Bless You Boys: All Posts by Allison Hagen

Game 41: Tigers at Rangers, 8:05 p.m.

2013-05-18T23:30:04Z

Current Series

Rangers lead the series 1-0

Thu 05/16	WP: Yu Darvish (7 - 1) LP: Justin Verlander (4 - 4)	4 - 10 loss
Fri 05/17	WP: Rick Porcello (2 - 2) SV: Jose Valverde LP: Nick Tepesch (3 - 4)	Mid-event
Detroit Tigers Bless You Boys @ Texas Rangers Lone Star Ball Saturday, May 18, 2013, 8:05 PM EDT Rangers Ballpark in Arlington Anibal Sanchez vs Justin Grimm Partly cloudy. Winds blowing in from center field at 15-20 m.p.h. Game time temperature around 90. Complete Coverage >
Sun 05/19		8:05 PM EDT

Current Series

Rangers lead the series 1-0

Thu 05/16	WP: Yu Darvish (7 - 1) LP: Justin Verlander (4 - 4)	4 - 10 loss
Fri 05/17	WP: Rick Porcello (2 - 2) SV: Jose Valverde LP: Nick Tepesch (3 - 4)	Mid-event
Detroit Tigers Bless You Boys @ Texas Rangers Lone Star Ball Saturday, May 18, 2013, 8:05 PM EDT Rangers Ballpark in Arlington Anibal Sanchez vs Justin Grimm Partly cloudy. Winds blowing in from center field at 15-20 m.p.h. Game time temperature around 90. Complete Coverage >
Sun 05/19		8:05 PM EDT

TIGERS:

P: Anibal Sanchez

RANGERS:

P: Justin Grimm

Game 40: Tigers at Rangers, 8:05 p.m.

2013-05-17T23:32:46Z

Current Series

Tigers lead the series 1-0

Mon 05/13		7 - 2 win
Houston Astros The Crawfish Boxes @ Detroit Tigers Bless You Boys Tuesday, May 14, 2013, 7:08 PM EDT Comerica Park Game 39 Overflow: Tigers at Rangers posted by Rob Rogacki about 13 hours ago 229 comments \| 0 recs Game 39: Tigers at Rangers, 8:05 p.m. posted by Allison Hagen about 16 hours ago 537 comments \| 0 recs Game thread 38: Astros at Tigers, 1 p.m. posted by Kurt Mensching 2 days ago 163 comments \| 0 recs Complete Coverage >
Wed 05/15		1:08 PM EDT

Tigers lineup: Dirks 7, Hunter 9, Cabrera 5, Fielder 3, Martinez DH, Avila 2, Peralta 6, Kelly 8, Santiago 4

Rangers lineup: Andrus SS, Garcia 2B, Berkman DH, Beltre 3B, Cruz RF, Moreland 1B, Soto C, Murphy LF, Martin CF

Current Series

Tigers lead the series 1-0

Mon 05/13		7 - 2 win
Houston Astros The Crawfish Boxes @ Detroit Tigers Bless You Boys Tuesday, May 14, 2013, 7:08 PM EDT Comerica Park Game 39 Overflow: Tigers at Rangers posted by Rob Rogacki about 13 hours ago 229 comments \| 0 recs Game 39: Tigers at Rangers, 8:05 p.m. posted by Allison Hagen about 16 hours ago 537 comments \| 0 recs Game thread 38: Astros at Tigers, 1 p.m. posted by Kurt Mensching 2 days ago 163 comments \| 0 recs Complete Coverage >
Wed 05/15		1:08 PM EDT

Tigers lineup: Dirks 7, Hunter 9, Cabrera 5, Fielder 3, Martinez DH, Avila 2, Peralta 6, Kelly 8, Santiago 4

Rangers lineup: Andrus SS, Garcia 2B, Berkman DH, Beltre 3B, Cruz RF, Moreland 1B, Soto C, Murphy LF, Martin CF

Game 40: Tigers at Rangers

2013-05-17T15:48:34Z

The Tigers will need another strong outing from Rick Porcello to keep Texas' hot offense at bay and even the series. Rookie Nick Tepesch will start for the Rangers.

Detroit Tigers (22-17) at Texas Rangers (27-14)

Time/Place: 8:05 p.m., Rangers Ballpark in Arlington

SB Nation blog: Lone Star Ball

Media: Fox Sports Detroit, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network

Pitching Matchup: RHP Rick Porcello (1-2, 6.68 ERA) vs. RHP Nick Tepesch (3-3, 4.03 ERA)

Tepesch was one of the names thrown around with the Porcello trade rumors prior to the season, and for good reason. Tepesch got off to a great start, going 2-1 with a 2.53 ERA in four starts in April. He hit a bit of a rough patch at the start of May, allowing five earned runs in consecutive starts against the White Sox and Cubs. He rebounded in his last start against the Houston Astros, allowing one run in six innings. Overall, he is walking just 2.37 batters per nine innings this year, but seven of his 10 walks on the season have come in his last three starts.

He also has 30 strikeouts in 38 innings, which seems to be on par with his pitching repertoire. He relies primarily on a mix of fastballs, including a two-seamer averaging 90 miles per hour and a cutter that sits in the mid 80s. He also throws a curveball that sits in the high 70s and a changeup in the low to mid 80s. Of his five pitches, his curveball and cutter are his out pitches. Opposing hitters are whiffing about 13% of the time on both pitches, which have combined to rank 3.9 runs above average according to PitchFX.

What a difference a few starts can make. After his meltdown in Los Angeles, Porcello has allowed eight earned runs in 19 1/3 innings while striking out 18 hitters compared to four walks. He has improved his season-long strikeout rate to 5.85 batters per nine innings, the highest rate of his career. The big difference? Opposing hitters can't touch his changeup compared to previous seasons. In previous years, hitters have swung and missed at the change 12% of the time. This year? He's approaching 20%, and hitters are offering at the pitch more often. This could be small sample noise, but it could also be improved arm action in the mechanical adjustments he made during the offseason and after his L.A. debacle. The curveball has looked good in his past couple starts, but the changeup might be the out pitch we have clamoring for from Kid Rick.

For whenever Craig Gentry starts in center field in this series

I don't know why this was on my computer, but it was. Gentry's glove is legit.

Outlook

I mean, it can't get any worse than last night, right? Porcello has strung together three consecutive solid outings and has the second best ERA in the rotation in the month of May. He hasn't been too bad in Texas throughout his career given how good their lineup has been over the past few years, and put together an excellent start against the Rangers last June to pick up a victory. He will need to be on his game again tonight, especially with a depleted bullpen behind him. The offense can help out by giving him an early lead to work with. However, I think they will struggle with Tepesch (at least early on) since they have never seen him before.

Prediction

Tepesch puts together a solid outing and the Texas offensive machine keeps on rolling.

Game 39: Tigers at Rangers, 8:05 p.m.

2013-05-17T00:20:10Z

Current Series

Tigers lead the series 1-0

Mon 05/13		7 - 2 win
Houston Astros The Crawfish Boxes @ Detroit Tigers Bless You Boys Tuesday, May 14, 2013, 7:08 PM EDT Comerica Park Game thread 38: Astros at Tigers, 1 p.m. posted by Kurt Mensching about 23 hours ago 163 comments \| 0 recs Game 37 Preview: Astros at Tigers posted by Rob Rogacki 2 days ago 134 comments \| 0 recs Complete Coverage >
Wed 05/15		1:08 PM EDT

Tigers lineup: Dirks 7, Hunter 9, Cabrera 5, Fielder 3, Martinez DH, Avila 2, Peralta 6, Kelly 8, Infante 4

Rangers lineup: Kinsler 2b, Andrus ss, Berkman dh, Beltre 3b, Cruz rf, Moreland 1b, Soto c, Murphy lf, Martin cf

Current Series

Tigers lead the series 1-0

Mon 05/13		7 - 2 win
Houston Astros The Crawfish Boxes @ Detroit Tigers Bless You Boys Tuesday, May 14, 2013, 7:08 PM EDT Comerica Park Game thread 38: Astros at Tigers, 1 p.m. posted by Kurt Mensching about 23 hours ago 163 comments \| 0 recs Game 37 Preview: Astros at Tigers posted by Rob Rogacki 2 days ago 134 comments \| 0 recs Complete Coverage >
Wed 05/15		1:08 PM EDT

Tigers lineup: Dirks 7, Hunter 9, Cabrera 5, Fielder 3, Martinez DH, Avila 2, Peralta 6, Kelly 8, Infante 4

Rangers lineup: Kinsler 2b, Andrus ss, Berkman dh, Beltre 3b, Cruz rf, Moreland 1b, Soto c, Murphy lf, Martin cf

Game 39: Tigers at Rangers

2013-05-16T13:58:32Z

The next "Pitching Matchup of the Year" is here! Justin Verlander and Yu Darvish take the mound in Arlington as the Tigers face the Texas Rangers.

Detroit Tigers (22-16) at Texas Rangers (26-14)

Time/Place: 8:05 p.m., Rangers Ballpark in Arlington

SB Nation blog: Lone Star Ball

Media: Fox Sports Detroit, MLB Network, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network

Pitching Matchup: RHP Justin Verlander (4-3, 1.93 ERA) vs. RHP Yu Darvish (6-1, 2.73 ERA)

Thanks to the wonders of technology, I could just post this GIF of Darvish and call it good. It's definitely going in place of the part where I describe a pitcher's arsenal, because look at it.

However, I don't think that tells the whole story. Darvish has been very, very good to start the season, but he hasn't exactly faced a murderer's row of opponents to start the year. Seven of his eight starts have been against teams -- the Angels, Astros, Mariners, and White Sox -- in the bottom third of the American League in just about every major statistical category. I'm not saying he has just fattened up on the bottom feeders of the AL -- striking out 14 against the Boston Red Sox is no small feat -- but it does tarnish this "best pitcher evarrr" piece a bit.'

Other than that, there's not much to say about him that doesn't involve effusive praise. He is striking out 13.67 batters per nine innings, a number so high I can't even think of a ridiculous adjective to put in front of it. He has cut down his walk rate considerably, but still loses more hitters than your prototypical ace. He is stranding more runners, which tends to happen when you have a strikeout rate higher than Brayan Villarreal's ERA (sorry Erin). He is allowing a line drive rate of just 13.5% and a BABIP of .253, and I'm having a hard time seeing much regression when my eyes keep drifting back up to that GIF. If the Tigers are going to get to Darvish, it will have to be via a patient approach, working counts to get runners on base. Actually driving those runners in would also be helpful.

Verlander, on the other hand, wasn't very good in his last start. He didn't have a fastball of any sort, which is kind of a problem who built most of his reputation (to national media types, at least) on the 100 mile per hour heat. He is still sitting at a lower velocity than in previous seasons, but started to ramp things up a bit in his last start when the command wasn't there. Is this part of the reason why we got 2009 Justin Verlander for a few innings? Possibly. I can't imagine him not having the fastball command for a second consecutive start, though. He should be fine tonight.

Closest Taco Bell to Rangers Ballpark: 1.4 miles

View Larger Map

Long (star) ball

It seems like every time the Tigers go to Texas, the Rangers have the best record in the American League and have won like 9 of their last 12 games... which happens to be the case once again. Their pitching has been better than expected, ranking second in the majors in fWAR (the Tigers are first by a mile). Derek Holland and Alexi Ogando have been better than expected, while Nick Tepesch and Justin Grimm have held their own as placeholders for guys on the disabled list. Their offense ranks second in the AL in slugging percentage and first in home runs, but they are only seventh in the league in runs scored. If the Tigers' pitching staff can continue to limit the long ball, the Rangers may have trouble stringing runs together.

Outlook

Often, big pitching matchups like this get overhyped and one guy goes out and allows four runs in the first inning. I mean, the last time the Tigers were in a marquee pitching matchup like this they... ok, bad example.

For those too lazy to click the link in the previous sentence, the Tigers watched Max Scherzer go toe-to-toe with Felix Hernandez for eight innings earlier this season. Given how well both Darvish and Verlander have been pitching this year -- and no disrespect to King Felix -- this one might be better. I think the Rangers have been a little too reliant on the home run ball this season without Josh Hamilton in the lineup, and Verlander has been better than ever about keeping opposing hitters in the park. Darvish worked the Tigers in each of his three starts against them last season, but they did a good job of working his pitch count. I think they break through tonight.

Prediction

Verlander outlasts Darvish, allowing one run through seven innings for his fifth win.

Game 37: Astros at Tigers, 7:08 p.m.

2013-05-14T22:32:51Z

Current Series

Tigers lead the series 1-0

Mon 05/13	WP: Anibal Sanchez (4 - 3) LP: Bud Norris (4 - 4)	7 - 2 win
Houston Astros The Crawfish Boxes @ Detroit Tigers Bless You Boys Tuesday, May 14, 2013, 7:08 PM EDT Comerica Park Lucas Harrell vs Doug Fister Mostly cloudy,rain. Winds blowing out to right field at 5-10 m.p.h. Game time temperature around 60. Complete Coverage >
Wed 05/15		1:08 PM EDT

Tigers lineup: Dirks 7, Hunter 9, Cabrera 5, Fielder 3, Martinez DH, Avila 2, Infante 4, Kelly 8, Santiago 6.

Astros lineup:

Current Series

Tigers lead the series 1-0

Mon 05/13	WP: Anibal Sanchez (4 - 3) LP: Bud Norris (4 - 4)	7 - 2 win
Houston Astros The Crawfish Boxes @ Detroit Tigers Bless You Boys Tuesday, May 14, 2013, 7:08 PM EDT Comerica Park Lucas Harrell vs Doug Fister Mostly cloudy,rain. Winds blowing out to right field at 5-10 m.p.h. Game time temperature around 60. Complete Coverage >
Wed 05/15		1:08 PM EDT

Tigers lineup: Dirks 7, Hunter 9, Cabrera 5, Fielder 3, Martinez DH, Avila 2, Infante 4, Kelly 8, Santiago 6.

Astros lineup:

Game 37: Astros at Tigers

2013-05-14T16:46:17Z

Doug Fister takes the mound tonight looking to give the Tigers their sixth consecutive victory over the Houston Astros this season. Lucas Harrell will pitch for the 'Stros,

Houston Astros (10-29) at Detroit Tigers (21-15)

Time/Place: 7:08 p.m., Comerica Park

SB Nation blog: Crawfish Boxes

Media: Fox Sports Detroit, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network

Pitching Matchup: RHP Lucas Harrell (3-3, 4.67 ERA) vs. RHP Doug Fister (4-1, 3.14 ERA)

The Tigers tagged Harrell with his worst outing of the season back on May 4th, scoring eight runs on 10 hits and four walks in just 4 1/3 innings. They took an aggressive approach against Harrell, who primarily throws fastballs early in the count, and it paid off in a big way. He improved somewhat in his last start, allowing just two runs in five innings to the Los Angeles Angels, but he also issued six walks. He had no fastball command whatsoever, which leads to strikezone maps like this.

via www.brooksbaseball.net

The walks are nothing new for Harrell, who issued 3.62 free passes per nine innings in 193 2/3 innings last season. Even then, he has learned to work around the poor command, something that his extreme ground ball tendencies allow him to do well. The Astros have turned 10 double plays behind him this year, tied for the most in the American League. As a team, they lead the major leagues with 126 double plays turned. While this is partially a function of how many baserunners their pitching staff allows, it also speaks to the type of team they seem to be building. If Harrell can keep the ball down in the strike zone with runners on base, he may be able to wiggle out of trouble enough to limit any damage that the Tigers offense can do.

When reviewing Fister's start against the Washington Nationals, I expected to see a lot of pitches left out over the plate, especially to right-handed hitters. Instead, I found that they were hitting pitches well outside the strike zone.

via www.brooksbaseball.net

Even if the Nationals were getting a bit lucky, Fister was missing up in the strike zone with his fastball. He settled down in the third inning to retire the Nats in short order, and probably would have continued pitching if the Tigers weren't playing in a National League park. Either way, five runs on eight hits isn't pretty, and Fister will look to improve on that tonight. Expect him to get back to challenging hitters inside more often -- it looked like he tried to work away too often against Washington -- even if it means a couple more hit batters in the process.

Will Jose Altuve play tonight?

No. The temporomandibular joint (TMJ, a.k.a. your jaw) is a pretty stable joint, so it takes a lot of force to jar it loose. Altuve is fortunate that it only subluxed (partially dislocated) instead of a full-on dislocation. He may see time on the disabled list, especially if he has any concussive symptoms to go along with the jaw issue. I would be shocked to see him again in this series.

Outlook

It's extremely tough to win six consecutive games against an opponent in any sport, let alone one like baseball where you see the same team three or four days in a row. The Tigers' ability to take care of business against the Astros has been impressive so far, especially given that three of their five games have been against pitchers in Harrell and Norris that would be starters on just about any big league roster. Fister's relative struggles in his past couple outings -- he has allowed 17 hits and eight runs (six earned) in his last nine innings -- are concerning, especially since the Astros saw him 11 days ago. If he can continue to work through the mechanical troubles he has reportedly been having, the Tigers should be in good shape.

Prediction

The Tigers win their second straight game, this time in a nailbiter.

Game 36: Astros at Tigers, 7:08 p.m.

2013-05-13T22:30:06Z

Current Series

3 game series vs Astros @ Comerica Park

Houston Astros The Crawfish Boxes @ Detroit Tigers Bless You Boys Monday, May 13, 2013, 7:08 PM EDT Comerica Park Bud Norris vs Anibal Sanchez Cloudy. Winds blowing out to left field at 5-10 m.p.h. Game time temperature around 55. Game 36 Preview: Astros at Tigers posted by Rob Rogacki about 5 hours ago 52 comments \| 0 recs Complete Coverage >
Tue 05/14		7:08 PM EDT
Wed 05/15		1:08 PM EDT

Tigers lineup: Dirks LF Hunter RF Cabrera 3B Fielder 1B Martinez DH Avila C Peralta SS Kelly CF Infante 2B

Astros lineup: Grossman CF Paredes RF Altuve 2B Castro C Carter 1B Pena DH Martinez LF Dominguez 3B Gonzalez SS

Current Series

3 game series vs Astros @ Comerica Park

Houston Astros The Crawfish Boxes @ Detroit Tigers Bless You Boys Monday, May 13, 2013, 7:08 PM EDT Comerica Park Bud Norris vs Anibal Sanchez Cloudy. Winds blowing out to left field at 5-10 m.p.h. Game time temperature around 55. Game 36 Preview: Astros at Tigers posted by Rob Rogacki about 5 hours ago 52 comments \| 0 recs Complete Coverage >
Tue 05/14		7:08 PM EDT
Wed 05/15		1:08 PM EDT

Tigers lineup: Dirks LF Hunter RF Cabrera 3B Fielder 1B Martinez DH Avila C Peralta SS Kelly CF Infante 2B

Astros lineup: Grossman CF Paredes RF Altuve 2B Castro C Carter 1B Pena DH Martinez LF Dominguez 3B Gonzalez SS