So is it worse to see the Tigers lose games they were never really in, as seemed to be the case in Kansas City?  Or is it much more frustrating for Detroit to lose a game they were winning, only to let that victory slip away?

The Tigers looked like they were cruising toward a win against the best team in baseball, as if they had risen to the level of their competition.  They tagged Dan Haren for three runs early in the game, two of which came on a long overdue home run by Miguel Cabrera.  (A homer was long overdue from any Tiger besides Matt Joyce.)  And Jeremy Bonderman hadn't allowed a hit in his first four innings, looking as good as he has all season.

It can all change so fast. 

I'm sure Jim Leyland was right on the edge in deciding whether or not to send Bonderman out for the seventh.  When Bondo didn't have to bat in the top of the inning, Leyland didn't have to worry about pinch-hitting for him.  But it's certainly worth wondering why the Tigers already didn't have someone warming up in the bullpen before Arizona came to bat.  Once Bondo walked Justin Upton to lead off the inning, he really had no choice but to face Chris Snyder because Detroit didn't have anyone else ready. 

And then defense bit this team yet again, kind of like a snake might sneak up and bite a tiger.  Snyder's foul pop-up to the third base side inexplicably fell between a bermuda triangle of Carlos Guillen, Edgar Renteria, and Matt Joyce.  Either Guillen or Renteria looked as if they could easily make the play, but the catch was lost in communication.  Renteria backed off, as if he thought Guillen would make the catch.  But Guillen clearly thought Renteria called him off, as he lowered his hands that were set to make the catch.  (In his postgame comments, however, Leyland said "nobody called it.")

Not only was there no out, but Snyder eventually walked, moving Upton to scoring position.  And score he did, when Zach Miner replaced Bonderman and gave up a single to Eric Byrnes.  That wasn't the game right there, but it definitely sent the roller coaster car plummeting downhill.  And the Tigers haven't often shown the mental toughness to come back from a blow like that.  They went down 1-2-3 in the eighth and ninth innings against the D-Backs' bullpen, and that was the game.

This was a tough loss to take, perhaps even tougher when you see how well the Tigers can play against a great team, only to watch their flaws get the best of them and cost them a much-needed win.

That's it from me for the next two weeks, folks, as I'm off to southeast Asia.  I leave you in the soft, buttery hands of Big Al and Mike McClary, and hope the Tigers give you some better things to talk about and some moments to enjoy while I'm away.

Roll Call

It's too bad the game became such a disappointment, because we had a fun GameThread tonight.  (Of course, it's always more fun when the Tigers are winning.)  I'll have to go back and check the comments, but did Detroit take the lead while I was taking a phone call, only to squander it once I returned?  If so, I accept that responsibility and take my bad juju with me to Malaysia.

Thanks to miggy4mvp, busta (welcome!), ThaWalrus9, rock n rye, MackAveKurt, HavocRox,  Zappatista, tbliggins, Juskimo, pfuhrmeister, and Roar of the Tigers (Samela!) for participating this evening.

Jeremy Bonderman (2-4, 4.80) vs. Dan Haren (4-2, 3.04)

Oh, this looked like it would be such a great series when the 2008 schedule was first released.  And maybe it still will be.  But the Tigers weren't supposed to be shuffling into Arizona with hunched shoulders, avoiding everyone's gaze.  Their record wasn't supposed to be a virtual mirror opposite of the Diamondbacks'.  And Bonderman vs. Haren was supposed to be a clash of pitching titans. 

By the way, are you already sick of hearing "Well, at least Detroit doesn't have to face Brandon Webb in this series"?  I sure am.  Is that how far it's already fallen for the Tigers, when we're happy to avoid an ace pitcher?   Remember when we wanted to see how elite pitchers might fare against this lineup?

Besides, it's not like the Tigers catch a break in facing Dan Haren.  On several other teams, he'd be the staff ace.  And that's pretty much how he's been pitching so far this season.  Haren has allowed more than three runs in just three of his eight starts.  In his last two appearances, he's given up four total runs over 13 innings.  Amazingly, Haren didn't win either of those games.  He also hasn't pitched that well against the Tigers in six career starts, posting a 1-4 record and 5.12 ERA.

Someone else who hasn't been pitching well, in a much broader sense, is Jeremy Bonderman.  He lasted just four innings against the Yankees last Saturday, giving up five runs, six hits, and four walks.  Some blame Bondo's ineptness on an ill-fated attempt to grow a mustache.  I still think he should see how far he can take the 'stache, but if he stinks tonight, there probably needs to be a clubhouse intervention with a shaving kit.

While watching tonight's game, I'll be lamenting not joining The Daily Fungo summit in Arizona this weekend, an unfortunate casualty of my travel plans to Malaysia.  Hopefully, Mike and the rest of Team Fungo share some of their experiences from Chase Field here at BYB.  Given how well Detroit has performed in Interleague Play over the past couple of seasons, maybe they'll be witness to a Tigers resurgence.

AZ Snakepit has your SB Nation opposing view for this three-game interleague series.

Short Hops:

• Joe Sheehan examines whether or not the DH really gives AL teams an advantage at Baseball Prospectus.
• Yahoo! Sports' Jeff Passan has some suggestions to spruce up Interleague Play, and some of them are pretty creative.
• We know at least two Tigers will be in uniform at the All-Star Game.  Jim Leyland has been named as one of Terry Francona's coaches.
• Buster Olney ($$) wonders if the Tigers might have to enter the C.C. Sabathia sweepstakes.

Three weeks before the amateur draft, Baseball America has posted a mock draft of the first round.  With their #21 pick, the BA crew has the Tigers selecting reliever Andrew Cashner, who was the closer for Texas Christian this season.

With one more game remaining in TCU's season before the Mountain West tournament, Cashner has an 8-3 record with eight saves in 26 appearances, and 71 strikeouts in 46 1/3 innings.  (I'm pretty sure I'm reading that right.  Check for yourself.)

• Here's a draft report on Cashner from MILB.com, detailing his pitching repertoire that includes a 97-98 m.p.h fastball and an 87-88 m.p.h. slider.
  
• John Sickels has Cashner ranked seventh among the top college pitchers in the draft.
• And here's what Jonathan Mayo has to say in his latest Draft Report.

I'm not writing a recap of whatever that thing was the Tigers did at Kauffman Stadium today.  Just so you know.  Earlier this evening, I told myself that maybe I should write a recap because a lot of people probably didn't get to see the game while at work.  But here's the thing: I didn't watch much of it either.  Not once I saw the Tigers fall behind  3-0 in the first inning.  And once I saw the final score, I was not about to put myself through that - even if I could whiz through the commercials, DVR-style.

After two games in which Detroit received the sort of starting pitching that should've resulted in two wins, if not for an inexplicable lack of offense, Kenny Rogers just crumbled out there today.  Maybe the weight of having to carry the pitching staff - a burden he's hardly suited for anymore - finally broke him.  Or maybe he figured that he wouldn't get any run support today, anyway, so why not just chuck the ball up there and see what happens?

Seven Royals runs on 11 hits is what happened.  In four innings.  To a Kansas City lineup that had Alex Gordon, Mark Grudzielanek, and David DeJesus on the bench.  But I'm not writing a recap.

So what are we talking about here?  The Detroit Tigers, the team that generated so much hope and excitement for us throughout the winter and spring, are now nine games under .500.  They were seven games under when Tigers fans began pulling their hair, ran into the streets screaming, and contemplated ledges and bridges to jump from.  Some of us suddenly felt major doubt.  Others wondered if it was now horrifyingly apparent that this team had made some major mistakes in player acquisitions.  And the Tigers haven't gotten any better since then.  Record-wise, they're now worse.  Are any of these guys your Tiger right now?

Continue reading this post »

Attacking the local media is usually Big Al 's territory, but I just read something that is so brain-dead that I can't keep quiet about it.  (And since Big Al is filling in here for the next two weeks, maybe this will serve as something of a warm-up for you.)

Eric Pate (formerly of Booth Newspapers, and perhaps still of WDFN - I'm not sure)  "guest blogs" at the Freep, where he posted one of the most nonsensical suggestions I've read this season:

For the record, I’m sure happy that I’m not Dave Dombrowski.  But if I were, the first move would involve moving Gary Sheffield and a combination of a utility player or farmhand for a quality major league starter.  I’ll let the pundits define who that might be, but the starter is essential.

I'm sure Double-D will get right on that, E.

I don't know if I qualify as a "pundit," but please allow me to try and play one right now.  No one is going to be able to define what kind of "quality major league starter" the Tigers would receive in return for Sheffield, because such a player doesn't exist.  There's not a team in Major League Baseball that would make that trade today. 

Sheffield can't throw a baseball right now, and can barely swing a bat every other day.  Who's going to take on a player like that, let alone give up a starter (position player or starting pitcher, Pate doesn't say) for him?  This isn't the NBA, where you can trade for an expiring contract, then use it to clear room on your salary cap.  Oh, by the way, Sheffield's contract runs through next season.

This is exactly the sort of thoughtless hackery that traditional media so often accuses bloggers of spewing.  (I suppose Pate can always say, "Well, it's supposed to be a blog!  I can write whatever comes to mind!"  Yes, but what if it's mindless?)  This is the kind of "idea" that makes sports talk radio hosts hang up the phone.  Yet there it is, right on the Detroit Free Press website. 

Kenny Rogers (3-3, 5.82) vs. Gil Meche (2-5, 6.31)

Can the Tigers salvage a win in Kansas City before heading off to Arizona for interleague play?  (How do you like Detroit's chances in that series, by the way?)  Between today's matinee start time and disgust over the piddling effort the Tigers have put forth in the past two games, I don't know how many people are going to be watching this one.  We welcome all participation in the GameThread, of course, and will try our best to keep those of you at work updated. 

How about just scoring some runs?  With any kind of offense at all, the Tigers likely would've won the last two games.  Gil Meche could give up some runs, having allowed five in his last start versus the Orioles.  He's also served up five runs or more in four of his eight appearances this year.  But Meche could also just as easily shut Detroit out again.  That's what he did against Cleveland two starts ago.

Kenny Rogers has been pitching well lately, and is arguably the Tigers' best starting pitcher right now.  But again, if his lineup can't score any runs for him, it's not going to matter how well he throws today.  Perhaps it's an encouraging sign that the Tigers have averaged seven runs over Rogers' last four starts.  (Of course, they were also shut out in each of his three starts before that, so...) 

Short Hops:

• Both Billfer and Big Al are wondering why Gary Sheffield isn't on the disabled list, now that the Tigers have made it clear his shoulder is too injured to play the outfield.  I think it's terribly clear that if Sheff can't help the team right now, he needs to be shelved for someone who can.  (Free Ryan Raburn!)
  
• For you R.E.M. fans out there, did you know Peter Buck is recording an album of baseball-related songs?  (via Pop Candy)
  

I was ready to begin this recap with a picture depicting rage, because it's infuriating to see this Tigers lineup unable to push a single run across the board.  But since we had something of a Big Lebowski theme going on in tonight's GameThread, we have The Dude.  And he minds.  This will not stand, man.

I don't know how Justin Verlander didn't absolutely erupt in the dugout when he left the game down 2-0, giving up just six hits.  (And the big hit, if you even want to call it that, was a single that Joey Gathright flipped over a drawn-in Carlos Guillen at third base.)  Maybe that's called being a professional.  I think some Gatorade barrels, space heaters, and baseball bats should've been fearing for their lives.

To revise a point I posted before tonight's game , the Detroit Tigers have scored just four runs in Verlander's last four starts.  Four runs.  Total.  No starting pitcher is going to overcome such an utter lack of offense.  It's obscene for Verlander to be dragging along a 1-7 record.  No way is he pitching that badly.  I don't know how his teammates can look him in the eye right now.  At the very least, somebody in the Tigers' clubhouse should be taking him to Arthur Bryant's for some barbecue.  Let him mask the pain with a pulled pork-induced food coma.

And chew on this: This is the sixth time the Tigers have been shut out in 40 games.  Some runs would really tie this team together.  Luke Hochevar is good, but Detroit made him look like an ace tonight.  Four base hits.  All singles.  That's all the Tigers could manage.  The bums will always lose.

Roll Call

Well, despite the result, we had some fun in the comments tonight.  And we have The Big Lebowski to thank for it.  Who do we blame for that, by the way?  rock n rye?  (Apologies to those who hadn't seen the movie and left to wonder what the hell we were talking about.  Hey, you could rent it for Monday's off-day.)

Strong men also cry.  These guys are shedding tears for abysmal baseball tonight: spotstarters, Zappatista, pfuhrmeister, ThaWalrus9, Grant E., HavocRox, rock n rye, Tigsfan, ahtrap, cherub_daemon, Tony K, and bradm.

Justin Verlander (1-6, 6.43) vs. Luke Hochevar (2-2, 4.94)

Will last night's tough loss to the Royals linger with the Tigers in the second game of this series?  It very well could if Detroit scores as few runs for Justin Verlander as they did for Nate Robertson.  And for all the chatter about Verlander's struggles this season, poor run support has been a nagging issue.  The Tigers have scored four runs total in his last three starts.  How many starting pitchers could overcome that?  

If Verlander only gets one or two runs tonight, he should trash a dugout heater like Mark Buehrle did last week in Chicago.  Unless, of course, he wins.  And he's pitched very well at Kauffman Stadium.

Luke Hochevar has had his own issues with run support, as the Royals have scored just one run in each of his losses this year.  He wasn't great in his last start, however, giving up four runs in seven innings versus the Orioles.  But in his two prior appearances, Hochevar gave up just three runs over 12 innings, looking like the type of pitcher who Kansas City selected first overall in the 2006 draft.  According to our friend Sam Mellinger, Hochevar is also really good at Rock Band.

No Gary Sheffield in left field tonight, and Jason Beck reports that Jim Leyland won't be playing Sheff out there as much because of that bad shoulder.  Geez, that move didn't last very long, did it?  But Matt Joyce has been playing some good defense out there, and that's where he'll be this evening.

The many different ways in which the Detroit Tigers continue to lose games has become terribly vexing.  Tonight, it looked to be working in the road team's favor, as the Tigers got to Zack Greinke early and made him throw enough pitches (100) that he had to leave after six innings.  Meanwhile, Nate Robertson gave up 10 hits in seven innings, but only allowed two runs, making this his best start of the season.

And any night in which Billy Butler, normally a sweet-swinging Tiger Killer, goes 0-for-3 has to be considered a success for the Detroit pitching staff. 

So how did they lose this game?

For one thing, the Tigers didn't capitalize when Greinke gave the ball to his bullpen.  Ramon Ramirez, Leo Nunez, and Joakim Soria didn't allow a hit, let alone a run, in the remaining three innings of the game.  The only scoring threat Detroit posed was when Ramirez threw consecutive walks to Miguel Cabrera and Gary Sheffield, putting a runner on second base.  But neither Matt Joyce nor Edgar Renteria could bring the runner home.

And since I just mentioned him, let's talk about Renteria because he made the bonehead play that ultimately gave the game to the Royals.  In the bottom of the eighth, Mark Teahen hit a ball up the middle that looked like a base hit, but Renteria made a great play in snagging it behind second base to prevent a run from scoring.  Unfortunately, the Tigers' shortstop then did the baseball equivalent of going for a 360-degree dunk in a tied ballgame when a simple lay-up would've given his team the lead. 

Renteria tried to get a force out at second by attempting a no-look, backhand flip to Placido Polanco, who not only wasn't expecting a throw, but was also moving in the opposite direction.  The ball dribbled back toward the pitching mound, allowing Esteban German to score the go-ahead run. 

The Tigers literally threw a game - one they had every chance of winning - away.  Just when you think this team has lost in every conceivable manner, they invent frustratingly, painfully new.  (By the way, Curtis Granderson ended the night with another 0-for-5.  He's gone 1-for-21 over his last five games.)  And once again, they're seven games under .500, which was supposed to be rock bottom.

Nate Robertson (1-4, 6.64) vs. Zack Greinke (4-1, 1.80)

Two teams will enter, one team will leave.  Last place in the AL Central, that is.  The Kansas City Royals are currently a 1/2-game ahead of the Tigers for fourth place, having lost six of their last 10 games.  Of course, Detroit has lost seven of its last 10, so we're not talking about two teams gathering momentum here. 

This would be an excellent opportunity for the Tigers to exact some revenge for getting swept by the Royals in the opening series of the season.  To wreak vengeance, however, they'll have to go through KC's best starting pitcher.  Zack Greinke leads the Royals in ERA, strikeouts, and shares the team lead in wins with Brian Bannister.  Against the Tigers in his first start of the year, he was brilliant, allowing just one run and six hits over seven innings.

As I said on Sunday, when Nate Robertson was originally scheduled to start, the Tigers will probably have to score at least five runs tonight, because we know ol' Nate is likely to give up four.  He's allowed four runs or more in each of his seven starts this season.  But maybe getting to pitch in front of family and friends in Kauffman Stadium will provide a little more inspiration against a Royals lineup that hits Robertson quite well.  Here's hoping.

Royals Review has your SB Nation opposing view for this three-game series.

Short Hops:

• Our buddy Sam Mellinger interviewed the Freep's Jon Paul Morosi at Ball Star today.  I wonder if Sam thought about me at all during the chat?  Do you think he likes me better?  I thought about Sam the whole time I exchanged e-mails with Joe Posnanski.  At least that's what I told him.
• Sam also wrote a post about Five Guys, which I enjoyed because I finally got to try one of their burgers a few weeks ago in Charleston.  They need to open a franchise in Michigan ASAP.
• As expected, the Tigers couldn't find a trade partner for Jacque Jones, and filed for his unconditional release today.  Jones will become a free agent on Thursday, and has made it known that he'd like to sign with the Florida Marlins.