OT: 5-31-12 Tigers vs Red Sox
Tigers will happily put May behind them. After the malaise days of May, there will be no June swoon.
Scherzer vs Beckett, this won't be an easy one.
Brookens already tossed due to getting shafted on another call at 1st.
Saw that. Frustration reigns right now. But then the Sox were upset about the called third strike to end their half of the first.
I'm amazed Delmon made that play that close. That was too shallow of a fly ball.
Here we go again...
Becker's got nuttin'
Boris Becker? :D
Even if Beckett doesn't have anything, the way we've been going, it might not matter. We might need 8+ runs to win this thing.
Oh yeeah Beckett. My bad. gotta go edit know.
There you go QB takin' the double play out of the equation with a stolen base
Clutch 2 out single from Prince gives the Tigers a 3-2 lead, erasing the 2 run deficit
That might be the end of Avila for the night.
Yep Avila went the way of your Kool Aid thread
I guess so.
That right there is why Marlboro Jimmy can't run Avila out there for 30 games straight like he did last year.
I like Scherzer's approach tonight. He's given up some rockets, the score is tied 3-3 in the third, but he's competing and going right after the Red Sox.
Avila banged up again and has to leave the game. Drats. I've never seen a catcher get abused as much behind the plate as Avila. Every game it seems he gets plunked hard somewhere.
If anything happens to Laird, Jimmy L may be forced to go with Gene Lamont behind the dish. I've been a fan of Gene's since the Tigers called him up in 1970 to back-up Bill Freehan. Not sure but Gene's arrival may have spelled the end of Jim Price's days as Freehan's back-up.
Remember, the Tigers just called up Omir Santos when they shipped Raburn off to Ecuador err, Toledo. Now, if something happens to Santos somewhere down the line, it might be Fat Gene behind the plate.
I wonder if Brookens still has Lance Parrish's gear, although it's not an issue tonight.
Berry Berry Berry. this guys a keeper, especially for this speed challenged team
He is going to come back to earth. His glove and speed will be useful, as well as the fact that he actually can lay down a bunt. It will be tough to find him ABs in the OF though. He should be staying here for a while hopefully.
I don't see this OF as tough to get AB's in.
I don't think Berry is an everyday player at this point. It is a long season and he is not the biggest strongest guy around.
If Berry gets on base at anywhere near the percentage of any of the corner OF's, he will play.
Would make Leyland think twice. Combine that with his loyalty to his players i would think it is hard for him to break into it with AJ back. I also simply don't see him keeping up his OBP with his K rate.
We shall see. As of now, it allows the Tigers to not rush Jackson back. It will be a nice problem for Dombrowski and Leyland to deal with
Going to the bullpen. Uh-oh...
Coke, Dotel, Valverde? Avoid Benoit for tonight?
and Max is on my fantasy team so they better not blow his W
Just got home from work, what happened to Avila?
PS: I saw earlier today that Starlin Castro was on the trading block, holy shit has Theo lost his mind? That's the only piece on that team i'd consider keeping.
Avila took a foul ball squarely on the mask that opened up a cut on the bridge of his nose. He didn't seem quite right when he left, but he's on the bench and apparently he's okay.
Ah gracias, I wonder if he'll have to go on the concussion 7 day DL, im assuming they pulled him for precautionary purposes but you never know.
No Concussion was reported by Jason Beck and Mario/Rod
Wicked foul ball/cuts on nose
I guess Theo is sick of his attitude and just becuase hes on the block doesnt mean he'll get traded. Who knows he could get a crazy package for him.
Ya I just read on MLBTR that the US Today report was wrong and that Theo, "never considered moving Starlin." The package for him would have to be massive, I mean he's only 22 and is cost controlled for a while. http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2012/05/cubs-not-moving-castro-epstein-confirms-1.html
This team needs a lefty specialist, a right handed bat, and depending on Fister maybe another starter, so we'll see what happens.
foul ball off face mask causing a nasty cut on the bridge of his nose. If he wasn't cut so bad, he probably stays in the game.
Big Big Fly for Delmon. Good to see Young starting to hit for power; he is not very valuable as a singles hitter.
He's been a DP rally killing machine this year, I'd like to see him moved down in the lineup.
The problem is, if we move down everyone who is struggling, we're going to have about 5 guys batting 9th.
Anyone else cringe when Cabrera took off for 2nd, and do it again when he lit out for 3rd?
Holy shit. A clutch hit.
Went off Sweeney's glove trying to make a diving catch, and the ball proceeded to roll into the valley that is CF at Fenway.
the RF dove for it but couldn't get it and then it rolled back towards CF and Fielder got in standing up.
The RF took a half dive for the ball running into the gap, ball went off his glove and rolled away from the CF, allowing Fielder to cruise into third with a standup triple
Cabrera and Prince clutch hits haven't been that rare, especially lately, it is the rest of the team that is struggling.
The smile on the two of their faces when they are rounding 2nd is priceless.
Cabrera taking 3rd on a SB/error then Fielder 3B. Wow.
I see ya Prince. A triple at Fenway is hard to accomplish.
Delmon pushing the lead to 4, meanwhile Papa Grande is pissed in the bullpen.
Would you rather be in the Tigers position heading into June, 5 back in the AL Central, third place trailing Chicago and Cleveland, or in Boston's position, 3 back and in last place in the AL East? I'd opt for the Tigers position.
Honestly I might choose 3rd in the AL Central over 1st in the AL East. That division is going to be deadly down the stretch.
As doomy and gloomy as i have been and critical of Leyland, this does end a long ass road trip. Still don't think it should be this bad, but it could be worse, and can easily get better. Doesn't mean that this scuffling is ok though. Still gotta play better.
I think most of us Leyland apologists certainly agree with your sentiments. They've only had what like 5 home games this month? They obviously need to play better, and can't keep falling behind Chicago and Cleveland.