How Was The Game? (August 24, 2013)
All about Max.
Tigers 3, Mets 0
Max Scherzer (26 GS, 178.1 IP, 2.73 ERA, 2.62 FIP, 5.6 WAR) turned in a strong performance against the Mets, twirling 6 scoreless innings featuring 11 K and a nice two-step around a bases-loaded jam in the 6th. But if you ask Max, the big story was his RBI double off the great Matt Harvey who doesn’t allow many extra base hits (.073 opponents ISO) and had allowed just one extra base hit to a pitcher in his career entering the day. The Tigers grabbed another run in that inning and would hold the line the rest of the way despite a couple of poor coaching choices at third base and a bad call at 2B during a threat in the 7th. The win pushes the Tigers 23 games over .500 and gives them the series victory. They’ll send Rick Porcello (23 GS, 135.1 IP, 4.52 ERA, 3.46 FIP, 2.5 WAR) to the mound Sunday looking to sweep.
The Moment: Scherzer doubles in a run off Harvey in the 2nd.
How Was The Game? (August 23, 2013)
A good start to the trip.
Tigers 6, Mets 1
It shouldn’t come as too much of a shock to anyone that the Tigers unloaded on Dice-K in his Mets debut, jumping out to a 5-1 lead early thanks to a bomb by Hunter and another one by Cabrera. It was never really in doubt and Jackson added an extra run for good measure, but once they got a lead, Doug Fister (26 GS, 167.2 IP, 3.54 ERA, 3.26 FIP, 3.7 WAR) had it all figured out. It’s not terribly impressive to silence the Mets’ bats, but Fister held them to 1 run over 6.1 innings and handed it over to the bullpen to polish off the rest. The Tigers got one to open the series and will look to get another against Matt Harvey with fellow ASG starter Max Scherzer (25 GS, 172.1 IP, 2.82 ERA, 2.66 FIP, 5.3 WAR) getting the ball on Saturday
The Moment: Cabrera crushes a 3 run HR to put this one away early.
How Was The Game? (August 21, 2013)
The bats came late, but were worth the wait.
Tigers 7, Twins 1
Anibal Sanchez (22 GS, 139.2 IP, 2.45 ERA, 2.34 FIP, 4.8 WAR) did his job with the usual magnificence as he gave the Tigers 6.2 innings of 1 run baseball featuring 8 strikeouts and 2 walks. He pitched in a bit of traffic early but escaped with ease and then got rolling in the middle innings before handing it off to the capable hands of Drew Smyly. Trailing 1-0 entering the bottom of the 7th, the Tigers bats got rolling and chased Correia after scoring two runs and placing two more on base. Then, of course, Fielder swung and missed at strike three but got to first on the passed ball while Hunter scored. Get all that? Martinez doubled to add another and then the Tigers piled on in the 8th when Cabrera cleared the bases. The Tigers will do their best to take the series Thursday afternoon with the resurgent Justin Verlander (26 GS, 166.2 IP, 3.51 ERA, 3.42 FIP, 3.6 WAR) on the hill.
The Moment: Hunter puts one up the gap to drive in the tying and go-ahead run.
How Was The Game? (August 20, 2013)
Nothing worth writing home about.
Twins 6, Tigers 3
Rick Porcello (23 GS, 135.1 IP, 4.52 ERA, 3.46 FIP, 2.5 WAR) did some good things on Tuesday, but three infield hits and two poorly timed pitches cost him 5 runs in 4.1 innings despite 6 strikeouts and only 2 walks. Those things will happen when you induce a lot of ground balls and while you don’t love the result – especially Coke’s inability to get a lefty out – the process was mostly solid for Porcello who continues to be head and shoulders about baseball’s other #5 starters. The bats were able to score on a Fielder bomb and pushed across two other runs but failed to cash in with the tying run at the plate in the 8th inning. They had another shot in the 9th, with Cabrera at the dish no less but couldn’t make it happen. The Tigers have two more chances to get to the Twins this week and will turn around and give the ball to Anibal Sanchez (21 GS, 133 IP, 2.50 ERA, 2.39 FIP, 4.5 WAR) on Wednesday.
The Moment: Prince hits one a mile.
How Was The Game? (August 18, 2013)
As comfortable as the weather.
Tigers 6, Royals 3
After splitting the first four games in the long, five game set with the Royals, the Tigers took the final game to ensure that they sent the Royals packing without gaining any ground on the division leaders. Max Scherzer (25 GS, 172,1 IP, 2.82 ERA, 2.66 FIP, 5.3 WAR) gave the Tigers 8 strong innings of 2 run ball featuring 4 strikeouts and no walks while Miguel Cabrera provided all the offense he would need including a no doubt, first pitch bomb in the first to go along with an RBI single that came later. The Tigers added runs in the 5th and 6th innings as well to pad the lead and likely would have been looking at more if not for some excellent defensive play by Alex Gordon and Eric Hosmer. The Tigers continue to put distance between themselves and the rest of the division as the summer winds down and will look to fatten up on the Twins for three games starting Tuesday at Comerica Park with Rick Porcello (22 IP, 131 IP, 4.33 ERA, 3.42 FIP, 2.5 WAR) on the mound to start it off.
The Moment: Cabrera hits a no doubt blast on the first pitch he saw.
How Was The Game? (August 17, 2013)
Just another feather in his cap.
Tigers 6, Royals 5
Doug Fister (25 GS, 161.1 IP, 3.63 ERA, 3.28 FIP, 3.5 WAR) didn’t dominate during his 6.1 innings, but he held the Royals to 3 runs with 6 strikeouts and 2 walks and pitched around one of the worst calls you’ll see this year by the entire umpiring crew. With Getz on first, Escobar clearly fouled a pitch off – so clearly that Pena made no effort to go pick it up – but the umpire made no such call and allowed Getz to advance to third before Fister retrieved the baseball. Needless to say, Jim Leyland got himself kicked out, but less needless to say, so did the mild mannered Pena. Fister turned the game over to Smyly who allowed an equalizer to Perez, but was quickly bailed out by a Fielder bomb that punctuated his big night. Calling on Veras for the 8th proved problematic, as he allowed the tying run to score before escaping a big jam thanks to Fielder putting a delicate part of his body in the path of the baseball. In the 9th, Aaron Crow had to face Miguel Cabrera. I’m pretty sure you can imagine how that went for Crow, as he hung his head as he strolled into the dugout after giving up the walkoff bomb. The win takes the Tigers 21 games over the .500 mark and sets them up to take the series on Sunday behind Max Scherzer (24 GS, 164.1 IP, 2.85 ERA, 2.69 FIP, 4.9 WAR).
The Moment: Miguel Cabrera sends everybody home.
How Was The Game? (August 16, 2013 – Game Two)
Nothing you’d worry about if it hadn’t happened twice today.
Royals 3, Tigers 0
The Tigers got another solid outing from their starter in the nightcap, but the offense failed to deliver again, this time for Jose Alvarez (5 GS, 25.1 IP, 4.62 ERA, 5.91 FIP, -0.1 WAR) who gave the Tigers 5.2 innings of 2 run baseball and kept pressure off the bullpen. He won’t win a Cy Young for the performance but he did a nice job keeping the Royals off balance and gave his team a shot to win. Unfortunately, the Tigers could get very little going against James Shields and they fell for the second time in just a few hours thanks to some tremendous defense by the Royals. The Tigers will have a chance to repair the damage as they’ll get the Royals two more times before the weekend is out starting with Doug Fister (24 GS, 155 IP, 3.60 ERA, 3.33 FIP, 3.3 WAR) on the hill on Saturday night.
The Moment: Iglesias charges and flips a ball backhanded to Cabrera to escape a jam.
How Was The Game? (August 16, 2013 – Game One)
A nice duel we didn’t win.
Royals 2, Tigers 1
In the early game, the Tigers came up short but their is no blame to be laid at the feet of Justin Verlander (26 GS, 166.2 IP, 3.51 ERA, 3.43 FIP, 3.7 WAR) who continued to show his midseason struggles are behind him as he went 8 innings and allowed just 2 runs to go along with 6 strikeouts. The fastball velocity was solid (averaging 94.8 MPH, up to 98.2), the breaking balls were good, and the changeup worked. The release point was also where it should be, as it has been for several starts (check out previous work on the matter):
The only blemishes were a solo homerun by Hosmer and a couple of hits in the 7th inning. The bats couldn’t do much against Danny Duff and the Royals as they got on base via the walk nicely, but hit into a ton of outs when they put the ball in play even when the contact was good. Santiago jumped Aaron Crow for a pinch hit homerun in the 8th, but the Tigers couldn’t complete the rally. Additionally, Jose Iglesias made two fine defensive plays – one chasing down a pop fly and one getting to a ground ball up the middle – in addition to taking one for the team in the worst possible spot to reach via the HBP. The Tigers won’t have long to think about this one as they’ll grab some dinner and come back out for the nightcap with Jose Alvarez (4 GS, 19.2 IP, 5.03 ERA, 5.99 FIP, -0.2 WAR) toeing the rubber.
The Moment: Iglesias makes two excellent plays in the span of three batters.
How Was The Game? (August 15, 2013)
One that felt like the stretch run.
Tigers 4, Royals 1
There’s something about playing the Royals on a later summer night that seems to make everything official. This is what it feels like to close in on a title. It’s entirely subjective, but this homestand is the de facto beginning of the end and the Tigers started it out nicely with 7.1, 1 run innings from Anibal Sanchez (21 GS, 133 IP, 2.50 ERA, 2.39 FIP, 4.5 WAR) who continued to roll past AL offenses with five strikeouts and one walk. Fielder gave the Tigers the lead with a much needed 2 run homer in the first and the Tigers added two more in the 5th to put it out of reach. The Tigers had some trouble running the bases, but Dirks highlighted the offensive attack with 4 hits while filling in at the top for Jackson. The Royals entered the series trailing the Tigers by 7.5 games and after the first of five are already watching that number rise. The Tigers will play two tomorrow with Justin Verlander (25 GS, 158.2 IP, 3.57 ERA, 3.40 FIP, 3.5 WAR) taking the ball in the day game and Jose Alvarez (4 GS, 19.2 IP, 5.03 ERA, 5.99 FIP, -0.2 WAR) getting the call for the nightcap.
The Moment: Fielder leaves the yard for the first time in a long while.
How Was The Game? (August 14, 2013)
A nice recovery.
Tigers 6, White Sox 4
After a few days of coming up short and a bad start to this one, the Tigers recovered nicely to win the final game of the series against the Sox. Rick Porcello (22 GS, 131 IP, 4.33 ERA, 3.42 FIP, 2.5 WAR) didn’t have a great first inning and had to pitch around 2 infield hits, but settled down nicely after the 3 run first and allowed no additional runs. He gave the Tigers 6 and allowed 3, while striking out 4 and walking 1. The Tigers scored in bunches today as Cabrera knocked a 3 run HR in the 3rd and the Tigers scored 3 in the 6th on an RBI single and then a horrible defensive play by the White Sox cornermen. Porcello gave way to the pen for the final three, who managed to keep the Sox from rallying back and sent the Tigers to win #70 on the season and a 6-4 road trip. In fact, Leyland called on Benoit for a five out save in a stunning turn from his refusal to use him in a tie game 3 times in the previous 5 days. The Tigers will return home for a five game series against the Royals in which they will have a shot to put some series distance between them in the Central. They will send Anibal Sanchez (24 GS, 164.1 IP, 2.58 ERA, 2.40 FIP, 4.2 WAR) to the mound for the first game on Thursday evening.
The Moment: Cabrera ties it with a no doubter to left.
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