Photo: AP
It took until September, but the Tigers are finally looking good against the AL East (of course, all that remains of the East on the schedule is a four game set against the Blue Jays on the next homestand). They’ve had some help in this series, for sure. I think you can give a lot of credit to Joe Maddon over-managing his bullpen. That certainly came into play in the final two games of the series. Edwin Jackson pitched very well outside of the three runs, but I’m fairly convinced that the Tigers would not have come back had Maddon just let Lance Cormier pitch the ninth inning. He had developed a good rhythm and the Tigers were not getting good swings off him. On the other hand, the Tigers sure do love them some Grant Balfour. In just about every comeback the Tigers had against the Rays, Balfour issued a key walk or hit. This time, it was a walk to Cabrera. J.P. Howell came in and walked Marcus Thames, and then Russ Springer gave up a base hit to Magglio, which loaded the bases for Brandon Inge. Inge had struck out three times, and I’m sure there were a lot of Tiger fans who were fully expecting him to strike out again. But Brandon would have none of that, and proceeded to remind us what else he’s capable of. By the way, I think I saw more pitching changes over the weekend than I have in my entire life. And here’s your broom:
After having Labor Day off, the Tigers are set to start a series in Kansas City tonight. And it’s looking increasingly likely that they will NOT see Zack Greinke in this series, which’ll be a huge break, especially since Greinke’s gone back to being dominant. At any rate, the matchup tonight will be Rick Porcello against Bruce Chen. Porcello is coming off a really good start against the Indians. The Tigers have beaten Chen already this year, but he made an effective long relief appearance a few days ago after Brian Bannister got chased from a start. I’m hoping for a Tigers win tonight, because coming off a holiday weekend, work is bound to be brutal tonight.
It took until September, but the Tigers are finally looking good against the AL East (of course, all that remains of the East on the schedule is a four game set against the Blue Jays on the next homestand). They’ve had some help in this series, for sure. I think you can give a lot of credit to Joe Maddon over-managing his bullpen. That certainly came into play in the final two games of the series. Edwin Jackson pitched very well outside of the three runs, but I’m fairly convinced that the Tigers would not have come back had Maddon just let Lance Cormier pitch the ninth inning. He had developed a good rhythm and the Tigers were not getting good swings off him. On the other hand, the Tigers sure do love them some Grant Balfour. In just about every comeback the Tigers had against the Rays, Balfour issued a key walk or hit. This time, it was a walk to Cabrera. J.P. Howell came in and walked Marcus Thames, and then Russ Springer gave up a base hit to Magglio, which loaded the bases for Brandon Inge. Inge had struck out three times, and I’m sure there were a lot of Tiger fans who were fully expecting him to strike out again. But Brandon would have none of that, and proceeded to remind us what else he’s capable of. By the way, I think I saw more pitching changes over the weekend than I have in my entire life. And here’s your broom:
After having Labor Day off, the Tigers are set to start a series in Kansas City tonight. And it’s looking increasingly likely that they will NOT see Zack Greinke in this series, which’ll be a huge break, especially since Greinke’s gone back to being dominant. At any rate, the matchup tonight will be Rick Porcello against Bruce Chen. Porcello is coming off a really good start against the Indians. The Tigers have beaten Chen already this year, but he made an effective long relief appearance a few days ago after Brian Bannister got chased from a start. I’m hoping for a Tigers win tonight, because coming off a holiday weekend, work is bound to be brutal tonight.
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