We had a little bit of Home Run Derby at the ballpark tonight, with the Indians smacking one more long ball than the Tigers, and doing it when it counted most in the 10th inning. I realize Jim Leyland had to go into "extra innings" mode with his bullpen after using Kyle Farnsworth and Fernando Rodney for two scoreless innings, but it didn't inspire much confidence to see Casey Fossum and Gary Glover trotting out there in crunch time.
- Once again, the Tigers single out one opposing player and let him beat them. In their last game before hitting the road, Melvin Mora and Luke Scott couldn't be stopped. Tonight, it was Grady Sizemore, who hit two home runs and seems to have taken the mantle of best centerfielder in the AL Central back from Curtis Granderson.
- After looking as if he'd conquered his recent aches and pains, Carlos Guillen left tonight's game in the sixth inning with a recurrence of back spasms. At what point does shutting him down become a possibility?
- The Tigers continue to squeeze too few runs from all the hits they get. And they got nothing from the heart of the batting order tonight. Magglio Ordonez: 0-for-5. Miguel Cabrera: 1-for-5. Gary Sheffield: 0-for-3. Carlos Guillen/Ryan Raburn: 0-for-4. Five strikeouts out of that bunch, too.
- Besides the game being played in Detroit, the other news of the night came from Toledo, where Dontrelle Willis left his start after just one inning because of forearm tightness.
Are the Tigers capable of winning the first game of a series at home these days? Such an annoying pattern. And now, Cleveland is just a 1/2 game behind Detroit for third place in the division. It's up to a rookie fresh up from the minors to hold the line.