A Tough Ending for the Detroit Tigers

It's not often that I discuss sports on my blog, even though I am a huge sports fan. It's something I probably should talk more about because a lot of stuff goes on in the sporting world, even if it doesn't involve the teams I root for. When I first started my blog here three years ago, I launched it by discussing sports. At that time, it was about the Detroit Tigers and their improbable run into the playoffs. Prior to 2006, the last time the Tigers set foot in the playoffs was 1987. 2006 was a magical year for the Tigers. It ended a long streak of bad seasons that rarely saw the team get out of the basement of their division. Everything clicked for the team; the pitching was superb, they put up great offensive numbers, and competed with some of the elite teams in Major League Baseball. After being given no shot to beat the New York Yankees during the first round of the playoffs, the Tigers won three out of four to move on to face the Oakland A's. They swept the A's and earned a spot in the World Series; the first time playing in the championship series since 1984. Unfortunately they came up short in the World Series to the St. Louis Cardinals, but still, 2006 ushered in a new era of Tigers baseball. The Tigers have done a lot more winning since, but has yet to earn a trip back to the playoffs. And the 2009 season was their best shot in reaching the post-season since 2006 - yet they came up so very short.

The 2009 Tigers started the season off on the right foot. Instead of losing seven straight games to start the season like they did in '08, they did more winning and losing. The first three months of the season saw the Tigers jockeying for the division lead between the Kansas City Royals and the Chicago White Sox. The Tigers eventually gained the lead after May 10 and never looked back. The first half of the season prior to the All Star Break saw Brandon Inge put up awesome offensive numbers; even leading the team in home runs. Edwin Jackson proved to be a tremendous pick-up for the Tigers as he pitched lights out for the club and earned a trip to the All-Star game. Justin Verlander, who had a horrible 2008 season, really bounced back in '09, pitching himself into contention for an AL Cy Young. Miguel Cabrera proved his worth after the Tigers picked him up from a trade with the Florida Marlins the prior season, proving to be the best offensive player the Tigers had.

After the All Star break, the Tigers started to play more .500 ball. They began to feel more pressure from the White Sox and the Minnesota Twins. The offense wasn't quite as stellar as it was during the first half of the season. Brandon Inge was never the same player offensively as he was in the first part of the '09 season. Of course dealing with a serious knee injury certainly didn't help. The pitching wasn't quite as lights-out as it had been during the first half. The Tigers just started playing more listlessly and didn't appear to have the desire to finish with an AL Central Division Title. However, the Tigers appeared to have things on track in early September when they held a 7 game lead over the Twins and White Sox. Yet that is when the Twins went on an incredible tear. They finished the season winning 18 out of 22 games, despite the fact being without Justin Morneau and Joe Crede; two of their most important players. Meanwhile, the Tigers did all they could do hold on. After splitting a four game series with the Twins in Detroit, the Tigers held a two game cushion in the division against the Twins. Both teams had three games remaining and if the Tigers could win two of three, they would be crowned AL Central champs. Yet, it would be even more helpful to the Tigers if the Twins would lose any of the games in their next series against the Royals. They didn't. The Twins ended up sweeping the Royals at the Metrodome and the Tigers would end up losing two of three against the Chicago White Sox in Detroit. At the end of the season, the Tigers and Twins were tied for the division lead and thus, a one-game playoff would be needed to decide the division winner.

So the Tigers held the division lead from May 10 until October 4. They certainly had their chances to win a few more games down the stretch than what they did. Series' against the White Sox and Royals come to mind where they wound up losing more games than winning. But all of that was in the past during last night's 163rd game to decide the division. Seeing that the Twins had won the head-to-head season series against the Tigers in 2009, the final game would be played at the Metrodome - a huge home team advantage for the Twins. And how fitting when this is the final year they'd be playing in the dome. The Tigers came out with a roaring start, putting up three runs in the third inning; two of them coming off a two-run homer from embattled star Miguel Cabrera. Rick Porcello pitched lights out against the Twins, carving up Twins' batters for eight strike-outs. But when Porcello got himself in a bit of a jam in the bottom of the sixth, manager Jim Leyland made a questionable call by pulling his rookie pitcher for Zach Miner. Now Zach has had his memorable pitching moments over the years with the Tigers yet he's also had his not-so memorable moments. Last night's game provided a not-so memorable moment when Miner gave up a two-run homer that allowed the Twins to take a 4-3 lead. Miner soon gave way to Brandon Lyon, who settled things down and got the Tigers out of the inning.

Magglio Ordonez, who struggled mightily in the first half of the '09 season, really tore it up after the All Star Break and it continued during the one-game playoff. He provided the tying run of the game at 4-4 when he blasted a solo shot into left field. The game would head into extra innings. Brandon Lyon continued to pitch well for the Tigers but would give up a base hit to the Twins in the bottom of the ninth. In came Fernando Rodney, who's proven to be a great closer, but not the greatest in non-save situations. This game was one of those instances, but Rodney delivered when he needed to. He got out of a ninth inning jam (along with an awesome defensive play from Brandon Inge) and allowed the Tigers a chance to win the game in extras. In the tenth, pinch hitter Don Kelly hit a double to left center, giving the Tigers a much needed base-runner in scoring position. Brandon Inge then made an important offensive play, scoring the go-ahead run, giving the Tigers a 5-4 lead heading into the top of the 10th. Unfortunately, the Twins came back in the bottom of the inning and scored the tying run. We were nodded up until the 12th inning.

Throughout the entirety of the game, when it appeared the Tigers had the game in their grasp, the Twins quickly snatched away. In the top of the 12th, the Tigers managed to have the bases loaded with only one out. Brandon Inge was again up to bat. He was pitched inside and the ball brushed his jersey and should've allowed him to reach first base, thus sending the go-ahead run home. However, the home plate umpire didn't see it that way, and Inge had to keep batting. On a 2-2 count, Inge hit a bouncer to the shortstop, who then threw to home plate to get the force out. The bases were still loaded, but this time, two out. Gerald Laird was up to bat. In his previous at bats, he had six runners on base, but failed to get any of them home. You would think that Jim Leyland would pinch hit Laird - despite the fact that Laird is a very good defensive catcher. However, his offense stinks and he proved it during the one-game playoff. Laird struck out - and Detroit's best scoring opportunity of the night was squandered. The score remained 5-5.

With Fernando Rodney heading into his fourth inning of pitching, the writing was on the wall that the Tigers did everything they could to win, but would probably end up just a bit short. And sure enough, that's exactly what happened. With Rodney tiring and Leyland not warming anyone else up, it was as if the Tigers were content with what was about to happen. The Twins had a runner on second, so the Tigers walk a batter to keep the double play potential in play. Well, it wouldn't work out that way as the Twins would then hit a walk-off single to end the game. Final score, Twins 6 Tigers 5 in 12 innings. It was an epic game, unlike any that I've ever witnessed. I don't recall ever experiencing such a wind swing of emotions in a baseball game like that. I just wish the outcome would've been different. Now us Tiger fans are left to wonder what might've been if only the team would've cashed in on some of those missed opportunities.

One has to wonder how the Tigers will fair next season. After a heartbreaking defeat like this, I think it's going to be difficult for the team to be competitive next year. It should be no surprise that the make-up of the team roster will be different. I'm expecting many of the same pitchers to be there next season. However, many of the position players may be gone, like Thames who struggled down the stretch, Huff, Polanco, Everett, and Laird. The Tigers need players who can hit the bat with more frequency. I would hate to see Polanco leave because usually he's a pretty clutch guy. However last night, he didn't deliver. Only time will tell what happens with the team during the off season. But I have a feeling this loss will be very difficult for the Tigers to get over. And that hangover will last well into next season.

Detroit Tigers 2007 Season

The 2007 Major League Baseball regular season is winding down with the season officially wrapping up on Sunday for most teams. However, eight lucky teams get the chance for a post-season title. Unfortunately, the Detroit Tigers will not be one of those teams this year. After a magical 2006 season that saw the Tigers earning their first winning season in 12 years and getting to the World Series for the first time in 22 years, this season saw the team getting just short of a playoff berth. With less than a week left to the season, the Tigers were officially eliminated from playoff contention. Yes, even though it's pretty disappointing to see the team not make the playoffs after last year's amazing run, I am still pretty proud of their efforts and glad that they can at least compete to be in the playoffs. At least it isn't like the 12 seasons prior to 2006 when the Tigers were out of the playoff hunt at the All Star Break.

There were a few contributing factors as to why the Tigers fell short of being in the playoffs this year. A number of key players got injured during the course of the season, including members of the pitching staff. Kenny Rogers, who had a tremendous 2006 season and pitched incredibly in the playoffs, ended up missing four months at the beginning of the year due to a blood clot in his shoulder. He then missed most of August because of a sore shoulder. Joel Zumaya, the flame-throwing set-up guy who frequently hits 100 mph on the radar gun, missed three months because of an injury to his middle finger on his pitching hand that required surgery. Fernando Rodney, a similar hard-throwing pitcher that throws in the late innings also ended up on the disabled list for a short time. Gary Sheffield, a player for whom the Tigers were expecting to contribute largely for his hitting in the designated hitter role, also missed time because of shoulder problems. Although a team never likes to admit that injuries ended up playing a key role in why a team falters, I think it's safe to assume that the Tigers were affected by injuries this year.

The team also went through a terrible funk at the end of July and all of August that saw them lose the AL Central division lead and their title as best team in baseball (which they were for awhile prior to the All-Star game). The starting pitching wasn't as stellar and the hits weren't coming as easy. They were losing more than they were winning and coupled by the injury bug, it proved to be a losing stretch that they were never able to recover from. Yes, they did start turning things around in September, but it was already too late. Both the Yankees and Indians went on an incredible tear and it was just too difficult to compete with both of those teams. Now if the Tigers were in the National League, things might be different. But unfortunately, they are not. They have to deal with being in the more superior league in professional baseball.

But 2007 wasn't a major disappointment just because they didn't make the playoffs. Several important acheivements were reached (or are in the process of being reached). Magglio Ordonez is currently the batting average leader and has his sights on the American League batting title. With three games remaining, it's going to be extremely diffcult for Ichiro Suzuki, a Seattle Mariners player that is also competing for the batting title, to catch Magglio with just three games remaining. The last time I checked, Ichiro is .010 behind Magglio. And for those that don't follow baseball, it doesn't seem like that large of a gap. But this late in the season, it takes a lot to make up .010. So it is very likely that Magglio will be this year's American League batting champion. What an incredible feat for one of the Tigers most important free agent signings ever.

Pudge Rodriguez surpassed the record for the most games played as a catcher, solidifying his importance to this team and his spot in the Baseball Hall of Fame when he retires. Placido Polanco has an error-less streak of 170+ games (and still counting) at second base. He is also four hits short of reaching 200 hits in a season, which Magglio Ordonez has already reached. He is likely to reach 200 before all is said and done. Curtis Granderson, the Tigers centerfielder, is the sixth player in baseball history to have 20 homeruns, 20 triples, 20 doubles, and 20 stolen bases in one season. Todd Jones, the Tigers closing pitcher, recorded his 300 career save in a game against the Minnesota Twins earlier this month. And last but not least, probably the most important of all of these acheivements, the Tigers had 3,000,000+ fans attend games at Comerica Park (the Tigers home stadium) for the first time in franchise history. The franchise dates back to more than 100 years! This is even more impressive considering that Comerica Park is some 10,000 seats smaller than Tiger Stadium was, and the last attendance record dated back to 1984 when 2.7 million fans attended the home games. This goes to show you how excited and loyal the fans are for this Tigers team. They are as thrilled as ever to have a competing baseball team again, after a 12 year stretch of mediocrity.

Although I am disappointed not to be able to bring you post season blogs regarding Tigers playoff games this year, I am still proud of the Tigers for a wonderful 2007 season. This team looks to compete for the playoffs for many years to come and hopefully one of these seasons, they will bring home a championship. Although it did not happen this year, it certainly doesn't mean they had a dull year. It was anything but! Always and forever, go Tigers!