For the want of a hit with RISP, the Tigers lose 2-0
by BigAl on Apr 20, 2010 6:54 AM EDT
in Detroit Tigers Links
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PrintWhat emotions am I feeling at the moment?
Anger. Annoyance. Irritation. Frustration.
If you are fighting off the same feelings, then you must have stayed up into the wee hours to watch the Tigers lose to the Los Angeles California Angels of Anaheim California (or whatever their name is, as you never know from year to year).
Despite the Tigers having base runners all night long and a handful of scoring opportunities, they couldn't get a hit with RISP to save their lives. God forbid they actually get a win for a very solid Dontrelle Willis.
For those of you (myself included) waiting for the implosion of the D-Train, once again, it didn't happen. Willis more than held his own against the Angels, pitching a very nice game...and I didn't have to grade him on a curve!
Willis gave up only 2 runs and 4 hits in 6 innings, which I'll take from the D-Train, or from any 5th starter. The wildness still crops up (2 walks, 1 HBP), but when he's otherwise effective, I think we'll just have to take it as a part of Willis' game. It's who he is at this point of his career.
The one inning Willis truly struggled was in the 3rd. Even though no ball was hit hard, a couple of seeing eye hits, a throwing error, walk and a fielder's choice accounted for the only 2 runs the Angels would get, or need, all night long.
Willis deserved better. Much better. But the Tigers' bats had nothing to give. Not a damn thing.
As their team OBP for this season shows (.369 going into the game), and by the fact 7 different players had base hits tonight, the Tigers have no problem getting themselves on base. Getting those runners around to score however, has been an entirely different story. Sometimes it was bad luck, such as Alex Avila's line shot being turned into an inning ending double play by Angels' starting pitcher Joel Pineiro. Other times it was just a failure to come through with a hit with RISP, which has happened far too often on what's been an ugly 1-3 west coast swing.
It could get even uglier, with 7 more games left on the long road trip.
Despite the sudden disappearance of, for lack of a better word, "clutch" hitting, the Tigers could turn things around fairly quickly on offense. The scoring opportunities have been there in every game of this trip. They just need to capitalize on them occasionally.
Hell, even once would be nice.
Comment of the Night:
The frustration caused by the Tigers' feeble bats with RISP led Baroque to start a discussion about coming up with a "squandering" stat, but it had to have a snappy acronym to get her approval. mrsunshine found his inner saber by inventing...
M.O.B.S.
men on base stranded. also means what the fans do when they get frustrated.
PERFECT! Someone call Bill James, stat!
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I had every intention of watching the middle-of-the-night replay.
I just don’t think I can handle 9 innings of squanderidge. Though watching D-Will not implode…nope…I thought maybe…but no…that will not be enough.
And to top it off, Fernando Rodney gets a 1-2-3 9th for the save.
Talk about adding insult to injury …(but you could see this coming, couldn’t you?).
Like when Joey Harrington QB'd the Dolphins on Thanksgiving
Saw it coming a mile away.
With those who don't give a damn about baseball, I can only sympathize. I do not resent them. I am even willing to concede that many of them are physically clean, good to their mothers and in favor of world peace. But while the game is on, I can't think of anything to say to them. ~ Art Hill
Damn
Must have been good…
President, Vice President and Secretary of the Casey Crosby Fanclub.
Assist. Editor, Minor League Division, Bless You Boys
by David Tokarz on Apr 20, 2010 12:45 PM EDT up reply actions
He had good movement....
….and didnt implode…..Was very impressed
by BennieBladesFan on Apr 20, 2010 12:55 PM EDT up reply actions
Maybe it's me....
But I somehow feel the fortunes of D-Train are inexorably linked with the fortunes of us as a nation. It’s a weird theory, but it’s important somehow.
I really don't know what they could've done differently
It looked like they had a good approach when they had RISP, trying to go up the middle or the other way. It just seemed that all too often the ball was snared by the pitcher on its way up the middle or it just couldn’t find a hole. Even the lone hit with RISP would have gone up the middle, but it got kicked right to the shortstop, which turned it into an infield single that couldn’t score the run.
Misfortune on where the balls were hit played a part.
But the overall futility with RISP the last few outings can, and has, worn on people who vividly remember last year’s problems.
Dontrelle Willis apologist.
I'm tired of this offense...
not going up a giving Dontrelle some run support when he pitches. This makes 2 pretty solid starts out of the 3 he’s had so far this year and nothing to show for it. Rather than be 0-1 he could just as easily be 2-1 if we could score him a couple runs. And from a team perspective, they need to take advantage of these decent starts hes giving them and get the W
it's not like they didn't get any hits at all.
just went right to the fielders..
Director of the 2010 Free Casper Wells campaign
No Run Support
Exactly....
….it wasnt awful….Just couldnt get the big one last night.
by BennieBladesFan on Apr 20, 2010 12:33 PM EDT up reply actions
That isnt an excuse in this instance
I’m not arguing the fact they didn’t bring the bats. I watched the game, I saw them hittin’ the ball on the screws only to be outs. And I know we got hits and baserunners on, but cmon give the guy a little support. They should have been able to manufacture at least 2 runs last night. It’s just frustrating.
It's all a bad dream, isn't it?
Please tell me that these things happening at night while I’m asleep aren’t real.
Delaware Gary
Apparently the issue with Willis' hand was a cracked nail
According to Jason Beck
by SabreRoseTiger on Apr 20, 2010 8:52 AM EDT via mobile reply actions
The most frustrating thing?
we HAD two runs in this game on balls hit up the middle. One by Avila that was somehow nabbed by Pineiro and one that he kicked keeping the ball in the infield.
Plus the Angels score on a bloop double down the line and then a couple of dribbling ground balls. No Justice!
Games like this...
are why the Twins will win the division. Our pitching could post the best numbers in the division by the end of the season but our offense is so bad it won’t matter. I don’t even want to think about how many games we’re going to lose this year when the opposing team only gets 2-3 runs.
Offense...
…was fine…We had 9 hits…Just didnt get the big one tonight…Games like this will happen…Just sucks when you give up 2 runs and lose.
by BennieBladesFan on Apr 20, 2010 12:34 PM EDT up reply actions
+1
With those who don't give a damn about baseball, I can only sympathize. I do not resent them. I am even willing to concede that many of them are physically clean, good to their mothers and in favor of world peace. But while the game is on, I can't think of anything to say to them. ~ Art Hill
Bounce back win tonight
We need to have Kid Rick come out and win tonight for us, and then we just take one of the two remaining games (one of which JV pitches), and we will have a series split. It’s a tough stretch of four pitchers to face, but still very doable. I’m just not holding my breath on the Bondo start tomorrow night.
A lifelong Tigers fan
That picture...
makes me think that Richard Simmons is on the jumbo screen.
My Music: Some Sorta Giant
My Blog: Strike Three Mechanics
I'm pretty tired today
but I’m in CST, so not as tired as some of you. I don’t want to miss Rick’s start so I guess I’ll try to nap after work.
just hope our hits tonight find the holes..
Director of the 2010 Free Casper Wells campaign
No Run Support
F'n Rodney
"When I played pro football, I never set out to hurt anyone deliberately - unless it was, you know, important, like a league game or something." ~ Dick Butkus
by Lester A. Wiltfong Jr. on Apr 20, 2010 10:35 AM EDT reply actions
Time not to panic
If we just had a problem with just last nights game not scoring RISP it would be ok, there are going to be games like these. But, over the last 5 games this has been a problem. Not just with two out but with less then two outs as well. Good teams make thier own breaks, find different ways to score runs. I know this is harder then it really is, but it is a fact. Look how seattle manufactured runs in the last series. D-train is getting more and more confident. Giving up four hits against that LA lineup is awesome. To bad we cant help a brother out when he pitches that good. Looking at it all now, comming home at 500? I’ll take it.
Leyland
First, I am not a Leyland basher. I generally assume he knows more about baseball than I do. Baseball is my religion. My Christian friends base a lot of their beliefs on “faith”…I do the same with Leyland. My one critical observance, however, is that the Leyland era has not been one of stong situational hitting. Perhaps it’s too much to ask for, but I’d like to get a runner on 2nd or 3rd with 0 outs to cross the plate…without a hit…sac fly, sac bunt, productive right side of the IF out…gimme something.
4/19/04: Top of 4th…Miggy leads off with double. I would like him to score. I realize that we would have still lost the game, but we need to get these guys home when they’re on 2nd or 3rd. Heck, I’d like to see them get thrown out trying once and a while…at least that means we’re hitting the ball in the right direction.
Cabrera doubles and is then still there all inning
Not only RISP issues in general, but moving a runner up such as Cabrera last night is pitiful. He doubles and then watches as three outs are made by the ass of the lineup while he falls asleep with the D fans on second base.
Get Leyland out there with the fungo and teach moving the runners up and where to hit the ball with less than two outs and runners in scoring position! This is the big leagues right?
Actually, Cabrera tagged up and got to third base on Inge's fly ball
by SabreRoseTiger on Apr 20, 2010 11:12 AM EDT up reply actions
Apparently the Tigers love getting on base so much these days
That they refuse to ever leave!
by nicolas08 on Apr 20, 2010 11:38 AM EDT reply actions 4 recs
Well
It could be worse, at least they are hitting.
Whoa, whoa, whoa. There's still plenty of meat on that bone. Now you take this home, throw it in a pot, add some broth, a potato. Baby, you've got a stew going.
Glad I decided to go to bed rather than to watch
President, Vice President and Secretary of the Casey Crosby Fanclub.
Assist. Editor, Minor League Division, Bless You Boys
I had to go to bed in the 4th...
…but it bears remembering that Piniero is a ground ball wizard. To some extent, he can pitch to contact knowing that it’s frequently going to turn into an out, and if he gives up some hits, so be it.
Line drives right at fielders is just plain bad luck, though.
I don't want to hear any weak sh*t from Jason Grilli.
NO
President, Vice President and Secretary of the Casey Crosby Fanclub.
Assist. Editor, Minor League Division, Bless You Boys
by David Tokarz on Apr 20, 2010 2:43 PM EDT up reply actions
MAD!!!!
When our pitches pitch good our hitter stink it up….IM ROOTING FOR WILLIS and I thought he was gonna get his WIN!!!!…..I hope they get a win for Porcello….our pitching line up isn’t bad at all I know Bondo had a bad night with Marines even tho he start of good….but had a great game vs the Tribe…and Willis been doing okay our 4th and 5th starters have been doing what they been asked we just need our hitters giving them wins….
I had no idea midnight was the wee hours of the night.
You guys are old. ;)
by okie for michigan on Apr 20, 2010 7:12 PM EDT reply actions
I was shocked
and surprised Maggs caught that ball, I am pretty sure he was too…
Welcome to Detroit, NO sissies allowed
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