santiago's playing time. While Omar Infante started at shortstop and second base during last weekend's series at Kansas City, Santiago hadn't started since June 27 against Roger Clemens. He had played just three games this month, all of them late-inning appearances, and didn't play at all against the White Sox earlier this week.

Santiago batted .206 with a triple and an RBI in 63 at-bats. It marks his highest at-bat total in a season since he was an everyday middle infielder for Detroit back in 2003.

"It was a difficult decision in the fact that I really liked him on the team," Leyland said. "Obviously, we didn't have to use him very much, and that's good. Not that he hasn't done good, but it meant that Carlos Guillen was healthy. Our infield has been relatively healthy, knock on wood. ...

"I like [Santiago]. I think at some point during the season he will rejoin the club. We're very pleased with what he's done. He's a good person to have in here on the team. He can catch the ball in a lot of spots. But at this particular time, that was the logical choice."

Santiago had little doubt he'd be back. "I hope the team keeps doing well, keeps winning," he said. "And when I come back, we'll be almost in the playoffs."

Split this: The Tigers remain in the market for a hitter to balance out their lineup. From a performance standpoint, however, that balance is almost in reverse.

Look at Tigers' hitters splits against left-handed and right-handed pitchers, and they'll show that several of Detroit's right-handed hitters have hit better against right-handers than lefties. They include Magglio Ordonez (.318 versus righties/.255 vs. lefties), Marcus Thames (.290/.270), Placido Polanco (.304/.244).

That, plus the struggles Curtis Granderson and Carlos Guillen have had against left-handed hitters, helps explain why the Tigers entered Saturday hitting 26 points higher against right-handers (.281) than left-handers (.255). It also makes a difference that the Tigers have faced three of the toughest lefties in baseball between Minnesota's Johan Santana (twice), Tampa Bay's Scott Kazmir and the Yankees' Randy Johnson, not to mention an underrated one in Toronto's Ted Lilly.


Best at the hot corner: Leyland has come to Brandon Inge's defense regarding his defense several times already this season. On Sunday, he took it a step further.

"I put him down as the best third baseman in the league defensively," Leyland said.

That's high praise during a series when the Tigers are facing Eric Chavez, winner of the last five American League Gold Gloves at third base and owner of just two errors in 77 games at third this season. Inge ranks third in the league with 12 errors, but his 317 total chances and 227 assists lead the Majors. He has committed just three errors over his last 54 games, covering 171 total chances.

"I don't know if I'm right," Leyland said, "but I've had the pleasure of seeing this guy for 90-some games. He's been tremendous. This guy has a chance to be a heck of an everyday player. This guy could develop into a star player in my opinion. He's got to make a couple more adjustments, but we're going to go slow with it, put the finishing touches on it next spring going into next year."

The adjustments are more offensive.

"[He needs to] cut down a little bit on strikeouts," Leyland said, "shorten up in a little bit of situations, take a base hit. He's got as much power as anybody we've got, and I don't want to take that away from him. [He] just [needs] to make a couple of adjustments to make him a pure hitter.

"He has the athletic ability to do it. This guy doesn't have to be an outhouse-or-castle guy. He can be a home run hitter and he can be an average hitter. This guy's got the package to be it all. He runs good enough to get a few infield hits. He can bunt for a base hit. He can hit the ball 500 feet, and eventually he'll get base hits to right field more often. He's got one more step to go, but it's going to take work."


Triple trouble from Twins: The Twins rearranged their rotation for next weekend's visit from the Tigers. They'll skip struggling Scott Baker, meaning the Tigers will face Francisco Liriano, Brad Radke and Johan Santana at the Metrodome.

The Tigers' struggles against Santana and Radke are well known. They faced Liriano, the rookie All-Star, in his first Major League start last September, but have only faced him in relief this season before he was moved into the rotation.

Best at the hot corner: Leyland has come to Brandon Inge's defense regarding his defense several times already this season. On Sunday, he took it a step further.

"I put him down as the best third baseman in the league defensively," Leyland said.

That's high praise during a series when the Tigers are facing Eric Chavez, winner of the last five American League Gold Gloves at third base and owner of just two errors in 77 games at third this season. Inge ranks third in the league with 12 errors, but his 317 total chances and 227 assists lead the Majors. He has committed just three errors over his last 54 games, covering 171 total chances.

"I don't know if I'm right," Leyland said, "but I've had the pleasure of seeing this guy for 90-some games. He's been tremendous. This guy has a chance to be a heck of an everyday player. This guy could develop into a star player in my opinion. He's got to make a couple more adjustments, but we're going to go slow with it, put the finishing touches on it next spring going into next year."

The adjustments are more offensive.

"[He needs to] cut down a little bit on strikeouts," Leyland said, "shorten up in a little bit of situations, take a base hit. He's got as much power as anybody we've got, and I don't want to take that away from him. [He] just [needs] to make a couple of adjustments to make him a pure hitter.

"He has the athletic ability to do it. This guy doesn't have to be an outhouse-or-castle guy. He can be a home run hitter and he can be an average hitter. This guy's got the package to be it all. He runs good enough to get a few infield hits. He can bunt for a base hit. He can hit the ball 500 feet, and eventually he'll get base hits to right field more often. He's got one more step to go, but it's going to take work."




That is some praise.

Van Slyke generalizes Latinos in assessing GuillenJuly 25, 2006
CHICAGO (Ticker) - Detroit Tigers (http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/teams/det/) first base coach Andy Van Slyke made generalizations about Latinos on Tuesday in questioning the managerial approach of Ozzie Guillen of the Chicago White Sox (http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/teams/chw/).
Speaking on Sporting News Radio, Van Slyke was asked about Guillen's outburst toward White Sox pitcher Jon Garland (http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/players/6396/), whom the manager took to task in the dugout for not retaliating in a beanball war with Vicente Padilla (http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/players/6257/) of the Texas Rangers (http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/teams/tex/) on Sunday.
"(Guillen's) a guy who wears his emotions on his sleeve," Van Slyke told the radio network. "He is, if you want to call it, an atypical Latin baseball player.
I don't believe that it's true for all Latinos, but a lot of people's perception is that Latinos are hot-headed. He has certainly shown that he gets a little upset and a little excited about the littlest, silliest things."
Guillen responded to Van Slyke's comments following Tuesday's game against Minnesota.
"It bugs me when people talk about me," Guillen said. "I never say anything about running a club and what they should and shouldn't do. And second parties are too many. That's why he's coaching first base and I'm managing in the big leagues. I'm going to manage in the big leagues longer than he's going to coach first base.
"It's a shame when you talk about somebody you really don't know. If I treat him or another player like that and he hit me, I'll take my chances. But he don't know the conversation between me and Garland or me and my ballplayers. It was a little too far. It was too far way from that. Just worry about your team playing well and don't worry about my team."
During his playing days, Van Slyke was among the players more accommodating to the media.
Earlier this season, Guillen was fined and ordered into sensitivity training by Commissioner Bud Selig after referring to a Chicago newspaper columnist with a derogatory term for gays.
The videotape of the confrontation between Guillen and Garland has been repeatedly replayed and conveys the manager may have been showing up the pitcher, which Van Slyke also found objectionable.
"Do I like what he does sometimes? No," Van Slyke said. "Would I like it if he showed me up like that in the dugout? No. I probably would have punched him. But I think the players have adjusted to his style and type of managing."
On June 14 against the Rangers, Guillen treated pitcher Sean Tracey (http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/players/7793/) in similar fashion after the rookie also did not retaliate when a White Sox batter had been buzzed by a pitch from Padilla. The White Sox (59-39) are the defending World Series champions but trail the Tigers (67-32) by 7 1/2 games in the American League Central Division entering play Tuesday. They hold the wild card spot.


Wow.

Whoops.

searches for the "that's racist" ani

More simulation for Maroth: The end of the rehab process is in sight for Mike Maroth, who threw his second simulated outing Tuesday afternoon.

Maroth threw a seven-minute session of about 35 pitches against hitters Chris Shelton and Alexis Gomez just before afternoon rains brought the tarp onto Jacobs Field. Unlike last time out, Maroth said he did not feel tired near the end.

"Right now, he's tremendous," Leyland said. "He's free and easy. He's not holding back anything."

Assuming the Tigers can reserve some pregame time on the field at the Metrodome on Sunday morning, the rehab schedule calls for Maroth to throw a longer simulated game then. That one would have Maroth throw every pitch, including his cutter for the first time, and simulate a two-inning outing with a break in between.

One more rehab outing after that, preferably when the Tigers return home Aug. 4, and Maroth would be ready for a Minor League rehab stint.

"Right now, I feel as strong if not stronger than I did before [elbow surgery in June]," Maroth said.


Tigers on TV: Monday's game on FSN Detroit drew the network's highest ratings in nine years of broadcasting Tigers baseball, according to the network. The 11.5 rating in metro Detroit equated to about 222,525 households, making it the most-watched show on Detroit televisions.

It was the eighth-highest of any sport on FSN Detroit and the second-highest non-playoff game. Eight of the nine highest-rated Tigers broadcasts have taken place this year, seven of them this month.


More Tigers/White Sox rivalry: The chatter that won't die between the Tigers and White Sox continues from long distance. On Tuesday, White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen took a verbal jab at Tigers first-base coach Andy Van Slyke for comments he made during a radio interview.

Van Slyke was reportedly asked on Sporting News Radio for his reaction to Guillen's well-publicized lecture to Jon Garland for not successfully hitting a batter Sunday in retaliation for Vicente Padilla's plunkings earlier in the game.

"Do I like what he does sometime? No," Van Slyke said during the interview. "Would I like it if he showed me up in the dugout? No, I probably would have punched him. Right on the spot. ... But the players have adjusted to his type of style of managing."

Asked about the remarks before Chicago's game Tuesday, Guillen reacted strongly.

"I think Andy forgot a little bit [that] his manager, who I have a lot of respect in baseball, got on Barry Bonds in front of everyone and [Van Slyke] said nothing," Guillen told reporters, referring to the much-publicized argument between Bonds and Leyland in Pittsburgh in the early 90s. "First of all, this guy doesn't know exactly what happened in my dugout. He wasn't here to hear. He just made comments and he thinks that way. ...

"If I get attacked by Jim Leyland, then I open my eyes and ears. Or get attacked by Jack McKeon, Mike Scioscia, Ron Gardenhire, Bobby Cox. If I get attacked by a coach who just got here, I couldn't care less. I just continue to do my job and run my club the way I want to run my club. There's only [certain guys] who can criticize me about the way I run my club -- the general manager and the owner and my players. Twenty-five plus two is 27 who like the way I run the club. That's all I care about."

• The Tigers had scored five or more first-inning runs in each of their last three games, but Tuesday night, they allowed seven runs in the first inning to the Indians. Detroit became the first team in major league history to score or allow at least five first-inning runs in four straight games.

• Despite losing, the Tigers are the fourth team in major league history to win 67 of their first 100 games in a season after having a losing record the previous season. The three other teams to do it were Detroit in 1886 (72-27-1), the Red Sox in 1946 (70-28-2) and the Giants in 1993 (67-33).

Sorry, but I love Ozzy Guillen

Gomez back in Toledo: Outfielder Alexis Gomez, whose contract was designated for assignment Wednesday, cleared waivers and was outrighted Friday to Triple-A Toledo. He was expected to be in action Friday night for the Mud Hens.

To make room for Gomez on the Hens' roster, outfielder Tike Redman was released. He was batting .253 in 79 games this season with a home run, 13 RBIs and 12 stolen bases. However, he hit .235 in 50 July at-bats with no home runs or RBIs.

If he's not part of a deadline deal (which I doubt he would be since he cleared waivers) I expect Gomez to be back in Spetember when the rosters expand. I didn't like him much early on, but he had some big moments in limited PT this last time he was up.

I actually expect him to be back as soon as his requisite 10 day period in Toledo is done.

LMFAO:
http://naterobertson.mlblogs.com/



July 16, 2006

The long-lasting power of Gum Time

[/URL]
Two days ago, obviously, coming back from the All-Star break (http://naterobertson.mlblogs.com/photos/uncategorized/gumtime_1.jpg) can be a little rusty, moreso the pitchers than anybody. Bonderman didn't have his best game, but obviously pitched well enough to win. Our offense has been great the last few days. That game, down 4-1 at the time, walking along in the dugout, Verlander and Miner come up to me and ask, "What do you think?" and they point to the gum. I said, "Well, I think it's time." Both of them go wad it up, and sure enough, we put a five-spot up and take the lead and don't look back (http://naterobertson.mlblogs.com/.shared/image.html?/photos/uncategorized/jeremy_1.jpg). That was the first time all game. It's fun, because it's not something you can go and do all nine innings and hit or miss. This was the first time in a game, and here we go, five runs score. It wasn't just hits, it was the crazy things that happened. Everybody, fans included that are big on it, they pick a time of the game to throw it in. It may or may not work, but each person has the belief that it was their time, their pouch, their gum that started it. That's what makes it so fun.
And then again Friday night (http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/wrap.jsp?ymd=20060714&content_id=1556069&vkey=wrapup2005&fext=.jsp&team=home). We got into the ninth inning, and I hadn't chewed gum all night. Shelton told me that it was time. I said, "Nah, let some of the other guys do it," but he said, "No, [URL="http://naterobertson.mlblogs.com/.shared/image.html?/photos/uncategorized/carlos.jpg"]it's time. Get it in there. Get it done." Sure enough, I throw a whole pack in, and two batters into it, Guillen hits a walkoff and we're all running out there. There's five or six of us, and you can see it in the paper, you can see a couple of the guys, Verlander and Maroth, have some big old wads. It's just hilarious, man. I mean, we have so much fun with it that earlier in the game, our assistant clubhouse manager, Tyson Steele, he came down there and we tied it up. Nobody was doing it, and we looked down the bench and there's Tyson with gum in his mouth. He didn't say anything. He just came out there quietly and threw some gum in his mouth and we scored three runs that inning. He goes, "You can thank me for that," and walked back up to the dugout and back to his business.

Fucking brilliant.

Notes: Clevlen makes noise in debut

You're a kid who just arrived from Double-A on Saturday night, you're playing at a position you've played just a handful of times this season, you're judging fly balls against a roof for the first time in your career, and you're facing a former Cy Young winner.

Welcome to the big leagues, Brent Clevlen.

"It's pretty exciting," Clevlen said. "I was surprised when they called me and told me I was coming up."

It's quite a surprise for someone who was hitting .224 at Erie. But with Alexis Gomez ineligible for recall at the moment, Clevlen already on the 40-man roster and the youngster having made an impression on Leyland in Spring Training, Clevlen found himself getting his first Major League exposure.

It didn't take him long to make an impression. He threw out Luis Castillo at the plate trying to score on a fly ball in the bottom of the first inning, then doubled down the left-field line in his first big-league at-bat off Johan Santana. He came around to score on Placido Polanco's ensuing single.

"It was good to get the first one out of the way," Clevlen said. "That was big."

A four-pitch walk in the sixth again set up Polanco for an RBI single, giving the youngster two of Detroit's four runs in a two-hit game.

"How about that for breaking in? That was neat," manager Jim Leyland said. "What would've made it neater is if we'd won the game, but that's a pretty good debut. Maybe the lights are better up here than they are in Erie."

Or maybe Clevlen feels comfortable on a field that's also used for football. The former high school quarterback showed off his college-caliber arm on his throw from center. Though his release was deliberate rather than fast, the throw was on a line. It hit the turf just in front of home plate, bouncing just where catcher Vance Wilson needed it to catch the ball and block the plate at the same time.

"I was pretty calm the whole time," he said. "The only time I had any jitters was really during the national anthem. But after that, I didn't have any going into the field or at the plate."

Clevlen had a pregame drill of fly balls Sunday morning to prepare him for the roof, which blends in with the ball more in the daytime than at night.

"It's like trying to play in a toilet bowl with the seat down," outfield coach Andy Van Slyke said of judging balls here.

Then he added a footnote. "The best part of that quote," he said, "is that the Metrodome can't get mad at me."

Good times for Todd: Even 38-year-old closers with more than 250 career saves are creatures of confidence. Todd Jones is thriving on it.

Early in the season, fans had a target on Jones, based in large part on hamstring and knee problems from the latter part of Spring Training. Now, he's not only feeling better physically, but mentally.

Jones can be one of the most self-deprecating players in baseball, to the point where he half-jokingly called himself the weak link on the club on ESPN's "Pardon the Interruption" last week. But even he admits this is more like his typical form.

"Now you guys are starting to see what I did last year in Florida, the little bit of time that I've been consistent," Jones said Saturday night. "I'm not blaming this thing with my leg, and I'm certainly not out of the woods or whatever. I'm just saying, what I've done over the last three or four weeks, don't look for that all year, but now you can see why I did what I did last year."

Jones racked up 40 saves last year with the Marlins, which played no small part in earning him a two-year, $11 million contract from the Tigers as a free agent last winter. He allowed just 61 hits over 73 innings in 2005 with 62 strikeouts.

Thanks to the Tigers' success, he's not only ahead of last year's pace in the saves column, but he's ahead in the league. Saturday's save was his 29th of the season, tying him with Boston's Jonathan Papelbon for the Major League lead. At this pace, he'll break his career high of 42 saves, set with the Tigers in 2000.

It's been recently, though, that his pitching form in general has looked like his career best. He hasn't blown a save in 13 opportunities since the infamous eight-run eighth inning at Toronto on June 9. His run allowed Saturday night was just his second given up over his last 15 2/3 innings, covering his last 16 outings. Opposing hitters are 11-for-57 against him over that span, good for a .193 batting average.

Everyone asked, from Jones to manager Jim Leyland to catcher Vance Wilson, says he's a different pitcher with his health. His velocity is faster, and his cutter has regained its bite.

"If you're not 100 percent [healthy], it comes into your pitch sequence, it comes into your ability to make pitches, because you're guarding something," Jones said. "But ultimately, it comes down to not making excuses. If you tell a man you can pitch, you live with the results. I didn't say anything because I was doing OK, and then I went through that rough spell, and it got me to say something. But I got out of it quick enough and I got healthy."

"I think all closers are guys that get on rolls," Wilson said. "Typically, the closers who struggle, they struggle in streaks and bunches. They might have three blown saves out of five when they didn't pitch good. No questions right now, he's got the momentum going."

Except for Sunday. After four saves through five games on this road trip, including saves Friday and Saturday night, Jones was off Sunday.

"That might not be a bad idea," Jones said. "That's kind of the one thing that stinks about being old. You can't bounce as well as you used to. So I'll take my day off and live with it."


Maroth throws simulated game: Mike Maroth came out of his two-inning simulated game fine Sunday morning, keeping him on track for a Minor League rehab assignment next week. He'll throw one more simulated outing Friday, when the team returns home.

Did you know? Detroit's rookie pitchers have combined to go 24-7 with a 2.93 ERA this season, tops in the Majors by all clubs with at least 100 innings worked by rookies. Zach Miner, Jordan Tata, Justin Verlander and Joel Zumaya's 24 combined wins are the most by Detroit since 1977. The last time rookies combined to win 24 or more for the Tigers was 1955, when they won 27.

By the numbers: The Tigers are hitting .303 as a team after the All-Star break (189-for-595), with 30 doubles, three triples and 15 homers and 94 runs scored. The team's second-half batting average is fourth-best in the league.


• With Guillen's eighth-inning double, he became the first Tiger to hit for the cycle since Damion Easley did it on June 8, 2001, against Milwaukee, and the first to do it on the road since George Kell at Philadelphia in 1950. Guillen is just the 10th player in Detroit history to hit for the cycle, but it's been done two other times in the Major Leagues this season, by the Mets' Jose Reyes (June 21 against Cincinnati) and Houston's Luke Scott (July 28 against Arizona). Before Tuesday night, the American League had not seen a cycle game since August 2004, when the Rangers' Mark Teixeira completed the task against Cleveland.


• Justin Verlander was the winning pitcher for the Tigers, pushing his record to 10 games over .500 (14-4), joining Francisco Liriano (12-2) in that club. Since 1900, there has been only one other season in which two rookie pitchers were both 10 games over .500 on-or-before August 1. It also happened in 1911 when Grover Alexander and Vean Gregg did it.

Verlander is the only the third rookie pitcher in the last 50 years to win 14-or-more games in a season for the Tigers, joining Mark Fidrych in 1976 (19 wins) and Dave Rozema in 1977 (15).


• Sean Casey hit a home run in his third at-bat as a Tiger, snapping a streak of 173 at-bats without a homer. It was the longest single-season home run drought of Casey's career. Casey went 192 at-bats without a homer spanning the 2001-2002 seasons.

http://www.mlive.com/tigers/stories/index.ssf?/base/sports-2/1146564627107340.xml&coll=1

Carlos Guillen was standing on second base, the owner of the Detroit Tigers’ first road cycle in 56 years.

In the Tiger dugout, Curtis Granderson turned to Brent Clevlen and said: “I don’t know if they’ll show your home run on TV now.”

“I might have to hit another one,” Clevlen replied.

And then he did.

LMAO. [smilie=rofl.gif]

LOL. And they still didn't show either of them (on ESPN).

Hit three next time Clevlen!

First impressions

Sean Casey found out how hard Justin Verlander throws Tuesday night, because on a pickoff attempt at first, Verlander broke Casey's glove.

"Dude, you throw a 100 to the plate, 85 to first," Casey said. "You don't need to be throwing 101 to first and breaking my glove. When that happened, it was like a relay race to get another glove.

"Dmitri went to the clubhouse to get a glove, threw it to me, then I did a Barry Sanders to get back to the field as quick as I could run."


Numbers

Casey will wear No. 21 for the Tigers. And as with most numbers, there's a reason. The reason is the number shuffling he's done elsewhere.

"I wore 22 in high school, then 20 in college and the minors," Casey said. "When I came up to Cincinnati, No. 20 was Frank Robinson 's, so that was out of the question. I wore 21 with the Reds.

"But when I went to Pittsburgh, No. 21 had been Roberto Clemente 's."

So Casey wore No. 25 as a Pirate.

As a Tiger, though, he was able to go back to 21.

Nate(Dallas): Santana/Liriano/Garza or Verlander/Bonderman/Zumaya/Sanchez?

SportsNation Jim Callis: (2:53 PM ET ) Give me the Twins unless Liriano's injury is more serious than we know right now.


Ryan (Buckhead): Haren or Verlander?

SportsNation Jim Callis: (2:55 PM ET ) Justin Verlander.

Nate(Dallas): Santana/Liriano/Garza or Verlander/Bonderman/Zumaya/Sanchez?

SportsNation Jim Callis: (2:53 PM ET ) Give me the Twins unless Liriano's injury is more serious than we know right now.

Funny, because not only are Bonderman and V-man younger than Santana, but they've both out-performed him so far this season. And I'll always take 4 great pitching prospects over 3.

Speaking of V-man....

his next start, which is this Sunday, will be skipped.

Fuck, I'm going to that game with the thought JV was pitching. FUCK. Whoever takes his place better step it the fuck up.

Latest note on the Tigers-Bonderman is as shook as a crook since the 8th inning in Minnesota. Shake if off JB.

Did you know?: Ivan Rodriguez and Vance Wilson combine for a .999 fielding percentage to lead all Major League catchers. The combination foils steal attempts 43.6 percent of the time (17-for-39), also tops in the game.

A .999 FP%? That's sick.

By the numbers: Joel Zumaya is 4-1 in his last 27 outings with a 1.29 ERA in 35 innings pitched. During that time, he's collected 45 strikeouts and held opposing hitters to a .163 average.


Maroth throws sim game: The next time Leyland decides to rest a starter, he might well use Mike Maroth to do it. The left-hander threw what should be his final simulated game Friday, and came out of it fine.

Assuming Maroth comes out of his bullpen session fine Sunday, he'll begin a rehab assignment at Triple-A Toledo with an outing Wednesday. Coincidentally, that's the same day top pitching prospect Humberto Sanchez's spot would come up. Sanchez made his first start in two weeks Thursday, but lasted just four innings.

Sanchez's sore elbow did not feel as well as he had hoped. He'll be examined by doctors in Detroit on Saturday morning to determine the extent of the problem.

"If I could pick up a ball and throw it, I don't call that an injury," Sanchez told reporters in Toledo. "But it feels like it did before. We'll have it examined and go from there."

See area 51.

Cant, someone took my access away. What the fuck

Cant, someone took my access away. What the fuck

I don't have my Area 51/Champagne up anymore either.

I DO!

BWAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

First the Red Wings ... then the Pistons ... now come the Tigers, sporting the best record in baseball. Has a city ever had three of its pro teams, let alone two, finish the regular season with the best overall record? Considering what happened to the Wings and Pistons in the playoffs, maybe it would be best for the Tigers not to finish first overall.
-- Dave K., San Mateo, Calif.

Great question. I looked through the league standings for the four major sports all the way back to 1935, and no city has done that. A lot of people have emailed in to mention 1935, when Detroit teams won the World Series, NFL and NHL titles. However, the Red Wings didn't win the Stanley Cup until the 1935-36 season, and neither the Lions nor Tigers had the best record in their leagues en route to their titles.

A handful of cities have had two teams that have posted their league's best record in the same season, most recently the late '80s, if you were to count San Francisco and Oakland as the same area. But no city has posted the best record in three different leagues of the four major sports in the same year, at least in modern times.


Why was Colby Lewis called up by the Tigers instead of Chris Spurling? Spurling is a proven reliever at the Major League level, just look at last season and earlier this season. He has a 1.77 ERA at Toledo.
-- Kevin O., Milford, Mich.

Again, like the Clevlen move was supposed to be, Lewis was a short-term move to get an extra pitcher on the staff for a few days, so I'm not sure it made much of a difference. If the Tigers were looking for a reliever for the longer stretch, no question, Spurling should've been the better option. But the Tigers had a worn-out bullpen by the end of the series in Cleveland and needed an innings-eater, so they went with the Triple-A starter. It certainly seems like Spurling deserves a call, but I don't think "deserves" had anything to do with this move.


Why are the Tigers using Craig Monroe more than Marcus Thames? I know Thames has less experience than Monroe, but his numbers are much better.
-- Robert M., Clio, Mich.

Manager Jim Leyland has three players (Monroe, Thames and Dmitri Young) to rotate around two spots (designated hitter, left field), and he's going to play the hot bat. This is not a video game. Season statistics don't show who's playing better right now. Look at the numbers since July 1 or since the All-Star break, and that'll give a better idea.


Zach Miner seems to be getting hit around by MLB teams in his second time around the Majors. When Leyland talks about a six-man rotation when Mike Maroth comes back, will it really be best to have the sixth pitcher be Miner, a player who still needs to prove that he can pitch in the Majors?
-- David G., Plymouth, Mich.

Well, they'll only go with six starters one time around the rotation. Then they'll go back to five starters. At this point, Miner would seem to be the most vulnerable starter to being bumped should the Tigers go back to five and keep Maroth in the rotation. But as for making a move sooner, that would be a bad move. Miner has not had dominant outings, but he's pitching better than advertised. And as well as Wilfredo Ledezma pitched on Sunday, I don't think you can go to yet another left-handed starter in the rotation on top of Rogers, Robertson and Maroth. That leaves calling someone up as the option, and that's not going to happen before September.

Zumaya hits 103: Chalk up another speed mark for flamethrowing reliever Joel Zumaya. He hit 103 mph on the Comerica Park radar gun on a pitch high to Nick Punto in the eighth. The FSN Detroit telecast showed the same pitch at 102. In any case, he threw five out of six pitches that at-bat at 101 mph or harder.

Zumaya wasn't watching the readings on every pitch, but he noticed the 103, if anything for the crowd reaction.

"I've done it once already," Zumaya said. "It's the same old thing."


Roster moves: The Commissioner's Office approved the paperwork on first-round pick Andrew Miller's Major League contract Tuesday, meaning the Tigers had to add him to the 40-man roster. To make room, Detroit outrighted the contracts of infielder Jack Hannahan to Triple-A Toledo and Mark Woodyard to Double-A Erie. Both already were playing for their respective clubs.

The extra move opens another roster spot for later this month, when Mike Maroth is expected to be activated from his rehab assignment. Maroth currently is on the 60-day disabled list, meaning he doesn't count on the 40-man roster.

Tigers: Notebook
Weary Ordonez gassed at plate
Running out of steam, the Tigers right fielder gets thrown out at plate to halt potential rally.
Lynn Henning / The Detroit News


DETROIT -- Magglio Ordonez had reason to be tired. On six consecutive pitches to Carlos Guillen in the fourth inning of Tuesday's game at Comerica Park, Ordonez was running.
On five of those pitches, Guillen fouled off a Brad Radke pitch. Each time, Ordonez pulled up at second and headed back to first.
NFL players in the thick of two-a-day drills might do fewer wind sprints in a given day than Ordonez ran.
By the time he reached third base -- Guillen eventually walked, and Dmitri Young hit a sharp single to load the bases with none out -- Ordonez should have been gassed.
"I was," he said, speaking after the Tigers had lost to the Twins, 4-2, in part because of Detroit's empty fourth inning.
The Tigers' most dangerous hitter of late, Craig Monroe, came to bat with the score 2-2. Ordonez got ready for another dash home with what the Tigers hoped would be a go-ahead run.
Monroe, on an 0-2 count, lofted a fly to short left field. Third-base coach Gene Lamont gave Ordonez the "go" order. Ordonez, unwisely, appeared to glance back at Jason Tyner even after he bolted for home.
A straight-shot throw to catcher Joe Mauer's glove nailed Ordonez easily for an inning-ending double play. Sean Casey's fly out ended the threat.
"I thought it was a little deeper than it was," Lamont said after the game.
Ordonez said his earlier jaunts to second base had no effect on his home-plate sprint.
"The only way he was gonna throw me out was to make a perfect throw," said Ordonez, said, "and he did it."


Jim Leyland seemd to get a good kick out of it.



Tonight's the night
Mike Maroth begins his dress rehearsal ahead of a likely August return to the Tigers' starting rotation tonight at Triple-A Toledo. Maroth, who has not pitched since May 25, will start for the Mud Hens against Columbus at Fifth Third Field. Maroth had surgery June 2 to remove bone chips from his left elbow.



Briefly
Dmitri Young is 19 days into his return from the disabled list and continues to rip the ball. With a single and a triple Tuesday, Young is batting .442 with five homers and 11 RBIs in 14 games
Monroe's 14-game hitting streak came to a halt after an 0-for-4 effort
In his last 14 starts, Radke has a 2.87 earned-run average.

Up, up and away: Craig Monroe, Dmitri Young and Brandon Inge have all played in Detroit since 2002, two years after Comerica Park opened in 2000. Now, each of the three Tigers batters is within four home runs of tying Carlos Pena, who called Comerica Park home from 2002-2005.

Pena's 37 home runs are the most home runs in the park's history. Entering Wednesday's homestand finale, Monroe had 35, Young had 34 and Inge had 33.

Monroe was not aware of his ascent toward the top of the park's hitting charts.

"I don't know, because I didn't know I was up there," Monroe said. "I guess it's a good feeling. It just says I've probably been here longer than anybody and I get lucky a few more times than anyone else here. I think the individual stuff doesn't matter."

What is important is the here and now of winning games.

"The bottom line is that you want to win games," Monroe said. "When I'm done playing baseball and it's up there, then yeah, I'll probably be like, 'I did these things,' but right now I don't focus on individual stuff, [I'm] just trying to win games."

Comerica Park's spacious dimensions of 345 ft., 370 ft., 420 ft., 365 ft. and 330 ft. from left to right field can provide a challenge for hitters, but the same challenge can also be beneficial, Monroe said.

"It actually helps you if you try to hit line drives and focus on those things. There's a lot of parks where you can mis-hit balls and the park is hitter-friendly and the ball goes out of the park. Here, you want to try to be a good hitter."

Through his career, Monroe is grateful for the discipline that the park has helped him to cultivate.

"If you're trying to hit home runs, you're probably not going to hit it at Comerica Park, but it also allows you to be a better hitter because you have to just work on making some solid contact and getting those hard line drives."

Young agrees with Monroe's focus. What's more, most records don't last too long.

"If it helps the team win, you know I'm all for it," Young said. "It would be nice, but you know how that goes. It's going to be broken soon enough by somebody on this team."


Bondo will rest: Ever since Leyland decided to skip Verlander from the last turn through the rotation, he has said he could do the same thing with a couple of his other pitchers. On Friday, he mentioned Bonderman as one guy he may sit at some point for a stretch of time.

"It doesn't necessarily mean Bonderman will be bumped back nine days," Leyland cautioned. "It could be three extra days, whatever. Could be two extra days. So I'm not going to put a number on it. But at some point, if I think we need to do it, I'll try to freshen everybody up."

Bonderman has pitched three full seasons in the big leagues, and he hasn't necessarily shown signs of fatigue. However, like Verlander, he's 23 years old, and Leyland wants to make sure he doesn't wear down his arm.


Speaking of Ledezma: Friday's two scoreless innings with three strikeouts extended what has been a dominant stretch for the southpaw. Combined with his spot start last weekend and previous relief appearances, he has allowed a lone run on 10 hits over his last 11 2/3 innings, with 13 strikeouts. He has fanned 20 batters over his last 19 2/3 innings.

Notes: Verlander may be tipping
Uncharacteristic struggles against Sox have rookie suspicious

The White Sox are the one team that has hit Justin Verlander consistently this season. After three losses in as many starts, Verlander and the Tigers think they know at least one reason why.

Verlander is a 23-year-old rookie, but he knows enough about pitching to see the signs that hitters know what's coming. When Jim Thome shrugged off Verlander's fastballs before getting a good swing on a low, inside changeup for his two-run homer on Friday, Verlander was suspicious. When he saw the swings change dramatically against Wilfredo Ledezma, he had a better idea.

His teammates and manager were already thinking along the same line as they watched the White Sox at the plate and in the dugout. Something in Verlander's mechanics was giving away his pitches.

"There's probably a good chance they had something," manager Jim Leyland said.

With that, Verlander spent much of his Saturday morning in the clubhouse going over video from Friday night's game with pitching coach Chuck Hernandez. Hernandez did much of the talking, and Verlander was listening attentively.

"They're a veteran club," Verlander said. "Maybe they've figured out something no one else has yet."

By no means were any of the Tigers faulting the White Sox. Hitters noticing pitchers tipping their pitches is an accepted part of the game and completely different from hot-button issues like stealing signs. The onus falls on the pitcher to notice the pattern and change his mannerisms.

"I think there's players throughout baseball, including our own, that can pick up on something," Leyland said.

Part of what makes some hitters great is the ability to watch a pitcher and notice the slightest difference in him when he throws one pitch compared to another -- the widening of a glove, the placement of a mitt, or things more miniscule.

"There's a thousand ways," third baseman Brandon Inge said.

Kenny Rogers grew to believe that he was tipping his pitches during his recent slump. He said after his start Monday that he changed the way he held the ball and stood on the mound. Even if he wasn't tipping, he said at the time, simply changing things up made him feel more confident he wasn't giving anything away.

In Verlander's case, it was the decisive fifth inning that put the thought process in motion. Though he gave up eight hits through the first four innings, all but one of them were singles.

Thome's home run was the one particular sign. It was his third home run off Verlander this season. He also homered off a Verlander changeup in April.

"I knew I was doing something then," Verlander said of the April at-bat. "I felt like I had taken care of that for the most part, though."

Then, Thome homered off a Verlander fastball in June.

For obvious reasons, Verlander did not want to get into the specifics about what might've tipped off the White Sox. But now that he thinks he has found it, he believes he can change it.

"It's just a feel about it," Verlander said. "And then Ledezma comes in and the game just changed like that. Their swings changed. That lends me to believe that it's something, but you never know. Maybe they just like me."
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060812&content_id=1606087&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

Pudge tossed: Ivan Rodriguez became the first Tigers player ejected from a game this season Sunday when home-plate umpire Tim Timmons ejected him for arguing balls and strikes.

Rodriguez was retired on a called third strike in the eighth inning and argued back and forth with Timmons on his way back to the dugout. He was back in the dugout when Timmons ejected him, prompting Pudge to charge back out onto the field and at Timmons.

Pudge charged out so fast that no one in the dugout could catch him. Teammate Carlos Guillen likely prevented further trouble by holding him back.

"He was so angry I decided to stop him," Guillen said, "because we don't want him to be suspended. We need everybody healthy. We need everybody in the lineup. We don't want to miss players at this point in the year."

Rodriguez denied that frustration over the series and his 0-for-12 performance in it had anything to do with his ejection.

"It was a ball. It was outside," he said. "He was missing a few pitches with us, and he was giving a few pitches to the other guys. I never argue balls and strikes. I have a relationship with the umpires. But that was completely a ball outside.

"It was not frustration because we lost the games. We're going to play Boston now and we have to put this behind us, but that wasn't part of it. It was a pitch outside."

Rodriguez had one addition to his stat line Sunday. He threw out Brian Anderson trying to steal second base, leaving opponents 0-for-9 in steal attempts over Rodriguez since his last stolen base May 31 to New York's Melky Cabrera.

More rehab for Maroth: Mike Maroth gave up four runs on seven hits in five innings of his second rehab start for Triple-A Toledo on Monday at Richmond.

The left-hander, on the disabled list since late May for surgery to remove bone chips in his left elbow, stretched out his arm to 74 pitches after tossing 60 in his previous outing for the Mud Hens last week. He gave up single runs in the second through fifth innings, including a second-inning solo homer to James Jurries.

The Tigers haven't yet announced where they'll go from here with Maroth, who could make a third rehab start later this week or conceivably return to Detroit this weekend and let Leyland use a six-man rotation

Less is more from Maroth: Leyland took in part of the reports on Mike Maroth's latest rehab start on Monday, when he gave up four runs on seven hits in five innings for Triple-A Toledo. When the manager heard Maroth was supposedly throwing his fastball around 89-90 mph, harder than the left-hander was throwing earlier in the year, Leyland was more concerned than impressed.

"He was probably throwing a little bit harder last night," he said. "He was throwing 89-90, and that's not his effective zone, in my opinion."

Leyland would rather see fastballs in the Greg Maddux style, varying them in the low- to mid-80s and keeping hitters off-balance. Maroth was effective earlier in the year throwing in that range.

That said, Leyland knows the difference could be simply health rather than energy. When Maroth was throwing softer this year, he was dealing with bone chips in his elbow, which eventually required surgery to remove. When Maroth was healthy last year, his fastball was usually in the upper 80s and occasionally crossed 90.

At this point, Leyland allowed, simply getting work in is more of a priority than how effective Maroth is in the process.

"I'm not worried about how many runs he gives up now," Leyland said. "The fact is that he's pitching again, he's healthy and throwing."

Maroth will make one more rehab start for the Mud Hens on Saturday against Columbus at Fifth Third Field. He has a charity bowling tournament scheduled for the next evening in Troy to raise money for the MS Society of Michigan, then is scheduled to take part in an MS awareness function the following Monday at Comerica Park.

Santiago called up.


http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2551290


Tigers 2B Polanco on DL with separated shoulder

SportsTicker

BOSTON -- The Detroit Tigers paid a steep price for their latest victory.

Reliable second baseman Placido Polanco was placed on the disabled list on Wednesday, one day after he suffered a separated left shoulder in a 3-2 triumph over the Boston Red Sox.

The veteran infielder was injured after making an over-the-shoulder catch in shallow right-center field in the seventh inning. The play helped preserve a 2-1 lead for the Tigers with the potential tying run at second base. Polanco made the catch in full stride, but lost his balance and landed on his left shoulder.

"I felt it [pop out]," Polanco said after Tuesday night's game.

Batting mostly second in the lineup and sometimes in the leadoff spot, Polanco is hitting .294 with three homers and 44 RBI this season.

"You don't replace a guy like Polanco," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "We'll have no excuses. We'll go out and play our [tails] off and we'll see if we're good enough."

In his ninth major league season -- second with the Tigers -- Polanco owns a career average of .300 with 62 homers and 374 RBI. The 30-year-old Dominican also has played for the St. Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies.

Omar Infante, who had been serving as a utility infielder, will receive the bulk of the playing time at second base in Polanco's absence. Infante was Detroit's starting second baseman last season before the Tigers acquired Polanco from Philadelphia for reliever Ugueth Urbina in June.

In Tuesday's game, Leyland used catcher Ivan Rodriguez at second base since Infante started at third base and had already been replaced by Brandon Inge. It was Rodriguez's first appearance at second base in his 1,983rd major league game. Rodriguez also used Polanco's glove, which has the Dominican flag sewn on it.

Infielder Ramon Santiago was recalled from Triple-A Toledo of the International League on Wednesday to replace Polanco on the roster.

The Tigers (78-41) own the best record in baseball and a 6½ game lead over the Chicago White Sox in the American League Central Division.

I still say they should have called up Raburn. Santiago brings nothing to the table offensively, and isn't dramatically better defensively.

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060817/SPORTS02/608170425/1048/SPORTS


Polanco out 3-8 weeks
Tigers confident with Infante at 2B

August 17, 2006

BY JOHN LOWE
FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER

BOSTON -- It wasn't clear Wednesday how long Tigers second baseman Placido Polanco will be sidelined.

It was clear that the Tigers don't have anyone to fully replace him, either now and probably not at any point this season, because rules make it difficult to make trades in August and September.

Tigers head trainer Kevin Rand confirmed Wednesday that Polanco suffered a separated left shoulder in Tuesday's 3-2 win over the Red Sox. X rays showed no fracture.

But Rand said he wasn't ready to estimate how long Polanco will miss with the injury he suffered on a tumbling, run-saving catch.

"The next 24 to 48 hours will give us a little better idea as to the length of disability," Rand said Wednesday. "We need to find out what degree (of separation) we're looking at."

There are three degrees of shoulder separations, "with third degree being the worst," Rand said. "(Polanco) probably falls between second and third. Right now, we're going to wait and see."

Manager Jim Leyland sounded ready for Polanco to be out several weeks. "I wouldn't begin to guess a timetable," Leyland said, deferring to Rand. "This could be anywhere from three weeks to eight weeks."

The regular season ends in 6 1/2 weeks. Rand was asked if he was hopeful Polanco could play before the season ends.

"Absolutely. Absolutely. Absolutely," Rand said. "Placido Polanco is a hardworking guy, loves to play the game, (and) is going to work very, very hard to get himself back out there to play. We want him back on the field as quickly as possible as well. But we've got to take care of him as well. He's an important piece of our puzzle. It's just not a one-year deal."

Leyland said Omar Infante will be the second baseman for now. "He's a good player," Leyland said. "I can't replace Polanco, but I feel pretty good about putting Omar Infante out there. Is he Polanco? No. That's just the way it is."

It's possible the Tigers can make a trade in the coming weeks for someone to play second. But such a deal could be difficult, because the annual July 31 trading deadline has passed, and any player traded for the rest of the season must first clear waivers.

Given recent history, it would be a surprise for any valuable player to clear waivers -- i.e., go unblocked by other contending clubs in the AL.

As the second baseman and second-place hitter, Polanco is not the most powerful or spectacular part of the Tigers' machine. He is more like the oil that keeps it going smoothly.

"He's a real baseball player," said third-base coach Gene Lamont. "He's a winning player. When the ball is (hit) to him, you feel good."

Polanco began a minimum 15-day stay on the disabled list Wednesday. Ramon Santiago was recalled from Triple-A Toledo to take Polanco's spot.

Leyland made it sound as if he'd miss Polanco every day he is out. "He does every little thing for this ballclub that a manager wants," Leyland said. "He's steady on every routine ground ball. He turns every routine double play. If you ask him to hit-and-run, he can hit-and-run. If you need a fly ball, he can hit a fly ball.

"If you need a two-out base hit, he can get a two-out base hit. If you need to sacrifice a runner, he can sacrifice a runner. He's a manager's dream.

"I love him. It (his injury) breaks my heart for him."

Infante started at second Wednesday night and will start there again tonight.

Contact JOHN LOWE at 313-223-4053 or jlowe@freepress.com.

Whoops.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/news/262221.html


Maybin Gets Into Minor Trouble In Michigan

By Baseball America staff

West Michigan outfielder Cameron Maybin, the top hitting prospect in the Tigers farm system, is facing charges of violating Michigan's zero-tolerance alcohol law and careless driving, the Grand Rapids (Mich.) Press reported.

According to the police reports, Maybin was ticketed after he registered a 0.04 blood alcohol level after a one-car accident at 5 a.m. on July 13. While 0.04 is below the state's 0.08 threshold for driving under the influence, drivers under the age of 18 can be cited for having any alcohol in their system.

Maybin, 19, told the police that he had swerved to avoid a deer, which caused him to run off the road and strike a utility pole. He called the police to report the accident, and remained on the scene until they arrived.

According to the paper, Maybin could face up to a 90-day suspended sentence, $250 in fines and community service if he's found guilty.

Maybin, considered one of the top prospects in baseball, has put together an outstanding first full pro season after being drafted by the Tigers in the first round (10th overall) in 2005. He's hitting .322/.401/.479 in 317 at-bats, adding 26 stolen bases in 30 attempts.

JickBoy's Tiger gets extension

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060818/SPORTS02/608180440/1048/SPORTS


Wilson extended

August 18, 2006

The Tigers announced Thursday the signing of backup catcher Vance Wilson to a two-year contract extension. Wilson will make $950,000 in each of the next two seasons. He is making $700,000 this season.

It's the first multiyear contract for Wilson, who played for the Mets in 1999-2004 before coming to Detroit.

"Leyland went to bat for me," Wilson said, referring to manager Jim Leyland. "He wants me to be part of the team."

Said Leyland: "Vance Wilson's a really good player. He does everything you want. ... What's not to like?"

From Jim Callis' chat at BA

Q: Ray from michigan asks:
Do you see Joel Zumaya as a future starter? A rotation of Bonderman, Verlander, Miller, and Zumaya looks very good for years to come.

Jim Callis: I think Zumaya could succeed in that role. But he has been so successful in relief that he'll probably stay there, becoming a closer in 2007 or 2008.


Q: Matty Free from NYC asks:
If you had a choice who would you rather have: Liriano or Verlander? You have to factor in injury problems, injury risk, arm strength, command, ect.

Jim Callis: I think Liriano has a little higher ceiling, but I'd take Verlander because of the medical histories.

If the Tigers go on to win 108 games, they will have won 65 games more than in 2003. Has there ever been a more significant three-year turnaround in the Majors?
-- Andreas, Tübingen, Germany

If the Tigers pull it off, they'll be the first. In fact, if Detroit so much as wins 93 games, they'll have the modern-day record for best improvement in three years or less in terms of win totals. Only eight teams in the last 100 years have had even a 40-game improvement within three years:

Washington Senators, 49 wins, 1909-12
Philadelphia Phillies, 45, 1961-64*
Cincinnati Reds, 44, 1937-40
Boston Braves/Bees, 41, 1935-37
New York Yankees, 41, 1925-27
New York Mets, 40, 1983-86
Montreal Expos, 40, 1976-79
Detroit Tigers, 40, 1931-34
* Major League schedules expanded from 154 games in 1961 to 162 games thereafter.

Tigers milestone: Detroit's next win will be its 80th of the season.

It will be the first time that the Tigers have won that many games since 1993, the last year the team finished above .500.

Only 11 players on Detroit's 25-man roster have ever played on a Major League team with a winning record.


Colon to DL: Santiago wasn't the only roster move Monday. Heading back up I-75 toward Detroit was right-hander Colby Lewis, recalled to replace the injured Roman Colon. He went on the 15-day disabled list with what was termed as neck spasms.

The neck, Colon said, has been bothering him for a couple weeks, but really flared up over the past few days. It reached the point where he wasn't available to pitch Sunday, and it didn't feel any better Monday.

"It's just really painful," Colon said. "I can't really turn. As soon as I go one way, it hurts."

Colon saw a doctor to try to figure out the cause. For now, he's taking medication and resting, with hopes it'll clear up within the next week or so.

The absence earned Lewis his second callup, though he's still waiting for his first appearance as a Tiger. He was brought up for a few days in late July as an eighth reliever for bullpen depth before being sent back to make room for Brent Clevlen.


More home homers for Monroe: Craig Monroe won't make a big deal out of his place on the Comerica Park home run list. His homer Monday was the 37th of his career at the seven-year-old ballpark, tying him with ex-teammate and close friend Carlos Pena for most all time.

"Hopefully I can stay here and keeping hitting them," said Monroe, who's eligible for arbitration this upcoming winter and found his name in trade rumors this summer.

Monroe's feat is a sign of how differently the ballpark plays with the closer left-field fence, installed in 2003. When Monroe first joined the Tigers in 2002, a home run to the left-center field power alley required a 395-foot launch, making it a much better power park for left-handed sluggers like Pena.

http://i.cnn.net/si/si_online/covers/images/2006/0828_large.jpg

Do you know if that is a regional cover or a national cover?

If its regional, I can't find the national one.

National.

They should've had the title as "BRNGN IT", like his license plate.

What to do with Miner: A day after Zach Miner's second-inning exit against the White Sox, Leyland reiterated he has no plans to skip Miner in the rotation. Unless he is skipped, Miner's next start would come Tuesday against the Yankees.

"I'm staying with my rotation," Leyland said. "Could it change? A lot of things change."

Because of Monday's off-day, the Tigers could move their other starters up a day and still avoid starting them on short rest. They could also have Mike Maroth ready to return from the disabled list around the middle of next week if he comes out of Friday's rehab start pain-free.

On the other hand, the last time Miner had a quick exit, he recovered. After a third-inning hook against Oakland on July 22, he pitched six innings of two-run ball against Francisco Liriano and Minnesota.

They should've had the title as "BRNGN IT", like his license plate.

His liscense plate says "BRNGN IT"? Is it supposed to represent "bringing it"?

http://naterobertson.mlblogs.com/


Here's another funny little story: A server at Hockeytown Café (http://www.hockeytowncafe.com/) says Hockeytown now sells Big League Chew. A girl named Erica wrote in and told the story that the night Pudge hit the walkoff homer (http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/gameday_recap.jsp?ymd=20060805&content_id=1594976&vkey=recap&fext=.jsp&c_id=det) in the ninth inning, they started passing it out at Hockeytown. She said they sell it and they all threw it in, and when Pudge hit the home run they all went nuts. I guess they must have been chewing it at the bar. You can chalk one up for Hockeytown. That's hilarious.

They should've had the title as "BRNGN IT", like his license plate.

His liscense plate says "BRNGN IT"? Is it supposed to represent "bringing it"?

This is supposedly Verlander's license plate:

http://static.flickr.com/43/97990909_97d0526441.jpg

They say he's mad cocky. Doesn't suprise me.

Miner on track for Tuesday: A day after Zach Miner's second-inning exit against the White Sox, Leyland reiterated he has no plans to skip Miner in the rotation. Unless he is skipped, something that's feasible without starting anyone on short rest due to Monday's off day, Miner's next start would come Tuesday against the Yankees.

"I'm staying with my rotation," Leyland said. "Could it change? A lot of things change."


See who in September: Don't let a lot of new Tigers when rosters expand Sept. 1. Not only did Leyland say he doesn't plan on calling up many players from the Minor Leagues, he added that he doesn't like the rule that allows teams to add anyone from their 40-man roster to the active club. To him, it takes the element of strategy out of late-season games because managers have such a bigger bench.

Leyland has already said Chris Shelton and Ramon Santiago will rejoin the Tigers from Toledo in September, and first-round draft pick Andrew Miller has been promised a call-up. Detroit could also add one or more starting pitchers to give the current rotation a chance to rest down the stretch.

Packing the park: Thursday's sellout crowd sent the Tigers over two million in home attendance this season, a mark they've hit nine times in franchise history. It's the third time they've hit it since moving into Comerica Park; the other times were the inaugural 2000 season and last year, when fans bought season tickets in part to guarantee seats for the All-Star Game.

The 2000 home attendance of 2,533,752 stands as the franchise record, but that might not last much longer. With 16 home dates left, the Tigers have already sold enough tickets to reach 2,475,000 in attendance.


Upon further measurement: According to the Web site hittrackeronline.com, Young's tape-measure home run Wednesday, estimated at 429 feet, could've been the longest Tiger home run hit at Comerica Park this year.

The site estimates how far a home run would've traveled had it landed at field level beyond the outfield fence instead of hitting the seats. Under those conditions, Young's ball would've traveled an estimated 451 feet. Only David Ortiz's home run off Jamie Walker on June 4, at an estimate of 454 feet, would've traveled farther.

Notes: Maroth on for Wednesday
Barring recurrence of elbow pain, lefty set to start at New York

If Mike Maroth can make it there, he can make it anywhere.

It'll be in New York, not Toledo.

While Maroth rejoined the Tigers on Saturday after making his fourth rehab start for the Mud Hens the previous night, manager Jim Leyland set forth his plans for Maroth to rejoin the rotation. Unless the lingering tenderness in his elbow doesn't allow Maroth to go, he'll start Wednesday's game against the Yankees in the Bronx. It would be his first outing since May 25.

Maroth, for one, expects to make it. He believes he came out of Friday's outing feeling better than he did when he was trying to pitch through the pain of bone chips in his pitching elbow. He underwent surgery in June to remove the chips and has been on his way back since.

Now, Maroth believes he's back. Though the elbow tenderness remains, he threw long toss from 150 feet on Saturday without any problems. Just as impressive, his pitching was effective on Friday, and he was in his ground-ball style.

"I'm getting the results," Maroth said. "The stuff's there. It's just a matter of how I feel in progressing forward. I'm doing what I need to do to get hitters out."

Maroth's return will have a ripple effect through the rotation. He'll essentially take back his old spot, one that Zach Miner filled for the past three months. Since Miner is scheduled to pitch on Tuesday, however, it's a little more complicated than that.

Nate Robertson will be moved up to pitch on Tuesday, something he can do on normal rest thanks to Monday's off-day. Either Maroth or whomever would fill in for him will start on Wednesday.

Jeremy Bonderman will make his normal start in Thursday's series finale, but the rotation order will be flipped for next weekend's series against the Angels. Kenny Rogers will pitch next Friday, with Justin Verlander going on Saturday. Flipping Rogers and Verlander was necessary to avoid having Detroit's three left-handed starters all pitch in a row.

Miner will be moved to the bullpen unless Maroth has any more problems.

That's the order that Leyland plans to use the rest of the regular season -- no sixth starter and no spot starts, unless necessary.

"The rotation's set for the rest of the year, one way or the other," Leyland said.

The only potential wrench in the plan, again, is the elbow. But the Tigers are beginning to accept the notion that Maroth is not going to feel 100 percent healthy until next season.

The medical staff, Maroth said, "would be more surprised if it felt no problems for the rest of the year."

Notes: Change comes late for Miner
After move to 'pen, video study pays off for rookie

Zach Miner saw his move to the bullpen coming. He just wanted to be pitching well when it happened.

Hours after manager Jim Leyland penciled in Mike Maroth for Miner's rotation spot, Miner pitched almost twice as long in relief as he did in his last start. His 2 1/3 scoreless innings didn't make much of a difference in Saturday's 8-5 loss, but it was a world of difference for his peace of mind.

"I was really anxious to go out there and do it, no matter what the role was," Miner said. "I just wanted to pitch again."

In retrospect, Miner's second-inning exit last Wednesday against the White Sox was the final straw that caused him to take a good look at what might be causing his struggles. What was seen as a lack of aggression from the rookie right-hander actually was more of a mechanical flaw.

Somewhere along the line of his surprise summer in the Tigers rotation, Miner started moving everything in his delivery higher, from his leg kick to his arm placement to his back. He believes it was a response to some of his earlier struggles, trying to tweak his pitches.

He hadn't looked at it earlier because, while he was struggling, he was still getting off-and-on results. Then came Wednesday, when he gave up six White Sox runs on four hits and two walks, retiring just four of the 10 batters he faced.

"I felt it more than anything," Miner said. "After Crede hit the home run [in the second inning], I walked [Rob] Mackowiak and [pitching coach] Chuck [Hernandez] came out and said, 'Hey, he hit a good pitch. Don't pick. Keep around the zone.' And I was trying to throw all five of those balls [to Mackowiak] down the middle. They were just running off the plate.

"I'm standing there thinking I'm doing something terribly wrong, because my mind was fine. I just wasn't able to execute."

A video session the next day showed what was wrong. Hernandez and Miner took footage of his delivery from Wednesday's outing and compared it to footage from earlier in the year.

"It was so night and day," Miner said. "It was a conscious effort on my part to kick my leg up higher, doing some stuff, but I didn't' realize how big of an effort it was having on the rest of my delivery. It was nice to sit down and see the same things I was feeling."

The fact that it didn't click until he was pitching out of the bullpen, rather than starting, was irrelevant to him.

"The only thing I'm disappointed about," he said, "is that my last start didn't go as well as I would've liked. I always kind of figured when Mike came back, he was going to get his spot back. He had an injury that was kind of out of his control. It's not like he wasn't doing his exercises or was getting lazy and had an arm injury or something. He just had bone spurs, something you can't control.

"If I was in his position, I would want my spot back when I came back. But it would've been nice to have a last start where it was good and I could say to myself that they were going to [make the change] anyways. If I had a good outing last time, it would be a little easier for me. But I'm still up here, and I feel very fortunate for all the time I've had up here."

Miner could still start again Wednesday if the Tigers decide Maroth isn't ready to go. Maroth said Sunday morning he was fine, but Leyland wasn't ready to commit.
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060827&content_id=1631516&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

Firing away: When Leyland said after Saturday's game that Justin Verlander lost with his fastball, he wasn't exaggerating. Twenty-six of his final 29 pitches were fastballs, Leyland said, with two curveballs and a changeup mixed in.

"He was pitching very well, then for one of the very few times this year, he totally lost it," Leyland said. "He'll disagree with this, but in my opinion, he totally lost his composure. I think when he blew Hafner away, he got carried away and he lost total composure. He quit pitching and started throwing, in my opinion."

Maroth situation speeds Miller's arrival
Ledezma to start Wednesday; top pick added to bullpen

Andrew Miller's Major League debut is coming even sooner than expected. Mike Maroth's big-league return is going to have to wait.

The Tigers made a slew of decisions on their way out of Jacobs Field on Sunday, and not all of them were roster moves. Most of them revolved around Maroth, whose scheduled start Wednesday has been nixed due to continued tenderness in his surgically repaired left elbow.

Wilfredo Ledezma will start in Maroth's place Wednesday at Yankee Stadium. Maroth will still be recalled from the disabled list, but not until after rosters expand Sept. 1. That left the Tigers needing a second left-hander in the bullpen, so they called up Miller from his brief stint at Class A Lakeland.

In addition, the Tigers swapped reserve outfielders. They sent Brent Clevlen to Double-A Erie and will purchase the contract of Alexis Gomez from Triple-A Toledo on Tuesday to add a left-handed hitter.

The biggest news, and the catalyst for most of this action, was the continued uncertainty surrounding Maroth after surgery in June to remove bone chips from his left elbow. Though Maroth had said his elbow irritation was only minor and an expected part of strengthening his arm back into shape, manager Jim Leyland was waiting for Maroth to tell him he was ready to start.

After the feeling intensified during a side session Sunday morning, Maroth couldn't tell him in good faith he was good to go.

"They already kind of had a decision made up," Maroth said, "but I had the decision to make, too. It just didn't feel good in my bullpen. Yesterday [the elbow] didn't feel real good, but I was hoping that it would feel better in the bullpen. I couldn't go in and say that I was 100 percent. There's too much at stake for me to go out there and have a question mark."

The fact that it still didn't feel well after four rehab outings at Toledo was not a good sign. However, it wasn't nearly bad enough for the Tigers to shut him down. Once he rejoins the active roster, he'll pitch in a relief role.

"I'm right there," Maroth said. "I think that's what makes me the most disappointed and frustrated, that I'm so close. But it's just a matter of going through the process. They told me that after surgery, you're always going to hit bumps in the road. Everything went well up to these last couple starts. Hopefully I can get by them.

"I could be fine on Wednesday. But right now, at this point, I couldn't go in to [Leyland] and tell him I'm going to 100 percent."

Leyland, for his part, had planned for that possibilty, and considered Ledezma and Zach Miner, whose rotation spot Maroth was going to take, as backup options. Because the Yankees have so many quality left-handed hitters in their lineup -- Jason Giambi, Bobby Abreu, Robinson Cano and Johnny Damon among them -- Leyland opted for Ledezma, whose current 17-inning scoreless streak includes 5 2/3 innings in a spot start Aug. 6 against the Indians.

Leyland is calling this a spot start, too, rather than slotting Ledezma into the rotation. He said he'll work the spot each time out on a case-by-case basis according to the opponent and other factors. He's not considering Maroth as one of his options, at least for now.

"I am not planning on Mike Maroth in this rotation the rest of the year," Leyland said. "But it could happen."

As Sunday showed, plans can change. Though the Tigers had planned on bringing up Miller in accordance with his contract, they hadn't planned on doing it until rosters expanded in September. With the Tigers short a lefty reliever, however, he's getting his taste of the big leagues early, and it won't be a token appearance.

"Miller's the guy I wanted," Leyland said. "I don't want anyone taking the attitude that he's the No. 1 pick and he was coming up in September. We're calling him up before September because we think he's the guy. He's not coming up here on a pass."

The Tigers believed in the talent since before June's First-Year Player Draft. They selected the University of North Carolina star with the sixth overall pick knowing he would command a lucrative Major League contract, but believing he could help this season. He arrived in Lakeland earlier this month after signing his deal Aug. 4.

He made his professional debut just eight days ago, but he pitched like somebody who was too much for that level. His two scoreless innings with three strikeouts Saturday night against Fort Myers brought the total for his stint to five scoreless innings on two hits with a walk and nine strikeouts.

"I talked to numerous people in the organization," president/general manager Dave Dombrowski said, "and everybody has said that Miller has thrown the ball in an outstanding fashion. They think he can help us right now, and he's in a position where they think he can handle it from a mental perspective. And so we just thought it would be a move that would make sense for us to get another left-hander in the bullpen."

The move, Dombrowski said, had nothing to do with making Miller eligible for the postseason roster. Though players normally must be on the 25-man roster by Aug. 31 to qualify, exceptions are given to teams who have players on the disabled list. Miller hasn't been on the DL, but the Tigers can use him to theoretically take the place of someone who is.

That's a long way off, though. For now, his concern will be pitching in Yankee Stadium.

"I'm going to use him," Leyland said. "I can promise you that. You'll definitely see him in the Yankees series."

Unfortunately, they definitely won't see Maroth there.

"I've done everything I can to be ready," Maroth said. "But it's not on my timing. It's on God's timing. I'll be back when the arm's ready. And when I come back, I want to make sure I'm back."
http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060827&content_id=1632262&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det

SECOND CHOICE: In the first five games after second baseman Placido Polanco was placed on the disabled list with an injured left shoulder, Omar Infante started at second for the Tigers. Then the Tigers acquired Neifi Perez from the Cubs. In seven games since, Perez has started five games at second, Infante two. Perez would have started Tuesday night's game.

Perez is hitting .174 (4-for-23) with the Tigers, with no extra-base hits. Infante is hitting .285 this season, and he has some extra-base pop. But Perez is known as a reliable defender -- he encouraged Cubs pitchers to have the ball hit to him -- and he won a Gold Glove at shortstop in 2000 for Colorado.

Manager Jim Leyland was asked Tuesday how much his choice of Perez at second base is based on defense and how much on offense.

"I don't base Neifi's or Infante's situation on anything other than playing the guy who you think gives you the best chance to win that night," Leyland said. "I'm not really comparing the two. They're not in a contest. They're both part of the team. I'll use them accordingly."

Leyland said Perez will start against left-hander Randy Johnson in Thursday's series finale. Leyland cited that Perez is 14-for-39 (.359) off Johnson with three home runs.

"I'm going to look at as much information as I can, and play the guy that I think gives us the best chance to win the game that night," Leyland said.

Perez is a switch-hitter, and Infante bats right-handed. Against right-handers, Perez provides the Tigers with another left-handed bat.

Perez hasn't made an error as a Tiger. The day before he arrived, Infante let a potential inning-ending grounder go between his legs, leading to two unearned runs in a 3-1 loss to Texas.

How the fuck does Perez give the Tigers the best chance to win a game?

What a freaking Joke, the dude thinks he should be on our roster? Maybe as a pinch runner or sac bunt but not for anything else.


Logan's run
Aug 30 - Nook Logan, who was taken off the Tigers' 40-man roster to make room for outfielder Alexis Gomez, wants to be traded, the Detroit Free Press reports.

"It would be best for me to go somewhere else and do what I do," Logan told the newspaper.

If Logan clears waivers, the Tigers plan to keep him in minors.

I'm too lazy to look it up, but didn't the playoff roster have to be set last night? If so, why is there no reporting on this by the local hacks?

Also, rosters expand today, when will the callups be announced?

I suppose that means Shelton isn't playoff eligible, right?

Perez injures wrist: Though Neifi Perez was 1-for-9 for the series when Leyland pinch-hit for him with Sean Casey in the ninth inning Thursday, his offensive struggles weren't the primary reason. Perez, who started at shortstop, was battling an sore hand suffered on a bad hop during pregame batting practice.

Perez played every game in the series and has had just one game off since joining the Tigers August 20 in a trade from the Cubs. He'll have his hand examined Friday, but he said it wasn't serious.

Regardless, however, Omar Infante could see more time in his place.

"I'm assuming Infante will get some more playing time," Leyland said, "and he probably would have. But if we're putting the lack of offense on Neifi Perez, we're looking in the wrong area."

Polanco progressing: Both Leyland and Placido Polanco said they're hoping the second baseman can return to action in as little as two weeks. Polanco says his separated left shoulder feels good and he's doing well on his exercises.

When he does return, Leyland said he might keep Craig Monroe in the second spot while Polanco works his way back into action again.

WDFN just reported that Nook Logan was traded to the Nationals (I think) and Ramon Santiago and Jordan Tata were recalled from Toledo.

I'm too lazy to look it up, but didn't the playoff roster have to be set last night? If so, why is there no reporting on this by the local hacks?

Also, rosters expand today, when will the callups be announced?

I suppose that means Shelton isn't playoff eligible, right?

Does Shelton even deserve to be on the playoff roster? It's not like he is lighting up AAA pitching on fire (.819 OPS).

And as far as callups go, Santiago and Jordan Tata were both recalled from Toledo.

I guess Shelton can still be playoff eligible as long as he replaces a position player currently on the DL. Tony Giarratano?

More on Nook trade:

http://www.detroitnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060901/UPDATE/609010456


Tigers deal Logan to Nationals

DETROIT -- The Tigers traded outfielder Nook Logan to the Washington Nationals on Friday for a player to be named later.

Logan, who lost the center field job to Curtis Granderson in spring training, played for Triple A Toledo and Double A Erie this season..

I thought he was on the Mariners, but didn't play this year again.

Vina is still on the Tiger's payroll but not on the DL or the 40-man Roster.

I guess Shelton can still be playoff eligible as long as he replaces a position player currently on the DL. Tony Giarratano? Is there any truth to the rumor that they still have Fernando Vina on the DL?

More on Nook trade:

http://www.detroitnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060901/UPDATE/609010456


Tigers deal Logan to Nationals

DETROIT -- The Tigers traded outfielder Nook Logan to the Washington Nationals on Friday for a player to be named later.

Logan, who lost the center field job to Curtis Granderson in spring training, played for Triple A Toledo and Double A Erie this season..

Vina and Percy and Mantei and a couple minor leaguers all have replacable slots.

Sorry I edited that question out because I didn't think it was possible.


edit- It appears that we have conflicting reports here.

Injured shortstop Tony Giarratano was called up from Double-A Erie and placed on the 15-day disabled list. Giarratano is months away from playing following knee surgery, but he gives the Tigers a position player on the 40-man roster who is sure to be on the DL for the postseason. And that creates flexibility.

If the Tigers didn't have a position player on the DL, the only position players eligible for the postseason roster would have been those in the majors Thursday. By putting Giarratano on the DL, the Tigers have made all their current minor league position players eligible for the postseason. If one of those minor leaguers is summoned for a postseason series, he technically would replace Giarratano. (The Tigers hope Polanco will play by the postseason.)


^He's the minor leaguer I mentioned.

In an expected roster move Tuesday, the Tigers recalled Erie shortstop Tony Giarratano and put him on the major-league disabled list. As Dombrowski said with a smile, the move makes Giarratano eligible for the Tigers’ playoff roster.

Dombrowski smiled when he said it, because Giarratano had major knee surgery and won’t be playing anywhere in October. By putting him on the big-league disabled list, though, the Tigers give themselves added flexibility in naming a playoff roster.

They can replace Giarratano with any position player in the organization on Aug. 31, just as they can replace Troy Percival and Craig Dingman with any pitcher in the organization. That means players still in the minor leagues this Thursday could still make it onto the playoff roster.

My bad, Dingman, not mantei.

Vina was the guy that I was wondering about, I think H1 is right, he's not a factor anymore.