Not gonna do a lot of links because I’m pretty sure most people are already enjoying a three-day weekend.Nonetheless, for those loyal readers who haven’t gone up north already, here’s some news and stats.

• There was some discussion among the online fans that this weekend could be Magglio Ordonez’s “last stand.” He always seemed to hit well in Minneapolis in the past — he’s got a .376 avg, .443 OBP, .743 SLG line for 2006-09 there. If he can’t hit in the HHH Dome, does he have any hope?
• So Ian asks in a poll if this is, in fact, Ordonez’s last stand. I voted no. I think the Tigers will think about things over the All-Star Break and maybe release him concurrent with a trade. A good showing shouldn’t save him. A bad showing shouldn’t result in an immediate release.  (Bless You Boys)
• Big JP writes, however, that it’s time for the Tigers to move on, and Detroit may as well rip the bandage off the wound quickly. (Always a Tiger)
• So how big is this weekend? Some might want to paint it as huge. The Tigers have lost four of six. They’ve seen their biggest lead in the division (5 games) drop by half (2-1/2 ahead of Chicago) in a week. And now they’re entering a snake pit. Sounds big, right?
• And it is important they play well. But before the all-star break, unless you’re a team on the brink, I refuse to subscribe to the “this is a huge series” line of thought, because the series just get bigger and bigger in August and September. Billfer agreed with that today. (Detroit Tigers Weblog)
• It’s big. You’re playing a division rival — the chief division rival when it’s all said and done, I suspect. But being swept would not be the end of the world, as much as it would suck. The Tigers play three more games in Minneapolis the rest of the year, and host the Twins seven times at a ballpark where the Tigers have had a sizable home-field advantage this year. There’s still a lot of baseball to be played.
• Still, if Tigers starter Luke French could find a way to win today, I’d feel a lot better overall.
• Beat writer John Lowe has the lowdown on French and a preview of tonight’s game. (Freep)
• La Velle E. Neal III, whose name must need two lines alone on the byline, explores how the Tigers remade themselves, in previewing the weekend series for the Twins’ audience. (StarTribune)
• Just a few notes from things I left out of the recaps of the Oakland series. Sometimes you just move on too quickly. Yes, the Tigers only scored one run in two of the three games at the Oakland Coliseum. But let’s remember they weren’t exactly facing bad pitchers, even if they’re not the biggest names out there. Brett Anderson was a much-coveted pitching prospect that Billy Beane brought to town when he traded Danny Haren to the Diamondbacks. The kid had more than a strikeout per inning in the minors. He’s not starting off as fast as some rookie pitchers, but he’s probably going to turn out fine. And Dallas Braden has been Oakland’s stud all season and has held a lot of good offenses down. So it’s not like the Tigers lost to some scrubs.
• Steve Kornacki of Booth Newspapers explores whether the Tigers can remain in first place. (MLive)
• J. Ellet has a few trade suggestions for Dave Dombrowski. Right now, I’d be happy with any of the four. (Eye of the Tigers)
• Mike R details how Joel Zumaya has relied on his fastball too much and why that might be he isn’t getting results lately. (Fire Jim Leyland)
• The Tigers are still above 50/50 and favorites to win the division, according to Baseball Prospectus’ PECOTA-based computations. (Baseball Prospectus)
• The Tigers had five prospects make the Eastern League All-Star roster:  relief pitcher Josh Rainwater, catcher Alex Avila, first baseman Ryan Strieby and outfielders Brennan Boesch and Deik Scram.
• They’re not exactly top-tier prospects, but that honor might grab the attention of some potential trade-partner.
• From the Tigers game notes, I find the July 26 game against the White Sox has been selected by ESPN for Sunday Night Baseball. It’s in Detroit but I fear the curse of ESPN Sunday Night games.
• Also from the game notes, I find Brandon Inge is sixth in the league in AB/HR with 13.91, and that Ryan Raburn is hitting .312 with 17 runs scored, six doubles, five home runs and 18 RBI in his last 32 games.
• Four Tigers All-Stars? Probably not going to happen. (The rosters are announced 1 p.m. Sunday on TBS). But the Detroit News thinks it’s at least possible: Edwin Jackson, Justin Verlander, Inge and possible longshot Rick Porcello (or maybe Miguel Cabrera?) are the name Tom Gage threw out there. (Detroit News)
• Finally, here’s a piece on Clete Thomas from the Toledo Blade. It has some interesting facts, such as how he models his game after his namesake. (Toledo Blade)

I guess that was a lot after all!

Relief pitchers are unpredictable. Sometimes they’re good. Sometimes they’re bad. Sometimes they’re Chris Osgood.

Year-to-year, you never know what you’re going to get, which makes the job of general manager pretty hard. The Tigers went from a total lock-down pen in 2006 to — eeeeyuuuch –  a disaster waiting to happen in 2007. The Cleveland Indians thought they put the finishing touches on a pretty good pen this offseason, only to find it is more porous than a sliced net.

Naturally, the Tigers’ pen is no different. It entered 2009 as looking bad at worst, average at best. Yet the record shows if the Tigers lead a ballgame late, they’ve got a really good chance of winning it (33-3 when leading after six innings, 38-3 when leading after seven innings, 39-0 when leading after eight innings). Given the Tigers are not a team going out there and blowing out teams — and they’ve played in 22 one-run games), that’s not too shabby.

So should the Tigers rest on their laurels? No. definitely not.

But do they need a big overhaul? The gut says no, but I think I think there’s some valid reasons people might debate that. You can point to Fernando Rodney’s perfect 17-for-17 save record this year and say, Hey, that’s a pretty good closer there. Who doesn’t want a guy who’s still perfect a week from the all-star break? (Maybe someone afraid of a 6.75 ERA and WHIP of 2 in June?)

Who wouldn’t want Joel Zumaya’s 103 mph heater coming out of the bullpen in the eighth inning? (Maybe someone who fears a setup man with a WHIP of 2.51 and more walks than strikeouts in June?)

So what is the Tigers’ bullpen? A disaster waiting to happen? Experiencing a speedbump? Better today than it was a week ago? Maybe it’s all of those things.

Just impressions here, off the top of my head, nothing too stat-heavy:

• I feel like the bullpen wasn’t as bad as it seemed in June. The season is long. When it’s over, you can grab a month at random and find some great stats, or you can grab one and find some pretty bad ones. There’s certainly some issues that popped up — Nate Robertson’s lack of contribution, Ryan Perry’s wildness, Zumaya’s wildness — and fortunately, a couple of them were dealt with.
• Perry, by the way, has three walks in six innings at Triple-A Toledo so far.
• So I feel like the bullpen probably is better now than it was a month ago. Brandon Lyon entered the month with a 6.43 ERA and came out of it at 3.89. I don’t think he’s nearly as bad as he had exhibited his first few weeks in the Old English D. Maybe he’s not a 0.56 ERA guy that showed up in June, but he seems to be pitching a lot better than he had been and hopefully that carries over. Fu-Te Ni has shown he can strike batters out and fills the lefty-one-out-guy roll pretty well. He’s an upgrade over Robertson. I’m not sure yet about Freddy Dolsi, but so far he’s earned his keep. with a 1.07 WHIP in 4-2/3 innings.
• But what’s up with Zumaya? He left the dugout after facing Oakland on Tuesday with some sort of pitching thumb problem. He’d been playing with it a bit between pitches, drew a crowd when he reached the dugout, then left for the clubhouse. I haven’t read anything about it. Maybe that’s an answer for what’s wrong with him lately. (Maybe it’s not.) We do know he has to be more effective and should possibly be moved down to the seventh inning with Lyon in the eighth, for the time being anyway.
• I don’t feel like it’s in the Tigers’ best interest to make a big splash trade when it comes to closer, considering they have so consistently scored so few runs. (43.5 percent of their 78 games, they’ve scored three runs or fewer, Eye of the Tigers tells us.)
• If there’s a smaller trade to be made, cool. But given all the other issues the Tigers have right now, I think the bullpen really shouldn’t be a high priority.

Athletics 5, Tigers 1 (box)
Record: 43-35 (first place)

Justin Verlander gave up two home runs for four runs in six innings. I’d just like to get that bit of key information out of the way right now, because the Athletics’ half of each inning was not all that important to the result of this game.

For the second time in three games (and the third time in five), the Tigers were held to one run. That’s no way to win games, boys. The fact the Tigers went 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position (5-f0r-26 for the series) probably contributed to that. They only left five on base today, but a couple of double plays hit into helped keep that total a bit lower.

It is patently obvious this team needs to trade for a bat sooner than later, unless it expects to add to its shutout total by quite a bit.

The blame can be spread pretty much everywhere in the lineup — to everyone but Adam Everett and Gerald Laird, anyway. The top four in the order went 1-for-14 with a walk, four strikeouts and one double play grounded into. Most others were hardly better. Magglio Ordonez continued his slide, going 0-for-4 with a double play ground into and a strikeout. (For the series he was 2-for-12, and one of those hits could have been caught if anyone but Jack Cust was in right field for Oakland). Benching Ordonez again is probably the best decision the Tigers could make. Then again, the same could be said for quite a few of his teammates right now, too.

I’d like to believe there’s a little help at Triple-A Toledo. The leading candidate to return to the Tigers is obviously Clete Thomas, who started off strong when he returned to the Mudhens, but has succombed to too many strikeouts and too few hits in recent games. Still, I’d rather see Thomas and Ryan Raburn as the corner outfielders right now. And other than that, what other options for changes are there? Placido Polanco has a pair of home runs this road trip and his on-base percentage has inched its way back up to .347 for the month of June. The shortstops have performed admirably. Right now, it’s about getting some help at the corner outfield positions, and guys who should be hitting better just have to hit better.

But it’s not the end of the world. These Tigers are a really streaky, roller coaster bunch. They’ve proven that again and again this season. Win 7 in a row, lose four in a row, win seven in a row, lose four of six. It’s unfortunate they are going into the HHH Metrodome with a chance to come out of it in a first-place tie after leading the division by five games only mere days ago. But we’ll see. At any moment, they might turn it around again. Who’s to say if that starts Friday, or later?

Still, the offense needs help, the sooner the better.

The Washington Nationals are “open for business” their GM says. How good would Josh Willingham look right now?

You know how the Tigers never seem to take the obvious route when making a midseason trade? This post is in that spirit. I don’t find any of these really all that likely, either because the player’s team might not want to give him up, the team might ask too much, or it’s just not a great fit. But I’ll throw out the names anyway.

Five outfielders:

• Juan Pierre — He filled in great for the Dodgers while Manny Ramirez was suspended for 40 games. But he is likely returning to the fourth outfielder slot and is owed $23.5M through 2011. He’s tempting as a left-handed leadoff hitter who can steal bases.He is a mistake because he usually only has an on-base percentage in the .325 range before this year.
• Cody Ross — The Marlins want to add to their team to help with the NL East/ wild card chase. But they don’t want their payroll to go up. Ross, a former Tigers farmhand, is a decent outfielder with a slugging about .500 this season. And he costs about $1M for the rest of this season.Honestly, the Marlins would be nuts to trade him. But, well, they are the Marlins …
• Matt Holliday — We’re seeing him with the A’s. He’s not done much this series, and other than a hot spell in May, he’s not done a lot this season for them either. His trade value must be pretty low, and if A’s GM Billy Beane can find a team that will pay his demands, more power to him. If he expects to get back the value of players he gave up in the offseason, well, good luck. But he’s a big name and he’s available.
• Alex Rios — With the Blue Jays are out of playoff contention, more or less, apparently he’s up for grabs. With a .260 avg / .319 OBP / .417 SLG he’s really not a great upgrade over what the Tigers might be able to expect from something in the system. But that is typically the kind of player they trade for, leaving me scratching my head. Huge downside? He’s got the kind of contract no team should want to take on. I sure hope the Tigers aren’t interested.
• Josh Willingham — I wasn’t aware he was seen as available, but he is, and apparently the market for him is seen to be limited. (Buster Olney, via MLB Trade Rumors). He’s hitting .288/.411/.589. I say this one is unlikely because either the Nationals will ask too much or because I’d want the Tigers to do it and they don’t listen to me.

Four pitchers:

• Huston Street — The Rockies probably won’t want to trade their closer when they’re right in the thick of the wild card chase. They’d probably ask for way, way too much. But, you know, if he’s available and he’s up for grabs, well, who wouldn’t want a near-perfect closer with more an a strikeout per inning and a WHIP of 1.12? It would certainly improve the bullpen, unlikely as it is of occurring.
• George Sherrill — Are the Orioles interested in moving him? The Marlins may be interested, I’ve read. It’s not like they have anything to play for in Baltimore. Like Street, he could help the Tigers shore up the back end of the bullpen. Honestly, I think the Tigers need to deal with the corner outfielder problem, but maybe they feel differently.
• Doug Davis — The Diamondbacks stink. Bad. Davis has a 3.28 ERA and WHIP of 1.36 and he’s in the last year of his contract. Detroit could use another starting pitcher, and a lefty in the rotation, given the fact everybody they try at the fourth and fifth starter spots leaves a lot to be desired, and Rick Porcello is a 20-year-old. But, can Davis be effective in the American League?
• Jarrod Washburn — Dayn Perry of Fox Sports suggests the Mariners might want to make him up for grabs. He’s a lefty starter, and unlike Davis, doing well in the AL this year. Though his stats have been mundane in the past, he’s got a 3.22 ERA (3.77 FIP). This is the last year of his deal and he’s got about $5M left on it. But would the Mariners want to trade him when they’re not too far out of first place?

Tigers 5, Athletics 3 (box)
Record: 43-34 (first place)

Was this one of Armando Galarraga’s best starts since April? Probably. But it’s hard saying, because it wasn’t pretty. He gave up six free bases in 6-1/3 innings of work and worked out of a couple of jams. But ultimately, the three numbers that mean the most at the end of the day are

• 2 hits
• 1 run
• 2 wins in a row

Galarraga survived bases loaded in the first inning after walking a pair of batters, while shortstop Adam Everett made an error to allow the third runner on. But Oakland’s best hitter, Kurt Suzuki, hit into a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning. A two-out triple in the fourth cost Galarraga both his first hit of the game and eventually the only run he allowed.

Galarraga’s inconsistency in recent starts makes him hard to figure out. Allowing just two hits was the fewest since his April 27 start. Yet six walks was the most he’s given up this season. One positive development, to me, was that he went the entire game without allowing a home run. He’d given up a long ball in each of 11 consecutive starts before that.

I guess in the end, we can just conclude he continues to be a work in progress. Manager Jim Leyland is giving him a lot of rope, and he’s certainly making use of the entire roll. Hopefully his is a sign he’s pulling self back up, because Detroit needs more reliable fourth and fifth starters.

Detroit got a bit sloppy, both in the field and at the plate. Two errors gave Galarraga no favors, but he pitched around those. A pair of early early baserunning/coaching errors also resulted in runners being gunned down when they were caught between third and home. Then, of course, Fernando Rodney allowed the tying run to come to the plate in the ninth when he turned a four-run lead into a two-run lead by allowing a Mark Ellis home run.

As for Detroit at the plate: Ryan Raburn had a nice day at the plate, 3-for-3 with two doubles. There was some confusion why he came out of the game for Josh Anderson in the late-innings. (Besides a defensive replacement after Raburn dropped a ball in foul territory for a second-inning error, anyway.) Leyland said on the FS Detroit postgame Raburn’s eyes were bothering him a bit. Placido Polanco was also key, because after a leadoff walk to start the game he flicked a home run into the left field stands to give Galarraga a 2-0 lead before Oakland starter Gio Gonzalez even recorded an out.

Needless to say, the Tigers needed this win after both the Twins and White Sox won earlier in the day. The teams remain tied four games behind Detroit.

Justin Verlander can give the Tigers a series victory when he faces Oakland ace Dallas Braden this afternoon.

Fan voting for the 2009 All-Star game closes within days. You might want to click that lil’ logo to the left there and vote for your favorite Tigers now. Of course, far be it from me to tell you your vote doesn’t matter, but with Miguel Cabrera in fourth place at first base, and both Placido Polanco and Brandon Inge in fifth at their respective positions, the Tigers are not even close to having any starters for the American League in the Midsummer Classic.

Nonetheless, players and managers get some say in the game, too, and there will almost certainly be more than the minimum representation of one coming out of Detroit.

So who, you know, actually deserves to go to the All-Star game, for having seasons above and beyond most of their positional counterparts?

• Pitchers Justin Verlander and Edwin Jackson — Some might think the rookie, Rick Porcello, should be included, but I don’t think his season is good enough to push out some of the other pitching stars of the game. Some might think Fernando Rodney should be included, but despite his perfect record, I don’t rank him above the trio of top AL closers. But Verlander is leading in the AL in strikeouts, while Jackson is second in ERA. Both are among the leaders in wins. No doubt, both are all stars. … It would be Verlander’s second and Jackson’s first appearance.

• For positional player, Inge — He doesn’t deserve to start — that’s clearly the Rays’ Evan Longoria. But he’s leading all third baseman in home runs. He’s second in RBIs. He’s second in OPS. An argument can be made he’s the best fielder of all of them. (He’s leading in web gems as well). It would be his first appearance.

Just missed the cut for me:

• Positional players Curtis Granderson and Cabrera — Granderson is a close one. He’s a stellar outfielder, and might have the play of the season in robbing Cleveland’s walkoff home run. He’s second in home runs, sixth in steals and 13th in OPS. If he makes it, he deserves it. But there’s so many good outfielders in the AL, and it’s so hard to decide what you’re looking for in choosing the five-six who make the cut.  … Cabrera’s best argument is he’s Cabrera. But he hasn’t had a season that puts him in the top two/three first baseman in the league.

Not really as close as you’d expect:

• Pitchers Porcello and Rodney – Porcello should probably be leading the rookie of the year race. He’s sixth in the AL in wins. But his ERA is down in 21st and he doesn’t strike out a lot. He’s got some help from run support. Rodney is 17-for-17* in save opportunities, but compared to star relievers, he doesn’t have the strikeouts, and he allows too many base runners.

*Maybe the rules say Rodney didn’t get the blown save for walking the bases loaded against Chicago, a blown save that was credited to Brandon Lyon, but we all know who put the game-tying run on with no outs.

So who do you think makes it or doesn’t make it?

A week ago, I looked at the Tigers 40 percent of the way through the season and generally liked what  I saw. The team isn’t perfect, but it is good enough to be leading the American League Central by four games almost halfway through the season. It had some flaws, but nothing overwhelming, compared to its division — after all, you don’t have to beat the Yankees and Red Sox, you just have to beat the Twins and White Sox. Don’t worry. I still feel that way.

That said, are there reasons to be concerned? You betcha! All 30 clubs have concerns. Right now, here are plenty of reasons for pessimism. Those with a weak heart may not wish to continue reading the potential horror show that follows:

• As documented at Detroit4Lyfe, the top three in the rotation had been doing some pretty heavy lifting at a rate that likely wouldn’t continue all season. They won 14 of the Tigers 17 victories in May. Of 16 starts by the trio in June, the Tigers won nine of them. Of the other 10 starts, the Tigers won five of those games. Those winning rates aren’t bad for the Nos. 4 and 5 starters.
• But in the meantime, the Tigers have to find  a way to nurse 20-year-old Rick Porcello through his first major league season, in a way that will keep him effective as he eclipses the 125-inning mark for the first time in his professional career, while limiting his innings enough not to put his future years in jeopardy. Can they patch together some effective spot starts from the farm system to do that? It won’t be easy.
• (Maybe the Tigers can buy Jeff Suppan on eBay?)
• In the meantime, Edwin Jackson walked more batters per inning in June than he did in the previous two months. Given his past wildness, is he reverting to form or is this a speed bump? (For the record, no walks in seven innings in his latest start.)
• Still on pitchers: they’re walking way too many. 15 runs walked in by the Tigers this season? That’s insane. Detroit is fifth from worst in walks per nine innings in all of baseball. Dontrelle Willis and Ryan Perry may not be with the Tigers right now, but it’s still not pretty. Are these free passes going to start catching up Detroit, even more so? They might.
• The bullpen? Good, but rather inconsistent recently. Is this just a rough period for Joel Zumaya? Will Fernando Rodney’s issuance of too many base runners start to haunt him?
• Next concern: the Tigers just aren’t finding ways to score runs. After the offensive outburst against Milwaukee following a week where Detroit scored three runs or less seven straight times, they have scored 3.6 runs on average for the past eight games.
• Running a bunch of fringe major leaugers with decent gloves but no bats up-and-down from the farmy system, they are getting .701 on-base+slugging for the season from their left fielders, and a putrid .633 OPS from their right fielders. Corner outfielders ought to provide a  bit more pop than that, no?
• Designated hitter? .716 OPS. (Marcus Thames, who figures to get most of the at-bats, has not hit a home run since June 19.)
• Do the Tigers have enough in their farm system to deal with these issues? Would it cost the Tigers some pieces that currently figure into their future to shore up the problem this year — for example, Wilkin Ramirez, Scott Sizemore, Alex Avila? (Or is the trade market depressed enough, judging by the Mark DeRosa and Eric Hinske trades, that it might not cost so much after all?)
• How will the Tigers deal with the increasingly poor outlook on the Magglio Ordonez situation? Can they afford to stash him on their bench? When will they make the decision he is costing the team too many runs? (Or worse, are the 4A outfielders Detroit has been trying to bad that he’s not really costing the Tigers all that much, other than some defense?)
• Will Carlos Guillen be able to come back effectively? When he does try to come back, how much rope can he be given, given the Tigers’ struggles to score runs or play competant defense in the corner outfield spots?)
• I wouldn’t say the Tigers have been healthy this year. They’ve lost quite a bit of injury days. But so far, none of the key contributors — Justin Verlander, Jackson, Porcello, Brandon Inge, Curtis Granderson, Miguel Cabrera, the shortstop dual, Placido Polanco) have sustained any injuries too serious. Are the Tigers one bad roll of the dice away from having their lack of depth at most positions sink the ship?
• Injuries happen to every team and can derail the best laid plans — ask the Mets. But depth helps a club survive and continue to compete. I don’t see a lot of depth here.
• Finally, will the Tigers wilt in the dog days of summer? It’s hard to forget August 2006, when the Tigers started to slide. (Probably due to Polanco’s injury.) Or 2007, when they slid again. (Jeremy Bonderman was hiding an injury.) Or 2008, when the club seemed to lose the will to win after Pudge Rodriguez was traded.
• Each season is a new one. Each roster is a new one. There’s no guarantees of history repeating. But you got to admit, after the past few years, you’re going to be a bit nervous around August, aren’t you?

Like I said, every team has issues. We know about the Tigers’ concerns best because we follow them closest, right? But you could probably do this and find a reason to be pessimistic about most of the other 29 teams.

I think most of the worst-case scenarios will not come true, and the Tigers will be players at the trade deadline. But, by no means can you be a walking ball of optimism.

(Inspired by a topic at Motown Tigers forum started by MAT commentor Scottwood)

Athletics 7, Tigers 1 (box)
Record: 42-34 (first place)

I was actually going to go with “Runs, they had a few …” but since the Tigers only had one, well …anyway.

The Tigers apparently left their bats at Comerica Park when they boarded their team plane on Thursday. After a promising four runs in the first two innings in Houston on Friday, the Tigers have scored a total of six runs in the past three games, including a pair of one-run performances.

Tonight, they struck out a total of 14 times. I guess Oakland starter Brett Anderson was what you’d call effectively wild. He struck out seven in 5-1/3 innings, but he tossed just 58 strikes in 108 pitches. Ryan Raburn was particularly egregious, striking out three times in four at-bats. Four others struck out two times.

It started off promising enough, with actual players actually getting on base. But the Tigers squandered the scoring opportunities by going 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position and stranding nine. Gerald Laird drove in the only run with a sixth-inning double to score Marcus Thames, who walked.

The Tigers’ pitching story was less impressive. I’ll quickly pass over the fact Rick Porcello lost the rookie duel by allowing 11 runners in 4-1/3 innings, resulting in five runs. He was due a bad start, I guess you could say. Make nothing of it.

More interesting is the major league debut of Taiwanese pitcher Fu-Te Ni. His first throw was to first, his second was a ‘K’ to Oakland left-handed hitter Jason Giambi, and he went on to record the strikeout. Ni struck out three in 1-2/3 innings, but allowed sixth-inning leadoff home run to Ryan Sweeney. (Mike, over at Fire Jim Leyland, has a closer look at Ni’s debut, if you’re curious.)

So the Tigers are now 1-3 to start their nine-game, 10-day road trip. Considering it doesn’t get any easier when they arrive in Minnesota on Friday, picking up a couple wins these next two days in Oakland could be required if they hope to do anything remotely near salvaging the trip.

Weekly record: 4-2 (42-39 overall)

Batting leaders: Gerald Laird, .429 on-base percentage, .692 slugging average, HR; Brandon Inge, 4 runs, 4 RBIs, .545 SLG, 2 HR; Ramon Santiago, 2 HR in 4 hits in 9 at-bats.

Pitching leaders: (relief pitcher special!) Fernando Rodney, 5 SO, 1 BB, 3 saves, 3 IP; Bobby Seay, 1 H, 0 R, 3 IP; Brandon Lyon, 0 H, 0 R, 2 IP

Gone missing: (hard to find any batter, but…) Marcus Thames, .200 SLG, Donnie Kelly, 0-for-10, 1 walk. (And for pitching, much easier:) Joel Zumaya, 3 walks, 4 runs, 2-2/3 IP; Nate Robertson, 2 games, 2 hits, 0 outs

Weekly plot: The Tigers ran their win stream up to seven for the second time this season after sweeping the White Sox. It looked like the streak would reach eight when they led 4-0 in Houston on Friday, but the Astros fought back and took advantage of a wild Zumaya in the eighth to snap the streak. Houston took the first two of the weekend series before the Tigers finished interleague with a win.

Roster moves and changes aplenty this week. Magglio Ordonez returned from his not-benching, shaved his hair and hit a home run, yet otherwise went 3-for-18 for the week. Alfredo Figaro struggled against the Astros and was optioned to Triple-A Toledo on Sunday, while Luke French was called up. Robertson went on the disabled list with an elbow injury, while Fu-Te Ni joined the team.

Upcoming schedule: The Tigers travel to Oakland (31-43, fourth place AL West) for a three-game set, then finish up the nine-game, 10-day road trip in Minnesota (39-38, second place AL Central) over the weekend. Detroit swept Oakland at Comerica Park earlier this season, and were swept by the Twins in Minnesota in early-May during the last meeting between the clubs.

• Lefty relief pitcher Nate Robertson’s mass in his elbow is apparently not his first, but it has finally grown to the point where he most likely needs surgery to correct it.

“At this point it is hard to put a timetable on it until the surgery is performed because of the proximity to the ulnar nerve,” said Tigers trainer Kevin Rand. “He had tingling and numbness into his ring and little finger.”

• Every year, seemingly on every club, some pitcher has the bad luck. For whatever reason, when he pitches, his team can’t score runs. Sorry, Edwin Jackson, but you are that guy.
• J Ellet took a look at the support Mr. Jackson has received: 5.15 runs per nine innings he’s on the mound. (Or 3.55 runs per game he starts.) Of the 54 pitchers with similar innings pitched, he gets less support than all but three. Those three are all aces on low-scoring teams, too. Good company, bad luck. (Eye of the Tigers)
• Is Magglio Ordonez a “bum”? As much as I have documented his downfall this season and the repercussions it might have for the the player and team both, I cannot believe a columnist would ever use “bum” in the same sentence as Ordonez. Without him, there is no 2006 October surprise. There is no reason to watch the Tigers in the final weeks of the disappointing 2007 season. Via It’s Just Sports, we find The Oakland Press’ Pat Caputo wondering if fans might remember Maggs as a bum:

How will he be remembered? As a postseason hero? As a player who put together one of the most remarkable seasons in Tigers’ history? Or perceived as an unproductive “bum.”

It’s an aspect of sports that can’t seem to be avoided. The downfall. It’s not often a player goes out on top in a town. Either he plays too long in one place and the memories are of his diminishing skills rather than his triumphs, or he leaves in his prime as a free agent, and fans remember his departure with bitterness.

• All Pat would have to do was read this blog to realize fans will remember Ordonez fondly and are in his corner, even as his skills diminish. He’ll forever have a place in history for his ALCS home run, and rightfully so.
• But I think Caputo is right on one point: this is not going to end well for Maggs. Unless I butchered my math with a wrong key press, Ordonez is 3-for-18 (.167) with .211 OBP, .333 SLG and four strikeouts since returning from the couple of days off manager Jim Leyland gave him in an attempt to help him get started. Ordonez has dropped in the lineup from third to seventh, he’s had time off, he’s taken extra batting practice with the coaches. Nothing is working.
• Lynn Henning still thinks Ordonez will be released around the All-Star break. I don’t think the Tigers want to do that. I think they really, really don’t want to do it.
• But what’s the next step? Short of looking really, really hard to find an injury and place him on the DL, what, exactly is the next step if a week from now he still isn’t showing any improvements? Can they hide him on their bench? And what would good would come of it? This is a bad, bad situation for all parties.
• By the way, why don’t the columnists of main Detroit newspapers write more about the Tigers? This is a baseball town. The fans are coming out in droves. The team is in first. But the leading columnists seem to ignore the team almost totally. That makes no sense to me. In other towns, you get nearly a column a day about baseball teams, in this one, next to nothing.
• Want to take a break from this season? BigJP is writing a series where he looks at the best Tigers by uniform number. He’s up to No. 2, Charlie Gehringer, after starting with No. 1, Lou Whitaker. (Always a Tiger)
• Want more info on Luke French? Mike at Fire Jim Leyland has got you covered. His conclusion, based on an admittedly-limited look? French has mundane stuff but can’t do much worse than anyone else, so may as well give it a shot. (Fire Jim Leyland)
• Some stats to close the day: Detroit’s dropped further in the rankings for defensive efficiency. They are now at .697, 15th in baseball and seventh in the American League. Seeing Marcus Thames and Ordonez as corner outfielders is enough to scare the dickens out of you. I still can’t believe Ordonez let the ball drop in front of him Friday. Any of the young corner outfielders catch that. That kind of stuff frustrates me.
• By the way, the Twins now lead the Tigers in both runs scored and runs allowed.