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#Tigers' Cabrera goes really deep https://t.co/PSVuI4ClCg

— FOX Sports Detroit (@FOXSportsDet) June 21, 2016

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Feelings on the Tigers potentially trading David Price? Personally, I think that if they get rid of their ace, even if it's understandable, it will lead to the Tigers being mediocre for an extended period of time.

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After seeing the news that Max Scherzer is leaving the Tigers for the Nationals I had a thought: From the perspective of a GM, is there a more difficult position to manage in all of sports than a starting pitcher in major league baseball? Quarterback would seem to be close, but quarterback seem to be more consistent once you have a good one. Outside of the rare example (Matt Schaub), you don't see good quarterbacks go from being good to average or bad from one season to the next. You expect that once you have a good quarterback he'll be good for eight years or so. The MLB pitcher who is good for eight years seems to be exceedingly rare. I would think that would drive a GM crazy.

The Not-So-Mighty Joba

 I'd say this is a 38 second summary of the Tigers game this afternoon:

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Even if Ian Kinsler (Doesn't that sound like a name for a Bond villain?) is mediocre for the rest of the season, has he already made the trade for him look brilliant?

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After the huge contract extension for Miguel Cabrera and the total misfire on the giant Prince Fielder contract are you starting to have doubts about Dave Dombrowski? I understand why you'd want to do an extension, but that number for that many years is insane.

RE: World Series - Lions - UM/MSU Game

World Series: I wasn't rooting for the Sox, but it doesn't bother me too much either that they won. They're generally pretty likeable, though Victorino really bugs me for some reason, and they deserved it. I also don't know that the Tigers would have been able to pull it off with the bullpen injuries and Cabrera's injury and seeming them lose the series to the Cardinals might have been worse that the loss to the Sox.

Lions: I heard on the radio that when the Lions got the ball at the end of the game they only had a 1% chance of winning, yet I wasn't surprised at all when they managed it. I said earlier in the season to my Dad that there was no outcome to a Lions game that could shock me. They're so talented and so inconsistent that anything is possible.

The Game: On paper MSU should win this one. The offense has improved from utterly pathetic to just very poor and the defense is legitimately good. However, they have a tendency to give up the big play, and Gardner is good at that, but you'd also think there's a good chance he throws a pick six. Whatever the outcome, I'm pretty sure the loser is going to feel like they should have come out on top.

World Series - Lions - UM/MSU Game

It's gotten a little easier to watch the World Series after the Tigers blew it. But, I'll stick with my personal thought: Watching Boston in the WS is like seeing your ex-girlfriend with the guy you hate the most. By the way, when Boston wins this WS, does it make the Tiger choke job hurt more? Just think, that could have been us winning the title this year!


Lions, what an unbelievable win. The HUGE Show Monday question: Where does Sunday's victory rank in Lions history? That's a great question. Some would say "no where, because it didn't mean anything." And that's just it, the Lions don't play any meaningful games, and if they do, they lose. The only meaningful games they've had are playoff games and Lambeau Field and they lose. So, if you are a franchise that doesn't win many games, let alone a come-from-behind win with 1:02 remaining, no timeouts, and needing a touchdown, then Sunday's win has to be ranked pretty high. And, it DID mean something: the difference between being 5-3 and 4-4. 5-3 is playoff bound. 4-4...forces you to go 5-3 in the second half of the season for a shot at the playoffs with a 9-7 record.

So, the fact they played a meaningful game and won in dramatic fashion has to be one of their all-time greatest wins.


Saturday's game at East Lansing: As a UM fan, I'm nervous. Very nervous. Game is at MSU. Advantage: MSU. MSU has by far the better defense. Advantage: MSU. MSU has gotten better lately. UM has the better overall offense, but MSU appears to have the better running game. Advantage: MSU. MSU is favored by 6.5 points. I'd like to have seen this game played in September and November. It would probably be two different results. All I know is the game will come down to turnovers...and Devin Gardner is a TO machine.

I Know How This Movie Ends...

...and it doesn't end well.

I'm pretty sure we've all seen this movie before:

2006 - Great year, great team, and got HOT going into the playoffs. World Series comes and they get embarrassed

2009 - Great year, choke the final 10 days, fail to make playoffs in Game 163 at Minnesota

2011 - Great year, unbelievable team, slammed by Texas in ALCS

2012 - Underachieving year until September 15 when they finally pull ahead to win Division. Get HOTT in the playoffs. World Series comes and they get embarrassed.

2013 - Basically in 1st place all year, yet never pulled away and then nearly gave it away in the final two weeks. (Were in sole possession of 1st place since July 3.) September 15 comes and they forget how to hit. Advance to ALCS and still can't hit.

I know how this movie ends.

By the way, will anyone EVER see playoff pitching like we've seen in the last four Tiger games, let alone the ALCS, again? Verlander...One ER in the last 23 IP and the Tigers are 1-2.

Is the glass half-full or half-empty? The Tigers were down 1-2 with game #4 at Detroit in a 5 game series with a hot Oakland. Tigers are down 1-2 with game #4 at Detroit in a 7 game series with a Boston team that can't hit.

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Anyone have Dave Dombrowski's number? I'd be willing to be fat and strike out on three pitches for much less than what Prince Fielder makes.

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What's the etiquette for a baseball announcer dealing with a no-hitter? I assume he shouldn't actually say "no-hitter" but can he mention pitcher X has not allowed a hit? Or do you just let the box score do the job for you?

"The greatest hitter living..."

The WSJ has a fantastic article today about Miguel Cabrera and hitting in baseball. It has a number of interesting facts and great quotes, but the section below is my favorite:

"The greatest hitter living can't hit bad balls well," [Ted] Williams wrote. "A good hitter can hit a pitch that is over the plate better than a great batter can hit a questionable ball."

Unless the great batter is Cabrera. This season his slugging percentage (total bases divided by at-bats) is a frightening .590 on pitches that pass between him and the inside edge of the plate. That is, inside pitches that shouldn't be swung at, never mind hit.

The downside? You're not going to learn much that will help your players hit better because the big takeaway is that Cabrera is a freak.

"We're watching one of the greatest right-handed hitters who ever lived."

Jayson Stark of ESPN has a fascinating article from last week comparing Miguel Cabrera to some of the all-time great hitters in baseball. There's a lot of numbers in the article, but the short version is that Cabrera compares well with anyone worth mentioning. It makes me wish I had the chance to see a few more Tigers games.

2013 Projections

Thought everyone might be interested in Accuscore's 2013 projections. They should make you feel hopeful (which might be a bad thing) because they project the Tigers to win the division and the World Series.

Triple Crown

Every Miguel Cabrera homerun and RBI from the past season:

Who was that?

Check out the guy in the front row at the the 00:46-00:47 mark on the timeline.  Matt freakin' Prieskorn.

You only see him for literally a split second.  He is sitting down with a Tiger hat on with a greenish fleece.  You can't see the hat because he's looking up.  When Avila makes the actual catch, Matt is off-screen to the right on the video.  And no, those weren't his seats.  He got booted from some other seats and on escape, found an open seat in the front row.  Less than 2 minutes later, this play happens.  Unbelievable timing.

Where was I?  My dad and I were in the same section, five rows behind.  We were technically in the 6th row behind the Yankee dugout.  All we had were Standing Room Only tickets.  We didn't get inside the stadium until about 30 minutes before first pitch, which is way to late if you want a decent SRO spot.  (Side note, I went to the Verlander v Sox game on Sunday night when they tied the division for 1st place on Sept. 2.  We had SRO "seats."  We got to the stadium about one hour before first pitch and stood in the lower bowl behind the homeplate section.  So, for $17.50, I had a darn good "seat" even though I stood for 4 hours.)

I told my dad since we probably won't find a good section to stand, let's go behind the dugout and pick an open row that gives us room to move left or right when the real ticket owners show up.  I just wanted my dad to experience one pitch of JV. At about 15 minutes before 1st pitch, I suggested we move back one row because "ours" was filling up and that we might as well sit down because it looks like we'll be standing the rest of the night 500 feet away from the plate.

Less than two minutes later, a college-age looking girl in front of my dad said, "We have those seats, they won't be coming tonight, enjoy the game."  She was referring to the exact same seats we were sitting in.  What are the odds?  My dad may never see JV pitch again or another ALCS game, but he'll probably never forget that night.

300

Miguel Cabrera hit his 300th career homerun is today's win over the White Sox.

100 mph On Pitch 116

Justin Verlander had his fastball working deep into the game last night as he was still throwing 100 mph in the eighth inning. One of these fastballs broke Gordon Beckham's bat. On a check-swing. Video here.

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The Tigers are above .500 again after beating the Royals.

9 Years, $214 Million

Prince Fielder is exchanging bratwurst for Little Caesar's Pizza, according to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick. You can buy a lot of pizza for $214 million.