Baseball Etiquette?

So you're mad. You just gave up a big home run. You decide to send a message.

That message was simple, throw at the next batter's head. This was done twice in three days. The cowards? Jered Weaver of the Angels, and Carlos Carrasco of the Indians.

Friday night, already down 3-0 to the Royals, Carrasco serves up a grand slam to Melky Cabrera, giving them a 7-0 lead, still in the top of the fourth inning. Billy Butler stands in, and the first pitch offered to him "buzzes the tower." Carrasco is immediately ejected for throwing at Butler's head, and the benches clear out with no further incident afterwards. Butler looked like he was ready to brawl after that pitch.

Fast forward to today's game between the Tigers and the Angels. Earlier in the game, Magglio Ordonez hits a 2-run homer off of Weaver. The ball would hook close to the line, and around the left field foul pole. The distance was there, but to Ordonez, it was a matter of fair vs foul. Because of that, he didn't take off for what would be a trot around the bases. This was twisted as a sign of showboating, something you'll never see Magglio do. Soon after Weaver would have some words with Miguel Cabrera in the ensuing at bat. In the seventh inning, Carlos Guillen hit about as much of a no-doubter as you can at Comerica Park. Unlike Ordonez, Guillen featured a pause, bat flip, and squared himself for a few shuffled steps toward Weaver, and began a nice slow trot around the bases. The home plate umpire was rather wise and issued warnings to both benches, seeing what was transpiring. No matter, as Alex Avila stepped in, on the very next pitch, threw at his head. Again, instant ejection. Angels manager Mike Scoscia is also ejected, a rule in place after warnings are issued for instances like this.

What Carrasco, Weaver, and to a certain degree Guillen did in these instances is beyond the unwritten rules of baseball. Guillen just needed to drop the bat and run. The showboating bit was not necessary, and might have saved Avila from being a headhunting victim. The two pitchers displayed absolute cowardice by throwing at opposing players heads. Clearly, if you REALY want to properly send a message, usually you're planting one of those fastballs in the batter's backside, or perhaps between the numbers. NEVER AT THE HEAD. Jered Weaver has pitched his way towards being an elite pitcher this season, but instead remembers he's a total knucklehead. What a shame, and I hope he enjoy's finishing second or third in the Cy Young voting.

And that Erik Aybar bunt in the eighth inning? Also "bush league", trying to bunt his way to a base hit in the hopes of breaking up (another) no-hit bid by Justin Verlander. It didn't work, sort of, as Verlander threw wildly to first and was charged with an error. In the end, Verlander gave up 2 runs, only 1 lousy hit, and reminded the rest of baseball who the best pitcher continues to be. If you're keeping score at home, that's three times this season he's taken a no-hitter into the eighth inning. Of course he has the one tallied vs Toronto, and we're anxiously awaiting his next one. It will happen.

But in the end, it's necessary to follow the unwritten rules. Although sometimes some people can be remembered for the times they break those rules. I'm sure Jered Weaver won't mind that.

Focusing on Jacob

Watching highly touted Tigers prospect, Jacob Turner, make his major league debut, I'll compare it briefly to that of another former super prospect, Justin Verlander.

The 2 things they have in common for their first starts, is they both pitched 5 1/3 innings, and they both lost. Verlander's day: 4 runs, 7 hits, 3 walks and 4 strikeouts vs the Indians on July 5th, 2005. Turner's day was slightly better: 2 runs, 3 hits, 3 walks, and 6 strikeouts.

Admitting some nerves, and for all it's worth, he looked pretty good. One gnarly number that's concerning: the 5 stolen bases he allowed. He'll go back to the minors now, specifically to Toledo and not Erie (where he was brought up from) where I hope he'll work on holding runners close, gaining more command on what could very be a nasty curveball, and most importantly, get ready for next season.

After watching him get an ovation after Jim Leyland pulled him from his start, it's obvious that the fans are ready to watch this 20-yr-old continue to blossom. And there's no reason to believe that, like Verlander, he can't come to the big club next season and not make an immediate impact. And for those of you who think he's ready now, can take a deep breath and begin to realize that he's not there. Soon. Let him mature down the stretch.

No need to waste him. Definitely no need to trade him.

David Purcey Should Seal Dombrowski's Fate

Okay, so one deal shouldn't define the work of Detroit Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski, but in the eyes of most Tigers fans, it probably should.

But I'm having trouble finding some middle ground when it comes to DD and his time with the Tigers. After picking what is left of my brain trying to find it, I gave up and came to the conclusion that he is super-aggressive, or ultra conservative. Problem is, one of those extremes is a result of the other. And it's spelling disaster for the Tigers.

In the past, his aggressive side has negotiated extensions in almost knee-jerk fashion (Nate Robertson, Jeremy Bonderman, Gary Sheffield to name a few) and this past offseason and current regular season have been no different. Brandon Inge quickly resigned this past offseason at the tune of $5.5 million per year for the next 2 seasons. As the season has progressed, Inge's defense and his already horrible offense has regressed. Yet he was penciled into the lineup regularly, until he was finally designated for assignment last week. He and his contract are now playing in Toledo.

But the deal that will resonate fresh in the fans minds is the deal that sent underachieving infielder Scott Sizemore to Oakland for left-handed reliever David Purcey, with the Tigers being his THIRD team this season (traded to Oakland from Toronto earlier this year). The team saw promise in his first few appearances of his time with the Tigers, but has since forgotten how to throw a strike. His wildness and lack of command have fans calling for his removal from the roster. A player who is out of minor league options, it's not as easy as sending him to Toledo. It's either the Tigers roster, or some other franchise (or just some other *place*). Snakebitten fans may have to be resigned to the fact that Dombrowski may ultimately be stubborn enough to hold onto Purcey, thus telling fans that he just doesn't want to admit that he essentially gave away young Scott Sizemore for nothing. Except it may already be too late for that.

Despite Donbrowski's efforts to turn this franchise around after 2003, which I do appreciate, I would be at peace with my favorite team if Mike Ilitch let DD go after this season is over. He isn't under contract after this year, and even if the Tigers manage to make the playoffs, it's time to find someone else to steer us away from his vision, which has been very cloudy as of late. We've seen enough of his act... and at the risk of taking a few steps backwards in the name of progress, it's a necessary evil. I just hope Ilitch sees it the same way.

Opportunity Wasted

Because I have one of those dreaded daytime jobs, I didn't get to watch the entire effort put forth by the Detroit Tigers this afternoon. When I did get my chances, namely during a few of the middle innings, I found myself cursing at my steering wheel (I make my living as a courier). A lot, too... and impatience was the sticking point.

Watching Carlos Guillen and Wilson Betemit (among others) taking wild hacks at pitches out of the strike zone, running up a lethal stakeout total for John Danks. The White Sox hurler struck out 10 Tigers, NINE went down swinging. Most of those swings were nothing short of awful. The Tigers offense today went trigger happy, and ultimately wasted a good outing by Max Scherzer, who made only the mistake of giving up a 2-run homer.

A blown opportunity to go up 3 games in the division over the Indians, is instead just 2 over Cleveland, and only 3 1/2 over the White Sox. The Tigers now host the Angels for 4 games, which will likely be a total grind, thanks to L.A.'s starting pitching. We can take some solace that the high powered Red Sox visit Chicago this weekend. The Indians and their struggling offense host the Royals.

The Tigers had better get their bats to wake up, before the legions of fans continue to remember that they've been a failure in the second half of any season. It's been mentioned that Tigers owner Mike Ilitch will be "extremely disappointed" should they not make the postseason. I'm going to assume that's already the case.

Chris Osgood: (Should be) Hall of Famer

Most Red Wings fans over most of the last 17 seasons have seen a goaltender do nothing but his job.  Starter or not, injured or not, Cup contender or not.  Chris Osgood's career is nothing more but quiet, simple, and successful.

Yet when you hear talk about his career, many stop to wonder if he's a Hall of Famer.  The quick answer is yes.  To draw it out for you: 401 career wins, 39 shutouts, ranks 2nd all time amongst Red Wing goaltenders in victories, and retires today as 1 of only 6 goaltenders to win 3 Stanley Cups while winning 400 games.  The other 5?  Martin Brodeur, Patrick Roy, Terry Sawchuk, Jacques Plante, and Grant Fuhr.

That's a pretty good group.  Some will quip that the Red Wings were built like a dynasty in front of him for all those years, and some will also quip that his other stops in his career (Islanders and Blues before coming back) weren't productive or successful.

It's true.  It helps to have a strong foundation in front of you.  But if you move on and don't have that, no one will succeed.  Bottom line is, Osgood did his thing quietly, professionally, regularly.  He won a lot of games.  He helped the team contend for Stanley Cups.  In the end, as with most pros, the body says it's time to go.  He will move on to his next venture, and in time he will get his Hall call.

I just hope that call isn't delayed.  After Ozzie's career, he's earned a loud ovation for his accomplishments.  Even if those accomplishments have gone quiet and almost unnoticed.

Random Thoughts On An Off Day

The Tigers are off today, as they prepare for a short 2-game series with the Oakland A's starting tomorrow night. We know Rick Porcello will pitch for the Tigers in game 1.  Game 2 remains a mystery (as of this post).  A couple of names from within the system have been mentioned, namely Charlie Furbush and Duane Below, and of those 2, Below seems like the more likely candidate.  Furbush made an appearance last night for AAA Toledo, which makes any availability for a Wednesday start rather questionable.  Otherwise, trade rumors keep surfacing, bringing names like Derek Lowe of the Atlanta Braves, Ubaldo Jimenez of the Colorado Rockies, Hiroki Kuroda of the LA Dodgers, and Jeremy Guthrie of the Baltimore Orioles, to name a few.  Nothing hot about any of these rumors, and it appears as of now, nothing will come of said rumors.  Usually with this we all play the waiting game.

Brandon Inge has seen a rather patient fan base in Detroit crumble away throughout the course of this season, and it has everything to do with not only his poor offensive production, but his defensive production as well.  Inge has 8 errors in his time at third base this season compared to the 9 he had all of last season.  His bat is an even bigger problem, logging a .180 batting average, 1 HR, only 10 total extra-base hits, and 38 hits overall.  He hasn't recorded a base hit since July 3rd, and he seems rather put off with said fan base over the chorus of boos he's been receiving.  Of course the simple solution is, produce more, field better, and all that goes away.  Inge is drawing a $5.5 million paycheck this season, AND next season.  At some point he has to know that what he's doing isn't alright.

Carlos Guillen made his return to the lineup against the White Sox, and for most Tigers fans his return is very much welcome.  He comes back and replaces the also struggling Ryan Raburn at 2B, who is batting only .214, and is also a defensive liability too.  Some might say Guillen is also a liability with the glove, but so far he and his damaged knee seem to be holding up.  He has made a slew of plays in the field already, and has also contributed offensively by driving in the winning run in Sunday's 4-3 against the White Sox.  Hard to predict whether or not his body will hold up for the rest of the season, but so far it's been a welcome return for Carlos.  If he's to remain healthy, that closes a giant hole in the Tigers needs come trade deadline time.

One last thought, about Austin Jackson, who's been limited with a sore wrist sustained before the All Star break.  He might find himself on the disabled list soon, and the Tigers might as well do it now, and get him healthy.  His replacement, likely Andy Dirks, isn't a big change at the plate but will be a bit of a difference in the field.  He'll likely spell time with Casper Wells who has done well in his defensive assignments anywhere in the outfield this season.

Brad Penny Loses His Beard, Wins the Game

All of those Tigers fans who were on the fence (or fell off of it) after yesterday's loss can breathe again.  The Tigers not only won their game, but thanks to the Baltimore Orioles, they are back in a first place tie with the Cleveland Indians.  All is well again, right?

Well, before we breathe too easy, it was a bit tenuous from the start.  After Brad Penny cruised with an 11 pitch 1-2-3 first inning, he had a hiccup in the second, allowing 3 runs and forcing the Tigers to once again, play from behind.  I'm sure many of us watching the game were wondering if Penny would pitch deep in the game after that, and lucky for us, he pitched a pretty solid game before giving way to rookie Al Alburquerque in the 7th, getting the last out.

But the Tigers scoring was simple: solo home run for Brennan Boesch, a two-run single for Victor Martinez (which doesn't happen unless Leyland sends the runners on 1st and 2nd during Miguel Cabrera's groundout), and the feel-good hit of the day, Carlos Guillen with an RBI single for what would be the winning run.  All that, and an Indians loss, and ALL that talk about giving up the season, just 24 hours ago, is off now the Tigers are tied for first.

Sure, it's never fun losing to the White Sox, especially 2 out of 3 in your own yard, but it happens.  They're gone now, time to forget about that and move on.  The Tigers have Monday off, and they'll host the Oakland Athletics for 2 before hitting the road to Minnesota for what will be an important 4-game series against the Twins.  Tigers fans will almost definitely give their team the business if jettisoned IF Scott Sizemore, dealt to Oakland earlier this season for RP David Purcey, has any kind of success/impact on the outcomes of these next 2 games.  In the end, the Tigers will be fine if they can win these next 2 games, thus salvaging the homestand to a degree.  Just hope that even the average fan can still keep in perspective that this is still a marathon, not a sprint.

Chin up, fans.  More consistent outings like that from Brad Penny, and Max Scherzer (who looked good despite the lack of run support) and the Tigers will be fine.  Keep the pressure off of the taxed bullpen, hit the ball like you're supposed to.  Easy, right?

Don't Jump Off the Wagon... Yet.

Alright, after viewing today's Tigers game vs. the White Sox this afternoon: via my television and through the world of Twitter, I've noticed amongst the masses of Tigers Tweeps that because of recent history of this franchise, notably from 2006-10 (omitting 2008), it's time to give up on the team because... they're a terrible second-half baseball team.

Fine. Except, even through my pessimistic mind, I have to remember that it's only the middle of July and I can't write this team off yet.  That's very dangerous.  For Example, I wrote off the Minnesota Twins on May 24th, when they were about 20 games under .500.  As of the start of action today, they were just 7 games south of .500, giving their droves of fans reason to cheer that their scrappy ball club can be a contender down the stretch.  That said, we all can't just write off the Tigers just because they came out of the All Star break with 2 losses.  Teams lose two in a row.  It happens.  That same rationale has proven that even Justin Verlander can lose, as has been proven 5 times this season.  As I type this out, the AL Central leading Cleveland Indians lost their game to the Orioles tonight, thus leaving the Tigers a mere 1 game behind them in the Central race.  Awfully hard to write off a team who's that close.

Sure, the Tigers are a flawed team.  Last I checked, every team in the division is flawed.  But for the Tigers, they have issues to fix - pitching and a couple of infield spots.  And while the offense has been lacking for the last couple of games, for the most part, minus a little consistency, has been there for the Tigers.  Going into action today they had 5 guys in the lineup batting at least .300.  People say pitching and defense win championships, and the Tigers are struggling in both.  They are the 4th worst fielding team in the AL, and their bullpen has been hopelessly inconsistent this season.  Jose Valverde might be perfect in saves/chances this season, but it's not without a challenge.  And when he is placed in the game that isn't a save chance (like today), he struggles.  The Tigers will likely try to add an arm for the rotation, which for right now lacks a mediocre 5th starter.  We'll be hearing a lot of rumors before the trade deadline, which occurs at the end of the month.

It's easier said than done, but what the Tigers must do down the stretch is simple.  Play consistent baseball, pitch well, and make sure Jim Leyland doesn't outmanage himself before any of these games start.  Because if this team does finish off another second-half fade away, it'll all be on Leyland - the orchestrator of all those second-half failures of recent years gone by.  Tigers fans all over have been calling for his head most of the season (myself included), but he needs to prove he can actually manage from ahead.  Because we as Tigers fans have seen him try and manage from behind for a few too many years now.