OT: 4/16 Tigers Royals open thread
Doing well very early but that also dried up pretty quickly.
I have a buddy who was a pitching coach at a D1 school and he gave me a bit of advice over the off season that seems to be prophetic. JV pitched a TON of innings last year. He pitched 40 more innings than he ever had before. 40 innings is like an entire college season. JV may have a little dead arm going on this season. He is still great, but he is going to be a little off this year I think.
Well, he's been great (not excellent) so far. We'll see.
I have yet to see anything prophetic regarding your friends vision. Verlander be Verlander
Winless after two starts? That isn't normal...
This is a dumb argument given that Verlander pitched eight shutout innings in the season opener. He didn't get the win only because his team didn't score.
Besides, even if you consider this a "slow start," Verlander isn't a stranger to them. Last year Verlander he went 2-3 in April. He did all right after that.
April 17th, 2012 at 12:04 AM ^
He actually looks better than normal right out of the gate this year.
April 16th, 2012 at 10:02 PM ^
Your friend's math is off. Verlander did pitch a career high in innings last year, but it was only 11 more innings than his previous high (in 2009). And given how dominant he was, it's possible that he actually threw fewer pitches than in '09.
Also, an ace starting pitcher in college will pitch more like 100+ innings, not 40.
Ryan Raburn is hitting a staggering .071 this year. I gotta believe Dirks or Inge or Kelly or pretty much any guy in the farm system could give us that kind of production.
INGE
oh, wait.
Raburn is 2/28. It's early. Mike Napoli is 3/24 and he was a .320, 30 HR guy last year.
"It's early" is the standard line until the All Star break, but you can't really expect every player on the team to rake. I mean every team has their holes in the line up, other than the Yankees that is.
Inge at second base today. For those that were upset that Inge DH'd yesterday, I think this is the logic:
Boesch needed a day off, therefore Leyland needed Raburn in right. Kelly needed to stay on the bench as the only OF that could come in for defense/injury - so he couldn't DH. You could have DH'd Santiago, but there's little point in that.
Inge at DH, in that scenario, makes sense. You want him to get some low pressure ABs early this season so you can make the final decision on him - is he a better option than Santiago?
what about giving cabrera a partial day off and let him DH? DHing inge is dumb. his only asset is his glove.
LOL SAMPLE SIZE: Tigers lead the league in fielding percentage.
the D cost the tigers game #2 against the sox.
Ha ha EXACTLY. That's hilarious actually.
People will always find some fault. In this case it was that the fielding was going to be bad. The bottom line is that this team will be lethal once VMART comes back and Scherzer straightens out.
Ingers gonna Inge.
now Leyland is never going to take him out of the lineup.
Forget small sample sizes!
s/
I just looked up to the TV and saw he was up to bat.
"He stinks!" I said out loud.
The next pitch he hit a 2 run homer! A fluke, right? 491 feet to Right Center. Tigers up 3-1!
I just looked up to the TV and saw he was up to bat.
"He stinks!" I said out loud.
The next pitch he hit a 2 run homer! A fluke, right? 491 feet to Right Center. Tigers up 3-1!
Reminds me of that Home Run Derby Inge was in... wait... no, no it doesn't
When do we discuss giving Inge Cabrera's spot in the lineup?
Cabby in a bit of a slump right now, which is just un-cabby like, he's what 0-19 over his last 5 games? If the Royals can ever get their rotation sorted out behind Bruce Chen (my god he's their ace) they could be quite a difficult team to face.
April 16th, 2012 at 10:00 PM ^
should have a good team at some point. They have had top 5 draft picks nearly every year for the last 20 seasons....
April 16th, 2012 at 10:05 PM ^
But they may pass on some of the best prospects because they'll ask for too much money.
April 16th, 2012 at 10:04 PM ^
I like the guy, but I know what he is and what he isn't. His defensive skills are some of best I have seen, especially his range. He will never be a great hitter, but he is what he is.
April 16th, 2012 at 10:17 PM ^
I don't hate him, but I just don't think he's that good. I find it remarkable that a career .235 hitter with little power and speed has somehow managed to stay with one franchise for 12 seasons. Brandon Inge has now played in over 1,400 games for the Tigers. It's just mind-blowing.
April 16th, 2012 at 10:19 PM ^
His defensive prowess has been overrated for years, he's an average fielder with a very poor bat. I'm happy he's got the go ahead hit tonight, and will happily eat crow if he produces, but he probably doesn't deserve to be on this roster at this point.
April 16th, 2012 at 10:34 PM ^
His range is amazing is amazing. He gets to balls that he has no business getting too. Last year he was bad at the plate but his career batting average when combined with his defense certainly justifies him being on the team. Especially when compared to the other options. Again, nobody is claiming he is hall of fame worthy. Just a solid role player.
April 16th, 2012 at 10:38 PM ^
When I am defending a Tiger.
April 16th, 2012 at 10:52 PM ^
Youre defending a Tiger who gets a pass for is HORRIBLE play because he is a "fan favorite" He has never been my favorite mostly because he is fucking terrible at a spot where you need power (he was mostly a 3B for us). I understand that he is now a 2B and if he had always been at 2B maybe I would like him more, but as a 3B for most of his career here I hate him. 3B is a spot where bat is more valuable than D. Corner infield and OF are power positions. You give a little D to get a lot of power there (only exception is CF).
April 16th, 2012 at 11:09 PM ^
He was a solid defensive 3b early in his career but when his knees went to shit, so did his range. In no way shape or form is he a, "solid role player" he's just a role player, and he didn't deserve to make the roster after spring training over Danny Worth. His BA over the past 4 years is a whopping .219 with an OPS of .664, he's a shell of his former self, and is only on this team because Illitch wants him there. It's very hard to defend Inge when you look at multiple statistics that indicate he sucks.
April 17th, 2012 at 12:11 PM ^
April 16th, 2012 at 10:29 PM ^
Terrible spring, sent to Toledo and hits .187 (1 for 9) which somehow is good enough that he gets called up. Quickly gets into the lineup and is batting .200 (1 for 5). I would love for him to do well but Leyland is nuts for the amount he uses Inge.
April 16th, 2012 at 10:43 PM ^
Come on JV, get that win.
April 16th, 2012 at 10:44 PM ^
You have to pull him, right? Where's the closer??
April 16th, 2012 at 10:45 PM ^
OMGJUSTIN...cmon
April 16th, 2012 at 10:46 PM ^
His control is gone...
April 16th, 2012 at 10:46 PM ^
Verlander is not allowed to take a 2-run lead to the 9th inning.
April 16th, 2012 at 10:47 PM ^
Might have been a generous strike call but I'll take it.
April 16th, 2012 at 10:55 PM ^
that was uncomfortable, but whew... it ended well. Good win against a tough pitcher.
April 16th, 2012 at 10:48 PM ^
Bad decision leaving him out there for ~130 pitches. Dude's arm is going to fall off. Don't be shocked if JV goes on the 15 day DL at some point this season. Just sayin.
April 16th, 2012 at 10:54 PM ^
Got the win... but that was a bit ridiculous for an April game agaist the Royals.
April 17th, 2012 at 12:45 AM ^
The Royals, usually wait until after the all star break, to start giving the Tigers fits. They're starting early this year.