Oakland 10
Detroit 2

Recap:

• The Tigers trailed 3-2 heading into the bottom of the sixth inning.
• OOPS!
• Nate Robertson gave up his fourth run of the game — A Jack Cust  Travis Buckhomer — in the sixth inning.
• Freddy Dolsi relieved him after one out in the seventh, then struck out and walked a guy.
• Casey Fossum blew up. Four runs scored. He still hadn’t recorded an out.
• Aquilino Lopez got him out of the mess.
• Tigers lose. Four hits and five walks weren’t enough to score more than two runs for this inconsistent, non-timely hitting offense.

Analysis:

• There is seriously nothing more to be said about this disappointing team.
• I hope you all are Wings fans and had something to celebrate last night.

Update:

• I almost forgot to add: Ramon Santiago separated his shoulder and is surely headed to the D.L.

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A’s 5
Tigers 4

Recap:

• I’m glad I went to bed at 1:30 and was asleep for the ending.
• Dontrelle Willis started for the first time since April, though he was a bit careful with his knee in later innings, he survived four without allowing a run. He did walk way too many.
• Armando Galarraga is better as a starter than reliever. He gave up 3 runs quick in relief.
• Detroit blew another late innings lead. This time, in the eighth inning Zach Miner relieved Casey Fossum and gave up a weak single to left field. Clete Thomas scooped the ball, threw it past the runner going home, and watched (probably disconcertingly) as Pudge dropped the bulleye throw and the tying run scored.
• The Tigers got a runner to third with two outs in the 10th and a runner to third with one out in the 11th but failed to get them home.
• Relieving Bobby Seay in the 11th, Freddy Dolsi got the inning’s second out when Edgar Renteria caught the lead runner in a mistake at second, but he then loaded the bases and allowed the winning run to score.
• The teams combined for 12 walks.
• The Tigers have no late-inning relievers.

Analysis:

• I thought that last part was really more fact than opinion. Jim Leyland has absolutely no one he can give the ball to and feel confident. Funny how we had a month or more of the bullpen pitching so well, going games without giving up a run, and now they are back to being the Achilles heel.
• I’ll try to find some time to blog more about how the Willis-Galarraga thing went later today.
• Tigers = dead team walking until they get some real relievers. The offense, in theory, was good enough to make up for poor relief. They had plenty of chances against a young pitcher struggling with command and still only scored four runs for the game. But they still only scored 4 and they didn’t give any cushion for a bullpen that cannot take close games and seems bound to fail every chance it gets.
• Leyland must be pulling his gray hair out.

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A’s 3
Tigers 2

Walkoff losses on the west coast: 3 in 7 games

Recap:

• Yes. 3 walkoff losses in less than a week, Tigers fans. Fortunately most people are probably not awake to watch the team choke on the west coast. Unfortunately I was.
• Kenny Rogers pitched great. He allowed just two runs and pitched into the eighth inning.
• Rich Harden was dealing great for the A’s. That the Tigers scored two runs on him was surprising. He finished with 8 strikeouts and allowed just three baserunners in the first five innings.
• Curtis Granderson homered in the sixth to at least make sure there was no shutout.
• Jeff Larish drove in the first run in the same inning with a two-out hit to left, scoring Carlos Guillen. I thought that would be the Tigers’ only run but it wasn’t.
• Daric Barton tied the game for the A’s to lead off the 7th.
• Bobby Seay tried to lose the game in the 8th for the Tigers. After Freddy Dolsi allowed two baserunners, Bobby Seay got an out and walked one to load the bases. He went to a 3-0 count before getting two strikes (batter wasn’t going to swing) and a flyout.
• About that time, the Red Wings lost game 5 in the third overtime.
• Then Detroit’s Francisco Cruceta took the loss, allowing a single to start by Kurt Suzuki the ninth inning. The A’s sacrificed him to second, and Bobby Crosby drove the runner in from second with a hard hit to right-center.
• The Tigers’ game ended 10 minutes after the Wings’.

Analysis:

• Well, that was a MEH ending to a late-evening for Detroit fans.
• I am not shocked by Cruceta struggling in the late innings, although it happened so quickly I don’t know if struggling is even th right term. I’m pretty sure not a lot of other fans were surprised either, judging by some game threads. In case you wonder, he got a blown save in one of the previous west coast walkoffs after blowing it in the eighth inning.
• Of course, as good as Harden was pitching, it was quite likely this game was going to end in a loss anyway.
• Another good pitching performance by the Tigers was wasted though. This is the new theme, strangely. Pitchers do great, hitters abandon them. You can nod to the guy on the mound, and you should, but the fact is, this is happening way too often.
• This lineup is nothing short of disappointing.
• As for 3 walkoff losses, well, it doesn’t really sting much because this team has really led us to expect bad things will happen eventually every game.

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Detroit 6, Oakland 1

The good news is Justin Verlander put together another strong start. The staff ace is a stopper most of the time and had 15 wins to show for it. Verlander struck out 10 and allowed one run while pitching into the seventh.

The pitching matchup was solid all around, as Dan Haren allowed just three runs in yet another duel with Verlander. Justin won 2, Dan 1.

Curtis Granderson helped the cause with a home run and double, giving him an MLB leading 75 extra-base hits for the season. It was his 19th homer. so that’s one homer and two stolen bases to go. That’s doable. I wish wish WISH Jim Leyland would greenlight him more, because I would hate to see Grandy come so close to joining Mays in the 4 by 20 club. I’m probably just paranoid or nervous or something. It’s almost a foregone conclusion. But you know what? Until it happens, you never know what’s going to happen. Lest I forget, Grandy had a four hit game.

It was a good day all around for the Tigers. If only we could count on seeing more of these!

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Oakland 7, Detroit 2

As the Tigers batters were busy being stymied by Chad Gaudin, another storyline present was possibly more interesting: Placido Polanco attempted to play an errorless game, like he had done in the 143 prior games. And he did, breaking the tie and becoming the sole owner of a major league record for second basemen. Polanco’s last ‘E’ came July 1, 2006.

“It’s great — anything’s possible. But a lot of things have to fall in place for that to happen,” said Polanco. “I have to really thank the organization for giving me the opportunity to be the second baseman and play every day.” (Tigers.com)

Meanwhile, cutoff man Carlos Guillen made a throwing error after Marcus Thames made a running catch and throw. The throw allowed the runs to move up to second and third and chased Chad Durbin from the game. That led Jim Leyland to bring in firestarter Jason Grilli, and that led to both runners scoring. It was that kind of game.

When Chad Durbin, Jason Grilli and Zach Miner are pitching a large amount of the game, I really wouldn’t wanna put money on the Tigers coming out on top. Grilli even loaded the bases, then walked in the run on four pitches. Ian tackles the “How does this guy have a job?” line of thought relatively well.

The Tigers scored a pair of runs in the first inning on a Magglio Ordonez single, and that was that.

Cleveland didn’t play, so it’s now a two-way tie for first place. The Yankees, naturally, won. More and more, you have to doubt the AL Central provides the wild card team this season.

Detroit heads to Cleveland for a two-game series Tuesday.

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Bunt Singles:

• Jair Jurrjens will come up from Double-A Erie to start Wednesday. I hope that means they can keep him up until the roster expands in September so they don’t have to burn an option on him. Matt has more on Take 75 North.
• Joel Zumaya picked for 2/3 inning for the AAA Mudhens. He struck out a batter, alowed a hit and threw 11 strikes in 18 pitches before hitting his count. He’ll throw again Wednesday.

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Tigers 11, A’s 6

(AP photo)

Magglio Ordonez added his name to Tigers lore yet again. This time, Maggs hit not one, but two home runs against the Athletics. And he did it in the same inning. For a team around as long as the Tigers, with many storied hitters, you’d think Maggs would be adding his name to a long list of batters with that accomplishment.

And yet, it was only the second time in franchise history a player has done that. The last? Al Kaline.The opponent? The Kansas City Athletics. The year? 1955. Unlike Kaline, Maggs did it off the same pitcher.

Those homers came as part of an eight-run second inning, and helped the Tigers run away with the game. The first was a solo shot to open the inning, the second a three-run dinger near the end. Obviously, you have to credit the team as much as the player. Batting around in a major league game isn’t exactly an everyday occurance.

The Tigers would need the runs. Nate Robertson followed up a fantastic start with a mediocre one, but he lasted long enough to hand the keys to the bullpen with a lead in the sixth inning. He gave up four runs on five walks and five hits while striking out six. Tim Byrdak and Yorman Bazardo did their best to squander the lead, but even they couldn’t give it away, despite two walks and a hit batter. Besides, Bazardo’s run allowed was unearned.

Of interest was the batting order. Placido Polanco (still chasing Maggs for the AL lead in batting average) led off, followed by Marcus Thames (yes!), the regular 3-4-5, and Ryan Raburn. Raburn had a multi-hit day before being lifted for Curtis Granderson. Why Granderson didn’t sub for Craig Monroe and flip positions with Raburn, well, who knows.

Of interest: The Tigers won two in a row. The Indians were swept by the Yankees. Thus, Detroit is back in first place, despite all our belly-aching, moaning, groaning, fretting, and etc., the Tigers are in first because the Indians are equally bad. We all have to remember that.

The Tigers and A’s conclude a four-game series tomorrow.

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*Central UP (and possibly Toledo) people may get the reference in the headline from a TV sportscaster here a few years back.

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A’s 16, Tigers 10

Allow me to quote this letter, names withheld to protect the innocent.

I feel for you guys who are having to write about the Tigers right now. This is a pretty tough time to be a fan, and I can’t imagine it’s easy to come up with something to say after each of these losses.

Nope. At least this loss is probably the most unique of the year. The Tigers didn’t blow a five-run lead. Rather, they fought back from an 8-1 deficit — getting a grand slam from Marcus Thames, fresh back from his injury —  to take the lead. And gave it back with … a grand slam? Is that possible? Two grannies minutes apart? Apparently.

You can’t blame the bullpen. I mean, I guess, yeah, if you want, I’m not going to stop you. But the starter went two innings. Even famed Fox baseball broadcaster Eric Karros knows that is not good. So the bullpen valiantly pitched for 21 outs and valiantly gave up about what you’d expect of the bullpen being asked to pitch for 21 outs: 9 runs.

Before too long, the Tigers trailed by seven for a second time in a game IN WHICH THEY LED! I don’t think that can be repeated enough. You can trail by seven, score a run, give up a run, and trail by seven for a second time. But to take the lead in the middle? My gosh.

This game may have been a turning point had they won. As the Tigers were slumping and the ship is taking on water pretty bad right now, I won’t call the loss a turning point. It’s just more of the same.

Well, at least they found a new way to lose.

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A’s 3, Tigers 2

This, by the way, was not the fault of the pitching. That much should be obvious. They may get the “L” by their name, but if Nate Robertson allows 3 runs in seven innings and the bullpen, bless its heart, allows no more to score, then I think the Tigers should probably win the game.

Maybe it’s the fault of the batters having injuries catch up to them. Carlos Guillen sat out with a tweak in his knee. Hopefully it’s nothing but he has two days to rest, as Thursday is an off day. Gary Sheffield is now feeling numbness after his cortisone shot. He obviously hasn’t batted with a darn since coming back from it. He’ll see a doctor.

Maybe it’s the long road trip catching up to the players. They haven’t had an off day for two weeks. They played five games in four days in Chicago before flying out west for six games. That’s going to catch up to anyone. Especially with the poor play. They went 3-8 on the trip.

Things are out of sync. Relief was fine, but the bats and starters slowed. Then the starting was fine and the bullpen blew.

Whatever it is, the Tigers look awful, they’re hard to watch, they’re hard to find something new to say about, and, oh, they are still in first place by a game because Cleveland lost again. So lucky.

But luck — bad and good — won’t last forever. At least, I hope the bad luck won’t.

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Bunt Singles:

• For a different style of recap, check out Go Get ‘Em Tigers.
• Polanco is within 5 points of Sheffield Ordonez in batting average.
• And Polly keeps adding doubles.
• Wilson could still go to Motown, the rumor from Pitt says.
• The paragraph from that story below is either scary or funny.
• “Detroit general manager Dave Dombrowski, it should be noted, acquired infielder Neifi Perez in an August deal last year. Source: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette“

   

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A’s 7, Tigers 3

It’s not that it’s totally the bullpen’s fault. Justin Verlander did have four runs tagged to his name, three earned. He did get up in the pitch count early, walk a few too many guys, and leave too much work for the bullpen to clean up in just the sixth inning.

But, well, let’s face it. The pen did nothing to stop the bleeding. It didn’t keep Verlander’s baserunners from scoring. It couldn’t even keep its own bases clean! Nor stop them from scoring. Nursing a 3-1 lead, the Tigers gave up four runs in the sixth and a few more later. Blame Macay McBride, who didn’t even get an out but was charged two runs on top of what he allowed in of Verlander’s, and Jason Grilli, if you like, though at least he bailed out McBride.

Well, what’s another blown game due to pitching? Nothing new. Maybe Fernando Rodney and Joel Zumaya will both magically pitch like it’s 2006.

Bright spots? Obviously I mentioned Polanco. Gary Sheffield has hit No. 2,500 in his career. Sean Casey scored on a suicide squeeze. Mike Rabelo laid down the bunt on that one. That was pretty cool anyway.

Pudge served his one-game suspension from earlier this season.

Cleveland lost, anyway. I guess that’s something.

I’m sick of losing.

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Tigers 5, A’s 2

That was exactly what the doctor ordered, wasn’t it? A struggling starter goes on the disabled list, and another minor leaguer steps up and helps the Tigers pick up just their third win in nine games on the road.

Jordan Tata came up from Triple-A Toledo to pitch seven (relatively speaking) very good innings for Detroit, allowing two runs and striking out five. He tossed around 100 pitches during that span and forced a couple double plays. Most importantly, he saved the bullpen. Chad Durbin pitched a scoreless eighth and Todd Jones a scoreless ninth to get the save.

I don’t have to say much on the importance of a strong showing from Tata, who started for the first time in his MLB career, but pitched out of the pen a bit in 2006 after making the team out of Spring Training. The bullpen was struggling. The starters were struggling. This helped immensely.

With Rogers on the DL for probably quite awhile, it should be interesting to see what becomes of Tata and the starting role he filled. Did he show Detroit enough to keep him up? Will Virgil Vasquez come up to fill the starting role? If Andrew Miller or Nate Robertson have run out of gas, both Vasquez and Tata may spend time on the mound. I don’t know if we can expect every start to be as good as this one, but Tata pitched well enough to give me some confidence.

Detroit got some decent run scoring with two-outs, which helped back Tata’s show. Curtis Granderson and Placido Polanco each went 3-for-5 at the top of the lineup.

Side note: Tata got a face of shaving cream from Todd Jones during his FSN interview. I know he’s a rookie, but surely he must have gotten that face of shaving cream out of the way in 2006? Maybe not. I don’t think he minded. He got his first career win.

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