Marcus Thames is an interesting player. A 30^th-round pick of the Yankees in 1996, when he was still enlisted in the Mississippi National Guard, Thames didn’t make his major league debut until the ripe old age of 25 (older than I am now – I have a shot!). The following season he was traded to Texas in exchange for George W. Bush-colleague Ruben Sierra.

Unceremoniously released by the Rangers following the 2003 season, Thames was picked up by the Tigers, where he established himself as the Marcus Thames that a few people know and even fewer love, posting an adjusted OPS+ of 118 on the strength of 22 extra-base hits in 184 plate appearances. He has remained with the Tigers as the team’s primary pinch-hitter, averaging 269 plates appearances per season with a line of .245/.307/.501 over that span.

Now, a .307 on-base percentage is hardly something to write home about unless your favorite hobby is comprising lists of uninteresting facts and mailing them to your parents. However, Thames’ isolated power of .256 over his six seasons in Detroit is worth taking note of (although I imagine your parents would still find it odd to receive mail from you informing them of such). From 2006-2008, Thames’ isolated power ranked 3^rd, 6^th and 7^th in the American League among players with at least 250 plate appearances, before falling to 38^th in 2009, although he still finished ahead of Robinson Cano, Grady Sizemore, Vladimir Guerrero and Nick Markakis among others.

Despite his lousy contact rate (.243 career batting average), Marcus Thames is still a good baseball player, and like Rob Neyer, if I were a major league team looking for a bat to come off the bench I would give him a shot. Plus, it never hurts to have an extra black guy around in case shit goes down. Right? Guys?

The Tigers let go of Marcus Thames, in one of their worst moves in a while.  The Tigers released Thames because he would’ve cost them a lot of money, but he was worth it, now they will lose 30 homers and tons of production and they won’t gain a thing out of this move.  Ryan Raburn will replace him and he will do great things but Marcus brought a lot to this club.  The Tigers will miss Marcus right away and the team that gets him will get better.  Brennan Boesch or Ryan Strieby could take his place soon, Boesch would be more like him.  Thames will be missed a lot though, the thing that will be missed most his power, it’s unreplacable and the power he had with this club is too.  Thames does to many things and one player won’t do nearly as good as him.  Look for him to start off where he left, and this won’t make the Tigs a losing team but it will hurt them more than anyone thinks.

by Gabe Downey

I heard someone say the other day that the Tigers were the worst first place team in baseball. At first, I was put-off because hey! They’re in first place! But, the more I thought about it the more I realized they’re exactly right.

The Tigers play in the worst division in baseball. They now have a win percentage of just over .500 and have been absolutely struggling to score runs day in and day out. The most surprising thing about the Tigers coming into the last month and a half of the season is that they have one of the best pitching staffs in baseball. However, while good pitching can win games, good hitting will help the cause a hell of a lot as well.

It’s time for Jim Leyland to admit that the tandem of Ramon Santiago and Adam Everett at short stop is just flat out not working. Adam Everett, while being a pretty solid defender cannot hit the ball. The guy struggles to even put it in play. His at bats usually go as follows: Strike called, ball, foul, ball, swinging strike 3, he’s out. This has to change if the Tigers expect to hold onto the Central Division lead and make it into the playoffs. Here is my solution:

Suggestion 1: Put Carlos Guillen back at shortstop. This is his natural position and the position he wants to play. Yes, you lose a little bit of range at short stop, but it’s not the defense that is killing the Tigers at the moment, it’s their in ability to score runs. A shortstop is the captain of the infield and nobody fills this roll and commands respect like Carlos. Lest we forget, he has moved from SS, to 1st, to 3rd, to left field all without a complaint or a problem. Carlos Guillen is a class act and deserves this opportunity. Every player on the field with the exception of Miguel Cabrera is struggling with the bat. The bottom half of the lineup exemplifies this. It’s time for a much needed change. 

Suggestion 2: I think it’s time Jim Leyland gives Gerald Laird a week or two off. You can’t argue with the job he has done behind the dish, but the guy is struggling at the plate so badly he can’t even hit a ball hard and get a single. He needs to sit, if only for his own confidence and focus. If we do make it to the playoffs, we’ll need him fresh and hopefully hitting behind the plate. On the flip-side; Alex Avila in his short 11 games with the Tigers has shown he can be both and offensive and defensive gem. Let him have his moment.

Suggestion 3: Sit Brandon Inge. The guy is obviously hurting and needs to sit. I don’t really understand why people love this guy so much anyway, but that’s totally beside the point. He is a superb defender, in truth, you can’t really find a better defensive 3rd baseman in baseball, however, once again it’s not the defense that we need to be concerned about. Brandon, for his own good, needs to sit. He isn’t seeing the ball well right now and is striking out more than me at a singles convention, which is a ridiculous amount. Sit him and let Aubrey Huff play some 3rd base, he’s very capable and provides a more consistent bat. 

****Bonus Pitching Suggestion: Send Zach Miner down to the minor leagues until he can figure out how to come into a game without giving up a run. For someone who has looked so tremendous on occasion spot starting for the Tigers, he has been disgustingly bad out of relief. I’d rather see Bonine as our long relief guy. Let Miner work it out the minors or release him. ****

So, with these changes in mind, imagine this lineup:

Curtis Granderson, CF

Placido Polanco, 2B

Miguel Cabrera, 1st

Carlos Guillen, SS

Magglio Ordonez, RF

Aubrey Huff, 3rd

Marcus Thames, DH

Marcus Thames/Ryan Rayburn/Clete Thomas, LF

Alex Avilia, C

That would be our most consistent hitting lineup of the year. Spell Aubrey at 3rd with a couple of starts from Brandon until his knees are stronger and he’s done some work in the batting cage. Then you can put Huff in LF. Marcus Thames too needs to step up his ridiculous strikeout numbers. No Marcus, don’t just hit your bat on your hand after you strike out and look up at the sky like it’s somebody else’s fault. TRY HITTING THE GOD DAMN BALL. I suspect he will not be with the club next year.

But alas, there is hope yet:

You know, a funny thing happens with baseball that doesn’t happen in any other sport. As soon as the playoffs start, a switch flips and suddenly it’s pitching, not hitting that is the key to being successful. In this respect, the Tigers are in business. With a 4 pitcher lineup of Verlander, Jackson, Washburn and Porcello, they could give any team in the playoffs a run for their money, but, if we don’t have the hitters to hit the C.C. Sabathia’s or whoever else we could possibly face, we’ll be dead in the water.

All in all, I couldn’t be more proud that our Tigers are in 1st place. I just can’t stand the thought of them holding onto this lead since May and giving it up in the final weeks of the season. It’s time for a couple of small changes that have the possibility of producing big results. Why not at least give them a try? The worst we could do is lose 2 out of 3 to the Oakland Athletics……oh wait.

After speeding through the minor leagues, Baltimore Orioles highly-touted 22 year old, Brian Matusz, made his debut, and won. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)

In 2002, the Baltimore Orioles Earned Run Average was a mediocre 4.46, their pitching staff one of the worst in the American League. In 2003, that number grew to 4.76, with no one winning more than 14 games; only two pitchers, Sidney Ponson and Jason Johnson, had 10 or more wins.

In 2004, their pitching staff was slightly better–4.70–but sill far from acceptable. In 2005, that mark decreased to 4.56 and, upon hiring former Atlanta Braves pitching coach Leo Mazzone, who had groomed the likes of Tom Glavine, John Smoltz, and Greg Maddux, all of whom are future Hall of Famers, Baltimore’s future in the pitching department appeared bright.

But, Mazzone’s tenure with the Orioles was short, to no fault of his own. Baltimore’s rotation was worse than ever. Their team ERA ballooned to 5.35, with no one aside from ace Erik Bedard mounting anything close to a successful season. It wasn’t as if their pitchers were too young and struggled because of inexperience and undeveloped pitches. They were veterans, and mediocre ones, at that.

In 2006, the Orioles gave young pitchers Jeremy Guthrie and Daniel Cabrera the reigns to the rotation. Guthrie excelled, but Cabrera, even with undeniable talent, struggled. Then 24, he already had two years of experience under his belt, but hadn’t given Baltimore anything to build upon, combining for a 4.75 ERA over the 2004 and 2005 seasons. Yet, The Orioles knew his potential and thought Mazzone could work his magic and dramatically turn him into an ace. Mazzone did his best with him and the other four pitchers in their rotation, but nothing changed: Cabrera was extremely wild in 2006, walking 104 batters in 148 innings, which translated to a below-average 4.74 ERA that still sixty points lower than the mark carried by the entire staff.

Mazzone lasted one more year, a year without improvements: Cabrera lost 18 games and had a 5.55 ERA, while the staff’s ERA was also above five. Without a pitching staff, a team can’t succeed. Mazzone was given little to work with. Baltimore had no hope.

Then, the Orioles made a move that changed their fortunes, trading Bedard to the Seattle Mariners for pitcher Tony Butler, their fourth-ranked prospect, pitcher Chris Tillman, their eighth-ranked prospect, another pitching prospect, Kam Mickolio, as well as top-hitting prospect Adam Jones and reliever George Sherrill.

Baltimore, without their ace, struggled in 2008, but with these five players, along with other up-and-coming talent, at least they had a future.

Butler, 21, is in Single-A, and a long ways off from the major leagues. Tillman, 21 as well, blossomed in their farm system and was named their second-ranked prospect entering this season. After an impressive stint with Triple-A Norfolk, he was called up to the major leagues just prior to the All-Star Break, and has since made two starts. Mickolio is also with the Orioles, pitching in middle relief.

Baltimore’s youth doesn’t solely consist of these acquisitions. They helped the organization move into the right direction, though. Of their top-ten prospects entering this season, seven including Tillman, are pitchers. One of those is Brian Matusz, 22-year old lefthander and third-ranked prospect.

He was drafted in the first round of the 2008 MLB Amateur Draft as the fourth overall selection. A year removed from college, he began this season in Single-A and made eleven starts before being promoted to Double-A. There, he started eight games and won seven of them, boasting a 1.55 ERA in the process. This earned him a promotion, and not to Triple-A. Nineteen minor league starts was all he needed. Now, he’s gracing a major league mound.

Tonight, he made his much-anticipated debut, pitching against the Detroit Tigers in Detroit. All the Tigers had was a scouting report to go from. It most likely read: A fastball that touches 95-miles-per-hour with movement on both sides of the plate, a changeup, noted as above-average, a slider, and a curveball–he can throw all four for strikes and misses a lot of bats. Still, Detroit didn’t know what to expect, which boded well for Matusz.

His offense spotted him a run in the top of the first inning, which had to ease his nerves. Surely, the early run support was comforting, but it probably didn’t have much effect on the psyche of Matusz. How would you feel making your major league debut, one year removed from college with little minor league experience? Excited, overwhelmed, and nervous beyond belief, perhaps. He was all those things, but he was also confident.

He breezed through the first inning, throwing just eleven pitches. Ten of those pitches were fastballs, so he was clearly pumped up. He was similarly reliant on the fastball in the second inning, but as his at-bat against Miguel Cabrera to begin the frame showed, the rest of his repertoire was just as effective. The first two pitches were fastballs to Cabrera and he wasn’t fooled by either of them. So, Matusz went to his curveball, a pitch full of movement that missed just outside. Now, Cabrera had to guess. He couldn’t just say, “here comes another fastball.”

Matusz uncorked a changeup for a called-strike. He was now comfortable and trusted the reportoire that helped him speed through the minor leagues. He fired in a fastball, which was fouled off, then two curveballs, which were fouled off as well. He mixed in his pitches and threw each for strikes. His ability to do so disposed of Cabrera. He finished him off with a changeup that dove in, then out, of the strikezone. Cabrera flailed and made the slow walk back to the dugout. It was Matusz’s first career strikeout.

The rest of the inning was rough for Matusz. He allowed a double and relinquished two walks, but stayed poised and worked out of the bases-loaded jam unscathed. He found himself in trouble over the final three innings of his debut, but though each featured either a hit, walk, or both, he allowed just one run. That run came in the fourth inning. Another could have been added in the fifth, but he made sure nothing would come of Cabrera’s one-out double by striking out both Marcus Thames and Ryan Raburn on sliders.

He walked into the dugout and was congratulated by every member of the team. I suspect they were not only congratulating him on his spectacular outing, but thanking him. Finally, after years of disappointment of relying on mediocrity, the Orioles have a bright spot, and considering there are many young, talented pitchers that could soon join Matusz, they now have a bright future as well.

38-31, 1st in AL Central (4.0 GU on MIN)

(Picture courtesy of Kirthmon F. Dozier/Detroit Free Press)

Well then! Apparently all it takes is a little ranting from yours truly, and all of a sudden the wins start piling up and the brooms get dusted off. Obviously, we don’t want to get ahead of ourselves, but sweeping a division leader is something that is never easy. But the Tigers held fast, surviving a couple of rain delays on Friday, a rookie on the mound Saturday, and an old fashioned pitching duel on Sunday to get the sweep of the Brew Crew and get back on track in the standings.

It wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows, though. Literally. Friday night’s game got underway with the threat of rain looming, and Armando Galarraga pitched like he was afraid of getting hit by a lightning bolt on the mound. The “Sick Cat” pitched the Tigers into an early hole, giving up a three run shot on a miserable changeup to Prince Fielder. Honesty, Galarraga just doesn’t have it right now and it’s really starting to show. Seriously, when he’s on the mound, does ANYONE feel like the Tigers have a chance to win? I sure as hell don’t.

Anyways, despite Galarraga’s best attempts to fail, the Tigers’ bats came alive and the baseball gods offered up a rain delay after the boys clawed back for a lead, mercifully ending Galarraga’s night. Marcus Thames popped a pair of home runs, and Miguel Cabrera and Curtis Granderson added their own, fueling the Tigers to a 10-4 win.

Coming into Saturday’s affair, all of the talk was around 24 year old starter Alfredo Figaro, making his major league debut. However, the storyline quickly shifted to the re-energized Tigers’ bats, led by Thames and Cabrera, who both went 3 for 5 on the day. Add to that rookie Don Kelly adding three hits, and the Tigers offense was officially back in the swing of things (no pun intended.) This is not to take anything away from Figaro, though, who performed very well in his first start, going five innings while giving up two runs on eight hits and striking out seven.

With a sweep on the line, both squads trotted out their aces on Sunday, as Justin Verlander squared off against Yovani Gallardo. Neither pitcher disappointed, as they both threw late into the game and struck out eight each. But it would be Brandon Inge’s sixth inning home run that would be the difference in this one, giving the Tigers a 3-2 win and a series sweep to boot.

Like I said earlier, this was a big sweep for the Tigers. Not only did it give them a four game winning streak *knock on wood*, but it was a real confidence booster for a team that has struggled to sustain any sort of momentum throughout this season. That said, any momentum earned over the last four games will be put to the test when the Cubs come calling, and the Tigers will need to play to their full potential to win what is all but guaranteed to be a fun and entertaining series over the next few days.

Roster movin’: The Tigers will recall right-hander Freddy Dolsi before tonight’s game. Dolsi appeared in 42 games for the Tigers last year, and had a 3.97 ERA. (I also gave him many shouts of Budweiser infused encouragement last year during a warm-up session in the Safeco Field bullpen. Not that this has any bearing on his call-up. Just thought it was worth a mention.)

Also worth noting, Jim Leyland has said that he will move Alfredo Figaro in between Verlander and Edwin Jackson in an attempt to provide the bullpen with more regularity when it comes to their appearances.

And just because I forgot to mention it this weekend, Skippah’ Jimmay signed himself a two-year extension, ensuring that that ever-present cloud of Marlboro smoke in the dugout tunnel isn’t going anywhere.

On Deck: Chicago Cubs

• Record: 34-32 (3rd in NL Central, 2.5 GB of St. Louis)

Tuesday, June 23

• Tigers – Edwin Jackson (6-4, 2.39 ERA, 72 SO)
• Cubs – Carlos Zambrano (4-2, 3.44 ERA, 59 SO)

Wednesday, June 24

• Tigers – Rick Porcello (8-4, 3.54 ERA, 41 SO)
• Cubs – Rich Harden (4-3, 5.27 ERA, 64 SO)

Thursday, June 25

• Tigers – Armando Galarraga (3-7, 5.62 ERA, 45 SO)
• Cubs – Ted Lilly (7-4, 3.04 ERA, 75 SO)

After barely squeaking out one win in their series with 2006 World Series foe, St. Louis, the Tigers welcomed the first place Brewers to Comerica for three a game set. In the series, the Cardinals used the, then slumping, kitties as a stepping stone to get their month back on track. And conversely, Detroit took the defeats by St Lou as a slap in the face and motivation to put their wiffle bats away and take out the real lumber.

Going into their face off, the Tigers were six and eight in the month of June and the Cardinals were five and nine. After taking two of three from the Tigers, – beating both Justin Verlander and Edwin Jackson – the Cards went off to play with their I-70 rivals and 1982 World Series counterparts. In that series, the Cards did nothing but break another teams’ spirits.

The sweep of Kansas City included the red birds scoring an average of almost 10 runs per game and the utter inhalation of two very good Royal pitchers’ ERAs.

Gil Meche and Kyle Davies’ ERAs both jumped by at least a half a point after their face-offs with St. Louis – Meche, most notably, went from 3.31 to 4.11.

One the other side of Illinois, the Detroit series against the Brewers saw a little bit of everything. From a rain delay that lasted longer than the actual official game, to a class-AA pitcher making and winning his Major league debut, to a duel of dominant starting aces that actually lived up to the hype. It was a great fight for both teams, but one team roared through the puddles of barley-juice and came out victorious in sweeping fashion.

Game One – Detroit 10, Milwaukee 4 (7 innings)

Armando Galarraga’s troubles continued as he allowed four runs (three earned) in four innings before the 2:42 rain delay in Motown. Zach Miner took over after the delay and took the win. Miner surrendered just one hit in 2.1 of the remaining three innings of the game. The inclement weather returned calling for an early end of the game.

Welcome back Miguel Cabrera. After the accidental, game winning, macaroni noodle of a home run he hit against the White Sox on June 9, I had a feeling Cabrera was going to start hitting again. After a long blast in the first game of the Cardinals series, it seemed that prediction was becoming fact. Cabrera went long again in game one against the Cerveceros, but the two shots launched by Marcus Thames over-shadowed Cabrera’s show of power.

A first-inning, three run, bomb by Prince Fielder accounted for just about all the scoring for Milwaukee. Curtis Granderson’s 17th blast of the season and an RBI by new back-up catcher Dusty Ryan and Adam Everett completed the Tigers scoring.

Dusty Ryan, who caught a majority of the Tigers’ games in September of 2008 has been added to the active roster to replace Dane Sardinha behind the plate. While Sardinha was a quality game-caller and had a strong throwing arm, he struggled mightily with the bat in 2009 – he was just 3-31 with 16 strikeouts with the Tigers. Detroit has designated Sardinha’s contract for assignment.

Game Two – Detroit 9, Milwaukee 5.

With Dontrelle Willis heading back to the DL and the release of Sardinha, the first-place-felines had room on the roster for another pitcher. Officially, Ryan replaced Willis and Sardinha’s roster spot was filled by Alfredo Figaro.

Figaro is yet another young fireballer from the Tigers farm system. His fastball tops out at around 97 MPH and accompanies that gas with a devastating slider, curveball and diving split-change. The 24 year-old Dominican came to the Tigers from class-AA Erie where he was 5-2 with a 4.10 ERA in 11 starts. The selling point for Figaro is the 59 strikeouts in 68 innings that goes alongside only 56 hits and 17 walks this season.

Until the later innings, the game was absolutely dominated by the youngster. He went five innings, allowing two earned runs, while striking out seven big league hitters. The feat of fanning seven beer-makers appears much more impressive when you take into consideration the fact that the Brewers strikeout less often than 13 of the 16 NL teams. The young righty also allowed eight hits and one long home run to Ryan Braun in the third inning but collected the victory in this, his major league orientation.

For the second game in a row, Miguel Cabrera went deep to left field. World-class bat-wielder Placido Polanco put a charge into one as well for his fifth noodle of the season.

The story in this game was Figaro, however.

Figaro will scare Tiger fans from time to time with the incredible lack of movement on his fastball has when he rushes his mechanics. Otherwise he is big-league ready. As is that case with many young starters, (example: David Price of Tampa Bay) Figaro is not quite ready to be a permanent fixture in a major league rotation because he wants is to strikeout every hitter he faces. In his five inning debut, the flame-thrower threw 96 pitches – of those, 63 were strikes.

Game Three – Detroit 3, Milwaukee 2.

After getting roughed up for five earned runs and eight hits in only four innings against the Cardinals, Justin Verlander was out to show that he just really hates facing St Louis and is feeling fine. The tall righty was back to the form that kept him from collecting a loss in 10 starts prior to meeting the Cardinals.

Unfortunately, Verlander was going to have to face off against another one of the brightest young stars in the Major Leagues. Yovani Gallardo came into the father’s day start with a sub-three ERA and 85 strikeouts in 83 innings. The gigantic breaks on Gallardo’s off-speed pitches have been baffling NL hitters since the 23 year-old broke into the ‘bigs in 2007.

Both hurlers were dealing aces for seven-plus innings with neither pitcher allowing more than six hits in his outing. Solo homers from unexpected places were Verlander’s only blemish. Twenty-six year-old rookie DH Casey McGehee hit one long ball and crazy-bat-dancer Craig Counsil accounted for the other.

Brandon Inge’s three-run blast in the bottom of the sixth would be all Verlander needed for the win however. Gallardo finished the day with three earned runs and dominance that nearly mirrored that of Verlander. Both pitchers finished the day with eight punch-outs, three walks, a quality, seven-plus inning, start and a decision for his team.

Wrap:

This series just shows that if the Detroit offense can produce anywhere near their potential. They can beat just about anyone in any league. With Marcus Thames back in the line-up at either DH or left field, the Tigers find themselves with another weapon in the batting order.

With Miguel Cabrera now healthy, the Tigers could see an unprecedented season where four or more Detroit hitters could wind up with 25 or more home runs and 80 or more RBI. If there is a precedent, it because the Tigers came very close to achieving, said, goal in both 2006 and 2007.

Currently, Granderson has 17 HR and 41 RBI, Inge has 16 and 47, Cabrera 14 and 44 and Marcus Thames has 5 HR and 12 RBI in limited appearances through 21 games.

Here are the lastest Tigers moves…

• The Tigers put Jeremy Bonderman back on the DL, this is bad for the Tigers and they are missing out on a good arm.  Bonderman may take a couple of starts to get back to normal but I think he will.  Bonderman’s only concern his his velocity, he should still be able to throw a bit of heat and he needs to.  Ryan Perry got recalled for Bonderman, he will do well out of the Tigers bullpen as a seventh or eighth inning guy who nails down the win.
• Marcus Thames came back off the DL for the Tigers.  He will be a great upgrade and a nice bat in the middle-end of the line-up, his power will help spark the Tigers and he should still be able to hit 15-20 homers.  Thames will give the Tigers power and production.  Jeff Larish got sent down for Thames.  He will be missed as a great lefty bat with pop, he should be back up soon and he will do good for the Tigers when he is back.
• Don Kelly got called up for the Tigers.  Kelly has a solid bat and should get some hits and give some production at the bottom of the line-up.  He is also versatile and will do okay at almost any position.  He was kind-of fast in 2006 but he has added some weight and should be a bit slower.  He is a small power-speed guy which is always a good combo.  Clete Thomas got sent down in order for this to happen, his bat will be missed but he should be back soon, he just needs to improve on hitting a good fastball and not swinging for the fences on every fastball he sees.  Good Move?: Barley Bad

It’s time again for the hump day look see, a random collection of stats and thoughts to help get you through your fantasy week. the look see will appear every Wednesday evening for the remainder of the season. You can make sure you catch each installment by grabbing a free email subscription through feedburner or picking up the RSS feeds on the main page.

If your roster has been ravaged by injuries lately (like many of mine) there may be some good news coming soon. Pat Burrell and Jason Bartlett of the Rays are both expected to return within a week, giving some punch to the Rays and fantasy lineups everywhere. While Burrell is middle of the road fantasy outfielder Bartlett has been among the best shortstop options in the game so far this season.

Chris Iannetta has returned to the Colorado Rockies, now if only his batting average would do the same. In all seriousness, he has eight home runs so far in 108 at-bats. If he can even get the average back to the .264 level of last season and stay close to this power pace he could be a solid reserve backstop option going forward.

Ricky Nolasco recently returned from his brief “get it together” trip to the minor leagues. In his first start back with the big boys Nolasco lost, I know, I’m shocked too. Kidding aside, he allowed 10 hits and three walks in seven innings while fanning four and surrendering two earned runs (three total). It could have been better, it could have been worse.

Rich Harden will come off the DL Saturday and face the Minnesota Twins that night. Hopefully he can make it through next week without returning to the disabled list.

Marcus Thames returned to the Tigers lineup this past Saturday after missing seven weeks with an abdominal injury. He’s 5-14 with one home run, one RBI and two runs scored since then. He’s swinging hard and well, and could provide a little short-term pop while your remaining DL’d outfielders heal up.

The last week has been a good one for Colorado Rockies with middle infield eligibility. Ian Stewart is the #1 ranked player in all of Yahoo fantasy baseball over the last seven days, hitting .419 with four bombs and 12 RBI’s. Teammate Clint Barmes hasn’t been far off the pace with 10 RBI’s and a .483 average in that span.

Nobody has struck out more hitters in the last week than….you guessed it, Scott Baker of the Minnesota Twins. What, you didn’t guess Scott Baker? Don’t worry, nobody did, but alas he’s fanned 18 in the last week while picking two wins. Before you get overtly excited, remember that accounts for half of his 2009 total and that his record now stands at 4-6 with a 5.59 ERA.

Now let’s get to the hump day staple, the top 10 hitters and pitchers of the last week in Yahoo Fantasy Baseball. As always players are listed by rank, according to Yahoo, not me, based on the stat categories in a standard 5×5 roto league. Note that Josh Beckett is the #1 pitcher for the second consecutive week. I’m going to mail him a cookie.

Top 10 Hitters of the Last Week:

#1 Ian Stewart, COL — .419, 4 home runs, 12 RBI’s, 9 runs, 0 SB

#2 Adam Lind, TOR — .500, 4 home runs, 7 RBI’s, 8 runs scored, 0 SB

#3 David Wright, NYM — .647 (11-17), 1 home run, 5 RBI’s, 6 runs, 2 SB

#4 Scott Podsednik, CWS — .323, 1 home run, 2 RBI’s, 6 runs, 4 SB

#5 Andre Ethier, LAD — .435, 4 home runs, 6 RBI’s, 5 runs, 0 SB

#6 Prince Fielder, MIL — .500, 3 home runs, 6 RBI’s, 6 runs, 0 SB

#7 Lyle Overbay, TOR — .455, 2 home runs, 9 RBI’s, 6 runs, 0 SB

#8 Hunter Pence, HOU — .391, 2 home runs, 6 RBI’s, 6 runs, 0 SB

#9 Chipper Jones, ATL — .450, 3 home runs, 9 RBI’s, 4 runs, 0 SB

#10 Ben Zobrist, TB — .300, 3 home runs, 7 RBI’s, 5 runs, 1 SB

Top 10 Pitchers of the Last Week:

#1 Josh Beckett, BOS — 2 wins, 17 K’s, 0.00 ERA, 0.51 WHIP, 13.2 IP

#2 Scott Baker, MIN — 2 wins, 18 K’s, 3.00 ERA, 0.80 WHIP, 15 IP

#3 Jered Weaver, LAA — 2 wins, 16 K’s, 2.08 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 13 IP

#4 Jeff Niemann, TB — 1 win, 9 K’s, 0.00 ERA, 0.33 WHIP, 9 IP

#5 Jon Lester, BOS — 1 win, 11 K’s, 1.00 ERA, 0.44 WHIP, 9 IP

#6 Ted Lilly, CHC — 1 win, 11 K’s, 0.66 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 13.2 IP

#7 Andrew Bailey, OAK — 3 saves, 6 K’s, 0.00 ERA, 0.40 WHIP, 5 IP

#8 Jonathon Broxton, LAD — 1 W, 2 saves, 8 K’s, 2.25 ERA, 0.75 WHIP, 4 IP

#9 Brad Bergeson, BAL — 1 win, 9 K’s, 1.20 ERA, 0.87 WHIP, 15 IP

#10 Johnny Cueto, CIN — 2 wins, 8 K’s, 1.35 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, 13.1 IP

Until next time kiddies….

Hazaa

Have a question, comment or useless statistic you want to share? Leave your feedback in the comments below or drop me a line at jelletlambie@gmail.com

31-25, 1st in AL Central (4.0 GU on MIN)

(Photo courtesy of Duane Burleson/AP)

**FYI: Record has been updated to reflect the Tigers beating the White Sox in Game 1 of their doubleheader today. WOO!!!

So the last time we checked in with the Tigers, they had just been swept by the Red Sox, Jim Leyland got himself tossed from a game, the doubters were out in full force and the Los Angeles Orange County Angels of Anaheim and Surrounding Neighborhoods and Communities were on their way into town before the Tigers embarked on a week-and-a-half long road trip.

The Tigers needed to bounce back strongly and get some wins.

The answer started with Justin Verlander, who pitched another fantastic game in the opener, but got let down AGAIN by sub-par hitting from a mashed up lineup due to Miguel Cabrera’s hamstring injury. Verlander’s work was good enough to keep the team in the game, but Fernando Rodney came in and gave up a run, and with the sub-par hitting, that was enough for LAOCAASNC to escape with a 2-1 win.

Knocked down again.

But what do you do when you get knocked down? You get back up and punch that dude right in his mouth.

Detroit’s counter-punch? Edwin Jackson. The KO punch? Clete Thomas. (Clete Thomas?!?!)

Despite suffering from the same lack of run support that plagued Verlander, Jackson put the team on his back and just took over on Saturday night (and Rodney didn’t blow this one.) And on Sunday, Clete cleared the bases with a grand slam as the Tigers started to locate the offense.

KO delivered. Tigers take the series.

Look, the series win was important for the Tigers, despite being less than aesthetically appealing. The Tigers are in an interesting position where two to three games a week, they are going to get good/great pitching and then to to three games a week they will put up solid batting numbers. When those two line up, the Tigers win ball games. But the rest of it is a crapshoot.

I know Leyland is making an attempt to generate some offense by moving Curtis Granderson back up to the leadoff spot and adding in the newly rehabilitated Marcus Thames for some additional power. But I don’t think that is going to cure the inconsistencies of this team. The real trick for Jim is to find a way to start small with this team. This is NEVER going to happen, but they need to focus more on hitting for singles and sacrifices, and maybe even *GULP* the occasional bunt or two. Sacrilege, I know. Yes, the Tigers will always have power and yes, that power is a great thing, but yes, that power disappears from game to game and yes, if we stick to the power game for the entire season, we might finish somewhere around .500.

Anyways, it’s a thought. Maybe try it out one night when Verlander or Jackson is on the mound since nine games out of 10 you are going to get a top notch performance from them. I’m just sayin…

One last thing before we go: Jeremy Bonderman returns to the bump tonight finally. This could be interesting, as most of the folks that regularly cover the Tigers say that Bondo doesn’t have that “umph” back in his velocity, which means he should be less overpowering and more crafty.

Kenny Rogers, anyone?

On Deck: Chicago White Sox

• Record: 26-31 (3rd in AL Central, 5.5 GB of DET)

Monday, June 8 (DH)

Game 1

• Tigers – Armando Galarraga (3-6, 5.31 ERA, 41 SO)
• White Sox – Clayton Richard (2-1, 3.97 ERA, 34 SO) **Yes, THAT Clayton Richard. As in the Clayton Richard that used to be a backup on the Michigan football team. Whoa.

**Since the game is over and I already updated the records, here are the resulting lines for each guy. Joel Zumaya got the win for the Tigers, BTW. Rodney, the save.

• Galarraga: 6.2 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 4 BB, 3 SO, No decision
• Richard: 4.2 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 5 BB, 4 SO, No decision

Game 2

• Tigers – Jeremy Bonderman (0-0, –.—ERA, – SO)
• White Sox – Jose Contreras (0-5, 8.19 ERA, 17 SO)

Tuesday, June 9

• Tigers – Dontrelle Willis (1-3, 6.84 ERA, 13 SO)
• White Sox – Mark Buehrle (6-2, 2.91 ERA, 46 SO)

Wednesday, June 10

• Tigers – Justin Verlander (6-2, 3.26 ERA, 97 SO)
• White Sox – John Danks (4-4, 5.10 ERA, 54 SO)

Thursday, June 11

• Tigers – Edwin Jackson (6-3, 2.16 ERA, 62 SO)
• White Sox – Gavin Floyd (4-5, 5.35 ERA, 66 SO)

Welcome to another installment of Five For Fighting, this time with a twist. While this segment normally covers all things fantasy baseball I’ve decided to throw a change-up here and devote this piece to talking about the Detroit Tigers. The premise remains the same – I trade five questions with a talented writer from the web and we post each others answers for you to debate.

Joining me this time is John Parent, better known as Big JP, from Always A Tiger. John is a devoted family man and Tigers fan from Ohio (don’t hold it against him) who brings an insightful and down to earth point of view to his coverage of the team he loves. Big thanks to John for taking the time to participate in this experiment. You can read his answers to my questions below and my answers to his questions here.

Now let’s get to it….

1 – Of the three young outfielders platooning for the Tigers at the moment (Josh Anderson, Clete Thomas and Ryan Raburn) which, if any, do you believe have a long-term place on this team and why?

Raburn has the ability to play second base, and he is the emergency catcher, so he has the most versatility, but his skill set makes me think of him as more of a National League kind of player.  His offense has been unimpressive, though he shows occasional pop.  Plus he just turned 28 years old, so I’m not sure he improves much more and as a right handed hitter, I think there are players with significantly more potential in the minors. 

Anderson and Thomas share many qualities, both are LH hitters, both can play either corner spot.  While Thomas has shown himself to be a better defender, with a better arm, Anderson has great speed and has the ability to play CF. 

While Thomas may have more pop in hit bat, I’ll take Anderson long-term.  Thomas has shown that he is not a leadoff hitter, and I have been encouraged by what I’ve seen when Anderson does get a chance in that spot.  This team needs Curtis Granderson in the middle of the order, Anderson provides the best possible solution as a leadoff hitter.
 
2 – If you could go back in time knowing what you know now, would you convince Dave Dombrowski to keep Gary Sheffield?

The short answer is no.  Coming into camp this year, I had a good feeling about Sheffield, and felt he may have a good season.  That being said, the team had decided that a repeat of last season could not happen, and needed to add defense and flexibility to the lineup.  Jettisoning Sheffield provided a way to do both.  They already had another Sheffield type player on the roster in Marcus Thames, and the move would allow them to use the DH spot to keep Magglio and Guillen healthy, they thought. 

Obviously, things haven’t quite worked out that way.  Thames was never healthy and evidently neither was Guillen.  But you certainly couldn’t have anticipated that Sheffield would have stayed healthy, either.  And the way he was hitting in Lakeland did inspire much confidence.  While it hurts to waste all that money they are still paying him, they were able to add Anderson to give them a good LH bat with great speed. 

I think with the return of Thames, the offense will get at least as much help from him that they probably would have gotten from an unhappy Sheffield stuck DH-ing.  Sheffield doesn’t strikeout as much as Thames, but pop-ups don’t help alot, either.
 
3 – Who will have a more positive impact on the starting rotation going forward – Armando Galarraga or Jeremy Bonderman?

That question may hold the key to the rest of the Tigers’ season. 

There has been a lot of talk about the struggles of Galarraga recently, but let’s not forget he had similar struggles last May, as well.  He has shown signs of life in his last two starts, and while he may not be ultimately as good as his numbers were in April, I suspect he is not as bad as they were in May, either.  If he plays on a team with a better offense, I don’t think there would be so much worry about him, as he is basically a fourth starter, but with the offense struggling, you almost need your number four to be a fourth ace, which he is not. 

Bonderman has always had potential, but he has also always had a good fastball.  He is the real wild-card here.  If he has found a changeup, and can command his pitches, he can be a quality pitcher.  But he is being asked to learn how to pitch a different way than he ever has, and be good enough to consistently get major league hitters out.  I think that’s asking a whole lot.  I’m just not sure how much faith to put in a guy that never really lived up to his potential when he had electric stuff, now that that’s gone, how much can you expect from him? 

So with two guys who haven’t inspired much confidence, I hope the answer is Bonderman, but I think it’s probably Galarraga.
 
4 – How many wins do you think it will take for the Tigers to make the playoffs, and can this team win that many games as put together today?

Fortunately, they play in maybe the worst division in baseball, so that helps.  The only real threats I see are the Twins, barring a trade or two by Chicago.  Cleveland has zero pitching by anyone other than Pavano and Lee, and that includes the bullpen.  Kansas City probably has enough pitching to compete, but has little depth and are fading fast.  Zack Greinke has shown he’s human lately, and the Royals can’t afford him to be human. 

The WhiteSox have the homerun power, and always play well within the division, especially versus Detroit, but Floyd and Danks have come back to earth a bit this year, and they have several holes in the lineup.  Minnesota will win a bunch of games at home.  They are playing .500 ball right now, and really haven’t had the great pitching they are used to.  If they get the bullpen straightened out, they have the potential to take off and win the division going away. 

I think it will take 89 wins to take the Central, and I don’t  think this Tigers team can get there.  A lot of that will be based on how well guys like Bonderman and Willis perform the rest of the way.  Someone on this team has got to hit, though.  They cannot continue to flounder at the plate or they have no shot.  The flaws on this team are glaring.  They have no backup catcher, and are in dire need of a productive corner outfielder.  Thomas is a nice player, but he isn’t the answer.  If the Tigers want a real shot at playing in October, they have to make a move. 

I anticipate a trade or two to clear some excess staring pitching (Miner and/or Galarraga) and to bring back a LH bat that can play OF.  If they do that, and add a backup catcher, they can get there.  If not, I don’t see how they can hold off the Twins.
 
5 – What’s it like being a Tigers fan living in Ohio? Do you root for Ohio teams in other sports or is it all Michigan?

I follow the Tigers because that’s how I was raised.  My Grandpa was born in Detroit and it was he and my Dad that taught me about baseball.  I loved listening to Ernie Harwell on WJR, which came in loud and clear down here.  Ohio is full of Ohio State fans.  Those same people are fans of the Indians and Browns.  In my family, however, it always always a good day when those teams lost. 

I fell in love with the Tigers thanks to my family, but I also follow Penn State, the Houston Rockets, and was a huge fan of the Houston Oilers.  I came to those teams on my own.  In large part because I have found Ohio fans to be some of the most obtuse fans I have ever encountered.  If their team is lousy, they will never admit it, and if it’s suggested that there could be improvement, then you must not be a real fan.  That is a poor line of thinking.  I don’t see a problem with recognizing when your team has flaws, it doesn’t make you a bad fan, it makes you reasonable. 

 There was a line in the movie “As Good as it Gets” when Jack Nicholson’s character (a writer) was asked how he wrote the female characters in his books so accurately.  His response fits well in describing Ohio fans.  He said, “I think of a man, and then I take away reason and accountability”.  It might make me unpopular in sports bars, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

-end-

So there you have it. Big thanks again to John for giving his time to opine. Make sure you check out his blog Always A Tiger, and feel free to browse the other half of this segment here.

Until next time kiddies….

Hazaa

Have a question or a comment? Are you a baseball blogger interested in being a part of a future five for fighting segment? Are you lonely and have access to obscure baseball statistics? leave your thoughts below or drop me a line at jelletlambie@gmail.com

Rain prevented Randy Johnson from getting a shot at winning his 300th game.  Doubleheader tomorrow – which makes me wonder if Johnson will face the A team or the B team for Washington?

Hamstring injuries?  Evan Longoria, Tampa, and Willy Taveras, Cincinnati.  Day-to-day.  Rox shortstop Troy Tulowitski’s hand will require an MRI.

I’d be nervous playing for Cleveland or the New York Mets – a DL trip is in your future.  Goodbye, Asdrubel Cabrera – 15 days to heal a strained shoulder.  Hurry back, Ramon Martinez – 15 days to heal a broken pinky finger.  Cleveland recalls Josh Barfield to replace Cabrera, while the Mets give Emil Brown a chance at a major league paycheck.

It’s not the swine flu, the Mets say, and Carlos Beltran should return to the lineup soon.  I’m not shaking his hand until next week, though, if Beltran homers.

Speaking of a bad case of the flu, Jake Peavy left his start after an inning yesterday and has a nasty virus of some kind.

You know the Yankees are feeling it when they decide to tempt fate and give Chien-Ming Wang a start and send Phil Hughes to the bullpen.  Both had been successful in their current roles, so why is Joe Girardi switching things up?

Tom Glavine’s release and an injury to Jorge Campillo opens the door to a Tommy Hanson start on Saturday for the Braves.  I’ll be watching – on the DVR later…  First, there’s this bachelor party…

Cardinal pitcher Kyle Lohse left his start against the Reds early – he has tightness in his forearm, near where he got hit by a pitch a few days ago.

Poor performances and a bad attitude may have Vincente Padilla on the waiver wire, according to FoxSports.  Officially, the Texas Rangers can’t say anything, but younger pitchers have fared better.

On the Mend?  Houston closer Jose Valverde feels great, and Tiger outfielder Marcus Thames is banging it around Toledo in his rehab stint.  Michael Cuddyer’s finger feels fine, which makes the Twins doubly happy.  Brandon Webb is throwing again, which is good news for Arizona.

And, buried at the bottom, Sammy Sosa says he’s going to officially retire, but remains mum as to his use of PEDs.

Every season is a different season, however there are trends in baseball. So today we’ll take a look at the career split stats for the current group of Detroit Tigers for the month of June and see at least on some level, what we might expect.

Let’s start with the hitters. As you would expect Magglio Ordonez and Placido Polanco lead the pack in most categories, as they have the most at-bats in the month of June historically. There are some surprises though, such as Marcus Thames having the highest slugging percentage of any current Tiger for the month of June. I’ve excluded Wilkin Ramirez and Matt Treanor as Ramirez has zero career June AB’s and Treanor will definitely not be playing this month. I included Guillen and Thames as both could return this month. Leaders are in bold text.

Several Tigers have seen their highest single month batting average numbers in June, including Adam Everett (.269), Maggs (.342), Curtis Granderson (.323) and Gerald Laird (.310), the only month Laird has ever hit .300 or better. Placido Polanco hits in June better than any month save August and has more RBI’s and runs scored in June than any other month of the season. Marcus Thames has hit more home runs in June (22) than any other month. The news isn’t all good though, as Carlos Guillen’s June batting average (.278) and OBP (.349) are the lowest and 2nd lowest of any month of his career historically.

It’s hard to discern any realiable data from Ryan Raburn, Jeff Larish, Clete Thomas, Josh Anderson and Dane Sardinha from this exercise as none of them have more than 33 career at-bats in June. Thomas is 10 for 23 in June and Anderson is 6 for 19, good starts I suppose.

Based on his play so far this season I would expect Ramon Santiago to considerably outpace his .208 career June average. Miguel Cabrera is a .302 hitter in June with an .888 OPS – I expect he’ll be even better this time around. Placido Polanco will need another strong June effort to get his 2009 average back in the neighborhood we are accustomed to.

Now let’s take a look at the pitchers. I have excluded Rick Porcello and Ryan Perry for the obvious reason, no career June MLB experience. I included Jeremy Bonderman as I expect he’ll be back, in some capacity, soon. Leaders and worst offenders (depending on category) are in bold.

Dontrelle paces the team in Wins, hits allowed and walks allowed, largely on the strength of the 194.1 innings he’s thrown, the most of any Tiger in the month of June.  Joel Zumaya owns the best June ERA (1.74), although over a much smaller sample of 20.2 innings pitched. Brandon Lyon has mediocre June numbers to put it gently, something that will need to change if the Tig’s hope to stay in contention. Note that the struggling Armando Galarraga boasts a 3.34 June ERA, something that will need to fall in line if he hopes to stay in the rotation going forward.

Who would have guessed that Nate Robertson had a 10-5 June record with a 3.71 ERA and a K:BB ratio of better than 2 to 1? Not me, but alas it’s true, historically speaking. In the case of Edwin Jackson we can only hope his dazzling ‘09 start leaves his previous June disasters behind.

So there you have it, the associated split statistics for the Detroit Tigers in the month of June. Some of these numbers are encouraging, some worrisome, others likely irrelevant considering the development players have seen and the current roles on the ball club.

Until next time kiddies….

Hazaa

Have a question or a comment? Leave your thoughts below or drop me a line at jelletlambie@gmail.com

Rick Ankiel made it back to the lineup on Sunday, sending Tyler Green back to AAA Memphis. Colby Rasmus was so good in his callup that Ankiel is going to move to right field for the time being. This coming weekend, Ryan Ludwick returns. This, coupled with the hopes that Chris Carpenter could stay healthy is the type of thing that baseball writers will look at and wonder if this means that the Cards will win the NL Central.

X-Rays show a broken bone in Brandon Phillips’ thumb, but the Reds second sacker hopes that he will not require a DL stint and will be able to play when the swelling goes down. His teammate, Joey Votto, remains day-to-day with dizziness tied to an inner ear infection. Saturday, Votto hit a pair of homers. Yesterday, he sat.

Rockies catcher Chris Iannetta’s hamstring injury is bad enough to require a DL stint. Yorvit Torrealba gets the starts while AAA Catcher Paul Phillips gets the call to the big leagues. Phillips can play a little, but at 32 isn’t really a long-term prospect. You Royals fans may remember Phillips in any of four stints with the parent club between 2004 and 2007.

Yankees reliever Brian Bruney remains sidelined with elbow pain, but tests have shown no damage. He’s day-to-day and slightly nervous. Joba Chamberlain won’t miss his next start after getting drilled with a liner in the first inning of his last start.

Welcome to the majors (again), David Price, who gets the start on Monday for the Rays.

Meanwhile, the Rays had both middle infielders dinged up on Sunday. Jason Bartlett injured his shin and ankle in a collision at second base with Dan Uggla and will sit a day. Akinori Iwamura injured his knee when Chris Coghlan barrelled into him to break up a double play. Aki gets an MRI and possibly a DL stint.

Coghlan’s slide was hard – Aki had stepped to the inside of the bag after taking the throw from pitcher Dan Wheeler, so Coghlan leaned over and into him right as Aki planted his left foot – didn’t look bad and he looked like he felt bad about it right away. What was amazing about the play, however, was that John Baker saw what had happened and never stopped running around third base. Don’t the umps usually call time when this happens? They didn’t, and Jason Bartlett alertly took the ball out of Aki’s hand, threw home, and nailed Baker at the plate for a rather odd 1-4-6-2 DP.

K-Rod’s back feels much better. Could be pitching by mid-week. Apparently, he’s a big fan of the muscle relaxors and pain killers.

A fun play yesterday… Indian Grady Sizemore tripled, but the throw from right field got past third base. So, Sizemore headed home. Reds Left Fielder Johnny Gomes had raced in to back up third (way alert), saved the ball before it got to the dugout, and fired home. Sizemore juked right and dove over the reach of the catcher but was ruled out.

However, the third baseman Adam Rosales was sort of still in the baseline, and because he pulled his leg out of Sizemore’s way (not sure that Sizemore would have hit him either way), the third base umpire ruled that Sizemore was entitled to home because of interference. Dusty Baker argued – but to be honest, the home plate umpire was on the wrong side of the play at the plate anyway – Sizemore had eluded the tag.

So, the right result, the wrong call, and all you get to see is Baker getting angry and Gomes getting nothing for a really alert and smart play. Baker, by the way, looks like he’s lost a little weight.

Anyway – the run tied the score, but the Reds won in extra innings.

One last Reds note – Homer Bailey was awful in his start and was dispatched back to AAA. Granted, it’s tough to stick in the majors when you only get one start, but Bailey has a 7.01 ERA in 18 MLB starts and hitters like him to the tune of a .311 average. Cincy called up catching prospect Wilkin Castillo, a mobile Dominican who might have a chance to stick in the bigs if he gets a chance. He looks like a Miguel Olivo type.

Rehab assignments? Rick VandenHurk (Marlins) off to Jupiter; Chad Bradford (Rays) off to Charlotte.

Marcus Thames is back in AAA for the Tigers, and the Giants chose to call up some catching reinforcements, bringing up Eli Whiteside. He’s a defensive wizard, I guess, because he can’t hit. Off to AAA Fresno? Pat Misch, who was allowing hitters to bat .375 against him. His days as a prospect are likely over.

This spring I decided to conduct a fantasy baseball experiment – to assemble a team of undrafted players and see if I could compete in a standard 10 team ESPN 5 x 5 roto league.

Every season a myriad of players arise from seemingly nowhere to become fantasy all-stars. Young players emerge from obscurity to win starting jobs and post breakout numbers. Veterans produce career best statistics with little or no warning. Injured has beens get healthy and reclaim their place amongst the games elite, or at least the upper middle class. It happens every year. The following draft season these names come off the board in the first 10 rounds.

Carlos Quentin was selected in fewer than 3% of drafts last spring. Had it not been for a late season wrist injury he likely would have won the AL MVP. It was but one year ago that Cliff Lee went undrafted in more than 95% of ESPN standard leagues. That’s right, the same Cliff Lee who won 22 games and the 2008 AL Cy Young Award. This year they have come off the draft boards at Average Draft Position (ADP) 65 and 69 respectively.

Rather than wait until next year to pay a premium for these 2009 diamonds in the rough I decided to draft them, this time around. So it was with this goal that I buried my face in scouting reports and minor league stat lines in the hopes of finding this years undrafted stars.

The rules were simple: I could only have on my roster players that were mathematically deemed to be undrafted in the majority of ESPN leagues. I used the ADP of 250 or lower as my guideline. There are 10 teams in a league, 25 players to a roster, therefore any player who held an ADP of 250 or worse was eligible to be on my squad. Any player at 250 or higher was off-limits.

So on draft day I took my fair share of heckling when I drafted guys like Rick Porcello and Edwin Jackson instead of Johan Santana and Jake Peavy, Travis Ishikawa instead of Albert Pujols and Pedro Feliz instead of Kevin Youkilis. You can check out the original lineup from my draft here, although the current roster looks very, very different. At any time you can see the current roster, see my transaction log and read the weekly recaps here.

I’ve made 34 roster changes since Opening Day. I know. Sometimes moves have been trying to catch lightning in a bottle (see: Emilio Bonifacio). Other times a move was replacing a struggling draftee (see: Cody Ransom, Alexi Casilla, Jose Contreras, etc, etc), and in one case dropping a player who passed away unexpectedly (see: Nick Adenhart). Through the course of this on-going roster renovation I have managed to scoop up some talent that has produced valuable fantasy numbers to date (see: Brandon Inge, Marco Scutaro, Denard Span, Nyjer Morgan, Ryan Franklin, etc).

With approx 5 weeks of the season in the books I’m currently in 9th place out of 10 teams with 36.5 of a possible 100 points. So far the experiment is a failure, but fear not – I’m in this all season and expect to end the campaign in the top half of the league at minimum. I have my work cut out for me in some offensive categories. I’m currently last in home runs, RBI’s and batting average. I trail the 9th place team in average by about 6 points and the 8th place team by about 9 points, so with a good couple of weeks I feel confident I can be at least 8th in that category by June 1, good for 3 points out of 10. From there I’ll continue to shuffle the lineup and hunt for quality unheralded hitters to improve my stock. Typically finding under the radar help in batting average is easier than other categories, like home runs.

The Undrafteds currently have 18 home runs, half of the total of the next worst team in the category. Let’s just say I had some serious disappointments among my draft class in this category, yes, I’m talking about you Travis Ishikawa, you Jordan Schafer and you Marcus Thames.

But, Kendry Morales is showing signs of life in the power categories, as is Marco Scutaro and of course Brandon Inge. I recently picked up Jose Guillen upon his return from injury, a player who has stroked 20 + home runs 6 of the last 7 years. Nick Johnson could be good for 20, he could be good for 8, we’ll see. The RBI chase is not terribly out of hand, I trail the 9th place team in the category by 7 RBI’s and the 8th place team by 14, so again there is a chance with some hot hitting that I could add a couple of points this month.

Stolen bases are a competitive category for my squad. I currently rank 6th but am within 3 steals of being tied for 3rd. With speedsters like Nyjer Morgan, Josh Anderson, Asdrubal Cabrera and Denard Span in the fold I believe I’ll be near the top by seasons end.

I’m also middle of the road in runs scored, also with potential to move up the leaderboard. It may take a few weeks to see a jump in the category, but I have faith that I can finish in the top 4 with a little luck and some wise lineup decisions.

As for the pitching, I currently have 24.5 of a possible 50 points in this half of the game, including the 4th ranked WHIP (1.289). I have 5 points each in wins and saves, with reason to be optimistic those numbers will increase. Through the magic of the free agent pool and some close watching I’ve scooped up Ryan Franklin (who is tied for the MLB lead in saves), Scott Downs who is subbing nicely for B.J. Ryan, Rafael Soriano and David Aardsma who will get occasional situational save chances along with LaTroy Hawkins (subbing for the injured Valverde) and Joe Beimel who may or may not get chances in Washington. Of course this would require the Nationals to win a game here and there, so I admit he’s a long shot.

My current starting rotation includes the aforementioned Porcello and Jackson (who has been spectacular), rookie Jordan Zimmerman, the surprising Jarrod Washburn and a streaming spot currently filled by Luke Hochevar, recently recalled by the Royals. Luke was 5-0 with a 0.90 ERA at AAA this season, I’m hoping some of that success finally translates to the big league level. In either case I have the luxury of cutting ties with a starting pitcher between starts, for the most part, in order to pick up a couple of daily spot starters a week. This should help my win and strikeout totals, hopefully it doesn’t crush my ERA and WHIP numbers – we’ll see. I’ve had as many as 8 starters on the roster but needed some pitching spots for my heavy reliever load in order to pile up some saves. I expect by mid-season I’ll be carrying 4 relievers and 6 starters.

Of the 9 fantasy baseball leagues I’m in (I know, I have a problem) this is the one I watch closest. I love the challenge. I love trying to prove traditional logic wrong. I’m fortunate that the majority of owners in the league don’t seem to scout the lesser owned players well. There seems to be a focus on big names and not too many moves being made overall, which usually gives me first crack at guys breaking out (see: Ryan Franklin, Marco Scutaro, Brandon Inge, etc). I dropped Kendry Morales shortly into the season due to his slow start but was able to scoop him back up when he started warming up. Replacement closers have been easy to acquire from the wire and in general I feel anytime I’m considering a pick-up that I’m only competing against myself for his services.

The strategy employed here is different from my modus operandi in other leagues, which is the fun part. As strange as it may sound the artifical barrier I’ve put up around my team of only allowing players with an ADP of 250 or worse on the day I select them helps make a lot of decisions easier. I wanted Freddy Sanchez on my team desperately, but his ADP was around 220, so he was a no-go. And so on and so on with many players. But for every hitter I’m denied by the rules there seems to be three more that I have first shot at. There are very few untouchables on my roster so change is a little easier to swallow. Plus, if a highly valued member of my squad goes in the tank for a month then I have the option of replacing him without considering the name value that goes along with it. I’m paying only for performance. As mentioned earlier I’ve started streaming a but with starting pitchers, because I know I can recycle the same 4 or 5 guys every couple of weeks without losing them to my competititors, at least for now.

In any event, I’ll keep you all updated throughout the season, again you can check in anytime on the current roster, read the weekly recaps and see the transaction log here.

Here’s hoping your fantasy season is going better than the undrafteds, so far.

Hazaa

With 27 games in the books the Tigers are officially 1/6th of the way through the 2009 season. Today we’ll take a look at the highlights and lowlights so far, the teams ranks and grades and a few projections and predictions going forward. I’ll be back with this same segment in another 27 games and every 1/6th of the season after. Let’s start with some of the baseline statistics.

Overall record: 14-13, 2nd place in the AL Central

Team Batting Average: .261, tied for 11th in the AL, tied for 17th in MLB

Team ERA: 4.16, 4th in the AL, tied for 11th in MLB

On the surface the Tigers appear to be the middle of the pack ballclub that their 1 game above .500 record indicates. Let’s look a little deeper.

Home Record: 8-5

Road Record: 6-8

Divisional Record: 6-5

Again, seems to be a pretty solid standing smack dab in the middle of mediocrity. Let’s look a little closer.

Day Games: 8-2

Night Games: 6-11

So the Tigers are a much better team under the natural light of day games than under the artificial light of night games, so far. Interesting, but hardly a strong enough indicator to predict their fate the rest of the season. Although it affirms what I believe, baseball is better played in the daytime, I digress. Let’s go a little bit deeper still.

1 run games: 2-3

last 10: 5-5

Starting Pitchers won/loss: 10-10

Relief Pitchers won/loss: 4-3

Interesting. The perception has been that the Tigers starters have been significantly better than the bullpen. The reality thus far is that both categories are essentially a coin flip in terms of wins and losses. How about the ERA?

Starters ERA: 4.36

Relievers ERA: 4.69

Neither number is particularly impressive or horrific, but the difference of 1/3 of a run is hardly monumental. It seems the starters and relievers are equally yoked numerically. How about the hitters? Let’s dig a little deeper there.

Vs. right handed pitching (614 at-bats): .256, 22 HR, 99 RBI’s, 102 runs scored, .326 on-base %, .734 OPS (on-base + slugging %)

Vs. left handed pitching (288 at-bats): .271, 8 HR, 36 RBI’s, 38 runs scored, .348 on-base %, .775 OPS

The Tigers have a higher batting average, on-base % and OPS vs. lefties, interesting. The sample size is smaller of course, so let’s break it down a little more and compare.

At-bats per vs. right handers: 1 HR every 27.9 AB’s, 1 RBI every 6.2 AB’s, 1 run every 6 AB’s

At-bats per vs. left handers: 1 HR every 36 AB’s, 1 RBI every 8 AB’s, 1 run every 7.6 AB’s

Examined under this light the situation is still murky, but getting clearer. While the team garners hits more frequently against left handed pitching the boys in the old english D have a higher contact to damage ratio against righties. The Tigers are simply more productive against right handed pitching, they score runs more frequently, which last time I checked is paramount in winning baseball games. So far it has taken the Tigers 1.6 more at-bats against lefties than righties to score 1 run. Doesn’t sound like much, until you consider the following names:

Mark Buehrle, John Danks, Matt Thornton, Cliff Lee, Aaron Laffey, Francisco Liriano, Glen Perkins – These are the prominent left handed pitchers within the AL Central that the Tigers will see a healthy dose of this season, plus assorted other less than prominent relievers and players yet to be called up or acquired via trade and left handed pitchers from the other teams on the schedule. We saw what Mark Buehrle did to the Tigers last night. We saw what Liriano did to the Tigers on May 4th. Cliff Lee took the loss against the Tigers on May 3rd, due in large part to Justin Verlander putting on a dominating show. In that start however the Tigers compiled 12 hits against Lee, but could plate only 3 runs.

The Tigers have faced a left handed starting pitcher 10 times thus far. While Detroit is 6-4 in those games the associated numbers tell a different story. In those ten games opposing left handed starters threw a combined 63 and 2/3 innings, allowed 64 hits and 35 walks to Tigers hitters, but surrendered only 28 earned runs, or a 4.02 ERA. If you subtract Aaron Laffey’s awful start (he’s out of the rotation now) on May 2nd the numbers come out to 60 and 1/3 innings, 58 hits and 20 walks with 23 earned runs allowed, or a 3.43 ERA. of the 78 baserunners the Tigers have had in those 9 games against left handed starting pitchers only 29% have scored, meaning 71% of those baserunners have been stranded.

The Tigers will face a significant number of lefty starters in the remaining 5/6th of the season. If the team can’t find a way to plate more runners against them it could mean a long summer.

Let’s take a look at the studs and duds so far among the 2009 Tiger roster. We’ll start with the hitters.

The Studs:

Brandon Inge: .278, 8 HR, 19 RBI’s, 20 runs scored. Brandon seems to have found an offensive groove with his modified stance and approach. He’s been his usual strong defensive self and has played a key part in numerous victories.

Miguel Cabrera: .390, 7 HR, 22 RBI’s, 17 runs scored. He’s a beast at the plate and is quickly and quietly becoming one of the better defensive first basemen in the AL.

Curtis Granderson: .259, 9 HR, 19 RBI’s, 20 runs scored, 3 stolen bases. After a slow start Curtis is finding his mojo. His power stroke has been out early and often and he’s starting to run a bit. He’s played excellent defense as well, no surprise there.

The Duds:

Magglio Ordonez: .225, 2 HR, 12 RBI’s, 10 runs scored. Maggpipes has struggled with the stick again this April. His .282 career average in April is his lowest of any month. He’s seen time at DH, yielding to better defenders in right field more than once.

Carlos Guillen: .200, 0 HR, 6 RBI’s, 11 runs scored. It seems an aching shoulder has limited Carlos so far at the plate, at least that’s the explanation from the team upon placing him on the DL recently. He’s been a defensive liability in left field to say the least.

Gerald Laird: .236, 1 HR, 6 RBI’s, 13 runs scored. Gerald is in a two week funk at the moment that has sapped his batting average tremendously. He’s been solid behind the dish defensively, not sparkling, but solid.

Ryan Raburn: .063, 0 HR, 1 RBI, 2 runs scored. Offensively his numbers have spoken, he’s been downright abysmal at the plate in the 8 games he’s played and just as bad in the outfield. He’s supposed to be the answer to Josh Anderson against left handed pitching, so far the answer is wrong.

As for the pitchers….the studs are a little less consistent at this point.

Studs:

Armando Galarraga: 3-2, 4.08 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, 29 K’s, 16 BB’s in 35 and 1/3 innings pitched. He’s not your mondo, he’s not my mondo, he’s Armando. His first 4 starts were excellent, the last 2…well, not so good.

Bobby Seay: 0-0, 8 holds, 2.16 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, 4 K’s, 2 BB’s in 8 and 1/3 innings pitched. He doesn’t get the glory of the starters or the closer, but he’s arguably been the Tigers most reliable hurler so far.

Justin Verlander in his last 2 starts: 2-0, 0.64 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, 20 K’s, 3 BB’s in 14 innings pitched. This version of Verlander has been unhittable. He’s reminding people that he is the ace of this staff and showing them why.

Edwin Jackson: 1-2, 3.08 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 28 K’s, 10 BB’s in 38 innings pitched. Meet the hard luck loser of the 2009 Tigers. In his 4 quality starts so far (6+ innings pitched, 3 or fewer earned runs, more K’s than walks) he’s 0-1. In 3 starts where he has surrendered 1 earned run or less he has 1 win. If the boys start hitting for him he’ll have a heck of a record.

Duds:

Justin Verlander in his first 4 starts: 0-2, 9.00 ERA, 1.71 WHIP, 25 K’s and 9 BB’s in 21 innings pitched. I believe yuck is appropriate. His high K numbers hinted that he was close to finding his way, hopefully he stays on the right path going forward.

Brandon Lyon: 1-2, 0 saves, 0 holds, 5.11 ERA, 1.54 WHIP, 4 K’s, 7 BB’s in 12 and 1/3 innings pitched. Mike Illitch paid 4 million dollars for this? I would have worked a lot cheaper than that. Every time he enters a game I get a sharp pain in my eyes.

The Eddie Bonine/Nate Robertson experiment: combined the two are 1-0 with a 7.50 ERA, a 1.89 WHIP, 12 K’s and 8 walks in 18 innings pitched. Long relief has been a problem and these two are chiefly responsible. The fact that Nate has a win reinforces the theory that the sun even shines on a dogs ass somedays.

As for Ryan Perry, Joel Zumaya, Rick Porcello, Zach Minor, Fernando Rodney and the rest – they fall somewhere between good, bad and not enough information currently available. Suffice it to say the staff has some promise, and some holes.

How about the performance of the coaches and the organization? Glad you asked.

Jim Leyland is in the final year of his contract as manager of the Tigers. At this point, I can’t say if he’ll be back next year or not. I can say however that the answer to that question is entirely tied in to how this team performs in the next few months. The honeymoon ride that came along with the magical 2006 run is over. His bargaining position for an extension has ostensibly become a game of what have you done for me lately?

On a few occassions he’s left a starting pitcher in the game when it was clear said starting pitcher just didn’t have it. This is not a new trend, Leyland lives by the pact that sometimes a starting pitcher will get shelled and it’s better to save the bullpen than to rescue him. I disagree, but it’s his team, for now. Leyland and the teams upper management decided to try and salvage Carlos Guillen’s bat by moving him around the diamond over the last year. If his year-to-date performance in left field and at the plate is any indicator, that experiment has failed.

The outfield has been an ever changing collection of mix and match plug-ins based primarily on the unbreakable law in Leylands head of the lefty/right matchup. Curtis Granderson is now splitting time between the leadoff spot and the 5 hole. Josh Anderson plays against righties, Ryan Raburn plays against lefties. With Marcus Thames and now Carlos Guillen on the DL and Matt Joyce in Tampa Bay the skipper and the GM have been tinkering with a variety of square pegs and round holes hoping to make something fit.

When the Tigers acquired Josh Anderson from the Braves on the eve of the opener we were told he would provide speed on the basepaths and increased range in the outfield to help Curtis Granderson patrol the massive Comerica Park outfield. So far he’s done just that and more, when he’s been given the chance to play. Despite his success Jim Leyland has routinely benched him against left handed pitching in favor of Carlos Guillen and Ryan Raburn, who both can hit from the right side. The logic is as old as the game itself, create an opposite pitching arm/batting side matchup in the hopes that you’ll get more offense. So far Guillen and Raburn are a combined 5-44 against left handers, that equates to a .114 batting average. Josh Anderson is a career .258 hitter against lefties. He’s a superior defender to both alternatives and provides the aforementioned speed that has lead to 6 stolen bases and 11 runs in 51 at-bats.

Fellow off-season acquisition Adam Everett was billed as a significant defensive upgrade to the departed Edgar Renteria and the backup Ramon Santiago. Everett has committed 4 errors in 64 chances for a .938 fielding % to date. Santiago has 2 errors in 53 chances for a .962 fielding % in response. Offensively Everett is hitting .259 with 1 home run, 10 RBI’s, 10 runs and 11 K’s in 58 at-bats. Santiago is hitting .256 with 1 home run, 12 RBI’s, 4 runs scored and 14 K’s in 39 at-bats. Sounds like a wash to me at this point. For the record Renteria (now with the Giants) is hitting .253 with 2 home runs, 11 RBI’s and 16 runs scored with 15 K’s in 91 at-bats. He has committed 2 errors in 102 chances for a .980 fielding %. Don’t take this to mean I want Edgar back, I don’t. He’s an NL player if I’ve ever seen one and it was the right move to send him packing. I’m only stating that the replacements have yet to provide any notable improvement. I believe Everett is a better defender than he has shown thus far, let’s hope that turns out to be the case.

The Matt Joyce for Edwin Jackson trade appears destined to go down in history as a swap that helped both clubs fill a need. At this point it’s fair to say the Tigers got the better end of the deal. While Jackson has been excellent, Joyce has struggled in a backup role with the Rays, hitting .100 in 10 at-bats. Both players have the ability to help their teams win games and should blossom going forward if given the chance to play. I’m going to count this one in the win/loss column as a big win. With Jeremy Bonderman and Dontrelle Willis out of the picture to date Edwin Jackson has anchored the staff and given the team a chance to win nearly every outing, job well done Mr. Dombrowski.

Overall the team offense has produced 140 runs in 27 games, or 5.19 per game, good for 13th in Major League Baseball. The team has surrendered 4.88 total runs per game, good for 13th best in the majors as well. I suppose there you have it, the Tigers are approximately the 13th best team in baseball, just about the average. Whether expectations made us think they would be better or worse at this point is a matter for debate another time, now it’s time for the grades.

The Grades:

Offense: B- The Tigers have outscored their oppenents 140-132 going into tonights game against the Indians. More often than not the team is producing enough runs to win and has shown the ability to dominate by scoring 9 or more runs 6 times out of 27 contests. The Tigers have scored 6 runs or more 10 times and have the potential to be a powerful offensive club for the balance of the season. Veterans like Magglio, Carlos Guillen, Gerald Laird and Placido Polanco are currently performing below their career marks – to improve this grade that will need to change.

Defense: C+ I’m not including pitching here, we’ll address that next. The Tigers have committed 16 errors in 986 chances for a .984 fielding %. Questionable scoring decisions have kept this number lower than it should be. The team has turned 76 double plays and surrendered 15 un-earned runs, or more than half a run per game (0.56 to be exact). Gerald Laird has thrown out 4 of 10 runners attempting to steal, or 40% – he has a 4.57 catchers ERA. Overall the Tigers have been average with frequent web gems and blunders both.

Pitching: C+ Consistency is the key ingredient in this grade. While both the starters and the relief core have shown the ability to get hitters out and shut down opposing lineups the group has also laid some eggs. Both Verlander and Galarraga have flip-flopped between unhittable and unthinkable while the bullpen has been mediocre overall. Brandon Lyon, Juan Rincon and Nate Robertson need to demonstrate the consistent ability to get hitters out and the rotation needs help from the likes of Willis, Bonderman and whoever else can get it done every 5 days. If Verlander, Jackson and Galarraga can pitch through the next 1/6th of the season the way I know they can this group could be among the best in the game – if not, it could be a long summer.

Management: C- I’m including coaching and the front office here. Nightly lineup and bullpen decisions continue to cost this team wins while the front office did a passable job in improving the roster. For every early season success I want to credit to the coaches I see a disappointment they have yet to correct. If Dontrelle can finally help this team and Everett lives up to his reputation this grade will rise next time.

Overall: C+ 14-13 is what it is, just a tick above average. The record over the next month will tell the ultimate tale of this teams performance.

Going forward….

In the next 27 games the Tigers will face the following opponents – Cleveland (3), Minnesota (3), Oakland (3), Texas (3), Colorado (3), Kansas City (3), Baltimore (4), Boston (3) and Los Angeles (2). 13 of these games will be on the road, 14 at Comerica Park. The combined record as of today of these teams is 121-132.

Question marks hang over two spots in the starting rotation in that time. Dontrelle Willis will take the mound against Minnesota on 5/13, his first start of the season. By the time I write the next installment of this review series he could have made as many as 5 starts or as few as 1. When will Jeremy Bonderman be back with the back club and what will he have to offer? Who knows. As the weather gets warmer the ball flies farther, can the offense take advantage of this? Can the pitching staff prohibit this?

I’m predicting the Tigers will be 16-11 in their next 27 games, bringing their season mark to 30-24. Where that ranks among the AL Central has as much to do with the remaining teams in it as it does with how the Tigers play, but I expet they’ll be in the hunt for the division lead.

Other predictions (sure to be wrong):

Placido Polance will be hitting .300 or better at the 54 game mark. Miguel Cabrera will be among the top 5 in average, home runs and RBI’s at that point. Justin Verlander will be 3-2 in his next 5 starts with an ERA under 3.50. Brandon Lyon will end up on the DL before the all-star break – it’s the fancy new way to shut a veteran down for a couple of weeks to figure out what’s wrong with him without outright sending him to the minors. Marcus Thames will return but not find his stroke, mostly due to lingering abdominal issues, slightly due to a lack of playing time – I expect him back in the fold around May 25th. And finally, Ryan Raburn will be sent down to Toledo, where he belongs.

Have a question, comment or idea? Post yor thoughts below or drop me a line at jelletlambie@gmail.com

Big thanks to Lee over at the Tiger Tales Blog for linking over to this post. Lee keeps a regularly updated and highly informative blog on the Tigers, you should check it out here.

Hazaa

Marcus Thames will be headed to the Tigers DL.  This will give the Tigers less power and more versatility with the call-up of Ryan Raburn who can play decent just about anywhere on the field except for catcher, first base, and pitcher.  Raburn will also hit for a better batting average and you will see him on base more.  But losing Thames means the Tigers best pinch hitter, power guy, and one of our best clutch guys is gone.  This move will hurt and help the Tigers which means that it won’t effect them big.  Thames will be a missed part of the line-up but the Tigers will get to see what Josh Anderson has and I think they will like it.  Will it hurt the Tigers: In some ways but thay won’t be effected majorly.

Here are some Tigers notes, I also will have a computer all vacation!!!!

• I’m doing a versus with Josh Anderson and Marcus Thames on who should start, Thames brings power and big stats while Anderson brings speed, hits and a small ball mentality.  I like Thames a bit more due to his experience and would pick him, but we have a good battle going.
• Brandon Inge’s new stance is great, I love it, it gives him more power, a shorter swing and better swing, I think he could hit 30 homers this year, he’s a good player on D and with his bat.
• Edwin Jackson made a great start today and should keep it up, the Tigers got a steal on him.  Jackson should be able to keep an ERA under 3.70 this year with fifteen wins
• I just want to say the  Tigers only concern is their pitching, which is bad, but it can improve.  They just need to find their groove.  Lyon needs to work on his pitches, he is a good reliever but isn’t showing it.