Archive for 2005

June 12, 1935 Tigers 4, Red Sox 1 (25-22)

Schoolboy Rowe gave up a single run in the first inning, and was practically unhittable for the rest of the game. He gave up only three hits, one walk, and he struck out five batters to notch himself another win.

Once again, Hank Greenberg had a big game. He went two for four with a double and two RBIs. Charlie Gehringer had two hits and he scored once, and Mickey Cochrane drove in a run.

Game 1 (Final Score: 0-2, Rockies win)

This game combined two things I didn’t expect to see: Only two runs scored at Coors and a Tigers loss. Mike Maroth has not been getting very much run support lately as evidenced by today’s offensive production and his fine outing was spoiled by the slumping Detroit offense. The Tigers had nine total base runners today on seven hits, a walk, and a double/error. Twice there were two hits in an inning (all singles) and both innings were wasted on double plays. The hitters jumped on pitches early in counts and beat them directly into the ground at a Colorado defender.

Maroth survived two wild pitches and two tough spots. In the second there were runners at the corners and no outs courtesy of his first wild pitch and a pair of singles. He retired the next seven batters convincingly before allowing men on again in the fourth. The one out walk and single he gave up were erased on a pair of ground balls. The Rockies finally touched him in the sixth for two runs on a homer by Garrett Atkins. With Helton away, Maroth walked Preston Wilson (later picked off) and Dustan Mohr hit a single. Garret Atkins smacked Maroth’s second pitch in the at bat through the thin air and into the right field stands (2-0). In the eighth it looked like the Tigers were getting some where after Logan’s and Shelton’s singles only to see Inge and Placido Polanco end the last Tigers’ scoring threat.

Game 2 (Final Score: 6-4, Tigers win)

For the second game in a row Brandon Inge started things off with a single. He made third on Young’s single and scored on White’s fielder’s choice (1-0). An Ivan Rodriguez two out single gave Craig Monroe runners at the corners and he delivered with a single (2-0). The Rockies rallied against Bonderman with one out in the bottom half. Cory Sullivan reached first on a wild third strike and scored after Helton’s and Wilson’s singles (2-1). Atkins was again at bat with an opportunity to cause some pain after Brad Hawpe drew a walk. His fielder’s choice wasn’t especially bad but it scored another run (2-2).

Young got the offense going with a lead off double in the third and scored on White’s single (3-2). Rodriguez, Monroe, and Giarratano bailed Jason Jennings out with some anti-heroics early in their at bats to end the inning. With the door wide open the Rockies drew even again in the fourth with two outs used. J.D. Closser walked; Jennings singled him to second and Cory Sullivan’s infield single evened things up (3-3). The Tigers and Rockies traded runs in the fifth with the Tigers doing it on doubles by Polanco and White and the Rockies with another RBI by Atkins (4-4).

Giarratano lead off the sixth with a walk and walked back to the dugout on Logan’s fielder’s choice. Logan stole second during Bonderman’s strike out giving Inge a runner in scoring position. He singled Logan home and made second on the throw, but Polanco couldn’t keep the scoring up, ending the inning on a long fly (5-4). Polanco’s next deep (sac) fly in the eighth scored Giarratano, the Tigers final run (6-4). Trammell’s decision to keep Bonderman out of the seventh after the rain delay paid off since the Tigers bullpen effectively shut the Rockies down the rest of the way only allowing two base runners.

Game 3 (Final Score: 3-7, Rockies win)

In the rubber match the Tigers scored early and the Rockies scored often. Nate Robertson’s first opponent, Eddy Garabito, smacked his third pitch for a double and scored after two groundouts (0-1). The Tigers came whimpering back in the second and third with a pair of runs. Tony Giarratano helped Young – the first Tiger base runner – home after he was hit by a pitch to lead off, made second on Monroe’s single, and had to wait for Thames to strike out (1-1). Logan and Polanco started the third off with back-to-back singles so Inge had runners at the corners since Sullivan decided it was time for an errant throw from center field. Inge struck out, Young got an IBB, and Monroe could only muster a sac fly (2-1).

Preston Wilson restarted the Rockies’ offense with his lead off homer in the fourth (2-2). Atkins continued to take BP from Tiger pitching this series, plating another run on his two out single in the fifth (2-3). Wilson’s second leadoff homer paved the way to the end of Robertson’s night in the sixth (2-4). He was followed by two one out singles from Luis A. Gonzalez and Sullivan before Trammell called on Spurling. Danny Ardoin’s single plated Gonzalez but he later made the second out when he went for two bases (2-5). Jorge Piedra pinch hit for Kim, doubled home a run, and then scored on Garabito’s single (2-7). Spurling finally found the way to beat Atkins at the plate, getting him to end the inning.

Doug Creek, Fernando Rodney, and Franklyn German combined to hold the Rockies scoreless the rest of the game. To dot the exclamation point, Nook Logan provided a perfect example of too little too late; He hit the Tigers’ first home run of the series with two outs used in the ninth (3-7). Yes, that’s exactly three extra base hits – one home run and two doubles – during a three game visit to Coors Lite.

Hitters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	TB	AVG	SLG
J Bonderman	3	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0.000
T Giarratano	11	1	2	1	1	2	0.182	0.182
O Infante	1	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0.000
B Inge	11	1	3	1	2	3	0.273	0.273
N Logan	12	3	5	1	0	9	0.417	0.750
M Maroth	1	0	1	0	1	1	1.000	1.000
C Monroe	11	0	2	2	1	2	0.182	0.182
P Polanco	12	1	4	1	0	5	0.333	0.417
N Robertson	2	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0.000
I Rodriguez	8	0	1	0	1	1	0.125	0.125
C Shelton	2	0	1	0	1	1	0.500	0.500
M Thames	4	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0.000
R White	9	1	3	2	0	4	0.333	0.444
V Wilson	4	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0.000
D Young	11	2	3	0	1	4	0.273	0.364
Totals	102	9	25	8	8	32	0.245	0.314
Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	ERA	WHIP
J Bonderman	6	8	4	4	2	2	6.00	1.67
D Creek	0.1	0	0	0	0	0	0.00	0.00
K Farnsworth	1.1	1	0	0	0	3	0.00	0.91
F German	1.1	0	0	0	1	2	0.00	0.91
M Maroth	7	7	2	2	2	3	2.57	1.29
T Percival	1	0	0	0	1	1	0.00	1.00
N Robertson	5.1	8	6	6	1	5	10.59	1.76
F Rodney	0.2	0	0	0	0	2	0.00	0.00
C Spurling	0.2	3	1	1	0	0	45.00	15.00
J Walker	1.1	0	0	0	0	0	0.00	0.00
Totals	25	27	13	13	7	18	4.68	1.36

June 11, 1935 Red Sox 3, Tigers 1 (24-21)

Once again, a solid start by left handed rookie Joe Sullivan went to waste as he was outpitched by Lefty Grove. Sullivan gave up only six hits, but he walked five and gave up three runs. He would have needed a shutout to best Grove.

Backup catcher Ray Hayworth drove in the lone run of the game, and he was also the only Tiger with two hits.

June 11, 1935 Red Sox 5, Tigers 2 (24-22)

For the second straight game, the Tigers only managed five hits as the box score showed a bunch of zeroes. Charlie Gehringer and Hub Walker drove in the two Tiger runs, and Walker’s double was the only extra base hit.

General Crowder took the loss. He gave up four runs in six innings of work.

My son turns one today. I love you buddy.

The take on the Tigers heading into the season was that we were going to have a mighty fine lineup, but the pitching would be the question mark. Now, 57 games into the season, the stats show just the opposite. The Tigers are 9th in the AL in team OPS, and that’s about 50 points higher than the worst team (A’s) and 100 points worse than the best team (Orioles). Sticking with OPS to measure pitching prowess (that is, opponents’ OPS), the team-wide opponents’ OPS is 5th best in the league, which is 55 points off the best (Indians?) and 97 points better than the worst (D-Rays). So adding a proven hitter like Polanco to an already potent lineup (well, it will be “already potent” once we get Magglio Ordonez back to hitting like his old self) makes complete sense to compete this year.

But here’s the question: Can we compete this year?

I, for one, don’t think it’s impossible. Today’s Danny Knobler column got me to thinking about this. Specifically the part where he talks about the ’87 Tigers, who started at 30-27, but put together a stretch of 13 out of 15 wins later in the season. That column brings me to a point of agreement that my boss and I share about baseball seasons.

We all know the old saw about baseball: Every team wins 50 games (well, most teams, anyways… Teams like the ’62 Mets and the ’03 Tigers being exceptions to the rule), every team loses 50 games (again, minor exceptions such as the ’98 Yankees or ’01 Mariners), it’s what you do with the rest of the games that makes the difference. Of course, even a Phillies phan like my boss had heard of the fantastic 35-5 start that the ’84 Tigers had. And, in fact, the ’93 Phillies roared out to a 17-5 start by the end of April. After losing on May 1, they then pulled off a stretch of winning 6 out of their next 7, leaving their early record at 23-7. That’s no 35-5, but if you subtract those numbers from their final record, you notice they went 74-58 for the remainder of the season. Even our beloved ’84 Tigers went 69-53 after the 35-5 start. So, the pet theory that my boss and I have is this: Any team can get on a stretch of about 40-50 games when they are just lights-out, and that is good enough to make the playoffs, assuming they can go just a touch above .500 for the remainder of the schedule. Looking at the month-by-month totals for those two teams confirms it: The ’84 Tigers were an uninspiring 16-12 in July, and an even worse 16-15 in August. The ’93 Phillies went 14-14 in July, and 15-15 in September (plus three games of the regular season in October). The ’05 Tigers? 11-11 in April, and 12-15 in May, plus 4-4 so far in June. Now, granted, the ’05 Tigers need to step it up, and step it up now, to get somewhere, but with the upgrades at 1st base, 2nd base, and the decision to forego a 5th starter for a stretch (and consider talent elsewhere, whether that be Toledo or possibly a trade, for the 5th starter once one is again needed)… Plus Magglio Ordonez’s return looking to be on the short side of the originally estimated 8-12 weeks… You can envision a scenario where they will rip off something like a 19-7 July (similar to the ’84 team’s 19-7 record in May) or an 18-10 August (similar to the ’93 Phillies’ 18-10 record in June). If they did both of those on top of a June that leaves them at dead-even .500 (let’s say 14-11)… They’d be sitting at 74-54 with 34 games remaining. Even just an even .500 in those remaining games gets you to 91 wins, which should make them right there in the playoff hunt.

See? That’s not so hard. On top of which, it’s much better than sounding the warning that we’re 7.5 games back in the wild card (and would have to leapfrog 6 other teams) and 12 games back in the division.

June 9, 1935 Tigers 4, White Sox 1 (24-20)

Tommy Bridges threw another fine game for the Tigers as he continued his winning streak. In nine innings of work, Bridges gave up one run on five hits. He did walk seven, but he struck out six.

Once again, Hank Greenberg came up big. He hit his thirteenth homer of the seaon, a two run shot.

Game 1 (Final Score: 3-5, Dodgers win)

The Tigers traveled to LA to continue their Interleague play against the Dodgers. Bonderman faced Derek Lowe, a name that often came up in discussions for starting pitching in the past off-season. Ivan Rodriguez started the Tigers out nicely with a one out double in the second, scoring on Craig Monroe’s double (1-0). It’s nice to see two of the hottest Tigers getting the job done. The Tigers extended their lead later in the inning when Monroe scored during Nook Logan’s infield single and Jeff Kent’s two base throwing error (2-0). Unfortunately this was at a National League park so the ninth batter was Bonderman who struck out.

In the third the Tigers managed three groundouts. This probably would have been fine with the Dodgers but they still managed a run. Inge’s single looked to be erased on Guillen’s grounder but Antonio Perez made like Kent and threw the ball away. Inge came around to home one out later on White’s RBI groundout (3-0). These early runs buoyed Bonderman and he didn’t allow runs until the fourth. He gave up a lead off home run to Jason Repko, followed it with J.D. Drew’s triple, and Drew came home on Kent’s single (3-2).

Bonderman continued to be solid until a bad stretch in the sixth; He issued two walks and a Kent three run homer in thirteen pitches and surrendered the Tigers’ lead (2-5). It might not have mattered but Lowe continued on in the groove he started in the fourth inning and kept the Tigers down until Gagne finished the game in the ninth.

Game 2 (Final Score: 8-4, Tigers win)

Robertson started the second game a lot rougher than Bonderman did the first. He walked Cesar Izturis, got him out on Repko’s grounder but moved Repko over on a wild pitch while walking Antonio Perez. Kent’s single scored Repko from second then Robertson finally found his form and got Olmedo Saenz and Jayson Werth to end the inning (0-1). Derek Thompson, his opponent, wrapped the Tigers up in yarn for two innings.

In the third, the Tigers loaded the bases on singles by Ramon Martinez and Logan, Robertson’s successful sacrifice, and Inge’s walk. Showing a remarkable lack of patience, Guillen grounded the third pitch he saw to third and Dmitri Young did the same on the second pitch but Martinez had already scored (1-1). Martinez again exposed Thompson in the fourth with his sac fly coming with runners at the corners and one out (2-1). Sadly this run was quickly picked up on Jason Phillips’ solo shot in the bottom half (2-2).

The Dodgers went back ahead again in the fifth when Robertson rediscovered his penchant for walking batters. One out walks to Repko and Perez were both made into runs when Saenz smacked a two out double (2-4). These runs were picked up in the sixth against Johnson’s relief, Scott Erickson. Rodriguez went for extra bases again today with a leadoff home run (3-4). Monroe followed with a single and Martinez a walk before Erickson went out for Franquelis “Fresh Meat” Osoria. Logan sacrificed Monroe and Martinez over and pinch hitter Chris Shelton tied the game with an RBI groundout (4-4). Inge ended the inning with another groundout and so did all three Dodgers batters in the sixth against Spurling.

Duaner Sanchez was called on by the Dodgers to maintain the tie and they probably should have called collect. Tony Giarratano started things off badly for him with his first career Major League home run and things deteriorated from there (5-4). After Dmitri Young’s homer, Rondell White went for two bases and Rodriguez sent him to third on his single (6-4). Monroe hit the Tigers’ umpteenth RBI groundout this game and Martinez just hit a groundout (7-4). Logan plated Pudge with a single and made second on the throw (8-4). Marcus Thames pinch hit for Spurling badly, ending the inning with a strikeout. Farnsworth, Urbina, and Percival took care of the seventh, eighth, and ninth for the win. That’s the last time I’ll be saying that. I also hope that’s the last time the Tigers need groundouts to score this many runs. 🙁

Game 3 (Final Score: 1-3, Dodgers win)

During each game recap, ESPN brought up the Dodgers sweep of the Tigers in 2003. Every single one. That’s almost as frustrating as losing this game. The Tigers once again wasted a good pitching performance with very little timely hitting and did so against the inconsistent Ex-Tiger Jeff Weaver, who I’m still bitter at for not realizing his potential in Detroit. I also really hate his facial hair. Jerk.

Inge made the first inning worthwhile with a two out double after Giarratano and Logan flailed at some pitches ineffectively. White managed to make good contact but it was caught in the outfield, ending this minor threat. The Tigers’ batters sucked it up the rest of the way, not working counts and making lots of outs for the most part. They flailed at a lot of pitches, making Weaver look like the pitcher the team thought it had drafted. The only good hitter today was Johnson who must be really, really frustrated. Not only did he pitch pretty well, he scored his team’s only run on his homer. Poor guy.

If you’re a Dodger’s fan, you’re pumped. Weaver got the visitors to go after his pitches and only gave up a solo homer. They got an early lead in the second when Johnson gave Jason Grabowski a pitch he could drive out of the park. It was even better because there was already a guy on, Werth, making the lead two runs (0-2). You loaded the bases in the fourth but since this is the National League had a free out due up so the threat ended, keeping the score the same (1-2). Hee Sop Choi had an RBI in the seventh, an inning when you loaded the bases for the second time today (1-3). Last but not least you made up a game on the Padres. I told you I’d be positive this time.

Hitters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	TB	AVG	SLG
J Bonderman	2	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0.000
T Giarratano	7	1	1	1	0	4	0.143	0.571
C Guillen	6	0	0	1	1	0	0.000	0.000
B Inge	12	1	2	0	1	3	0.167	0.250
O Infante	7	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0.000
J Johnson	2	1	1	1	0	4	0.500	2.000
N Logan	9	0	4	1	1	5	0.444	0.556
R Martinez	2	1	1	1	1	1	0.500	0.500
C Monroe	12	2	2	2	0	3	0.167	0.250
N Robertson	1	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0.000
I Rodriguez	9	3	5	1	0	9	0.556	1.000
C Shelton	2	0	0	1	0	0	0.000	0.000
M Thames	1	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0.000
R White	13	2	2	1	0	3	0.154	0.231
V Wilson	2	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0.000
D Young	10	1	2	1	1	2	0.200	0.200
Totals	97	12	20	11	5	34	0.206	0.351
Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	ERA	WHIP
J Bonderman	6	5	5	5	2	5	7.50	1.17
K Farnsworth	2	0	0	0	0	4	0.00	0.00
F German	0.2	1	0	0	0	1	0.00	5.00
J Johnson	6.2	8	3	3	1	3	4.35	1.45
T Percival	1	0	0	0	0	1	0.00	0.00
N Robertson	5	5	4	4	4	3	7.20	1.80
C Spurling	2.1	2	0	0	0	0	0.00	0.95
U Urbina	1	0	0	0	1	0	0.00	1.00
J Walker	0.1	1	0	0	0	0	0.00	10.00
Totals	25	22	12	12	8	17	4.32	1.20

I’m still a little baffled by this deal. First off, without a workhorse like Urbina, I can see the whole bullpen falling apart in what would be a worst case scenario. Percival can’t handle the innings, and I see another stint on the DL for him. As for guys like Farnsworth and German, I really hope they’re up for the task.

And for all intents and purposes, Martinez was a throw in, so I’ll be pretty much keeping him out of the analysis. I guess we can call him the tie breaker.

I’m also a little surprised they gave up on Infante so quickly. If I look at the VORP figures through yesterdays game, Polanco (11) has about a 15 run edge over Infante (-4). Of course the Phillies lose little, because Chase Utley has them both topped with 19.4 (second best second baseman only to Jeff Kent). So on the face of things, we’re getting an upgrade.

Now if we compare Urbina and Polanco, we have close to wash. Urbina has been good for 16 pitching runs above replacement so far, while Polanco has been good for 22 (8 hitting and 14 fielding). That six run differential is about half of a win, so that explains why we threw Martinez into the deal.

But numbers aside, through the end of May last year, Omar Infante had three homers. This year, he also had three homers. So if he went on a run, he could easily get himself closer to where he was last year. Polanco has only ten extra base hits, while Infante has 16. And Omar’s eight fielding runs above replacement is a mere six runs less then the slick fielding Polanco (which explains a lot of the differential between the two).

So I just don’t see what we’re getting here. Our pen definitely gets worse, and while Polanco might get an extra single here or there, it’s Infante that can mash the ball if can return to form. And throw in the fact that Polanco has only a one year contract, and it makes the thing even more befuddling.

I really thought we’d be able to get some front line prospects from, well someone, for Urbina. While I’ll never count the Tigers out this early, an eleven game deficit is really tough to come back from so making a move to short things up this year seems somewhat fruitless. And when you throw in the fact that the Indians could pass them if the Tigers falter, it makes things look even more dicey.

June 8, 1935 White Sox 3, Tigers 2 (23-20)

The Tigers only managed five hits against the White Sox, who continue to take it to the Tigers like they have all season. This is the tenth time they’ve met so far, and the White Sox lead the season series 8-2.

All three of the White Sox runs came in the second inning against starter Elden Auker, who’s solid game went to waste. Hank Greenberg and Marv Owen both hit solo shots to give the Tigers their two runs.

Check back later tonight, because I’ll analyze this deal. Although my initial reaction is that we didn’t get enough. I envisioned us getting a prospect or two, not a 30 year old infielder. A couple of teams were rumored to be interested in Polanco, so I wonder if we’ll be turning around and dealing him to someone else soon.

It appears Omar Infante’s starting job is justifiably in jeopardy, as Polanco has played mostly second base the last couple of years.

June 7, 1935 White Sox 9, Tigers 8 (23-19)

A five run second inning put the White Sox in front, and despite tying the game in the fifth, the White Sox pulled away and edged the Tigers 9-8. General Crowder took the loss and bore the brunt of the sixteen White Sox hits.

Gee Walker had a huge game as he homered twice and drove in three runs. Pete Fox also hit a homer for the Tigers and Hank Greenberg went three for four.

Wilfredo Ledezma was sent to Toledo this week after ten consecutive bad starts, a move any fool could have predicted. The Tigers didn’t call up anyone to replace him because they won’t need a fifth starter until the 18th — who knows, the fifth starter that day could yet be Ledezma — though my money is on hulking former Oriole Sean Douglass, he of the 3.00 ERA and 56/19 K/BB at Toledo. Douglass’ major-league track record indicates that he probably won’t be a long-term answer, but he could have a few good months.

Instead of calling up a pitcher, the Tigers activated Troy Percival off the disabled list. Percival, apparently recovered from a “partial tear of his right flexor pronator muscle mass”, aka hurt forearm muscle, seemed to find his stride right before his injury, and is on pace to throw the 45 reasonably effective innings we all expected and knew wouldn’t be worth the dough the Tigers signed for him last winter for $12 million. The happy conundrum is that Ugueth Urbina is pitching brilliantly in Percival’s closer slot.

I’m not much of a believer in the magic of closers — I scoffed this week when on the road somewhere, I heard a radio announcer say that most relief pitchers rely on catchers to help them understand the game when they’re put in, except for closers, who just know how to get outs. I believe that there are some great relief pitchers in the major-leagues, and that sometimes it makes sense to put them in when you have a lead of three or fewer runs, but that mostly you want to have your best relievers in when the game is on the line. By that logic, it doesn’t matter that the Tigers have two proven closers (not to mention minor-league closer Franklyn German), only that they have two good (though not great) relievers to send to the mound in tough situations.

But as much as it helps the Tigers to have a deeper bullpen, there are a lot of teams who believe that relievers aren’t interchangeable, that there is mystical and possibly moral worthiness indicated by the ability to get saves, never mind that saves were invented in 1960 and that they’re the pitching equivalent of the now-defunct GWRBI. The Tigers have been rumored to be considering trading Urbina for some proven-closer swag ever since Percival came aboard. Should they trade him now that so many teams have injured or ineffective closers (Hawkins, Benitez, Dotel, etc.) and that Percival is, for the time being, back to a reasonable facsimile of health?

Yes. The Tigers sit, as of this writing, at 26-29. That’s a wonderful improvement over 2003, and a good bet to improve on last year as well, but they’re not contenders. They’re not going to beat the White Sox and Twins to capture the division, or one of those teams plus most of Anaheim, Texas, Baltimore, Boston, and New York to capture the Wild Card. They’re just not good enough. A few of the pieces are in place — Guillen, Inge, Bonderman, and Maroth, maybe Ordonez, Shelton, and German — but this is not a team that’s within even a few years of 90 wins. It needs to ruthlessly identify who can be part of the next winning Tiger team and get prospects for whoever will not while still maintaining a competitive major-league product. Two closers are not a necessary part of remaining competitive. Percival is overpaid and untradeable; Urbina makes $4 million this year and is a free agent to-be. The Mets need him, the Cubs need him, the Giants need him. Let them pay for him.

No. The Tigers sit, as of this writing, at 26-29. That’s only 7 games out of the wild card with a lot of time to go, and though they’re double-digits behind the White Sox, there’s no way the Southsiders will stay this hot. Guillen has been hurt and Ordonez will come back at some point. It’s way too early to throw in the towel on a promising team. Moreover, what kind of message does it give to the fans? “Sure we’re better than we have been, and we want you to come to the park, but this isn’t yet a real team. But please care about it anyways.” Isn’t avoiding that sort of death knell more important than a slugging young outfielder?

I sure don’t know. Your thoughts?

Game 1 (3-5, Tigers win)

Jason Johnson gets the call, once again facing his old mates (not the Indians, oops) and hoping to continue his winning streak. I am really enjoying his hot streak thus far in the season and hope he is able to keep it up all year long. His opponent, Bruce Chen, gave the Tigers a tough outing last time but the relief ended up losing the game for him. I like to call this foreshadowing.

The top and bottom of the first went 1-2-3 before the bats made some contact in the second. Johnson allowed a two out BJ Surhoff double and Chen allowed a two out Craig Monroe triple before escaping the inning. The leadoff man in the third, Chris Gomez, beat out an infield single before being erased on Geronimo Gil’s double play. David Newhan hit a single after a long at bat and went all the way to third on Johnson’s errant pickoff attempt. He scored on Mora’s bunt and Johnson struck out Tejada to end the inning (1-0).

The scoring picked up again in the bottom of the fifth with Rodriguez’s leadoff homerun (1-1). (I’ve typed leadoff homerun a lot more than I have any other home run related phrase in these updates.) Chen continued to be effective until the seventh when the Tigers broke the tie. Rondell White’s one out single was the go ahead run on Rodriguez’s double, his second extra base hit of the game (1-2). Chen was pulled in favor of Williams, who went on the give up a big inning. Monroe made out number two, Chris Shelton hit an RBI single and made second on the throw, Tony Giarratano added an RBI single, Logan walked, and Inge hit the third RBI single of the inning (1-5). James Baldwin came in to face Infante and retired him easily.

While the line says eight innings, Johnson went into the ninth. He walked Mora on a full count and Tejada hit a single before Farnsworth replaced Johnson on the mound. Pursuing a similar vein as Billfer, I’d like to mention Johnson only took 101 pitches to reach the top of the ninth, a remarkable improvement in pitching efficiency for him from the past. The next man up, Sammy Sosa, reached safely on Giarratano’s throwing error. Facing Rafael Palmeiro, Farnsworth allowed a deep fly that scored Mora (2-5). He got his second out at second when Surhoff dribbled a ball back to him but Tejada made third. Jay Gibbons singled Tejada home and Gomez struck out as the winning run (3-5). Sounds like a heck of a game to have attended.

Game 2 (14-7, Orioles win)

Wilfredo “Doghouse” Ledezma tried to continue the Detroit dominance of the Orioles, facing Rodrigo Lopez, who’s gotten excellent run support in all four of his victories. Thus it comes as no surprise that he surrendered three first inning runs with a little help from his friends. Ramon Martinez reached on one of my favorite plays in baseball: The wild pitch called third strike. Carlos Guillen earned (using the term loosely, it was a gift) a four pitch walk to give Rondell White a promising at bat. His three-run home run gave Ledezma a big early lead and hopefully a feeling of confidence (0-3).

Well, he was too confident to start the second. The leadoff man, Sosa, scored with one out after his leadoff double, Palmeiro’s groundout, and Surhoff’s single (1-3). Gomez walked in four pitches and Gibbons gifted Ledezma with out number two. Geronimo Gil proved to be troublesome when he hit a ball that Giarratano misplayed for a two run error (3-3).

The Tigers offense provided a pick-me-up with its three runs with two outs in the second. Logan singled, stole second, and Inge joined him on base with a walk. Martinez plated Logan with his single and scored with Inge on Guillen’s double (3-6). White’s groundout completed the Tigers’ second three run inning. Ledezma responded by retiring the Baltimore third, allowing only a single.

In the bottom half, the Tigers again looked very strong. Rodriguez led off with a single and was chased to third on Young’s double. Monroe brought Rodriguez home with a sac fly, the first of three consecutive fly ball outs (3-7). Giarratano and Logan disappointed since both fouled out to third with Young in scoring position. Ledezma responded with another quiet inning, only allowing another single.

Well, that was it for both the Tigers offense and Ledezma’s tolerable pitching. In the top of the fifth, two walks and a single turned into four runs when Palmeiro tied the game with his grand slam (7-7). That was it for Ledezma and Spurling replaced him effectively for the rest of the fifth and sixth. In the seventh, Jamie Walker started strong and faded. Gomez hit a two out single and Gibbons sent him home with a double (8-7). German ended the inning and pitched into the eighth. David Newhan, leading off the eighth, scored on Giarratano’s second error of the day after doubling and advancing to third on Mora’s groundout (9-7). German was relieved by Creek after striking out Sosa and watched the inning end quietly.

The Tigers threatened in the bottom with the tying men aboard, two out, and Guillen again at bat. Alas, Inge’s double and Martinez’s single were wasted on Guillen’s pop out. Surhoff’s, Gomez’s, and Sal Fasano’s singles were not wasted because Mora hit Baltimore’s second grand slam, putting the game out of reach (13-7). Tejada completed the come-from-behind beating with his solo shot also into left field (14-7).

Game 3 (Final Score: 6-2, Orioles win)

It is hard to imagine a game that ended worse than yesterday’s, but this one fits the bill. There’s nothing quite like giving up a lead by playing poorly. The first inning lead from Dmitri Young’s two out homer with Guillen on and Maroth’s decent performance were squandered in the fifth. Palmeiro’s leadoff single should have been played cleanly but Shelton slipped and couldn’t recover quickly enough to get him out. The Gomez single and Gibbons double were both clean hits but the following play that tied the game is frustrating. Fasano’s certain groundout became a two bagger on Inge’s throwing error (2-2). Ramon Nivar’s groundout scored the go-ahead run and put the Tigers behind for good (3-2). Fasano scored the final run of the fifth on Mora’s single, putting the Tigers down (4-2).

Logan lead off the sixth with a bunt single, stole second and third base, and watched Guillen strike out of for the third out. Not to be out done the Orioles scored a pair of runs in the top of the seventh frame on Maroth’s wild pitch and Mora’s sac fly (6-2). Young’s wasted lead off double in the seventh was the highlight of matched 1-2-3 innings the rest of the way.

I hate to be so dismal but this game came as a first class disappointment. The Tigers had a great chance to pick up a series against a team that is playing pretty well and they Detroit Lionsed the game away. This was just a very upsetting performance from a team that seemed to finally be matching decent hitting with good enough pitching. I guess this streak was too good to last. Sorry for raining on everyone’s parade and going negative like a political campaign. I’ll find some good things to say when they play the Dodgers.

Hitters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	TB	AVG	SLG
T Giarratano	7	1	1	1	0	1	0.143	0.143
C Guillen	8	2	4	2	1	5	0.500	0.625
O Infante	8	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0.000
B Inge	12	1	3	1	1	4	0.250	0.333
N Logan	9	1	3	0	1	3	0.333	0.333
R Martinez	5	2	2	1	0	2	0.400	0.400
C Monroe	9	0	2	1	0	4	0.222	0.444
I Rodriguez	9	3	3	2	0	7	0.333	0.778
C Shelton	6	1	1	1	0	1	0.167	0.167
M Thames	3	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0.000
R White	9	2	2	3	0	5	0.222	0.556
V Wilson	3	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0.000
D Young	13	1	4	2	0	8	0.308	0.615
Totals	101	14	25	14	3	40	0.248	0.396
Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	ERA	WHIP
D Creek	1.1	5	5	5	0	1	40.91	4.55
K Farnsworth	1	1	0	0	0	1	0.00	1.00
F German	1	1	1	0	0	1	0.00	1.00
J Johnson	8	6	3	1	1	6	1.13	0.88
W Ledezma	4.1	7	7	5	3	2	10.98	2.44
M Maroth	8	10	6	2	1	1	2.25	1.38
T Percival	1	0	0	0	0	1	0.00	0.00
C Spurling	1.2	1	0	0	1	0	0.00	1.67
J Walker	0.2	2	1	1	0	1	45.00	10.00
Totals	27	33	23	14	6	14	4.67	1.44

June 6, 1935 Tigers 10, Indians 9 (23-18)

If you’re into hitting, you’d love this game. The Tigers took a seven run lead into the seventh inning, only to see the Indians score six in the seventh off of starter Schoolboy Rowe, and three in the eighth off of reliever Chief Hogsett to take the lead 9-7. The Tigers scored two in the bottom half of the eighth to tie it, then they won it in the tenth. A second game was supposed to be played, but it was called on account of rain, and the win put the Tigers in a tie for third with the Indians.

Goose Goslin had a monster game, going four for six with a triple, five RBIs and a run scored. Gee Walker homered, scored three times and drove in a run. In all, five Tigers had more then two hits, and rookie Joe Sullivan walked away with a win by pitching a shutout ninth and tenth inning.

June 5, 1935 Tigers 5, Indians 4 (22-18)

Tommy Bridges did it all in the game. Not only did he pitch great, but with the scored tied at 4-4, he doubled in the bottom of the ninth to set up the winning run. He did give up four runs on ten hits in his nine innings of work, but he struck out eight to earn his seventh victory of the season. Mickey Cochrane and Billy Rogell both had two hits in the game.

June 5, 1935 Tigers 4, Indians 4 (22-18)

After six innings of play, this game was cut short because of darkness. Mickey Cochrane hit a solo homer and Hank Greenberg went two for three with two RBIs.

I really had high hopes for Ledezma. High enough to make him a late round pick in one of my fantasy leagues. But since having a couple of good starts at the end of spring, he has been very effective.

The guys to replace him in the rotation would probably be Ginter (although he hasn’t thrown much) and Spurling. Percival is set to come of the DL, so it will be interesting to see how the pen readjusts to having their closer back.

Yesterdays game was a disappointment. Not the kind of way to end a nice winning streak.

There’s a new Mets blog in town, so be sure to check out the Tom Seaver Fan Club. I’ve been working with Jon because he’s been contemplating doing a 1986 Mets diary similar to the one I’ve done for the 1984 Tigers, 1935 Tigers, and 1975 Reds.

Be sure to stop by and say hello.

It was twenty years ago today… No, wait, it was actually 21 years ago. And it was 21 years ago tomorrow. That “twenty years ago today” line, though… Always makes folks think of Sergeant Pepper and stuff. But I digress.

Anyways, the date I am thinking of was June 4, 1984. Much of what I am about to write comes straight from my brain cells. Much more comes from the wonderful archives at retrosheet. What was happening on June 4, 1984? Well, any Tiger fan worth his salt will probably recall the 3-game sweep at the hands of the lowly Mariners in the King-dump over Memorial Day weekend (May 25-27) of that year that ended the fantastic, record-setting 35-5 start. What is less remembered is that we followed that up by taking 2 of 3 in Oakland, then returning to The Corner and losing 2 of 3 to the Orioles. And what were the Toronto Blue Jays doing at around that time? Over that Memorial Day weekend, they swept 4 games in 3 days from the Indians north of the border (an old-fashioned Sunday doubleheader). They then split 2 games (appears as though one may have been rained out) in Comiskey Park (the original), then returned north of the border (bizarre travel schedule, I must say) to take 2 of 3 from the visiting Yankees. In sum, then, the Tigers had gone 3-6 since the 35-5 mark (total of 38-11), while the Blue Jays had gone 7-2 in that time, building on their 27-14 start (for a total of 34-16). Or, in other words, in the space of two weekends plus the week in between (9 days), the Blue Jays improved their position from being 8½ games behind a team that had all the looks of a juggernaut to being a mere 4½ games behind a team that suddenly looked beatable, falling to such pitching luminaries as Ed Vande Berg, Mike Moore, Matt Young, Bill Krueger, Storm Davis and Mike Flanagan in those 9 days. These are the circumstances that set the stage for a 4-game set between the Blue Jays and Tigers at The Corner, starting on that fateful date, June 4, 1984.

Remember, now, that Bobby Higginson and I are the same age, with the same birth date to boot. For those too lazy to go look it up, that means I was set to turn 14 years of age later that summer, a fantastic age to cement my Tiger fandom with a team for the ages. But we didn’t know all that on Monday, June 4, 1984. We only knew then that the Tigers had fired off a great start, even a historic start. We did not yet know the finish, and here were the second-place Blue Jays, somehow just 4½ games back with 4 games head-to-head against the Tigers. I’ll also mention here that the Orioles were another 5 games back of the Jays in the standings, meaning that the Blue Jays were the only team that could make a plausible case for being able to catch the hot-start Tigers.

My dad is a paint chemist. He formulates different kinds of paint for multiple different applications. Living in the greater Detroit area, of course he worked almost exclusively for paint companies that were suppliers to The Big Three automobile manufacturers. Of course, these paint companies made sure to have a pair of season tickets to all the major sports teams in the area, to host a client and have a casual business chat over a ball game. My dad had secured the company pair of tickets for The Corner on the night of June 4, 1984. These were in the lower deck, third base side, second row behind the Tiger dugout. Seats so good that surrounding seats were owned by Jimmy Butsicaris, proprietor of the Lindell AC. At my first game ever (August 12, 1980, started by none other than Mark Fidrych on one of his many comeback attempts), Jimmy himself had gotten a ball tossed to him by one of the players and handed it to me.

So, on Monday, June 4, 1984, the Toronto Blue Jays were in town to play possibly the most pivotal early-June series in the history of baseball. It wasn’t a playoff game or even in the pennant drive, but it felt like it. I wish I could say the place was packed, but retrosheet tells me different (Attendance: 26,733). The Tigers had their fourth-best starter going, Juan Berenguer, against the Jays’ ace, Dave Stieb. I’ll summarize the early innings briefly: Willie Upshaw hit a solo shot in the top of the 2nd, and he was on base later for George Bell, who hit a 2-run shot in the top of the 6th for a 3-0 Jays lead. Through 6 innings, the Tigers could only manage 3 hits and 5 runners left on base against Steib. But, after the 7th inning stretch, Chet Lemon took one for the team, Dave Bergman singled, and Howard Johnson went yard off of Steib to tie the game. As a side note, Sparky had lifted Berenguer before that inning, bringing on none other than Willie Hernandez with 2 outs in the top of the 7th. Willie wriggled out of a man-on-third, nobody-out situation in the top of the 8th after the Tigers had tied it up, and he and Dennis Lamp (who had replaced Steib 3 batters after the Johnson home run) traded goose eggs right through to the bottom of the 9th, when Bobby Cox called on the lefty Jimmy Key to face Kirk Gibson with 2 outs and Dave Bergman standing on 3rd base. Sparky countered with Larry Herndon off of his bench (Johnny Grubb had drawn a spot start that night in LF), but Larry bounded back to Key to end the inning and send the game to extra frames.

My dad loves the Tigers, but he did have to get back to work the next morning. We lived kind of far out from Detroit, and he had a 50-mile one-way commute. He had, earlier that day, commuted those 50 miles home to get me, then came back those same 50 miles (and then some) to get to The Corner. He made a little agreement with me that we would stay for the end of any inning that started before midnight. If the clock struck 12:01 before the start of, say, the 12th inning, we were just going to rush to the car and listen to the remainder of the game on the radio on the way home. So, the Jays came up to bat with Willie Hernandez STILL on the mound. He struck out Lloyd Moseby and got Willie Upshaw on a fly ball to center field. Note that Moseby and Upshaw were both left-handed hitters. At this point, Sparky called on Aurelio Lopez, who got Cliff Johnson (right-handed batter) to ground out to second. For the bottom of the 10th, I think Bobby Cox must have wanted Jimmy Key (his left-hander) to pitch to Darrell Evans, but he, unfortunately, had to get past Lance Parrish first. Parrish stroked a single to lead off the inning. Evans bunted Parrish over, and Cox called for Roy Lee Jackson, a righty, to face righties Rusty Kuntz and Chet Lemon coming up. Kuntz grounded out back to the box, but Chet Lemon managed to work a 2-out walk, leaving things up to Dave Bergman with 2 on and 2 out. It is here that I depart from retrosheet’s information and give the account from my own memory, not even from a scorecard.

I took a peek at the scoreboard clock when Dave Bergman came to the plate: 11:36. In my adolescent mind, I was thinking that, with 2 on and 2 outs, if Bergie could just hurry up and either get a base hit or make the 3rd out, a theoretical 11th inning COULD be played fast enough that the 12th could begin before midnight. Dave Bergman had other ideas. He worked the count against Jackson to two balls and a strike, then took a called strike two. He then proceeded to put on The Dave Bergman Show. He fouled off the fifth pitch, and fouled off another. And yet another, and yet another. At some point, I lost count (I didn’t count things like that back then). He finally decided to take a pitch, which the umpire agreed with him on, calling it ball 3. Bergie wasn’t done yet. Now facing a full count, he fouled off another pitch. And another, and yet another, and yet another. I can’t be positive, but he fouled off at least 3 or 4 pitches on the 2-2 count, and at least that many again on 3-2. I had forgotten all about the time. Then, Jackson threw one in, and Bergman connected for a 3-run homer into the upper deck in right field. He didn’t need the overhang, either. From where I was sitting along the third base line, the ball was traveling dead straight away from me, as if I had thrown it from my seat. I don’t know if it was a cloudy sky that night, or if it was a new moon, but the sky seemed particularly dark. I can still see the flight of that ball in my mind’s eye as if it happened yesterday, the white ball lit brightly by the stadium lights against an inky black sky. Oh, yeah, and I noticed the stadium clock when Bergman came around and touched home plate. It read 11:51. He had been at bat for 15 minutes. Sparky called it the greatest at-bat he had ever seen the next day in the papers. (If anyone has their copy of “Bless You Boys” still around, I’d love it if you would pitch in and type in Sparky’s comments on Bergie’s at-bat in the comments.)

Well, then the Tigers lost the next 2 to the Jays before salvaging the series split with a win in the final game of the series. We went on to take 3 of 4 from the Orioles before facing off against the Jays in Toronto the following Monday (the Jays got swept in 3 by the Yankees in between) for a 3-game set, with the Jays taking 2 of the 3, and you could argue that we really put the Jays away by gaining those 3½ games between the two Jays series and going 11-5 for the remainder of the month of June while they went 7-10 (including being swept in a 4-game series in Milwaukee), thus gaining another 4½ games and leaving the Jays a full 10 games back as of the morning of July 1st. But that was one sweet homer that I’ll never forget in quite possibly the highest pressure game ever played in the early part of the month of June (notice all the pinch-hitting, pinch-running, and especially Sparky’s use of his best reliever for 3 full innings, including bringing him in when the team was down by 3!). Let’s just say that a lot of Tiger fans may have wondered why Dave Bergman was included among the former Tigers to take the field at the closing ceremony for Tiger Stadium. But as for me, I was proving Tom Hanks wrong. There is crying in baseball.

Okay, so that is exactly 1,900 words. So I lied.

Game 1 (Final Score: 8-2, Rangers win)

The Tigers look to continue their recent success during a visit from the red hot Rangers. The first game paired Maroth and Kenny Rogers and they paired first inning runs. Maroth retired the first two men he faced but gave up a triple to Teixeira and an RBI double to Hank Blalock (1-0). Rogers allowed Inge to get ahead in the count and Inge smacked the 2-1 offering over the fences in right (1-1). That was the total of Rogers’ generosity; He two hit the Tigers the rest of the way, abusing his guest privileges. Maroth, however, was in a giving mood, making the visitors feel welcome.

Maroth allowed only one hit in each of the second and third before leaving the barn door open in the fourth. Soriano singled, Mench walked, Chad Allen hit a one out triple scoring both Soriano and Mench, Rod Barajas hit an RBI single, and finally Andres Torres and Michael Young ended the inning (4-1). In the fifth, Maroth gave up a single to Teixeira before striking out the next two batters. Mr. Mench hit a two run homer and Matt Ginter relieved Maroth (6-1).

Ginter started the sixth with two quick outs and a quick single. Torres stole second and scored on Michael Young’s single, who scored in turn on Teixeira’s double (8-1). Blalock singled and Ginter hit Soriano, loading the bases. Kevin Mench took Doug Creek to 3-2 before finally fouling out and ending the inning before it really got out of hand. I’ll give Trammell the benefit of the doubt here and call his relief of Ginter perfect timing.

With six outs left, Chris Shelton made his presence on the big league team felt with a leadoff double. He had to wait two outs until Inge singled him home to score what ended up being a meaningless run (8-2). The Rangers pretty much kicked the Tigers’ teeth in and started the series off wonderfully.

Game 2 (Final Score: 4-6, Tigers win)

Staff ace Bonderman was called on to start a new winning streak for the Tigers against Ryan Drese. The two starters combined to allow just three hits through three innings of play before Bonderman got eaten up by the heart of the Rangers’ order. The top of the fourth went leadoff single (M. Young), one out RBI double (Blalock), two out two run homer (Mench), ending on a Nix strikeout (3-0). The bottom half featured some Tigers offense on a Dmitri Young solo home run and a wasted Rondell White single (3-1). Hidalgo completed the Texas scoring with a leadoff homer in the fifth (4-1). Bonderman only allowed three more base runners before being relieved by Farnsworth in the eighth.

The offense bailed Bonderman out starting (and ending) in the seventh. White and Ivan Rodriguez started the inning with singles and Monroe belted a ground rule double that scored White (4-2). Chris Shelton hit an RBI groundout and Tony Giarratano an RBI single (4-4). Logan reached first and Giarratano third on Drese’s misplay of Logan’s bunt. Doug Brocail was called on to keep the tie but Brandon Inge delivered both runners with a single (4-6). The inning and game went quietly after that with only one single allowed and five Rangers’ strikeouts by Farnsworth and Urbina.

Game 3 (Final Score: 5-6, Tigers win)

It’s Nate Robertson who’s had success against the Rangers this season in the decisive third game. If you watched the first inning, you sure would think it was the other way around. The Rangers started the game with three singles from Torres, Michael Young, and Teixeira with Torres scoring from second on Teixeira’s (1-0). Mench‘s at bat resulted in another Rangers run when he hit into a fielder’s choice to Giarratano, who threw to Infante, who threw the ball away, allowing M. Young to score (2-0). Robertson didn’t allow another run for the next five innings, surviving two walks, a single, a double, and two wild pitches.

The Tigers halved the lead leading off the second when Rondell White hit Chris Young’s 2-0 offering into the seats (2-1). They expunged the Rangers’ lead in the third on White’s second and third RBI, despite striking out twice in the inning. Logan lead off with a single (a disputed play and he actually should have been called out), stole second, and Inge followed him on with a walk. Infante sacrificed the two of them over a base and White scored them with his two out single (2-3).

That’s the way the game looked until the seventh when the Tigers’ defense got sloppy. Sandy Alomar Jr. hit a single and made second on Shelton’s throwing error. Mark DeRosa singled, advancing him to third and setting the table for Torres’ sac fly to tie it back up (3-3). Franklyn German returned to his normal form, allowing a single by M. Young, an RBI single by Teixeira, and a sac fly by Mench (5-3). Fortunately he was relieved in the next inning by Spurling who pitched a scoreless eighth and ninth.

Ex-Tiger Francisco Cordero was given the ball and the lead when he entered to close the book on the Tigers and restart the win streak. He gave up a single to Monroe to lead things off on a full count, a single to Shelton on an 0-2 count, and walked Giarratano to load the bases. Carlos Guillen was called off the bench and hit a sac fly, reducing the lead (5-4). Inge used up the second out missing strike three but Infante hit the next pitch for a single, scoring Shelton (5-5). Infante advanced to third on a fielder’s indifference only to see D. Young foul out, ending regulation baseball.

In the tenth, Urbina allowed a leadoff double and walk before ending the inning on a double play. Nick Regilio was given the job of matching Urbina but he allowed a one out Rodriguez double to turn into the winning run on Monroe’s series winning single (5-6). That’s another one run win and only one win below .500 for the good guys. I’m looking forward to the next series against the Indians where I hope we can pick up some more games in the Central.

Hitters AB	R	H	RBI	BB	TB	AVG	SLG
T Giarratano	5	1	2	1	2	2	0.400	0.400
C Guillen	0	0	0	1	0	0	0.000	0.000
O Infante	10	0	2	1	1	2	0.200	0.200
B Inge	12	2	5	4	0	8	0.417	0.667
N Logan	9	2	2	0	0	2	0.222	0.222
R Martinez	4	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0.000
C Monroe	13	2	4	2	0	5	0.308	0.385
I Rodriguez	12	2	2	0	0	3	0.167	0.250
C Shelton	10	2	4	1	0	5	0.400	0.500
M Thames	2	0	0	0	1	0	0.000	0.000
R White	9	2	4	3	0	7	0.444	0.778
V Wilson	1	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0.000
D Young	12	1	1	1	0	4	0.083	0.333
Totals	99	14	26	14	4	38	0.263	0.384
Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	ERA	WHIP
J Bonderman	7.1	10	4	4	0	6	5.07	1.41
D Creek	1.1	0	0	0	0	1	0.00	0.00
K Farnsworth	0.2	0	0	0	0	2	0.00	0.00
F German	1.2	4	1	1	0	0	7.50	3.33
M Ginter	1	4	2	2	0	1	18.00	4.00
M Maroth	4.2	9	6	6	1	5	12.86	2.38
N Robertson	6.1	7	4	3	2	4	4.43	1.48
C Spurling	3	2	0	0	1	1	0.00	1.00
U Urbina	2	1	0	0	1	4	0.00	1.00
Totals	28	37	17	16	5	24	5.14	1.50

June 2, 1935 Tigers 10, White Sox 5 (21-18)

Manager Mickey Cochrane had a big game for the Tigers as they split their two game series with the White Sox. He went three for three with two doubles, two RBIs, and a run scored. Charlie Gehringer drove in three and homered, and even General Crowder helped out his own cause with a two run single.

Crowder went the distance but tooks his lumps along the way. Fortunately the Tigers put up seven runs in the third inning to give him plenty of cushion. He gave up five runs on ten hits, and he walked six batters.

The win once again put the Tigers in the top half of the league. They were only four games out, but they had three teams in front of them, including the first place Yankees.

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