maizeandblue21

July 3rd, 2011 at 5:03 PM ^

out but i still find this awesome. i didnt want him here but the cries for him being fired were far overshadowed by the fire leyland, lamont, and mcclendon to be noticed. im glad he's gone he's done nothing for the tigers so far and it has showed recently. 

Maize.Blue Wagner

July 3rd, 2011 at 5:12 PM ^

Really? Cause I remember when Knapp was the savior after the Chuck Hernandez days.  Not saying he doesn't need to go, or that there aren't several others who should go, but I seem to remember a general consensus that he had a good influence on the pitching staff as a whole.  

Again though, things need to change, and despite the semi-decent record so far, I have no faith in this team maintaining it. 

maizeandblue21

July 3rd, 2011 at 5:36 PM ^

with the recent performances and the looks of the mechanics outside of verlander and penny it's been horrible. i dont think this promotion will fix it completely but it should be a step forward in the right direction for 2 reasons: 1) it will show the organization that nobody is safe and 2) it will force a little urgency upon the coaches who will put it on the players. i would've liked to see them promote the guy in AAA who fixed both porcello and scherzer last year but i guess this isnt the time.

crum

July 3rd, 2011 at 5:04 PM ^

We fire our pitching coach but allow Mclendon, Inge and Rayburn to continue thier butchering of this team. When does DD get fired?

turtleboy

July 3rd, 2011 at 6:10 PM ^

everyone, and I mean EVERYONE called Avila a joke and wanted him gone. I just thank my lucky stars we're not the Cubs. We're in the running for first place. Thing I will never understand is we went to all the trouble to build THE most pitcher friendly ballpark in all of Baseball and then we never sign top pitchers. It's felt like we've had 1 starting pitcher and 4 question marks ever since Comerica opened. The list of former Tigers hitters is full of top names and 2 current starting All Stars, while our former Tigers pitching list looks like a West Coast bullpen roster.

coldnjl

July 3rd, 2011 at 6:23 PM ^

Even though Porcello and Sherzer are pitching like AAA pitchers, they are really good young pitchers. Both will be dominant (and have been at times) once they find the ability to be consistent.  So...its not like we don't have talent

bronxblue

July 4th, 2011 at 1:53 PM ^

Well, Kenny Rogers and Justin Verlander were very good back in 2006, but I agree with your general principle.  My sense is that star pitchers don't move around nearly as much as good hitters (except if you massively overpay them like the Yankees/Sawx/Phillies), so you usually have to build from within, which can take some time.  I think Porcello and Sherzer will be good top-2/3 pitchers, and Turner looks like another good kid in the system.  They've drafted really good pitchers recently, but some haven't panned out yet (Perry) and others were traded for assets (Miller).  I honestly don't have a problem with the pitching this team has, only that they need to get a manager/philosophy that utilizes them better.

maizeandblue21

July 3rd, 2011 at 7:12 PM ^

if you are defending Kringe you might as well stop. his defense has gone done a lot in recent years, he is a terrible hitter, and acts like he is babe ruth. the guy wouldnt have a roster spot on any other team but our GM and manager are too loyal and we are stuck with him and Mudhen/Rugburn. someone should buy Mr. I moneyball and see how he reacts to that and maybe finally notices why his teams have underachieved so much. the organization needs a new philosophy of plate discipline and OBP rather than "imagine how good this guy could be he is a 5-tool player" and think " this guy has no holes in his swing he could be a solid starter."

dothepose

July 3rd, 2011 at 8:45 PM ^

i hope this a typo, you wouldve cut miggy after his dui? I think you need to grasp reality and realize that athletes are not role models, they get paid to play a sport, not not teach life lessons.

on a second note, Inge just check swinged for strike three

Wolverine318

July 3rd, 2011 at 9:29 PM ^

nope, like it or not athletes are role models. They are paid to sell a product, the detroit tigers. Getting a DUI damages that product. I would have cut his drunk ass. Inge, unlike miggy, is someone kids can look up to. 

Trader Jack

July 5th, 2011 at 3:49 PM ^

Dude, stop saying "haters gonna hate." That only makes sense if people are saying a good player is bad. A career .235 hitter whose defense is no longer good enough to hide his bat, is hitting .196 this year, is hitting .157 with runners in scoring position (how does he "get clutch hits" again?), and is on the wrong side of 30 is not a good player. I like Inge as a person and think he's a great role model for kids, but he's just not very good at baseball anymore. That's not hating, that's just reality.

maizeandblue21

July 3rd, 2011 at 10:34 PM ^

walks in real slow then swings for the fences on a pitch in the dirt, check swings at one done the middle, then takes a step out of the batters box, then walks back in all cocky just about calling his shot then strikes out. no offense to the guy because im sure he's a class act off the field but his on-field performance warrants a DFA note in the locker for any other player other than someone who has hit 30 Hrs 100 RBIs for the last 5 years. he isnt going to come around and dont say he's clutch cause that's BS he just get a hit like he would in any other inning and runners just happen to be on.

MH20

July 3rd, 2011 at 7:12 PM ^

I hate the concept of "clutch."  Inge rarely comes through when there are runners in scoring position.  After today's game, the dude is hitting .167 with RISP -- that is the opposite of "clutch."

You want "clutch?"  Going into today's game, Miguel Cabrera had a slash line of .403/.544/.722 with RISP, and a slash of .342/.528/.605 with RISP and 2 outs.

WMUgoblue

July 3rd, 2011 at 7:48 PM ^

One of the best defensive 3rd basemen? I'm sorry I was unaware we were living in 2006, he has had 2 knee surgeries and it is quite noticeable, his defense use to hide his bat, that isn't the case anymore. I'd like to see if Kelly could play 3rd a whole year. There are only 2 kinds of  Tiger fans....the Inge Haters, and the Inge Slappies.

MGoBender

July 3rd, 2011 at 8:05 PM ^

There are only 2 kinds of Tiger fans....the Inge Haters, and the Inge Slappies.

This is the kind of garbage you see on MLive or sports radio. Intelligent people are able to form opinions on situations and not resort to extremes.

Inge is what he is. He sucks at the plate right now and needs to improve ASAP. If he doesn't improve then Kelley will take his job. There's no reason to denigrate the guy - it's not like he isn't putting forth an effort. And he is still a solid 3B - the best option defensively on the team.

bronxblue

July 4th, 2011 at 1:56 PM ^

I like Inge as much as anybody, but he isn't close to the defensive player he was even a couple of years ago.  Now he's an older, stiffer defender who is also a poor hitter.  Yes, he gets some "clutch" hits at times, but he strikes out or hits into DPs at least as frequently.  He deserves credit for sticking with the team through the lean 100+ losses seasons, but he's just not a ML hitter right now, and probably would be gone if the Tigers had any better options in the minors.

BRCE

July 3rd, 2011 at 5:30 PM ^

Too bad Knapp isn't a former Pittsburgh Pirates manager. That seems to be the criteria for Leyland to keep poor-performing members of his staff.

Tater

July 3rd, 2011 at 9:41 PM ^

People can scapegoat the entire staff or individual players all they want, but the bottom line is that Detroit is not a preferred destination for free agents.  As long as players can choose where they play, Detroit will have trouble attracting talent that can win championships.

 Dombo built two champions in Florida; he didn't suddenly become "Dumbo" when he moved north.  Leyland has won pennants in both leagues; he is one of seven to do that.  The only elite athletes who actually want to live around Detroit are hockey players; that is why the Wings have been successful for so long.  

Running Dombo and Leyland out of town will work out about as well as running Sparky out of town did.

BRCE

July 4th, 2011 at 12:06 AM ^

I'm at a loss to even begin to tell you how ignorant that take is. Justin Verlander, Miguel Cabrera, Magglio Ordonez and Victor Martinez are all guys who have made big names for themselves who chose to come to (or in Verlander's case, stay) Detroit, forgoing wide open options they either had at the time or were to sure to have next time their contract was up.

That's a quartet of contracts no other city in this division can match, yet the Tigers still can't conquer the Central because they don't draft well, have displayed little mental fortitude late in the season, and they make some very poor decisions that get them anchored to flash in the pan players they gave contracts to (Inge, Raburn, Bonderman, Robertson).

To blame their struggles on supposedly not being a FA destination hotspot  is laughable, as is your fluffing of Leyland (you can classify him as a dual pennant winner if you'd like, but he's still a sub-.500 manager in his 20-year career).

 

 

 

 

 

 

Michael Scarn

July 4th, 2011 at 6:26 AM ^

You know what matters to professional athletes more than where a team is? MONEY. And the tigers have a top payroll while failing to be a dominant team. People who use the city as a scapegoat are just ignoring the
<br> incompetence at the organizational level of some of our teams. DD has been employed far too long, decimating our farm system and future for washed up veterans he can give massive contacts to.
<br>
<br>People need to accept that this is a few pieces away from being a championship team. And we won't sign Jose Reyes, but not because he hates the city but because Illitch is done with having a massive payroll without results on the field.

MaizeAndBlueWahoo

July 4th, 2011 at 10:49 AM ^

People need to accept that this is a few pieces away from being a championship team.

Yeah, that's terrible.  Almost as bad as being 25 players and a manager away from being a championship team and going 55-106 and 43-119.  I wonder how such incompetent management ever figured out how to change that.

P.S. Do you remember the farm system before Dombrowski?  There was nothing to decimate.  This "decimated the farm system" noise is BS.

Michael Scarn

July 4th, 2011 at 4:22 PM ^

No one loves trying to ruin young arms quite like us. Porcello's development was and remains stunted because he was rushed to the bigs. And what kind of GM doesn't utilize the fact that he has a massive ballpark? You don't need power arms when you play in a place like Comerica, and yet that's all we seem to take.

bronxblue

July 4th, 2011 at 2:03 PM ^

The only elite athletes who actually want to live around Detroit are hockey players

Yeah, I totally agree. I mean, that's why the last couple of Superbowl champions have come from those cultural and aesthetic meccas in Pittsburgh and Green Bay/  And ask Cubs and Dodger fans how their "great" cities have helped in attracting top talent and remaining competitive.

Players want to win, and they don't care where that opportunity exists.  Plus, most athletes own homes in areas other than where they play, and especially before they get married and settle down could care less where they live considering they are on the road about half of the season.  Yes, Detroit isn't a huge draw as a city, but all four sports teams have had some great players who have come through free agency or trades, and few complain about playing here.  And for all of the talk about FAs picking certain teams over others, the ones that seem to grab the top guys tend to be the ones who pay through the nose, not necessarily where they are located.  The fact that FAs go to Boston, NY, and Philly has more to do with their massive payrolls than the quality of the cities.

maizeandblue21

July 3rd, 2011 at 11:13 PM ^

his contract will be up. i dont know if we will get Gibby, hopefully we will after what he's done with arizona this year, but the whole Alan Trammel thing might be a snag in him coming. i think the problem is between Trammel and Dombrowski so it should be fine because he will be gone after this year and Mr. Avila will be the new General Manager. 

BigSmooth33

July 3rd, 2011 at 11:59 PM ^

Remember Tram?!?!
<br>
<br>The Dbacks fall has already started... Keep Jimmy forever as far as I'm concerned... Coaching isn't the problem... It's the lack of talent pitching past our #3 and a few guys in the bullpen...
<br>
<br>Just hope the Turner project comes to the bigs soon enough...

ckersh74

July 3rd, 2011 at 11:15 PM ^

I posted this on another site. Some very interesting rankings I've found on MLB.com. A quick glance, but intriguing nonetheless:



Offense:

AVG: 3rd in MLB at .268, 1 point behind STL

SLG: 4th in MLB, all 3 teams ahead of them are AL teams

OBP: T-4th in MLB with the Mets

OPS: 4th in MLB, 1 point ahead of STL

11th in HR's, 6th in runs scored.



Needless to say, my eyebrows are raised.



Pitching:

ERA: 26th in MLB. Only BAL, CHC, KCR and HOU are worse

SO: 22nd in MLB. Surprisingly, Cleveland is next to last. KCR, CLE, MIN are the bottom 3

WHIP: 26th in MLB. BAL, KCR, CHC & HOU are worse

BB: 7th highest walk total.



Upon further review, it's not overly difficult to see why Knapp was shown the door.



Also, 25th in Fielding %, and 26th in range factor. 7th most errors in baseball. We are not good defensively, either, folks.

LSAClassOf2000

July 4th, 2011 at 8:59 AM ^

I personally would have wanted to see the pitching coach from Toledo come up since he worked the kinks (well, most of them) out of Procello and Scherzer, but if you're making changes on the fly like the Tigers seem to now be doing, this is the quickest way to do it.