Tigers host the Indians for 3 big games (8/21 thru 8/23/07)

[Glenn]

Inge benched, finally.

Zumaya ready for Indians; Inge benched for series opener
Raburn will play third to start series

August 20, 2007

NEW YORK -- When the first-place Indians arrive at Comerica Park on Tuesday night, Joel Zumaya will be on duty in the bullpen, but Brandon Inge won't be in the starting lineup.

Inge's hitting struggles have grown deep enough that manager Jim Leyland will give him Tuesday off and start Ryan Raburn at third base. Leyland didn't say how many games he would keep Raburn at third and Inge on the bench. Raburn has yet to play third in the majors.

Zumaya will be activated for Tuesday. He has missed 3 1/2 months because of a ruptured tendon in the middle finger on his pitching hand. Leyland said Zumaya could immediately resume his typical late-inning duty in close games.

"(Fernando) Rodney would pitch the eighth inning (on Tuesday)," Leyland said. "I'll break Zumaya in. But I'm not going to use him as a long man. Obviously he's coming back because he's ready to pitch, and if he's ready to pitch, I'm going to put him in there."

Zumaya hasn't pitched for the Tigers since May 1. He suffered the injury while warming up four days later, and he has been on the disabled list since.

Zumaya pitched his last scheduled rehab outing for Triple-A Toledo on Saturday.

Inge struck out in his first two at-bats Sunday with a total of three runners in scoring position. He leads the American League with 127 strikeouts.

"I can't explain it," said Inge, batting .242 with 12 home runs and 56 RBIs. "I'm getting pitched like I'm Babe Ruth. Everything is on the corner. I haven't seen a ball in the middle of the plate for a week."

In the past six games, Raburn is 8-for-23 (.348) playing second base in place of Placido Polanco. "When he's gotten mistakes, he's hit them," Leyland said.

Leyland hopes Polanco, who has missed those six games with the flu, will play Tuesday. If not, said Leyland, he might put Ramon Santiago at second because Raburn will be at third.

[WTFchris]

Schedule:

7:05 p.m. Tuesday (Jair Jurrjens vs. Fausto Carmona, FSN Detroit)
7:05 p.m. Wednesday (Justin Verlander vs. Paul Byrd, FSN Detroit)
1:05 p.m. Thursday (Nate Robertson vs. Jake Westbrook, FSN Detroit)

New York at Tigers (posted here for later reference)
7:05 p.m. Friday (Chad Durbin or Andrew Miller vs. Roger Clemens, FSN Detroit)
7:05 p.m. Saturday (Jeremy Bonderman vs. Chien-Ming Wang, Tiger TV Network)
1:05 p.m. Sunday (Jair Jurrjens vs. Phil Hughes, Tiger TV Network).

BTW, Rogers thinks he might be back for Sunday.

[Glenn]

Looking at those pitching matchups, getting 2 out of three vs. the Tribe should be considered fantastic.

[WTFchris]

And would put us .5 game back too.

[Timone]

And would give us all some more false hope.

[MoTown]

Bring us back from the dead, Zoom.




Just stay away from:

[Glenn]

Cleveland (68-55) at Detroit (67-57)

By ANDY LEFKOWITZ, STATS Editor

In his last start, Fausto Carmona finally got some help at the plate and pushed the Cleveland Indians into a tie with the Detroit Tigers for the AL Central lead. On Tuesday, he'll try to increase the Indians' division edge.

Carmona makes his second straight start for the Indians (68-55) against rookie Jair Jurrjens and the Tigers (67-57) as they begin a three-game series at Comerica Park on Tuesday night.

On Wednesday in Cleveland, Carmona (14-7, 3.16 ERA) struck out a career-high 10 and allowed two runs and four hits over eight innings of a 5-2 win. The right-hander snapped a three-start losing streak, during which he had limited opponents to a .237 batting average but received just two runs of support.

"Whew, Carmona was something," said the Tigers' Brandon Inge. "First of all, he has an incredible sinker, but he's throwing a slider and changeup for strikes, too. All night, I saw one, maybe two pitches up in the zone. Everything else was on the black or at the knees - and with movement."

Carmona has won both of his career starts in Detroit, including on May 27 when he allowed three runs and nine hits through seven innings of a 5-3 triumph.

Jurrjens (0-1, 5.14), who will make his home debut, threw 104 pitches Wednesday over seven innings in his first major league start. He gave up four runs and five hits with two walks and three strikeouts.

"I was in a fantasy world," said Jurrjens, who was recalled from Double-A Erie before the game and became the first native of Curacao to pitch in the majors. "This was the first time my dad saw me pitch (as a professional). I recognized his whistle in the crowd. That was the best feeling ever.

"I thought I pitched OK, but that Carmona was incredible. He has the best two-seamer in the game."

After moving into a tie atop the Central, the Indians took two of three from lowly Tampa Bay. They failed to cap the sweep, though, falling 4-3 in 12 innings on Sunday.

Cleveland took a 3-2 lead in the 10th on Victor Martinez's sacrifice fly, but closer Joe Borowski blew the save in the bottom of the inning when he gave up Carl Crawford's RBI single. Rafael Perez later yielded the game-winning RBI single to Joel Guzman.

The Indians, though, maintained their 1 1/2-game division lead, as the Tigers fell 9-3 to the New York Yankees. Detroit was outscored 20-6 while dropping the final three games of a four-game set in the Bronx.

"I just think you go through hot and cold streaks during the course of the year," said Detroit's Gary Sheffield, who was hitless in three of the four games and booed loudly all weekend in his return to New York. "Unfortunately, we're going through a cold streak right now."

Tigers All-Star catcher Ivan Rodriguez was given Sunday off, and rookie Mike Rabelo had three hits and an RBI in his place. Rodriguez is 2-for-5 with a homer in his career against Carmona, while Rabelo is 3-for-6 with three strikeouts versus the Indians right-hander.

Magglio Ordonez, who leads the majors with a .351 batting average, is 7-for-21 in six home games versus the Indians this year. Ordonez leads Detroit with 22 homers and 110 RBIs in 2007.

I love how Jurrjens feels qualified to judge who has the best two seam fastball in the game after one start.

[Tahoe]

Exactly what I was thinking. How much ball do you get to watch when you're on a bus in AA?

[Glenn]

[H1Man]

"I can't explain it," said Inge, batting .242 with 12 home runs and 56 RBIs. "I'm getting pitched like I'm Babe Ruth. Everything is on the corner. I haven't seen a ball in the middle of the plate for a week."

Why the fuck would anyone throw him a pitch anywhere near the plate when he will chase soemthing even if its off the plate?