Grapefruit League Gamethread: Rays at Tigers, 1:05 p.m.
by Kurt Mensching on Mar 14, 2010 12:00 PM EDT
in Game Threads
8 comments
When: 1:05 p.m.
Where: Joker Marchant Stadium, Lakeland, Fla.
Media: 1270 AM/97.1 FM in Detroit area, and Gameday Audio on MLB.com
Tigers lineup:
1. Austin Jackson, CF
2. Johnny Damon, LF
3. Magglio Ordonez, RF
4. Magiuel Cabrera, 1B
5. Carlos Guillen, DH
6. Gerald Laird, C
7. Brandon Inge, 3B
8. Scott Sizemore, 2B
9. Adam Everett, SS
Pitching: Rick Porcello
Rays lineup:
TBA
Pitching: Jeff Niemann
8 comments | 0 recs
Spring training surprises include Willis, Jackson
by Kurt Mensching on Mar 14, 2010 11:27 AM EDT
in Morning Lede
6 comments
I'm going to write a bit about a few of the early surprises of spring training today, but first my standard boilerplate warning: spring training stats mean very little.
They are skewed because, despite all looks, the games are not real. They are more or less scrimmages, where the visiting team doesn't even bother to send its actual "A" squad, where pitchers work on things oftentimes with minor leaguers fielding behind them, where field conditions are not up to MLB standards, and more. Veterans struggle, guys you haven't heard of do great. Some players are out to prove something; others aren't. That's just the way it is.
And then you add up all the numbers and realize the innings pitched and at-bats total less than they will during the month of April. How much about a season do we really know in the first few weeks of April?
Spring training quotes aren't much better. Every comeback player has a chance. Almost every player reports in great shape. Adjustments are made. Their fastballs have life. The changeups are fooling batters. The batters just have a sound that ... sounds good. Managers are impressed, teammates are impressed, opponents are impressed. Everything is peachy.
Under those circumstances, it's pretty hard to do much useful analysis of spring training from afar, and you've probably noted that I haven't spent a lot of time looking into the results so far, nor do I make a big deal out of anything from the box score.
None-the-less, pausing today to take a look at some stats and surprises might help us figure out where things stand. So that's today's Morning Lede today. (And by the way, a big thank you to Big Al for pitching in a few days a week to give me a time to catch my breath as well.)
6 comments | 0 recs |
This common occurrence and lots more here.
I'll have more ramblings tomorrow; too much other stuff (dive bars) going on today.
about 11 hours ago
allikazoo
1 comment
0 recs
The split squad split: Tigers 6 - Yankees 2; Mets 9 - Tigers 0
by BigAl on Mar 13, 2010 9:08 PM EST
in News
14 comments
(Sorry, no line score available for Tigers - Yankees)
The Tigers split their squad this afternoon, with most of the starters staying in Lakeland to take on the New York Yankees, while the rest were sent to Port St. Lucie to take on the New York Mets.
The result? The split squad split.
The Tigers hammered the Yankees 6-2, and got hammered by the Mets, 9-0.
In the victory, former Yankee (and former unfrozen caveman centerfielder) Johnny Damon led the onslaught on the evil empire with 2 hits, 1 a home run, and 2 RBI. Ryan Raburn also continued to mash the ball this spring, with a 4-4, 2 double day, raising his Grapefruit League average to .500. Gerald Laird also had a nice game, going 2-3 and threw out God's gift to NYC, Derek Jeter, trying to steal.
Brandon Inge made his first appearance of the spring, and nothing of note happened (which is good), save for being hit by a pitch. (No, it wasn't in the knee)
On the mound, Dontrelle Willis got the start, making his case for going north with the team. The D-Train did nothing to take himself out of the running for the rotation, as he scattered 4 hits over 3 innnings, giving up 1 run. As is his wont, Willis occasionally battled his control, allowing 1 base on balls and a hit batsman.
Jeremy Bonderman followed, and pitched well, putting up nearly the same stat line as Willis (3 IP, 4 H, 1 R 2 K, 0 BB). Nate Robertson continued with his strong spring, throwing 3 innings of scoreless baseball. I know, it was just one game, but Jose Valverde showed signs of being a Rodney/Jones type of closer, allowing 2 singles and a walk while striking out the side in the 9th. I'm not sure my heart can take another "Rollercoaster."
Overall, it was a fun day of baseball in Lakeland. Not so much in Port St. Lucie.
The Mets went yard 4 times, and held the Tigers hitless for the first 6 innings, causing me to have flashbacks to last season's hitless wonders.
It's not worth our time to talk about the offense against the Mets, so let's move on to the pitching.
Starting pitcher Max Scherzer, who had struggled badly this spring, broke out of his funk with a very strong performance. Penciled in as the Tigers' number 3 starter, Scherzer pitched 4 innings, giving up only 1 hit, with 5 K's, lowering his spring ERA nearly 20 points in the process.
The Tigers' 2009 2nd round draft pick, tall, hard-throwing (in other words, your typical Dombrowski drafted pitcher) Andy Oliver, also held the Mets scoreless in his 2 innings of work.
Then things fell apart on the mound.
Ryan Perry, who had been having an excellent spring, was shelled in 0.2 innings of work. The Mets knocked Perry around for 5 hits, 3 home runs, 7 runs, 5 earned.
Zach Miner took over for Perry, giving up a 3 run shot to Jason Bay in his 1.1 innings of work.
After the game, the D-Train said he was not feeling or throwing his best, making his latest appearance that much more impressive.
"I've got to be honest, man, and not knocking anybody, but I felt terrible," Willis said. "I didn't have very good rhythm, and I'm a weird guy in the sense that I fall behind and then I zero in. And then, all of a sudden the big guys come up and I'm strike one, strike two. I don't know what that is, but when I had to make pitches, I was able to make pitches against some good hitters.
"You're not going to feel great every time out, but I battled and I grinded it out. I'm actually more happy about this than my other outings before, because [today] I was grinding and I got some good ground balls for some guys."
I have to admit, I'm rooting for Willis.
Comment of the night:
After Jim Leyland's favorite utility man Don Kelly committed an error, C Bass gave us this gem:
I guess just because you say a guy can stand at every posistion
doesn’t mean he can play it
14 comments | 0 recs |
Grapefruit League Gamethread: Split Squad Saturday - Tigers at Mets
by BigAl on Mar 13, 2010 12:00 PM EST
in Game Threads
92 comments
Game 2: Detroit Tigers at New York Mets
When: 1:10 p.m.
Where: Tradition Field, Port St. Lucie, Fla.
Media: Available to MLB.TV subscribers
Tigers pitching: Max Scherzer starts, with Eddie Bonine, Andy Oliver, Zach Miner, Jay Sorbz, Josh Rainwater, Alfredo Figaro and Ryan Perry in relief.
Mets pitching: Oliver Perez is scheduled to start, Hisamori Takahashi, Nelson Figueroa, Scott Green, Bobby Parnell and Jenrry Mejia appearing in relief
Tigers lineup:
1. SS Ramon Santiago
2. LF Carlos Guillen
3. DH Magglio Ordonez
4. 1B Ryan Strieby
5. RF Brennan Boesch
6. 2B Don Kelly
7. CF Casper Wells
8. C Alex Avila
9. 3B Audy Ciriaco
P Max Scherzer
Mets lineup:
1. LF Angel Pagan
2. 2B Luis Castillo
3. 3B David Wright
4. DH Jason Bay
5. 1B Daniel Murphy
6. RF Jeff Francoeur
7. CF Gary Matthews, Jr.
8. C Rod Barajas
9. SS Alex Cora
P Oliver Perez, SP
With much of the projected starting lineup playing the Yankees in Lakeland, Carlos Guillen, Magglio Ordonez and the rest of the Tigers squad will be in Port St. Lucie to take on the Yankees' NL counterparts, the Mets.
Two youngsters the Tigers will be depending upon heavily in 2010 will be on the mound. Max Scherzer (and his 30.86 ERA) gets the start, hoping to to get untracked. In relief, Ryan Perry will try to build on his already impressive spring (3.2 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0 H, 0 R), bidding for a setup role in the bullpen.
92 comments | 0 recs |
Grapefruit League Gamethread: Split Squad Saturday - Yankees at Tigers
by BigAl on Mar 13, 2010 12:00 PM EST
in Game Threads
72 comments
Game 1: New York Yankees at Detroit Tigers
When: 1:05 p.m.
Where: Joker Marchant Stadium, Lakeland, Fla.
Media: WXYT, 1270 AM / 97.1 FM in Detroit
Tigers pitching: Dontrelle Willis gets the start, with Jeremy Bonderman and Nate Robertson pitching in relief, along with Jose Valverde. Jim Leyland is bringing out the big guns!
Yankees pitching: Chad Gaudin starts, Grant Duff, Boone Logan, Sergio Mitre, Amaury Sanit and Zach Segovia are also expected to pitch.
Tigers lineup:
1. Scott Sizemore, 2B
2. Johnny Damon, DH
3. Austin Jackson, CF
4. Miguel Cabrera, 1B
5. Clete Thomas, RF
6. Ryan Raburn, LF
7. Gerald Laird, C
8. Brandon Inge, 3B
9. Adam Everett, SS
SP: Dontrelle Willis
Yankees lineup:
1. Derek Jeter SS
2. Nick Swisher RF
3. Mark Teixeira 1B
4. Alex Rodriguez 3B
5. Marcus Thames LF
6. Francisco Cervelli C
7. Jamie Hoffmann CF
8. David Winfree DH
9. Eduardo Nunez 2B
Chad Gaudin P
(But no Curtis Granderson today, he's on the other half of the Yankees' split squad back in Tampa, per Jason Beck)
With most of Florida hit by drenching rain Friday, including Lakeland, the Tigers game with the Phillies was cancelled. (As reported by BYB's woman on the scene, Alli) The rotation, such as it is at this point of the spring, has been thown into a bit of disarray. Bonderman was supposed to start Friday, he will now pitch in relief against the evil empire, with Robertson following.
But let's not forget Dontrelle Willis, who gets the start. The D-Train has had a surpringly solid spring (if still more than a little wild) in his attempt to come back from an anxiety disorder (or as some claim, Steve Blass Disease).
The game with the Yankees is expected to have most of the Tigers' projected Tigers starting lineup on the field (to be expected, with the game being broadcast in Detroit on the Tigers radio network).
The player to watch this afternoon is Brandon Inge, who sees his first game action of the spring. After having surgery on both knees this past off season, the Tigers have brought Inge along slowly. Today we finally get to see the results of Inge's coninuing rehab.
Note from Big Al: When I wrote this at 1 a.m., I didn't know at the time Leyland was going to be batting Sizemore 1st (Only thing I can think of is he wants Sinzemore to get an extra AB) Austin Jackson 3rd (He's not going to learn to lead off batting 3rd!) and Clete Thomas 5th (whywhywhy?). So much for "projected starting lineup." Then again, with the Marlboro Man's driving need to have bizarre batting orders, I guess I should have expected it. At least the Cult should be happy! Oh, that noise you heard? That was my head exploding after seeing another of Leyland's nonsensical batting orders.)
72 comments | 0 recs |
Morning lede: What's he doing here?
by BigAl on Mar 13, 2010 11:45 AM EST
in Morning Lede
8 comments
Al Beaton, aka Big Al here! I'll be your host today, and will be every Saturday and Wednesday from here on through October. (Hey, a man can dream!)
Kurt and I decided to divide up the daily duties at BYB, in order to allow him time to write more in-depth pieces, instead of just posting game threads and recaps. It'll also give me the opportunity to annoy the loyal BYB readership with my snarky style, and a forum to complain bitterly about Jim Leyland's asinine batting orders. (If I EVER see Clete Thomas batting 3rd again, I'm gonna...)
Seriously, it's a privilege to write for BYB, and I hope to live up to Kurt's (and for that matter, Ian's) high standards.
Quickie link dump!
Remember former Tiger Doug Baker auctioning off his World Series ring? He got some serious jack for it.
Brandon Inge feels like a kid again!
The Twins new closer could be...Francisco Liriano?
Seamheads has a take on the trade we've beaten to death like a dead hose in these parts.
Lynn Henning tells us the Tigers are going to have plenty of money after 2010. No kidding? Really?
And let's have a moment of silence for Kurt's beloved Spartans, who lost to the Gophers in the Big Ten tournament last night. I'm sure many of you will be ODing on college hoops with one eye, while following the Tigers with the other...including me!
8 comments | 0 recs
Tigers vs. Phillies today in Lakeland has been canceled
by allikazoo on Mar 12, 2010 9:00 AM EST
19 comments
It's been raining since yesterday afternoon and it's supposed to keep up all day. :( Forecast for tomorrow is much better, though.
19 comments | 0 recs
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