DET. TIGERS 2008 REG SEASON SCHEDULE & SCORES

09/04/2008 12:55 AM ET
Granderson in the middle of big victory
Leadoff hitter smokes game-trying triple before scoring winner
By Jason Beck / MLB.com

DETROIT -- Curtis Granderson is the Tigers' prototypical leadoff man, a role he isn't going to relinquish anytime soon. Now, it's becoming fair to call him a prototypical hitter, no matter where he's batting.

For the better part of three seasons, Tigers manager Jim Leyland has talked about Granderson eventually maturing into a hitter who could produce in the middle of the order. Even as Granderson put up historic standards last season, that was the next step, becoming someone who could produce big RBIs as well as set them up.

On Wednesday, Granderson had three hits and scored all three times. His seventh-inning triple not only drove in the tying run, but set up the go-ahead run in Detroit's seventh-inning rally en route to Wednesday's 9-6 win over the Angels at Comerica Park. Afterward was the time for Leyland to acknowledge how far Granderson has come.

"Granderson's just maturing before everybody's eyes," Leyland said, "as far as knocking in runs now, walking, making himself a total hitter. To be honest with you, if you wanted to and you had a pure leadoff man, you could move him down now. He's ready.

"I've talked about this for a couple years. I don't think we can do it, because we don't really have that guy right now. And he's pretty exciting when he leads off with triples and doubles and stuff. It's not that it's a bad thing; it's still a good thing for us to have him leading off. But my point is I think he's matured enough to the point now where he can do what I talked about. He can knock in runs."

He knocked in just one Wednesday, but it was a critical one. And it came with the kind of extra-base hit that has made him electrifying at the top of the order.

A 74-minute rain delay pushed back the start before Jon Garland and Zach Miner dueled to a 5-5 game through their six innings. Three consecutive baserunners in the seventh against Clay Rapada loaded the bases for Vladimir Guerrero, whose jam-shot pop fly off Kyle Farnsworth fell out of the reach of shortstop Ramon Santiago and left fielder Matt Joyce for a go-ahead bloop single.

By stranding the bases loaded from there with a strikeout of Torii Hunter and a Kendry Morales flyout, Farnsworth (2-2) kept the Tigers close enough to rally in the bottom of the inning. Two swings later, Detroit had its rally off the man who could eventually succeed Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez.

Enter rookie right-hander Jose Arredondo, who earned his first Major League win against the Tigers on May 26 and has generally dominated from there. On this night, however, he fell behind Brandon Inge before his ground ball took shortstop Brandon Wood deep into the hole for an infield hit.
Up came Granderson, who took the first five pitches he saw from Arredondo to work the count full. He laid off the outside fastballs and drop-down changeups that Arredondo wanted him to chase. Both strikes were fastballs that caught the upper corners of the plate.

On the payoff pitch, Arredondo (7-2) challenged Granderson with a 96-mph fastball in the strike zone. Granderson lined it off the fence in left-center field and took off running. Not only did Inge score to tie the game, but Granderson reached third without a challenge.

It wasn't just that at-bat, but plenty of others before it which have convinced Leyland that Granderson has taken that next step. This was simply the fitting time for him to express it.

"It's been happening," Leyland said. "It's been happening for a while now. I've really been impressed with him, just laying off tough pitches."

Once Placido Polanco singled two pitches later, Granderson scored for the 48th time in his last 45 games, including three on Wednesday. He has scored in his last seven games and reached base safely in his last 19. He's batting .397 (25-for-65) over his last 18 games, and seven of those hits have been triples.

Just as impressive, he has struck out in just eight of those contests, and just five times over his last 13 games.

"He's grown into an outstanding player right before our eyes," Leyland said. "He's got more confidence now. He's learning to figure things out."

His confidence in RBI situations is showing. When he drove in 74 runs last year to go with all his extra-base hits, he hit for a .256 average with runners in scoring position and a .793 OPS. In those same situations this year, he's hitting for a .338 average and an OPS over .970. He won't match last year's RBI total -- he's at 53 now -- in part because he missed the better part of the opening month on the disabled list.

In those situations, though, Leyland said, "he looks like a totally different hitter."

Farnsworth escaped an eighth-inning jam with an inning-ending double play to earn his first victory since joining the Tigers on July 30. Mike Hessman's homer off Justin Speier in his first start since the Tigers called him up Tuesday provided insurance for Fernando Rodney, who stranded the bases loaded and struck out Mike Napoli as the potential go-ahead run at the plate for his eighth save.

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

09/04/2008 5:58 PM ET

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Rogers ponders future after tough day
Southpaw lasts only two-plus as Angels take rubber game
By Jason Beck / MLB.com

DETROIT -- The fact that Kenny Rogers took the mound Thursday on one of the Tigers' Senior Days promotional games was an odd coincidence, not a reason for reflection. It was what happened on the field that had the 43-year-old answering questions about his future.

He doesn't want to think right now about the career decision he faces at season's end. After days like this, though, he admits he can't help but let it enter his mind. He had been pulled from the game after 39 pitches Thursday, eight of which went for Angels base hits. He retired just four of the 12 batters he faced, none in the third inning, and escaped each of his first two innings by doubling off a runner at third base.

In terms of innings,it was Rogers' second-shortest start in three seasons as a Tiger. And after a 7-1 loss to the Angels in the rubber match of a three-game series at Comerica Park, he had enough on his mind trying to figure out what he could've done differently than thinking about longer-term issues like his career.

"Trying to deal with that after a game like today is probably not the best way to decide those things," Rogers said. "Coming off the mound, though, it's hard not to think about it."

Every start, in a way, is a matter of trying to prove to people that he can still pitch -- not necessarily to others, but to himself. Before the Tigers -- or any team -- decide whether to bring him along for 2009, he has to decide whether to stick around for the ride after 20 Major League seasons. And that's not as easy as it sounds.

He admitted in Spring Training that he thought he was done after last season, certain that he didn't want to put himself through the wear and tear on his arm and the time away from his family. Before anyone makes a punchline about that decision in hindsight, keep in mind that he entered the All-Star break as a .500 pitcher with a 4.55 ERA -- workmanlike, though not spectacular.

He's 3-7 with a 7.45 ERA in 10 starts since then, and opponents are batting .336 against him over that stretch. He has allowed as many or more runs than innings pitched in each of his last three starts now, including six runs over two-plus innings Thursday. As tough as it is being a fan, it's obviously far tougher going through it as the player.

Rogers has spent years defying his age. Now he has to decide if he's simply trying to defy the stats.

"I assess my ability and my responsibility as much as anyone," Rogers said. "That will easily have a bearing on what I want to do. I'm not one to hang on. I want to pitch well."

Again, this was not a good day to think about that.

The frustrating part for Rogers is that he says his arm feels good, very good for this point in the season for him. Manager Jim Leyland said Rogers is dealing with a sore hip, but Rogers said that's not an excuse. At this point in his life, he believes soreness is part of the deal.

He believes he still has life on his fastball, which has topped 90 mph this year. His sinker, however, has by his admission been flat, which has sent his numbers skyrocketing.

Thursday, though, was more a matter to him of not reacting to Angels hitters, who waited for him to go for the outside corner and dove out over to the plate to swing when he did. His inside pitches to try to brush them off did not have the desired effect.

"We dodged a couple bullets early," Leyland said, "but it was obvious Kenny wasn't sharp."

Of the four straight singles he allowed in the third, two came on 0-2 pitches. Robb Quinlan fouled off back-to-back 0-2 offerings -- one a curveball, the other a fastball -- before chasing an offspeed pitch off the plate and lining it to the opposite field for an RBI single. Mark Teixeira chased a high fastball off the plate and slashed it past a diving Edgar Renteria for another RBI, and that was it for Rogers.

"It was legitimately one of those days," catcher Brandon Inge said. "The whole series, really. They're hot."

Rogers clearly is not.

"You have to make adjustments," Rogers said. "I haven't made enough recently to put good starts together. That's the name of the game. From the get-go today, they were hitting the ball away. It might just be inventing a pitch or two. I don't know."

Leyland said he would check with Rogers on how he's feeling. Asked about any decisions coming out of that, Leyland said that would be "putting the cart before the horse."

Rogers isn't going to make any decisions now, not in this state. The way he finishes the season, though, will have a bearing on what he decides to do come the offseason. To decide anything now, he said, would be "a decision out of frustration."

Yet when he came off the field Thursday to polite cheers, not boos, that had an effect on him, too.

"I can't even explain what that feeling is," Rogers said, "to know you have support like that. Supportive as they have been, I think that makes you want it even more, which isn't a good thing."

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Thursday, September 4, 2008
Angels 7, Tigers 1
Rogers nearing the end of career
Lefty won't say he's retiring, but latest outing against Angels is a sign this year could be his last.
Lynn Henning / The Detroit News

DETROIT -- He could not quite say the words, because if Kenny Rogers were to have announced Thursday that 2008 is his last season in the big leagues, it could lead to a couple of things, neither of them good:

1. Retirement could creep into his psyche when the Tigers left-hander probably has four starts remaining before the season ends Sept. 28. Rogers wants to remain in full battle mode until he throws his final pitch.

2. He does not want to pull a Roger Clemens or Brett Favre and decide retirement was premature, although the latter concern seemed to be dissipating in Rogers' mind following Thursday's game, which Rogers would prefer forgetting.

He was gone in the third inning of a game the Tigers lost, 7-1, to the Los Angeles Angels and their other-worldly right-hander, Ervin Santana, who was so dominating he turned Comerica Park into his personal domain.

Rogers pitched to only four batters in the third inning, all of whom got singles, before manager Jim Leyland pulled him in favor of Aquilino Lopez. By the end of the third, Rogers had been charged with six Angels runs on eight hits.

His record is 9-13. His ERA is 5.49.

Even if there were no farewell speeches Thursday, it was apparent during a 20-minute conversation afterward Rogers is preparing for the end. He spoke peacefully, at times humorously, but with a kind of pained resignation as he contemplated what is likely to be his final few weeks in the majors.

"I'm not one to hang on, I'm surely not going to hang on for the sake of wearing a uniform," said Rogers, who turns 44 in November and who, privately, has been leaning toward 2008 being his last big-league season.

"I'm disappointed in myself," he said. "I'm frustrated, and I don't want frustration to be part of the equation.

"After a game like today, it's not the best way to decide something. But coming off that mound (after being pulled in the third), it's hard not to think about it (retirement).

"The frustrating part is, I feel fine. And yet, realistically, I know where I'm at in my career.

"I think these guys here (Tigers front office), they'll have an idea, too," Rogers said, hinting at what, in any event, will likely be a decision by the Tigers to move ahead, minus Rogers.

"It'll all mesh together."

The question for the Tigers -- apart from Rogers' decision -- is how Leyland's starting rotation figures to mesh in 2009.

Already there are gaping holes. There are uncertainties. And no one is quite sure who can, or will, provide the pitching staff's bedrock in 2009, although a long and busy offseason should provide at least some potential answers there.
There is no guarantee left-handers Nate Robertson and Dontrelle Willis will be ship-shape by next spring. Jeremy Bonderman will be coming off major thoracic surgery. Armando Galarraga will need to show he can be as consistent in 2009 as he has been in 2008. The same mission will apply to Zach Miner.

But what appeared all but certain Thursday is that Rogers will not be part of the mix, fundamentally because he is on the verge of retiring.

"The frustrating part is that I feel fine," he repeated. "I was at 91 (mph) this year, and once at 92. That, for me, is pretty good.

"The dilemma is that my sinker has been absolutely terrible. That's my bread and butter."

It could be a temporary thing. But Rogers seemed to accept it might be something else. A man with 20 big-league seasons has pitched years longer than most successful pitchers ever imagine competing.

It all had to end some year. And after Thursday, there seemed little doubt in anyone's mind -- including that of Kenny Rogers -- that 2008 is it.

The game

The Tigers had only seven hits Thursday, including a home run by Curtis Granderson (his 17th) and doubles by Edgar Renteria and Mike Hessman . Lopez pitched four innings of scoreless relief, striking out five. Robertson pitched three innings and allowed one run on Torii Hunter 's mammoth home run into the shrubbery in deep center field. Robertson allowed two hits and walked none.

Dusty's debut

Rookie catcher Dusty Ryan , added to this week's roster after a big year in the Tigers farm system, has already made an impression.

A long one.

Ryan walloped a pitch during Tuesday's batting practice against the Charlie Gehringer statue atop the outfield walkway at Comerica Park. The blast, which cleared the red brick wall beyond the left-center field bleachers, traveled more than 450 feet.

"(Ryan ) Raburn asked if he could use the bat I used," said Ryan, 24, who slugged 17 home runs this season during stints at Double-A Erie and Triple-A Toledo.

Ryan will start in Sunday's game against the Twins. Ryan, who is 6-foot-4, 220 pounds, is known for his power -- at the plate and in his throwing arm.

"A cannon," Leyland said.

You can reach Lynn Henning at lynn.henning@detnews.com

09/05/2008 10:55 PM ET

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Galarraga can't solve Twins
Right-hander drops record to 0-4 against Minnesota
By Thor Nystrom / MLB.com

MINNEAPOLIS -- Tigers starter Armando Galarraga says there's nothing to it, as if his struggles against one team are a result of randomization. Maybe so, but the numbers make for a startling contrast.

After Friday's 10-2 Tigers loss against the Twins, the rookie is 0-4 with a 5.23 ERA against Minnesota and 12-1 with a 2.91 ERA against the rest of the league.

Justin Morneau made sure the rookie right-hander's struggles against the Twins continued, hitting a grand slam over the right-field baggie in the fifth inning. The home run put Detroit in a 6-1 hole it wouldn't dig out of.

Galarraga (12-5, 3.39) went six innings and allowed six earned runs. He was wild, walking a career-high six batters. Galarraga allowed three hits, two of which were homers, including a Delmon Young solo shot in the fourth inning.

The Tigers walked a total of eight batters, a number that irked their skipper.

"We walked way too many people," manager Jim Leyland said. "You can't do that against anybody, let alone the Twins. I don't care who you are playing, you walk eight or nine guys in a Major League game, you are going to lose."

"We made [Galarraga] throw a lot of pitches," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "He's a pretty good pitcher. We've beat him four or five times this year. That's pretty incredible because he's a really good pitcher and got great stuff. But we made him throw pitches and we worked the counts and got people on bases and scored runs here and there."

The walks combined with a pair of mistakes contributed to the lopsided final.

"[Galarraga] made a couple of huge, bad pitches, to Young and Morneau," Leyland said. "He left both offspeed pitches up in the zone."

Galarraga was opposed by left-hander Francisco Liriano, who continued a stellar comeback after being recalled from the Minors on Aug. 1. Liriano went seven innings, while allowing two earned runs on five hits. The left-hander struck out nine while walking only one.

Liriano is now 5-0 with a 1.44 ERA and 38 strikeouts in six starts since being called up.

"Liriano was very, very good," Leyland said.

Morneau believes the left-hander is stepping into the forefront of Minnesota's starting rotation.

"The thing that's made him tough now is he's added that changeup," Morneau said. "I don't want to go this far, but he's almost like [Johan] Santana in that he can throw that changeup when he wants to and it keeps them off his slider. And when he needs that slider with two strikes, he goes to it. When he's out there, he's the ace I think, and it's looking like he wants to pitch in those games where we need the wins."

Only one Tiger could solve Liriano. Marcus Thames had his seventh career multi-home run game, hitting a pair of solo shots -- one in the fifth and one in the eighth.

"Liriano had some good stuff tonight, he kept us off balance," Thames said. "He's a good pitcher. ... Yeah, I hit two home runs, but we didn't win the game. He had good stuff."

Thames has now hit four home runs against the Twins this year.

"He had a great game, almost made a tremendous catch in foul territory, two home runs," Leyland said. "We just didn't get guys on. We didn't really muster an offense at all. Our whole offense was Marcus' home runs, basically."

To Leyland, the game boiled down to a few very simple factors.

"I'm certainly not going to take anything away from them, but I mean, they got six hits, we got five," Leyland said. "We walked eight guys. You can't do that. We struck out 12 times or something. You just can't do that."

Thor Nystrom is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Saturday, September 6, 2008
Twins 10, Tigers 2
Reeling Tigers burned by slam
Galarraga's unusual wildness sets table for Morneau's bases-loaded homer, early 6-1 deficit.
Tom Gage / The Detroit News

MINNEAPOLIS -- Where did all the walks come from, Armando? That's not like you.

Losing to the Twins seems to be, however.

Looking in vain for a way to beat the team that's now beaten him four times, Armando Galarraga walked a career-high six batters in six innings Friday night, including two before Justin Morneau's grand slam in the fifth, en route to a 10-2 loss at Metrodome.

"We walked too many guys and we struck out too many times," manager Jim Leyland said. "That pretty much sums I up."

What's strange is that Galarraga, pleasant surprise that he's been, is 12-1 against everyone else. The only other team he's lost to is Baltimore.

It adds up to a good season, but a bad record against one team -- and that team happens to be the division contender the Tigers weren't much of a match for in this game.

They were no match because Twins starter Francisco Liriano was no-nonsense tough, twice striking out the side. Other than two home runs by Marcus Thames, giving him 24 for the year, the Tigers had just three singles against Liriano (5-3) before he left in the eighth.

Galarraga also was stingy with hits, but not with walks.

For instance, he walked the bases loaded in the first, getting out of the self-made jam with relatively minimal damage on Jason Kubel's sacrifice fly. Two walks after Carlos Gomez's leadoff double in the fifth and before Morneau's home run led to maximum damage, however.

"He was being too fine," Leyland said. "I know they've beaten him a couple of times. I don't know if he was being a little careful for that reason, but I'll check into that with him.

"We've just walked too many people all year long. You can't do that against anybody, let alone the Twins."

Galarraga said it wasn't a matter of being careful because the Twins have been tough on him.

"It's nothing about them," he said. "I wasn't at my best, I couldn't locate my fastball. It was moving so much, so I slowed down."

Like everything Galarraga has tried against them, that didn't work, either.

Just pitch

Justin Verlander starts today, his first game since questions swirled about whether he makes too many excuses.

The last time Verlander pitched, he got lit up on Labor Day by the Yankees and blamed a tight strike zone. He actually didn't, but that's the way it sounded to Leyland from Verlander's postgame comments.

Saying he wasn't being critical or trying "to start something," Leyland countered by saying players should learn to say they are bad when they are and not use "diversionary tactics" such as blaming an umpire's strike zone.

It wasn't a sharp exchange, because it really wasn't an exchange at all -- and certainly not a spat. Leyland wasn't angry with Verlander, nor was Verlander offended by what his manager had to say.

But the Tigers right-hander is nothing if not headstrong. In a subsequent conversation with Leyland, he conveyed his point. And one can only think Verlander believes he wasn't making excuses at all.

Here's what he said after his last start about umpire Chuck Meriwether 's strike zone, but also about himself:

"My control was erratic. The guy behind the plate had a tight zone, but that happens in the big leagues. I don't think he was unfair. I'm not saying he was unfair by any means. I don't want that to come across that way. It's just that some guys are tighter than others. I don't think that had anything to do with the result.

"The point is I was not able to make pitches when I needed to. I made some decent pitches that got hit. The bad ones got hit as well. When all is said and done, you need to make pitches to get out of innings."

Bottom line, and whether he does well, it's a safe bet Verlander won't mention umpire Tim Tschida 's strike zone at all today.

Except, perhaps, to praise it.

Around the horn

Carlos Guillen didn't make this trip because of a stiff back that will have caused him to miss 12 consecutive games by the time this series is over.

... Leyland said he's skipping Kenny Rogers ' next scheduled start (Tuesday night) and that "there's a good chance it could be Nate Robertson " starting instead. Rogers will start again next Saturday in Chicago, though.

... Class A West Michigan and Class A Oneonta are the Tigers' only minor league teams still in postseason play.

You can reach Tom Gage at tom.gage@detnews.com

Last edited by GoGetEmTigers on Sun Sep 07, 2008 3:59 am; edited 1 time in total

09/06/2008 9:11 PM ET

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Tigers top Twins with late rally
Granderson, Ordonez hit a pair of two-run homers in eighth
By Thor Nystrom / MLB.com

MINNEAPOLIS -- Tigers manager Jim Leyland sits in the dugout of Saturday's game at the Metrodome. Flashbacks are wreaking havoc in his mind's eye. He has been in this game for years, and he has seen this scenario one too many times.

The Tigers lead, 6-4, in the ninth. Closer Fernando Rodney loads the bases. Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau are next up, respectively, and there is only one out. The 63-year-old sage gets up, halts the game and walks to the mound. He looks in his closer's eyes.

"Pound the ball in and throw your changeup," Leyland says. He returns to the dugout.

Rodney proceeds to strike out Mauer and induce a game-ending infield lineout from Morneau, a batter who had previously obliterated him to the tune of 6-for-10 with two home runs. Game over: Tigers win.

"I'm so thrilled that we won that game, because that's one of those nightmare games at the Metrodome," Leyland said. "I've seen those a thousand times: walk the leadoff guy, somebody bounces it over somebody's head, somebody bloops one in and then a blast. They go through your head all the time when you play up here. I've had a lot of them, as every other manager who comes in here has had."

Though the Tigers have faith in Rodney, Leyland was rather surprised with the manner in which his closer escaped a potential calamity.

"His stuff is so good that he can get out of his jams," Leyland said. "To strike out Mauer is unbelievable. That's not going to happen very often."

The next batter, Morneau, had busted open a 10-2 Minnesota victory on Friday over Detroit with a grand slam off starter Armando Galarraga. The irony wasn't lost on the Tigers' center fielder.

"[Those are] two guys that you don't want to face any time, whether at the beginning of the game or at the end of the game, especially with runners on," Curtis Granderson said. "You saw Morneau last night with the grand slam. Same situation, coming up. Rodney trusted in his fastball. No matter how good of a hitter you are, 97 [mph] is still 97."

For Detroit to be protecting a late lead, it first had to strike a hemorrhaging Minnesota bullpen. With the Tigers trailing, 4-2, in the top of the eighth inning and a runner on first, Granderson charged a Dennys Reyes hanging slider over the right-field baggie to tie the contest.

Reyes was yanked for Matt Guerrier. The right-hander surrendered a single to Placido Polanco. Magglio Ordonez then ripped the fourth consecutive slider he saw from Guerrier over the left-field wall to seize the lead for Detroit.

It was Detroit's fourth eighth-inning rally for a win against Minnesota this year. Are the Tigers just trying to avoid closer Joe Nathan, who has never blown a save against them?

"Nathan's up there as one of the top, premier closers," Granderson said. "You definitely don't want to face him, because there is a good chance that it means you are losing."

The Twins had earlier grabbed a 4-1 lead when Tigers starter Justin Verlander gave up a two-run bases-loaded double to Carlos Gomez in the sixth inning. A key sequence occurred on the play that would gain significance later in the game: Brian Buscher was thrown out at home for the inning's second out when left fielder Marcus Thames hit Ramon Santiago, who relayed it to Brandon Inge for the tag out.

"That's obliviously a big play," Leyland said.

Clay Rapada entered and coaxed an inning-ending groundout from Denard Span. Rapada threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings and received the win. Kyle Farnsworth struck out two in a perfect eighth inning before handing off to Rodney, who was rocky but recorded his ninth save.

Verlander went 5 2/3 innings while giving up four earned runs on eight hits and four walks. Verlander (10-15) has worked diligently with pitching coach Chuck Hernandez between starts to attempt to turn around a subpar season.

"I was real happy today with [Verlander], to be honest with you," Leyland said. "Yeah, he might have run out of gas a little bit [in the sixth inning], but overall, I was very happy with him. He is making progress. He is going to be a blue-chip pitcher in this league for a long time. It's just a matter of keeping working, keeping after it, staying after it, and he'll be fine."

Verlander labored through 114 pitches before a premature hook, but the right-hander was able to strand runners and dance out of a few tenuous situations.

"I was able to work out of some jams, keep our guys close, and they stepped up big," Verlander said.

The comeback victory helped the struggling Tigers get back into the win column. Detroit had lost nine of its past 12 games prior to Saturday.

"I don't want it ever to be said that a club I manage was not busting [tail], particularly with the stakes as high as they are -- particularly for Minnesota, but obviously we are trying to win as many games as we can," Leyland said.

Thor Nystrom is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Saturday, September 6, 2008
Tigers 6, Twins 4
Eighth-inning power surge bails out Tigers, Verlander
Tom Gage / The Detroit News

MINNEAPOLIS -- The Tigers overcame a three-run deficit to beat the Twins on Saturday. But one obstacle they've faced all year has been insurmountable.

The most telling statistic of their disappointing season is this: From a rotation thought in spring training to be capable of winning 75 games, had it stayed healthy and had those who stayed healthy not underachieved, the Tigers have 29 victories.

That's all -- 29.

"It's been tough, obviously," said manager Jim Leyland, "but that's the way it is. No excuses."

Looking for his 11th victory, Justin Verlander came up short again as his record remained at 10-15 in a game the Tigers came from behind to win 6-4 on a pair of two-run home runs in the eighth inning.

Curtis Granderson's two-run shot off lefty-hander Dennys Reyes tied the score. Then after a single by Placido Polanco, Magglio Ordonez put the Tigers in front for good by connecting off Matt Guerrier, who's been a punching bag the second half of the season.

It was a good victory for the Tigers, giving them a 7-60 record when they've trailed after seven innings, but once again it wasn't Verlander's best.

Yet he's still the bigger winner of the five pitchers who were going to be part of a deep, experienced rotation this season. Here are their won-lost numbers:

* Justin Verlander 10-15

* Kenny Rogers 9-13

* Nate Robertson 7-10

* Jeremy Bonderman 3-4

* Dontrelle Willis 0-1

Willis, of course, lost his control. Robertson lost his slider. Bonderman had serious shoulder surgery. Rogers might be in the final month of his fine career. And Verlander -- with an ERA (4.78) that's climbed back to its highest point since June 6 -- simply has been more bad than good.

Now go ahead. Guess again where the Tigers have the most work to do for next year.

Fortunately for them, the various starters they've unearthed along the way are 19-8. They have a talent pool to choose from, but from injuries to lack of performance, it's been a devastating season for the Tigers' original rotation.

Every time Verlander pitches, there are glimpses of the talent with which he won 35 games the last two seasons. But also with every game he pitches there's evidence of what he must overcome: The erratic location of his fastball, the chronic tendency to throw too many pitches.

In this game, for instance, he departed after 5 2/3 innings, having thrown 114 pitches. When he left, the Tigers trailed 4-1, which would have been 5-1 had Ramon Santiago not thrown out Brian Buscher at the plate on Carlos Gomez's bases-loaded double in the sixth.

"I liked a lot of things I saw in him," Leyland said of Verlander. "I thought he did better, to be honest with you. I think he's figuring it out. Overall, I was very happy with him. He's going to be a blue-chip pitcher in this league for a long time."

At the time, it looked like the Twins were in control again after winning Friday night's game 10-2. Bad outfield defense and relief betrayed them, though.

Right fielder Denard Span played Ordonez's leadoff single in the seventh off starter Scott Baker into a triple by letting it get past him. Miguel Cabrera singled in Ordonez to cut the Twins' lead to two runs.

At 5-1 the Tigers might have been out of it.

At 4-2 they weren't.

When Baker walked Santiago with one out in the eighth, the Twins went to Reyes, only to have Granderson hit the home run that tied it. Guerrier then served up the home run to Ordonez that proved to be the difference.

Fernando Rodney made it exciting in the ninth en route to his ninth save, but got out of a bases-loaded jam with one out by striking out Joe Mauer and getting Justin Morneau on a hard liner to second.

"I don't care who you are," said catcher Brandon Inge, "if Rodney makes his pitches, you're not going to do much with them. The pitch to Mauer, one of the best hitters I've ever seen, was well-spotted -- inside corner, right on the black.

"But the pitch to Morneau was much over the plate than we wanted. That's the danger zone."

So Rodney got away with a mistake?

"Big time," Inge said.

Leyland was going with Rodney all the way. No one was warming up in the bullpen.

"His stuff is so good that he can get out of a jam," said Leyland, "but striking out Mauer was something I didn't expect. That's not going to happen very often. Walking the leadoff hitter, though, you can't do that.

"This is a tough place to win, particularly with everything (the contending) Twins have at stake. We were in trouble. I'm so glad we won it, because that was one of those nightmare games in the making at the Metrodome.

"I've seen those a thousand times. Walk the leadoff guy, someone bounces one over someone's head, then a bloop and a blast. That goes through your head all the time when you play up here."

No nightmares this time, though, except for the Twins -- who in their quest to catch the White Sox, can't let any games slip away that they're in position to win.

As for the Tigers, out of it with 20 games to go, there's already next year to think about.

Those thoughts, no doubt, begin with starting pitching.

You can reach Tom Gage at tom.gage@detnews.com

Last edited by GoGetEmTigers on Sun Sep 07, 2008 5:26 pm; edited 1 time in total

09/07/2008 7:32 PM ET

Box >

Tigers surge past Twins to take series
Ryan, Ordonez go deep; three-run sixth inning wins finale
By Thor Nystrom / MLB.com

MINNEAPOLIS -- Dusty Ryan, a 48th-round selection four years ago in the First-Year Player Draft, only this season played himself into even being considered a prospect, according to Tigers manager Jim Leyland. So one could forgive the 24-year-old rookie catcher for the smile he flashed as he rounded the bases after smacking the first pitch he saw in his first Major League start for a two-run homer.

The blast gave Detroit an early lead, which it would surrender, but the team clawed back against Minnesota's bullpen for the second consecutive day and won, 7-5, in front of 31,236 at the Metrodome.

"I just couldn't believe it -- my first hit was a home run," Ryan said of his thoughts while rounding the bases.

Leyland had said before the game that he didn't know much about the rookie catcher, but knew he had big power.The skipper gave Ryan the start more for the youngster's familiarity with starting pitcher Chris Lambert, whom he had caught in the Minors, than for his offense. But Ryan paid immediate dividends with the bat.

"We were talking before the game, and I asked [third-base coach] Gene Lamont: 'Do you think Ryan will get his first Major League hit today?' And he said: 'Yeah, I think he will,'" Leyland said. "And after he hit it, Gene said: 'I wish I would have said he is going to hit a home run today, but I didn't go that far.'"

Twins starter Glen Perkins gave Ryan exactly what he was looking for: a fastball over the plate.

"I knew I hit it well, and I looked up and lost it in the ceiling," Ryan said.

Difficulty tracking his shot in the Dome's tricky Teflon ceiling aside, Ryan seemed at ease in his first extended action. He and starting pitcher Chris Lambert formed an effective rookie battery.

"I caught him, I think, three starts in Toledo, so I'm pretty familiar with what he likes to throw in certain counts," Ryan said. "That probably helped a lot today -- he pitched well."

Lambert received his first Major League victory by going five innings and surrendering three earned runs on seven hits and one walk.

"It's exciting, it's definitely one I will remember forever," Lambert said. "It took a little longer than I would have liked. But I got through five, battled out there -- it was tough at times, but it feels great."

Lambert required the Tigers' considerably gifted offense to secure his first win. Detroit trailed, 4-2, heading into the sixth inning, but the Tigers jumped on a tiring Perkins to seize control of the game. Miguel Cabrera's leadoff opposite-field homer cut the deficit to 4-3. It was the first baseman's 1,000th career hit.

"That's hard to believe, really," Leyland said. "[Cabrera]'s something special, you saw it again today. ... He's just got more talent than most people to do things. That's just the way it is. I don't think you can put it any better than that."

Three hits, one walk and one run later, Perkins was pulled. Curtis Granderson greeted reliever Craig Breslow with an RBI single, which gave the Tigers a 5-4 lead. Detroit added two insurance runs in the seventh via a Magglio Ordonez solo homer and a Marcus Thames sacrifice fly to center field.

The Tigers' bullpen ensured the lead would be converted into a win. Bobby Seay allowed one run in two innings, Kyle Farnsworth pitched a scoreless eighth, and closer Fernando Rodney converted his 10th save of the season with a scoreless ninth.

For the second consecutive day, Rodney had to face the Twins' star left-handed hitters, Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau, in a save situation with men on base. On Saturday with the bases loaded, he struck out Mauer and got Morneau to line out to end the game. One day later, after surrendering a single to Alexi Casilla, Rodney secured consecutive flyouts from Mauer and Morneau to send the Minnesota faithful home disappointed.

"You don't like to end up in the ninth inning seeing Mauer and Morneau a couple days in a row, that's not a good situation," Leyland said. "But that's the way it is. I thought [Rodney] did very well.

"One thing about Rodney -- he's not scared, that's for sure. He might not always get it done, but he's not afraid. He doesn't panic. Here it is, this is what he's got, and he will go at you."

Indeed, four of Rodney's five pitches to Mauer and Morneau were fastballs 95 mph or faster. His first pitch to Morneau, a 96-mph chest-high fastball over the plate that the slugger swung through, might as well have been a statement.

"I'm not afraid to throw, no matter who I have to face," Rodney said. "I want to throw one pitch high [to Morneau] and see what he's looking for."

In the locker room after the game, at least three Tigers had new keepsake souvenirs. Ryan had his first home run ball, Lambert had the game ball from his first victory, and Cabrera had the home run ball that represented his 1,000th hit. The 25-year-old Cabrera called the milestone "very important" to him.

Detroit leaves the Twin Cities having taken two of three from the contending Twins.

"However many [games] we have left, we are going to play hard," Leyland said. "That's what you get paid to do. It's a tough place against a great team that is right there in the hunt. It looks like them and the White Sox will be in a dogfight until the end. I'm glad we are done with them."

Thor Nystrom is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Last edited by GoGetEmTigers on Mon Sep 08, 2008 6:07 am; edited 1 time in total

Detroit Tigers' Dusty Ryan smiles in the dugout after hitting a two-run
home run off Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Glen Perkins during the
second inning of a baseball game on Sunday. (Paul Battaglia /
Associated Press)

Monday, September 8, 2008
Tigers 7, Twins 5
Tigers win with another rally
Tom Gage / The Detroit News

MINNEAPOLIS — He said it more than once over the weekend and meant it more than once.

Manager Jim Leyland believes the stakes are still high for the Tigers, and by coming from behind to win the last two games of their three-game series against the Twins, after being drubbed 10-2 in the opener, they played like it.

On Sunday, the Tigers trailed by two, only to march back in front with three in the sixth en route to a 7-5 victory, a rally begun by Miguel Cabrera's 32nd home run.

They added two more in the seventh, including Magglio Ordonez's 18th home run.

But the home run that will be most remembered by a Tiger was rookie catcher Dusty Ryan’s two-run shot in the second off starter Glen Perkins. Not only did it come in the first major-league game he started, but it also was his first hit.

In both Saturday and Sunday’s victory, though, the Tigers did much of their damage against the Twins' bullpen.

In fact, they left the Twins gasping like a team with a bullpen fatigued by constant use and definitely looking like the underdog to win the American League Central a division that former Tiger and current Twins' broadcaster Jack Morris said on Sunday was one "that was just waiting for someone to take charge."

That's not exactly happening, though. Neither the Twins nor the White Sox are taking charge. And it's too late for the Tigers to do it.

But what exactly does Leyland mean when he talks about the stakes still being high? Obviously the Tigers aren't going to win the division. They are 11 1/2 games out with 19 games to go.

Their magic number to be eliminated is nine. They aren't going anywhere but home in three weeks.

"First of all," Leyland said, "we're trying to win as many games as we can, but I also don't want it to be said anywhere that our team didn't do everything it could that it started experimenting at the expense of the White Sox or Twins.

"Those two teams are in a dogfight. We need to be respectful of that. We don't want to be a team about which people say, 'Well, they didn't play their guys.' I'm going to play the lineup that's going to give us the best chance to win against both the Twins and White Sox (next weekend), also the Oakland A's."

"But there will be more conversation about the Twins and White Sox," Leyland said, "I don't play a game I don't want to win. But I also don't want to hear any weak comments that we weren't playing our guys.

"So the stakes are big for us and obviously for them as well. However many we have left, we'll play hard. That's what you get paid to do."

Simulation

Dontrelle Willis and Freddy Garcia will pitch in their second simulated game today at Comerica Park after which, if all goes well, the next outing for both pitchers could be in a major-league game.

Leyland said both will throw more pitches than they did in the first session last week, with pitch count being more important to Garcia, who's bouncing back from last year's surgery, than it is for Willis, who's fully healthy.

"Freddy threw 54 pitches last time, I think," Leyland said. "We'd like to see 70 from him this time."

Firsts

Not only did Ryan hit his first major-league home run on Sunday, but rookie right-hander Chris Lambert, in his third start, also won his first game.

"It took a little longer than I wanted," Lambert said, "but it feels great."

"Having my first hit be a home run, that's a dream come true," said Ryan, who spent time at both Double-A Erie and Triple-A Toledo this season.

It was at Toledo that he'd previously caught Lambert.

"I wanted to catch Ryan with Lambert pitching," Leyland said. "He knows him a little bit. I know one thing, he has some power. He hits it far."

When asked if Ryan might be a candidate to back up Brandon Inge next year, however, Leyland said, "that's putting the cart before the horse. But if I had to sum it up, he's gone from being a possibility to a prospect on everyone's list. He's played his way to the prospect level."

First thousand

Cabrera's home run in the sixth was the 1,000th hit of his career. Yet he's only 25.

Plus he has this going for him: "He's just more talented than most people," Leyland said.

For sure

Nate Robertson will start Tuesday night against Oakland, his first start since Aug. 20.

You can reach Tom Gage at tom.gage@detnews.com

Last edited by GoGetEmTigers on Mon Sep 08, 2008 6:08 am; edited 1 time in total

Whooo Dusty and Miggy!!!
_________________
"Contrary to what everybody else thinks, I still think I can come back and help this team."

Todd Jones on shoulder injury.

09/09/2008 2:02 AM ET

Box >

Sheffield helps power Tigers past A's
Hessman ties mark by getting plunked twice in same inning
By Jason Beck / MLB.com

DETROIT -- Mike Hessman took his hits for the team. The rest of the team took their hits.

The Tigers had nine runs through the first two innings against the A's Monday night on their way to a 14-8 win, and they needed just six hits to get those first nine runs. Half of those hits were home runs, two from Gary Sheffield to give him 496 for his career. They used two more hits to get into double digits in the third, capped by Miguel Cabrera's tape-measure shot.

The A's needed six ground-ball singles to put together a methodical, five-run, fifth-inning rally to climb back into the game. Just as the A's were back in it, two more hits and a Hessman homer put the game away.

"I don't know if it's deflating," A's slugger Jack Cust said, "but it's definitely difficult when they come at you like that. That's the difference in the way they're built and the way we're built."

They can be maddening when they're not hitting, but when the Tigers are on, they can put up runs in a hurry in a way many other teams can't.

"A lot of guys put good swings on the ball tonight," manager Jim Leyland said, "and they flew out of the ballpark."

The Tigers' third straight win was seemingly decided by the middle innings before Oakland rallied to make a contest out of it. After struggling for much of the past month against left-handed starters, Tigers hitters pounded A's rookie southpaw Gio Gonzalez for three home runs out of the five hits he allowed in 1 2/3 innings, yielding eight earned runs and another unearned tally.

Yet it was a pair of hit batsmen, a two-out walk and an error that helped provide Gonzalez with his downfall and the Tigers with their opportunity to put up so many runs on the scoreboard.

"You have to make him throw strikes," Sheffield said. "We saw film on him. We had the scouting report, and it seemed like he was throwing a lot of pitches away and not getting his breaking ball over."

After Magglio Ordonez's two-run homer and Sheffield's solo shot -- both on full counts -- powered the three-run opening inning, Gonzalez hit Hessman with a 1-2 pitch leading off the second inning, putting him halfway toward history.

After Brandon Inge tripled in Hessman, Gonzalez recovered for back-to-back groundouts to keep Inge at third. Gonzalez was nearly out of the inning if he could find a way to retire Ordonez, who instead drew a five-pitch walk. Two pitches later, Gonzalez threw a fastball in that hit Cabrera above his left hip as he checked his swing, extending the inning again.

Gonzalez (1-4) again fell behind on Sheffield, who turned on a 3-1 fastball and sent it out on a line toward the left-field seats. Sheffield's 13th career grand slam was also the 250,000th home run hit in Major League history, according to baseball-reference.com.

"That's the type of home runs he's hit pretty much his whole career -- line drives, not real towering shots," Leyland said.

The A's were still looking for that third out when Hessman came back up. This time, it was lefty reliever Josh Outman who hit him on an 0-2 pitch.

Outman essentially plunked Hessman into the history books. He became just the fifth player in modern Major League history to be hit by two pitches in the same inning, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Former Orioles outfielder Brady Anderson was the last big leaguer -- and the only other American Leaguer -- to do it when Rangers starter Mike Morgan hit him twice in the opening inning on May 23, 1999. The Rockies' Andres Galarraga (1996), the Mets' Frank Thomas (1962) and the Reds' Willard Schmidt (1959) were the National Leaguers.

"The first one hurt," Hessman admitted. "The first one got me good [on the left side]."

Justin Verlander, who caught the stat on television in the clubhouse, burst down the stairs to the dugout to tell him news.

When asked if it was a record worth congratulating, Hessman said, "I don't know. I didn't really want it."
The combined damage provided a cushion for Tigers starter Zach Miner, who recovered from a two-run opening inning to seemingly settle down through four. Five ground-ball singles, however, knocked him out two outs shy of qualifying for a victory, having given up eight runs in the process to raise his ERA by more than half a run to 4.29.

None of Oakland's six fifth-inning hits went into the outfield in the air, let alone go for extra bases. However, it assembled a five-run rally that actually brought the potential tying run to the plate before Casey Fossum (3-1) retired Cust to finally end the threat on his way to 2 1/3 hitless innings.

"The key to the game, without question, was Casey Fossum," Leyland said.

Every member of the Tigers' starting lineup scored a run except for leadoff man Curtis Granderson. Ordonez scored four runs, including a two-run homer in the opening inning, and walked twice. But it was the home runs hit -- and the home run hitters who were hit -- that marked this one.

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Tigers 14, A's 8
Tigers spread out highlights
Sheffield homers twice, Ordonez reaches five times and Hessman, Cabrera also go deep.
Tom Gage / The Detroit News

DETROIT -- Where do you start?

With Gary Sheffield's two home runs, one of them a grand slam, in the Tigers' 14-8 victory Monday night over the Oakland Athletics?

With Magglio Ordonez being on base five times with a single, double, home run and two walks as he makes a determined bid to win another batting title?

With Mike Hessman becoming the first Tiger ever to get hit by a pitch twice in the same inning? Hessman got nailed twice in the Tigers' six-run second.

Or maybe with Miguel Cabrera hitting a 433-foot home run and knocking in three more runs to lift his RBI total to 116.

"I liked the one he drove in with the base hit (in the seventh) better," manager Jim Leyland said. "That's why he's such an RBI guy. I know he hits home runs, but he also can get a base hit off a tough pitcher and knock in a run."

Take your choice, though, from Sheffield to Cabrera, you can't go wrong with any of the four.

Sheffield's home runs give him 496 for his career. He might still get to 500 by the end of the season.

"Long line drives," said Leyland, "that's the type of home run he's hit his whole career."

Ordonez now is hitting .323. Boston's Dustin Pedroia, who was leading the American League in hitting at .330 before Monday night's games, dropped to .328 by going hitless in the Red Sox victory over the Rays.

"He's got his stroke back, there's no question about that," Leyland said about Ordonez. "He's on the ball real good."

Not too bruised, Hessman also hit a home run in the eighth, the Tigers' fifth of the game.

"(Justin) Verlander congratulated me, but I'm not sure I wanted it," Hessman said about being just the second American Leaguer and fifth in the majors ever to get hit twice in the same inning. "That first pitch nailed me good."

And Cabrera? His production just rolls on, doesn't it? Instead of several different compliments, however, sometimes one suffices.

"He just has more talent than most," Leyland said of his slugging first baseman over the weekend in Minnesota.

It was there that Cabrera got the 1,000th hit of his career. Only 25, he didn't get to 1,000 faster than anyone ever has. Seven players, including Al Kaline and former Tigers coach Vada Pinson, got to that level when they were 24.

Of far more concern to the Tigers is the way Cabrera produces runs, and after a sluggish start he's showing not only his consistency, but his intelligence as a hitter.

For instance, in first at-bats this year, Cabrera is hitting .242, but seldom gets fooled a second or third time. In his second and third at-bats against the same starter, he's hitting .347.

Evidence of his consistency lies in the fact that heading into Monday night's game, he was hitting .296 at home and .286 on the road.

But as proof that he's a prolific run-producer, in addition to the fact he now has driven in more than 110 runs in each of the last five years, is what Cabrera has done this season when he's been up with a runner on third.

Whether it's first and third, second and third, bases loaded or third by itself, Cabrera is hitting .424 (25-for-59 with 49 RBIs).

It's also clear that when the Tigers win, it's often because he's contributed. In their victories, Cabrera is hitting .377. In losses, he's hitting .207. All in all, it's made for the kind of season the Tigers expected of him.

Around the horn

Leyland was pleased with the way both Dontrelle Willis and Freddy Garcia threw in their simulated game.

"They threw a few more pitches than the last time and I thought they both were a little better," Leyland said.

The next step for them has not been determined, though.

... Carlos Guillen said his back felt better, but missed his 13th consecutive game and might not play until Friday in Chicago at the earliest.

... Nate Robertson makes his first start tonight since Aug. 20. He's pitched three times in relief since being removed from the rotation, allowing seven runs in five innings.

... Rookie catcher Dusty Ryan has impressed Leyland with his arm as well as his power.

"He has a cannon," Leyland said. "You won't see any better strength than that up here. Nowhere."

You can reach Tom Gage at tom.gage@detnews.com

09/09/2008 10:08 PM ET

Box >

Robertson solid, but Tigers fall to A's
Starter hurls seven solid innings while striking out six
By Jason Beck / MLB.com

DETROIT -- Nate Robertson's return to the Tigers rotation yielded seven innings of one-run ball. It did not yield a victory.

What was nearly a nice comeback story for a Tiger in a pitching duel instead became an Oakland comeback off of Detroit's bullpen. Rajai Davis tripled in the tying run off Fernando Rodney and scored the go-ahead tally on an Emil Brown sacrifice fly, sending the Tigers to a 3-2 loss at Comerica Park.

Robertson hadn't made a start since allowing five home runs over three-plus innings on Aug. 20 at Texas prompted the Tigers to send him to the bullpen for work on his mechanics with pitching coach Chuck Hernandez. He said on Monday that his biggest competition at times has been himself, fighting belief in his pitches.

That self-defeating presence was nowhere to be found on Tuesday. In turn, the A's were little competition for him, too. He didn't face more than four batters in any of his seven innings of work, and his lone three-ball count came in the opening inning on his way to retiring 10 of Oakland's first 11 batters.

Robertson needed just 79 pitches to get through his outing, and 60 of those went for strikes. Given that Robertson was starting for the first time in three weeks, manager Jim Leyland brought in lefty Bobby Seay to begin the eighth inning. His leadoff walk to Jeff Baisley, making his first Major League start, started the go-ahead rally.

After Seay struck out Cliff Pennington, Rodney (0-5) entered to face Davis. He put the A's leadoff man in an 0-2 count before leaving a fastball too far over the outside of the plate, enough for Davis to line deep into the gap in left-center field. Pinch-runner Eric Patterson scored, and after Brown drove a 2-2 Rodney pitch deep enough to center field, so did Davis.

Both Detroit runs came on Edgar Renteria's two-run single with the bases loaded in the second inning. A's starter Dana Eveland used a lineout double play and fly ball to right to strand two runners in that inning, then left the bases loaded in the fifth. Joey Devine (5-1) retired the side in order in the seventh to earn the victory.

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

(to be updated when available)

Wednesday, September 10, 2008
A's 3, Tigers 2
Tigers let late lead slip away
Tom Gage / The Detroit News

DETROIT -- Good moods are no match for 3-2 defeats. They vanish every time.

So it was no surprise that manager Jim Leyland's mood reversed itself Tuesday night when, after he announced that Dontrelle Willis and Freddy Garcia would soon start, the Tigers let one slip away