OT: 8/25 Tigers/general baseball open thread

Submitted by Moleskyn on

Chat it up, folks. The Tigers vs. Rays are underway for the finale of a 4-game series in Tampa. Detroit is going for the 3-1 series win, Tampa Bay is looking for the split. Fister is on the hill for us, and he's going up against Jeremy Hellickson.

Austin Jackson leads off the game with a homer! Nice way to start off the game.

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Moleskyn

August 25th, 2011 at 1:21 PM ^

Also, as noted in yesterday's thread, Cabrera is out of the lineup so he can be with his wife, who is having labor induced sometime today. Hope it goes well, Cabby!

Here's Detroit's lineup:

  1. Jackson, 9
  2. Santiago, 4
  3. Young, 7
  4. Martinez, DH
  5. Betemit, 5
  6. Kelly, 3
  7. Peralta, 6
  8. Raburn, 9
  9. Santos, 2

Good to see that Avila is getting a day off. I don't care how well he's been hitting the ball, the guy hasn't had a day off in a long time.

Joined: 06/28/2010

MGoPoints: 10287

Needs

August 25th, 2011 at 1:29 PM ^

Is this potentially the least interesting September in baseball history, or at least since the league went away from single table?

-3 of the divisional races appear done (NL East and Central, AL Central) [note: not a Tigers fan, so no jinx here.]

-The AL East is close but the loser is assured the wild card.

-Both wild card races are functionally over (Braves and AL East loser).

-Race for home field is functionally over (Phillies and AL East winner).

-Even the race for 2nd seeds is almost done (Brewers by 7, Rangers by 4ish)

-AL West is approaching close, but does a Rangers-Angels pennant drive really excite anyone?

-NL West is close, but only because the Giants and the D'Backs are both trying to give it away.

 

Joined: 08/05/2008

MGoPoints: 11624

freernnur5

August 25th, 2011 at 1:47 PM ^

It probably will be a relatively quiet September. The sad thing is the NL West is in the same position it was last year, except that instead of the Giants surging to win it on the last day, they can't seem to win a game and neither team wants to win the division.

However, relatively quiet is good. I like where things stand right now (Tigers/Braves fan here).

Joined: 03/28/2011

MGoPoints: 671

Brhino

August 25th, 2011 at 2:36 PM ^

You can say that he is "doing well".  If the person you are talking to does not get it, you may emphasize.  "he is pitching very well indeed, and perhaps you should go turn on the TV if you're not watching it currently.", you may say.  You may even follow that up with a wink, if you deem it appropriate.

YOU DO NOT under any circumstances, however, say "perfect game", "no hitter", or any variation thereof.

Joined: 09/08/2009

MGoPoints: 19457

jmblue

August 25th, 2011 at 3:07 PM ^

So can we conclude that Fister may in fact be a competent pitcher, and wasn't just bailed out by Safeco Field and good Mariner defense?

Joined: 11/07/2008

MGoPoints: 102707

NateVolk

August 25th, 2011 at 3:52 PM ^

Boy there are some lousy hitting teams in the American League. Minnesota looked awful the last time. Cleveland, without that rookie 2B and Hafner, is terrible offensively. Tampa is trash too. The reality is any team Detroit will face in the Playoffs, save the Angels will be a beast offensively. How the 2, 3, 4 starters do in those games is total guesswork.  You can make bad pitches against a lot of these teams and it doesn't matter. Against a good hitting team that is prepared, and knows how to work pitchers, it will be tough for our staff.  

Joined: 07/19/2010

MGoPoints: 6863

Naked Bootlegger

August 25th, 2011 at 4:01 PM ^

Did Raburn do something spectacular in RF on the 9th inning double play?   I'm ESPN Game-casting at work, and I'm envisioning a Raburn gem that will soon be offset by a Raburn gaffe.

Joined: 01/28/2011

MGoPoints: 34626

Seth

August 25th, 2011 at 4:13 PM ^

By sitting today Alex Avila's season effort rating dropped from its season-long high of 108.1% to 107.7%

According to Baseball Reference.com, Dustin Pedroia holds the season record for giving 108.2% in 2008, with 38 scrappy performances, a .744 grit-per-inch rating, 301 plate battles, and an astounding 126 games in a row in which he gave it his all or more (plus 12 more in which he gave at least the old college try). Obviously Avila's going to have to get his jersey dirty an awful lot the rest of the season, but as a catcher he's gonna get a lot of opportunities to gut things out and get into scraps.
 
If he keeps up his level of grittiness, keeps the beard nice and scratchy, and maybe takes a few more hard whacks from baseballs and bats and runners charging from 3rd base like they're Jarrod Bunch... Leyland has said Alex gives him 110% every time he plays. Obviously nobody can give 110% all the time, but if Avila can stay close to that, and in the course of never sitting for another game he manages to have both kneecaps pop out of his legs* while his arm falls off and his neck becomes detached from his shoulders, he could conceivably still pass Pods.
 
For reference, the modern record for effort in a 9-inning game is 113.2% by David Eckstein in Game 1 of the 2005 NLCS. 
 
Ty Cobb, as you probably guessed, holds pretty much every career record, by nature of playing at a time when players literally breathed grit instead of oxygen every day.
 
* One of which will almost certainly hit Carlos Guillen and send him back to the DL.

Joined: 10/14/2008

MGoPoints: 148961

Seth

August 26th, 2011 at 9:57 AM ^

Unfortunately baseball didn't start keeping stats for lolligagging until the 1980s so we can't go back very far. The worst team of lolligaggers ever was the 2003 Royals, who led the league in lolligagging around the infield, and lolligagging around the outfield, making them lolligaggers.

Joined: 10/14/2008

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