Tigers sweep A's, move into first-place tie: Detroit 5, Oakland 2

place, that is!

Let’s kick butt.

Really…the 90’s and early oughts were not so fun.

because I’m liking this Jeremy Bonderman guy.

and the twins continue to get curb stomped by them, should really help our cause for the season

Well, at least that’s what I learned from Rickey Bobby.

it says Alex Avila had 2 hits.

Just saying.

Scherzer was outstanding in Toledo tonight! 8 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 10 K, 0 ER!!!

Who he takes the place when he comes back (which I imagine should be somewhat soon), likely depends on how Willis and Galarraga pitch until he’s ready. I think it’s a toss-up between those two, at this point. If Willis wants to stick around with this team, he’s gonna need a solid outing on Friday night in LA. He’s been slightly better on the road (opp. BA is .239 vs. .293 on the road), but with guys like Manny and Matt Kemp in the lineup, I fear the walks will rear their ugly head again.

considering he’s a lefty.

But not having Ethier out there at definitely helps our chances. On top of the fact that he was batting .392, he has a major penchant for walk-off hits at Dodger Stadium.

after his previous outing(s). Nice win. First place feels good. I like it.

I forgot to say that before…

Sorry Kurt, I disagree with you. If you play really bad baseball for two months you can be so far down in the cellar that you cant even see the 1st step up to the top. Then it snowballs from there. Yes you can lose the division from now to July. So, being we are at the 1/4 turn style I’d like to give out a few grades as the newsbeat writer do. So here we go. GM-Puting this team together. B. (keeping Poly would’ve been an A.).
Coaching: B- Coaching staff has done a very good job, however defense or lack there of at times brings grade down. Starting Pitching: C. Its a C because it has improved the last 10 days, but needs to get better if we are going to be a contender and not a pretender. Bullpen: A+ – Our bullpen has been stellar so far this season, a big reason we are tied for first this morning. Offense: B-. They are fun to watch and it seems there is a different star every series lifting the team be it a vet or a rook. However, still need to get runners home fm 3rd with less than two outs. This will haunt them if not improved. Defense: C-. Its going to be less with rooks in the lineup, but on some occasions the tigs have played some sloppy baseball. Catching: C+. Game calling and defense is adequuate, but need more production at the plate for this postion. Rookies/Team Chemistry. A+. The Vets helping/welcoming the rookies and the rooks producing and how they are being used has been very very good. No, Im not trying to sound like Lyn Henning here, dont get me wrong I love our team. But, if we want to take all the banana’s and play with Yankees and Phillies in Oct. These are the things we need to work on. But, despite it all, we ARE in first place right now. And, if we learned anything from last year, we will keep it.

but so long as we’re in striking distance come August I’ll be OK with either first or second. You can win the division in the first quarter of the season – the Tigers did that in ’84, but you really need to have a tremendous team to do it. You can definitely lose the division in the first quarter of the season.

Our starting pitching seems to be coming around nicely, and if we can maintain bullpen production and continue to get quality starts from Verlander, Bondo and and Kid Rick I think we’ll find enough from the bottom of the rotation to remain in contention. We certainly have no concerns with the bullpen right now.

It’s great that we beat up on the big bad AL East but I would like to see us start beating up on the Black Sox and Twinkies before I call us clear favorites to win the Central. The big question offensively is whether the rookies can maintain their production or whether opposing pitchers will start to figure these guys out. Hopefully if that happens, our catchers (and 3rd baseman) will figure things out at the plate and start hitting at a reasonable pace.

Actually, as long as I’m wishing for things, I wish our rooks to keep hitting at their current levels and our currently slumping bottom of the order will start hitting a bit. Plus Cabrera keep doing what he’s doing. And our pitching become dominant. And our defense improve. And Guillen come back and stay healthy and productive for the rest of the season. That should just about cover it. All in all it’s been a fun season so far and this is a fun team to follow.