Author Archive

A great new Tigers resource called the Tigers Corner should be out soon.  You get a ton of information headed into the 2007 season like an interview with Andrew Miller and a close look at Cameron Maybin as well as a ton of details on the 2006 season.  You’ll also get a ton of historical articles, one of which I wrote and one of which I helped with.  There’s a column called “Unlikely Heroes” which takes a look at some of the  unlikely stars on each of the four Tiger’s World Series teams and the 2006 team as well as some predictions as to who might be an unlikely hero in 2007.  I also wrote synopyses on the 1935, 1945 and 1968 seasons.  And 112 pages (it’a larger size book as well), you get a ton of other stuff as well.

About a week ago I discussed how Curtis Granderson could improve a bit just by striking out 20 fewer times, which kind of goes along with how important it can be to make contact.  You strike out, nothing happens.  If you put the ball in play, you never know how the ball could drop.  You also have the chance of moving runners over.

That’s why I found an interesting stat in this Baseball America column (sorry, sub. only) that lists the best and worst minor league players at certain things.  Near the very bottom of the “making contact” list was Cameron Maybin.  He made contact with the ball only 70%, and that was the second worst mark.  Cause for concern?  Maybe, but I’d feel more worried if Maybin wasn’t sandwiched between two other top prospects.  The worst contact percentage was Angels top prospect Brandon Wood at 68% and coming in at third is White Sox high end prospect Josh Fields at 71%.

Regardless, it’s definitely something Maybin can improve on.  With his speed, by cutting down on his strikeout total by say 10, he can probably pick up three more hits.

Cameron Maybin hit one of the Tiger’s four homeruns today and he was a perfect two for two with two RBIs and a run.  Ivan Rodriguez also had a big day once again hitting from the lead off spot.  He went three for three with a dinger, two RBIs and two runs.  Omar Infante and Brent Clevlen also went yard for the Tigers in the 13-8 win.  The Tigers scored some runs against some big names too.  They scored three against Roy Oswalt and four against Brad Lidge.

The pitching was kind of mixed.  Jeremy Bonderman gave up a run but struck out three in his two innings and Wil Ledezma also sounded sharp in two shutout innings.  Jordan Tata walked three and gave up two runs in 2/3’s of inning while Byrdak got knocked around for three runs in one inning. 

This is just one of those things I noticed in the box scored but the Astros put six balls in play against Ledezma (no strikeouts).  Five of the six of those were flyouts and only one was a ground out.  In 2006, his ground ball percentage was only 33.5% (so about two fly ball outs to every ground ball out).  Somehow he managed to keep his homeruns down but it’ll be interesting to see if whether they stay down if that fly ball trend continues.

Another good game though, and the Tigers are now 3-0.  I know it doesn’t mean much until late spring but I guess you’d always rather win then lose.

I remember hearing about this project with Eli Zaret a while ago and I’ve been waiting for it to come out since.  Now it looks like the wait is over Denny McLain’s new autobiography, I Told You I Wasn’t Perfect, is now out.  He has some choice comments for guys like Jim Price and Al Kaline.  It’s over 400 pages and you’re talking about one of the more colorful players in baseball so this will probably be a solid read.

And of course if you want to follow McLain and how he did in 1967, he plays a pretty big part in the 1967 AL Pennant Race site I started up.  I’ll work on a retro for him this week since it seems pretty timely.

I can’t think of any Tiger pitcher in a long time who’s had the expectations that Jeremy Bonderman has and he kicks off his spring season today.  It’s hard to believe just four years ago in the Spring of 2003 he was beginning his run to make the team as a 20 year old.  Now whenever someone talks about Bonderman, they sometime use Cy Young award in the same sentence.

Also getting some time on the mound will be Wil Ledezma, Joey Eischen, Tim Byrdak and Yorman Bazardo.  I’m particularly interested in seeing how Bazardo does this spring.  Roy Oswalt will get the start for the Astros so you’ll have both team’s aces going.  The game is at 1:05 and if you have MLBaudio, you can pick the game up because the Astros are broadcasting the game on their network.  I’ll probably get to tune in for the beginning of the game.  There’s also a night game (which I’ll probably also miss) between the Yankees and the Twins.

In an effort to provide even more information for free, the Hardball Times is making available a slew of fielding stats on their player cards.  Now you can check out each players’ basic fielding stats (like putouts and errors) by position as well as a new and improved Zone Rating developed by stat guru John Dewan and BIS and you can also find plays that the fielder made out of their zone.  There’s also some nice new information for catchers as well.

For an example, here’s a link to Brandon Inge’s page.

Good stuff.  And if you haven’t bought the book yet, what have you been waiting for.

Earlier today, I mentioned a Detroit News story that talked about how a big Michael Young contract extension would boost the cost of Carlos Guillen and I mentioned that Guillen and Young are pretty comparable.  I got a comment from Rangers blogger Joe Siegler that disagreed and I countered with some numbers.  He brings up some good points in Young’s favor on his blog but he also includes Guillen’s season from four years ago (ancient history) when he was a part timer with the Mariners.

My contention is, Carlos Guillen is as good as Michael Young.  Agree or disagree and why?  And taking it a step further, would you trade Guillen for Young straight up right now.  Leave a comment and let me know.

Check back throughout the afternoon as I’ll be providing details on the game as they happen.  Game time is less then an hour away and Jamie Moyer will get the start for the Phillies.

***UPDATE 1***

Interesting lineup.  Ivan Rodriguez is leading off.  I have a feeling we’ll be seeing this through out the season, especially against left handed hitters.

***UPDATE 2***

Maroth had a solid first inning.  Curtis Granderson robbed Jimmy Rollins of a single to lead things off then Maroth gave up a single but he then got a ground out double play to end the inning.  Jamie Moyer is the kind of pitcher who gave the Tigers fits last year (i.e. slow throwing lefty).  It’d be nice if we pushed him out of here early.

***UPDATE 3***

Tigers went down relatively easily.  Gary Sheffield ended up reaching base on Brian Daubach’s fielding error at first base but the two out error didn’t come back to haunt the Phillies.

***UPDATE 4***

Another easy inning for Maroth.  He walked one but other then that, he cruised through the second inning. 

***UPDATE 5***

The Tigers got on the board in the second inning.  Sean Casey started things up with a double and he later scored on Curtis Granderson’s sac. fly.  Craig Monroe’s singled moved Casey from second to third.  Tigers 1, Phillies 0.

***UPDATE 6***

Gary Sheffield just took Jamie Moyer deep with a three run shot to make it 4-0.  He took Moyer to eight pitches.  This is what we picked Shef up for.  He also knocked Jamie Moyer out of the game. Still nobody out.

Justin Verlander got into a jam in the top half of the third but he pitched out of it.  This could turn out to be a long game.  We’re already an hour into and we’re not even close to finished with the third inning.

***UPDATE 7***

Tankersley was roughed up in the fourth inning.  He gave up a homerun to Greg Dobbs and the Phillies cut the Tigers’ lead in half.  Tigers 4, Phillies 2 in the top of the fifth.

Spoke too soon.  Another double off of Tankersley by former Tiger Karim Garcia and it’s now 4-3.  Former Tiger Randal Simon was also in the Phillies lineup today.

***UPDATE 8***

The Phillies just took a 5-4 lead after scoring two runs off of pitching prospect Eulogio de la Cruz.  It’s been a tough inning for the pitching prospect here in the sixth and it’s not over yet.

***UPDATE 9***

Errors have cost the Phillies. The Tigers just took the lead back when Placido Polanco’s grounder was misplayed.  Then Timo Perez added an insurance run with an RBI infield single.  Tigers 7, Phillies 5.

***UPDATE 10***

Alright, I was asleep at the wheel.  I got a phone call and missed some of the action.  The Phillies tied it in the top of the seventh and then the Tigers took the lead back and they’re now up 9-7 in the bottom of the seventh.  The last run scored on a wild pitch.

***UPDATE 11***

The Tigers pulled out the win 9-7.  The last two innings were pretty quiet. Joel Zumaya struck out two in the eighth and Fernando Rodney gave up one hit in a shutout ninth.  Tomorrow the Tigers take on the Astros at 1:05.

It looks like the Texas Rangers are close to extending Michael Young’s contract to the tune of five years and $75 million.  Young is one year younger then Carlos Guillen and you can argue that both are pretty comparable players.  If the Rangers do work this deal, it means the market price for Guillen could sky rocket to the point that we might not be able to re-sign the All Star shortstop.

You only have to back to around 2000 when the Tigers played the matching game with Bobby Higginson.  Jeremy Burnitz, who was considered a comparable player to Higginson, signed a big deal with the Brewers that the Tigers eventually gave to Higginson.  I don’t remember the numbers but we were talking a multi-year deal worth somewhere between $8-10 million per.  Guillen is one of our best players, but the injuries concern me.  Also, you have to take into account that he could be finding his way to first base, which would drop his value a bit as well (and would mean maybe Michael Young isn’t as comparable as we thought).  Regardless, it’s a development that bears watching.

Just a couple of days go, I talked about how I wasn’t too keen on Jose Mesa being in the Tigers bullpen.  Apparantly, Mesa is a really hard worker as this story indicates.  Nice read and they also touch on the 1997 World Series which eventually led to Mesa’s longstanding feud with Omar Vizquel after he wrote some disparaging comments about Mesa in his book.

I’m sure Mesa is a great guy and at one time he was a very good relief pitcher.  I just get the feeling he’s being crammed down our throat.

Mike Maroth will get the nod for the Tigers in their spring game against the Phillies today.  This is an important spring for Maroth because of his elbow problems last year  I still think Maroth will be the fifth starter when we break camp but these spring games that Maroth throws probably mean more then any other Tiger regular on the club.

The Tigers also have some of their big guns going today.  Justin Verlander, Joel Zumaya, Fernando Rodney, Jordan Tata and Dennis Tankersley should all see some time on the mound.

There’s also some good news.  Monday’s game against the Yankees will be on one of the ESPN stations.  And today’s game will be the first radio broadcast by Dan Dickerson and Jim Price.

Andrew Miller struck out four batters in his two innings of work as he impressed people early.  Chad Durbin was also effective and he pitched two perfect innings to get the Tigers off to a good start.  Preston Larrison wasn’t as sharp and he was tagged for three runs in the eighth inning.

Ryan Rayburn hit the only homerun of the game and Omar Infante and Marcus Thames each had two hits and a run.  Four of the five Tiger runs came off of Mets starter Oliver Perez.

Tomorrow’s game is against the Phillies and assuming I can get the feed, I’ll blog the game.  Mike Maroth will get the start.

Mike is halfway through his list of the top ten Tigers prospects over at Tigers Minors.  His latest summaries have been on Jordan Tata and Brent Clevlen, both of whom saw some time on the big league club last year.  Oddly, yesterday’s exhibition starter, Virgil Vazquez, doesn’t show up on any of the three prospect lists and all the way down at 20th on Sickels top 20 list.  I heard some good things about Vazquez, including the fact that he had a solid second half last year in Erie.  You can never have enough pitching so if he ends up panning out, it’s definitely a good thing.

At 29 years of age, Chad Durbin is no longer a prospect but he’s one of those guys you like having in your back pocket.  He came up through the Royals system and after a very rough rookie season in 2000, Chad Durbuin put together a decent but loss filled season in 2001.  He pitched late into games and between a stint in Triple A in which he threw 27 innings and then 179 more for the Royals, he logged well over 200 innings as a 23 year old.  According to Baseball Prospectus 2003, Durbin went more then 115 pitches in a start six times in 2001 and he went over the 130 pitch mark twice.  When 2002 rolled around, he got hammered in all of 13 2/3 innings before going down and having surgery in what looks to be yet another instance of a young pitcher getting overworked. 

The Royals didn’t offer him arbitration so he became a free agent at the end of 2002 and then he signed with the Indians where he had two ineffective seasons before being placed on waivers, where he was then picked up by the Diamondbacks.  The Nationals signed him prior to the 2005 season but he never made the big league club and then the Tigers signed him prior to the 2006 season.  He ended up leading the International League in strikeouts in 2006 for Toledo with 149 in 185 innings and he was a key player in the Mud Hen’s run to another International League Championship.  He got a cup of coffee with the Tigers where he was solid in three relief appearances.

Which brings us to today.  Durbin will get the start and the Tigers will see if they have yet another major league ready starter in their system.  Odds are Durbin heads back to Triple A to start the season (if only he were lefty) but this is a guy who could get called up to spot start in the event of a double header or if someone goes down.

Andrew Miller is also expected to get some time on the mound today, as is Preston Larrison, Bobby Seay and Felix Heredia.

Alright, spring baseball is here.  There’s four games today with three of the four teams that made the championship series going.  The Tigers start things off against the Mets while the World Series champion Cardinals start the spring season with a start time five minutes before the Tigers.  The White Sox and Rockies play in the first Cactus League game at 3 pm and then the Twins and Red Sox play the lone night game.

And I’m going to miss most of it.  I have to take off around three and won’t be back until the evening.  The good news is, the Tigers game isn’t on the radio anyway (and the Mets aren’t picking it up so it isn’t even on MLBaudio).  I might catch a bit of the night game but that’s it.  Fortunately, I’ll be around all of Thursday and I know the Tigers/Phillies game that day is on the radio as are a ton of other games because most of the other teams play that day.

So baseball is here folks.  Even if it doesn’t count, it’s nice to be able to listen to live games.

Here’s a nice story on Jeremy Bonderman and his change up.  I can’t remember expectations being any higher for a Tigers pitcher in a long time as everyone expects Bonderman to have “THE YEAR.”

I know this isn’t Tigers related, but for the third straight time, the Veteran’s Committee has failed to elect anyone to the Hall of Fame.  While that by itself isn’t a huge problem, it becomes one when you have a guy like Ron Santo waiting in the wings.  At least he got closer and hopefully in two years the third baseman will find his way in.

Aaron hasn’t gotten to the commentary on this over at Wrigley Field Curse but he told me that he plans on doing a quick highlight of Santo’s career for those of you who aren’t familiar with him.

Will Carroll seems to think so.  In his latest health positional reports, Magglio Ordonez not only gets a green light but he doesn’t even get a blurb.  He’s been healthy for a season and a half now and even his 2005 sports hernia was kind of fluky.  He does lumber in the field, but at least he’s out there most every day.  Then again, Bobby Abreu picked up a green light too and he’s already on the shelf.

PECOTA sees Ordonez having a bit of a power dip.  His weighted mean average has him at .292/.347/.454, which isn’t bad, but not worth the $12 million we’ll be paying him in 2007.  You have to go all the way up to the 90th percentile to see him exceed 20 homeruns.

The Tigers are getting ready to take the field and it looks like Virgil Vazquez is going to get the start for Detroit.  The rest of the lineup consists of the Tigers regulars except behind the backstop where you have Vance Wilson.  I’m sure this will all change by, say, the fourth inning.

***UPDATE 1***

Virgil Vazquez is all over the place.  He walked the first two batters then he picked up a strikeout but he still has to pitch himself out of an early jam.

***UPDATE 2***

Well, I’m not sure what’s happening but the game feed is no longer working.  I checked the weather in Lakeland and it looks fine.

***UPDATE 3***

Okay, the feed isn’t working but it looks like Curtis Granderson hit a lead off homerun in the first inning to give the Tigers a 1-0 lead.  Unless the feed comes back up, this will be the last update and I’ll just do a quick recap once the games done.

***UDATE 4***

Alright, we’re back in business.  The Tigers scored six runs in the second inning and they’ve now shuffled just about everybody.  Cameron Maybin is out in center and Marcus Thames is getting some time at first base.  Neifi Perez of all people had a bases loaded clearing double and he has three RBIs.  Virgil Vazquez was very good after he gave up those two walks.  He gave up only one hit and those two walks in his two innings of work.  Todd Jones also got an inning of work and he was perfect in the third.

***UPDATE 5***

The Tigers scored three more in the fourth.  Two scored on a throwing error by the third baseman and then Ryan Rayburn doubled home Marcus Thames.  Rayburn was stranded at second when Kody Kirkland flew out.  The score is now 10-0 and I’m wondering if there’s a mercy rule.  Oh yeah, Jose Mesa threw a shutout fourth.  Don’t get to used to that.

***UPDATE 6***

Things have calmed down and now they’re winding down in Lakeland.  The Tigers still lead 10-0 and it’s now the bottom of the eighth.  Edward Campusano just struck out two in the eighth and Kyle Sleeth also threw an inning.  The last hit by Florida Southern came in the sixth off of Jason Grilli.

Billfer at Detroittigersweblog recently talked baseball with TV broadcaster Rod Allen.  Be sure of the check it out.

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