Bless You Boys - Game 114 Preview: Tigers at Blue JaysA detailed list of nope about the Detroit Tigershttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/47585/default.png2014-08-09T19:15:02-04:00http://www.blessyouboys.com/rss/stream/57500982014-08-09T19:15:02-04:002014-08-09T19:15:02-04:00Joe Blows: Nathan worse at PR than pitching
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<figcaption>Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>It's one thing to struggle with performance. It's another thing to alienate your fans.</p> <p>Detroit is a baseball town. Has been for a long, long time. Even in their worst season (2003), the Tigers at Comerica Park still managed to record an average attendance 50 percent of capacity. (For reference, the Indians only posted 50 percent attendance last year, and they actually made it to the postseason.)</p>
<p><span>This is a double-edged sword. On the plus side, it means that players like David Price can join the team mid-season and be blown away by how much fan support is already built in. On the other side of the coin, it means that when players regularly soil their pants, this fanbase that takes its baseball so seriously it absolutely is going to let that player know just how unimpressed they are.</span></p>
<p><span>Prince Fielder made a major misstep last year when he followed up a dismal postseason performance by shrugging off the feelings and emotions of the Tigers fan base. "It isn't really tough, man, for me [to move on] ... it's over, bro," said Fielder, before the postseason tears on the fans' cheeks were even dry. And then, to add insult to injury, when it was pointed out that the fans might not take kindly to his easy-come-easy-go attitude, Fielder drove in the final nail: "They don't play."</span></p>
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<p><span>Joe Nathan blew his sixth save of the season on Saturday, right on the heels of nearly blowing a save just the night before. He had already set much of the fanbase on edge earlier in the season, when his comments immediately following a blown save seemed like he was blaming other players for his failure on the mound. His comments after Saturday's meltdown combined more (perceived) finger-pointing with a very Fielder-esque critique of the fanbase.</span></p>
<p><span>On Miggy's role in the blown save, Nathan said: "I just put myself in a tough spot where Miggy has to play ... he's covering the runner at first ... if he doesn't have to cover first, I get a ground ball right to him and we got a chance."</span></p>
<p><span>On Ausmus' decision to intentionally walk Bautista, Nathan opined: "[W]e end up walking Bautista and so I'm in a spot where you have to be a little more fine, can't just 'let's just throw strikes,' not that easy."</span></p>
<p><span>To some, that may sound like blame-shifting. To others, it may sound like a realistic explanation of how Nathan perceived his situation. It's neither here nor there, perhaps, but that's not where the comments stopped.</span></p>
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<p><span>On the fans, Nathan had this to say: "This is not going to ruin my day. It's not going to do anything like that. I'm going to still go get some dinner, go to sleep, wake up and do it again ... I know the fans sometimes make it seem like if we're not perfect as bullpen guys, we're not doing our job. ... It's not that easy, and we're not robots. And I'm not going to go home and hang my head because of one game."</span></p>
<p><span>Is Nathan right? Yes, in a sense. It's one game, players aren't robots, no sense lighting everything on fire after a blown save in August.</span></p>
<p><span>Is Nathan dead wrong? Yes, in even more senses. It's not just one game, it's his sixth such game, at least officially and as far as the save stat column will allow. In reality, he's had several more games where he nearly blew the lead and came within 90 to 180 baserunning feet of handing the Tigers another loss.</span></p>
<p><span>But more importantly, Nathan took a page out of Prince's playbook and suggested that the fans just don't get it. "They don't play," was Prince's version. Nathan's? "The fans make it seem like if we're not perfect, we're not doing our job."</span></p>
<p><span>It doesn't matter if those statements are true or not. It matters if they were appropriate, given the context.</span></p>
<p><span>Phil Coke was terrible for almost the entirety of last season, and got himself booed off the mound multiple times. His comments after one of those games? "They are frustrated with me, I'm just as frustrated with myself ... I feel like I'm not contributing in a positive way and that's a tough pill for me to swallow."</span></p>
<p>Justin Verlander has also struggled this year, and Tigers fans finally booed <i>him</i> off the mound earlier this season. His comments? "Fans are frustrated, and so am I ... They have a right to boo if they're frustrated ... If I was in the stands, I’d probably boo myself."</p>
<p><span>And let's not forget the way Jim Leyland handled last year's ALCS loss, by addressing the disappointment of the fans in a positive way: "This one hurts bad because I thought we let it get away ... I'm very sorry we didn't get it done for you."</span></p>
<p><span>Pay attention, Joe. This is how you deal with a disappointed and (rightfully?) frustrated fanbase. You show some humility. You acknowledge that you haven't lived up to expectations (your own, or those of others). You apologize. You empathize.</span></p>
<p><span>What you do not do, if you want to ever hear another cheer from the stands in Detroit, is imply that these die-hard baseball fans are ignorant and just don't get it. You don't imply that you are superior to the fans because of your insider knowledge and status.</span></p>
<p><span>Joe Nathan may actually improve his mechanics and stats before the year is over. But he may have just burned his last bridge with the fans.</span></p>
<p><i>(Edited Nathan's quote)</i></p>
<p><i>(Special thanks to Catherine Slonksnis for Nathan's post-game quote transcriptions.)</i></p>
https://www.blessyouboys.com/2014/8/9/5986829/joe-nathan-irritated-fans-prince-fielder-postgame-commentsHookSlide2014-08-09T16:01:37-04:002014-08-09T16:01:37-04:00Game 114 Thread of Shame
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<p>She's baaaaaaaack!</p>
https://www.blessyouboys.com/2014/8/9/5986465/game-114-thread-of-shameNCDee2014-08-09T08:00:06-04:002014-08-09T08:00:06-04:00Game 114 Preview: Tigers at Blue Jays
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<figcaption>Bob Levey</figcaption>
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<p>Max Scherzer goes for his 14th victory in Toronto against the Jays' rookie right-hander, Marcus Stroman.</p> <h4>
<a href="https://www.blessyouboys.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Detroit Tigers</a> (63-50) at <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bluebirdbanter.com/">Toronto Blue Jays</a> (61-56)</h4>
<p><b>Time/Place:</b> 1:07 p.m., Rogers Centre</p>
<p><b>SB Nation blog:</b> <a href="http://www.bluebirdbanter.com/">Bluebird Banter</a></p>
<p><b>Media:</b> Fox Sports Detroit, <a target="_blank" href="http://mlb.mlb.com/mediacenter/index.jsp?c_id=mlb&affiliateId=mlbMENU#date=8/6/2014">MLB.TV</a>, <a target="_blank" href="http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/det/schedule/radioaffiliates.jsp">Tigers Radio Network</a></p>
<p><b>Pitching Matchup:</b> <span>Max Scherzer</span>, RHP (13- 4, 3.24 ERA) vs. <span>Marcus Stroman</span>, RHP (7- 3, 3.49 ERA)</p>
<table border="0">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><b>Pitcher</b></td>
<td><b>GS</b></td>
<td><b>IP</b></td>
<td><b>K/9</b></td>
<td><b>BB/9</b></td>
<td><b>HR/9</b></td>
<td><b>WHIP</b></td>
<td><b>FIP</b></td>
<td><b>SIERA</b></td>
<td><b>fWAR</b></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Scherzer<br>
</td>
<td>23<br>
</td>
<td>153.0<br>
</td>
<td>10.06<br>
</td>
<td>2.59<br>
</td>
<td>0.82<br>
</td>
<td>1.20<br>
</td>
<td>3.01<br>
</td>
<td>3.07<br>
</td>
<td>3.7<br>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Stroman<br>
</td>
<td>12<br>
</td>
<td>77.1<br>
</td>
<td>7.91<br>
</td>
<td>2.09<br>
</td>
<td>0.58<br>
</td>
<td>1.16<br>
</td>
<td>2.99<br>
</td>
<td>2.35<br>
</td>
<td>2.0<br>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
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<p>Marcus Stroman made his major league debut for the Blue Jays in May of this year, making five appearances out of the bullpen. He was then moved into the starting rotation on May 31. He has not disappointed, allowing three runs or less in ten of his twelve starts, keeping teams scoreless three times.</p>
<p>The 23 year old rookie right- hander was the first baseball player out of Duke University to be drafted in the first round. He stands just five foot, nine inches tall, which is very small for a pitcher, and features a five pitch repertoire that includes a mid 90's fastball and a slider that he likes to throw with two strikes. He has good stuff, according to this scouting report from <a href="http://www.baseballamerica.com/majors/what-to-expect-blue-jays-rhp-marcus-stroman/">Baseball America. </a></p>
<p>Stroman doesn't walk many batters, and he keeps the ball in the yard very well, so it will take several hits, or driving the ball into the gaps and some good base running to get to him.</p>
<p>Max Scherzer has put together three straight, and six of seven starts where he has gone seven innings or better, allowing three runs or fewer each time. He took the loss in his last start at New York, allowing just two runs on nine hits.</p>
<p>Scherzer has maintained a steady strikeout rate of just over ten per nine innings, while his BB/9 and HR/9 ratios are up slightly. The biggest difference between this season and his 2013 year is that he has a batting average on balls in play (BABIP) of .319 versus .259 a season ago. He remains one of the most dominant pitchers in the game.</p>
<p><b>Hitter to fear:</b> Jose Bautista is 8 for 13 with a home run and three walks, for a sizzling line of .571 .647 1.071 1.718 in his career.</p>
<p><br><b>Hitter to fail: </b> Melky Cabrera is 3 for 12, with a line of .250 .308 .417 .724. <b><br></b></p>
<h5>Outlook:</h5>
<p>The Jays swept the Tigers earlier this season in Detroit, when the Tigers were in the midst of a team wide slump. The Tigers have not seen Stroman before, and that usually gives an advantage to the pitcher. But then, the Jays can see Scherzer as much as they want, and that doesn't mean they can hit him.</p>
<p>Friday's come from behind Tiger victory knocked the Jays to 1-1/2 games behind the Royals for the second and final wild card playoff spot, one game behind the Yankees and six games behind the Baltimore Orioles in their division.</p>
<h5>Prediction:</h5>
<p>Tigers struggle against a rookie that they've never seen before, but Scherzer dominates the Jays. One good inning is enough to give the Tigers their margin of victory.</p>
https://www.blessyouboys.com/2014/8/9/5975381/game-114-preview-tigers-at-blue-jays-Scherzer-TorontoPatrick OKennedy