What is your take on Instant Replay

The umps clearly blew two calls today and the instant replays verified it.  One was a third strike - that the guy swung at.  Home ump wasn't sure so he asked 1st base for help.  Leyland was moe livid than I have ever seen him and he was right.  It's bad enough when your  team isn't  up  to par and then the umps....  Leyland did not want to bad mouth the umps, but he challenged  the writers  to write exactly what they saw.  He said everyone has  to be "accountable"  Later in the game Worth overslid second, but  got back in time and was called out.  Today was tough.

Don't Look now ... Tigers only 3 games out!

Three in a row, makes you feel good,but we still have a ways to go.  Boston and then the Yankees will be a great test this coming week.
So what do we do when Jackson comes back?  Jackson gets center.  Berry is too hot and too fast not to play.  I am thinking Delmon Young is the odd man out -- package him and rayburn and look forward to October.

Just cause he's cute, and we don't have much good news about the Tigers

So what are they doing now?

A quick look at some of our old faves, and what they are up to:

Brandon Inge got off to a red-hot start with Oakland, hitting a couple grand slams his first week there, but he's calmed down some since. With the Tigs he wasn't hitting his weight, .100 in 20 ABs with one HR. Since going to Oakland, he's hitting a more respectable but certainly not Ruthian .227 with 4 HRs in 40 ABs.


Matt Joyce had a good night last night, with his second grand slam in 6 games for Tampa Bay. He's having his best season since leaving the Tigers in 2008, hitting .283 with 9 HR's.

Jair Jurrjens, who showed great promise as a Tiger rookie in 2007, is having his troubles this year (still with Atlanta.) He's lost two games, not won any, with a baloon-average of 9.37. He's only pitched 16 innings in four games, and currently trying to straighten things out in Triple A. Unfortunately, he's had two terrible starts there, giving up 18 runs in 9 innings. But the Braves' brass says he looks better, with higher speed and control.

Our buddy Curtis Granderson is chugging along at .262 with 14 homers. Of course, he has not made an error in 45 games. Looks like trading him and Edwin Jackson for Austin Jackson, Sherzer, Coke and Schlereth was OK. Jackson (until he got hurt) was out-hitting Granderson, but Schlereth is gone, and the Tigers should look to getting rid of Coke. Sherzer, after two plus years, remains a question mark. (Edwin Jackson seems to be unable to find a home, bouncing around with the White Sox, Cardinals, Diamondbacks and now the Nationals, usually having an ERA north of 3.)

(All stats from http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/, my favorite reference tool.)

Time for some changes

The season is 1/4 over, and things are not getting better. I propose two moves. Let's "discuss." (Argue, since we're all getting a little edgy.) First, let's scarf up some free agent meat. Namely, former Astros ace Roy Oswalt. In the last two seasons he's done OK with the Astros, then the Phils. Sure, he's 35, (I wouldn't sign him beyond this season) but he knows how to win, and it wouldn't hurt to have a guy like that as a fifth starter/long reliever. Wouldn't hurt the kids on the pitching staff to be exposed to his mind, either. The Red Sox, Rangers and Phils are looking at him; let's move! Second, it's time to shake things up. Maybe a trade, a big trade. Trouble is, what do we need more, pitching or hitting. Ya'll know I've long been a proponent of pitching, but our hitters ain't getting it done either. ?

Or maybe it's time to show Leyland the door. We've given you the talent for years now. You've given us nothing more than division flags. Considering the talent you have on this squad, it's just not enough. What say ye?

Glad the right Scerzer showed up yesterday

15 strikeouts -- even Verlander has never done that.  Only Lolich and Paul Foytack have done that for the Tigs in the past.  So excited for Scherzer, just hoping that he has figured it out and becomes CONSISTANT!!  We need him and some others!!

We are much better than a .500 club..........

we just don't act like it.  We have not fired on all cylinders at the same time.  When we hit, we don't pitch.. when we pitch, we don't field, etc.
                                                        BUT
I still believe in this team and believe they will get the job done!!
Go get 'em Tigers!!  World Series bound and picking up steam.......................

Holding like a nervous bladder

Got a chance to watch most of the game Tues. afternoon, as it was carried on WGN. Guess this is the way the season should go: Tigers have absolutely no pitching, but they win with the bat. White knuckles to the very end.

Goota readit -- Calico Joe by John Grisham

I have just finished reading this novel.  It is by quite an accomplished author.  I have read all of Grisham's books and this one did not let me down.  It is about the Mets and the Cubs in 1973.  Many All Stars are mentioned in the book.  The book features the very human side of Warren Tracey and Joe Castle.  To write too much more about it will ruin the suspense, but it will stir something up in you.  Would be happy to write more about it after some of you have read it.  Baseball is a part of every day living!!

Congrats Brandon, I tcouldn't happen to a nicer guy

Ou favorite former catcher, 3rd baseman, 2nd baseman hit a wlk off grand slam last night for Oakland.  Well done.  Looking forward to this weekend!!

It's all about the pitching

How many times have each of us heard that or said that.  Great start by Fister last night, so good to have him back!  But OH THAT BULLPEN.  Is there a "go to" guy in the pen?  Looks like the starting pitching is coming around, but we are paying a lot of money to a group of guys that I do not have much confidence in.  One could argue that our BIG bats were also part of last night's problems - 2 runs is not enough.  Plop.  Plop.  Fizz. Fizz. Oh what a relief it is.

Bill "Fu#!'ng" Buckner Ball Sold in Dallas

Associated Press The Dallas Morning News DALLAS — The baseball that broke the hearts

of Boston Red Sox fans everywhere and turned Bill Buckner into one of the most famous goats in sports history is up for sale. The ball that rolled through Buckner's legs in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series between Boston and the New York Mets will part of an auction Friday in Dallas. Heritage Auctions said the ball is expected to bring in more than $100,000 as the centerpiece of an auction featuring the baseball memorabilia collection of Los Angeles songwriter Seth Swirsky. “That one ball kind of encapsulates the highest and lowest you can feel in sports at any given moment,” Swirsky said. Buckner hit .289 with 2,715 hits in 22 years and had more than 100 RBIs in two of his three full seasons with the Red Sox. All of that was overshadowed by his error at Shea Stadium that night when Mookie Wilson's grounder rolled through Buckner's legs, allowing the Mets to cap a two-out rally with a victory in the 10th inning. The Mets went on to win the series and Boston's championship drought — dating to 1918 — continued until 2004. “I think everybody remembers where they were, even if they were a sports fan or not. Everybody seems to remember that. It's not just a baseball moment. It's not just a piece of Mets history or Red Sox history but it seems like it was a cultural moment of the `80s,” said Swirsky, who co-wrote the hit “Tell It To My Heart” by Taylor Dayne , and has multiple hits with Celine Dion , Olivia Newton-John and Al Green. After the ball rolled through Buckner's legs, it was picked up by right field umpire Ed Montague , who put a tiny “x” near a seam to mark it. Montague then gave the ball to Mets executive Arthur Richman. Wilson signed it to Richman, writing: “To Arthur, the ball won it for us, Mookie Wilson, 10/25/86.” As the ball made its way around the clubhouse, someone kissed it, leaving a tobacco stain. Charlie Sheen bought the famous ball for more than $93,000 in 1992. Swirsky purchased it for nearly $64,000 in 2000. Swirsky offered the ball up on eBay last October for $1 million but got no takers. He said though that the eBay offering — done on a whim after he realized he could close the bidding on Oct. 25, 2011, of the 25th anniversary of Buckner's famous error — made him realize he would be OK with selling his entire collection. Other offerings from Swirsky in the auction include: Reggie Jackson's third home run ball from Game 6 of the 1977 World Series, which earned him the title “Mr. October,” expected to sell for more than $20,000; Babe Ruth's 136th career home run baseball from 1921, estimated to sell for more than $50,000; and a 1923 letter signed by Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis denying reinstatement of “Shoeless Joe” Jackson, expected to garner more than $20,000. Also on the block is the Texas Rangers cap Jose Canseco was wearing in 1993 when a ball hit by Cleveland Indian Carlos Martinez bounced off Canseco's head and then over the outfield wall for an assisted homer. That's expected to sell for more than $4,000. Buckner was traded to the Red Sox by the Chicago Cubs in May 1984 and released in July 1987. He rejoined them in 1990 then retired after 22 games. Four years ago, Buckner returned to Fenway Park for the first time since 1997 when he was batting coach with the Chicago White Sox and was cheered for more than four minutes. Swirsky, who while growing up on Long Island developed a love for the Mets and New York Yankees, said that he remembers watching the 1986 Game 6 with his father. Since buying the ball, he said, he has also made it his mission to stress that Buckner shouldn't just be remembered for the Game 6 error, reminding people that Buckner had almost as many hits as Lou Gehrig. “Buckner was a fantastic player and I will only say good things about him,” he said.

Thank You Jhonny!!

Perralta's walk-off home run last night was certainly just what the doctor ordered.  With such an awesome team, to be off to a 500 start is unacceptable.  Smyly kept us in the game and our bats let us down again - until an awesome finish.  Maybe last night was a wake up call or a turning point.  We'll take it.  Ya gotta love it!

Scalpers vs. Ticket Brokers

Last Monday we made a decision to go to the game at 6:20.  We go tthere ar 6:55.  Wasn't sure where we were going to sit or what we would pay.  We were approached by a ticket broker.  He pulled out 50 or 60 tickets and said, "where do you wanna sit and what do you wanna pay?"  What a different concept.  of course, it was 10 minutes before game time and he had a lot of tickets to get rid of.  We bought 3 tickets in the lower deck right fiekld corner, just inside fair territory - 8 rows off the field - $10.00 each.  Such a deal.  he then gave us his business card for future events.  This older conservative Polack has always gone to box office, but now I have a new option.

Nice story, well told...

It's almost been a year since the accident that nearly killed Todd Ritter. On May 14, 2011, the longtime Mesquite baseball coach was doing yardwork when a seven-foot brick wall collapsed on him, pinning his torso against a hot tub and leaving him unable to move. “It was the most excruciating pain I’ve ever felt,” Ritter told SportsDay's Matt Wixon. Since the accident, Ritter has been through it all – painful surgery, intense rehabilitation, bouts of depression and even a trip to a psychiatric hospital. And yet, despite the physical and emotional toll the ordeal has taken on him, Ritter is glad it all happened. Ritter, 47, has long been a family man, with three children from his first marriage. He was going through a second divorce when the accident occurred, and had decided that he needed a major lifestyle shift, one more attuned to his religion. He asked God for guidance. "I need you to completely take control of my life," Ritter prayed after he'd moved out of the home he shared with his second wife. "I need you to gut me from head to toe." Ritter, 47, has long been a family man, with three children from his first marriage. He was going through a second divorce when the accident occurred, and had decided that he needed a major lifestyle shift, one more attuned to his religion. He asked God for guidance. "I need you to completely take control of my life," Ritter prayed after he'd moved out of the home he shared with his second wife. "I need you to gut me from head to toe." The damage was extensive. Ritter's pelvis had been crushed, his hip joint and tailbone were broken, and his abdominal muscles were torn. He underwent surgery to reconstruct his pelvis, followed by three months of painful physical therapy. Doctors told Ritter that his physical recovery would take 12 to 18 months, and though he was ahead of schedule by the start of the school year, the emotional toll the accident had taken was becoming more evident. Ritter was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, for which he began taking an antidepressant called Pristiq. But the drug didn't help much, and Ritter began questioning why God let the accident happen. "I could still feel the wall on top of me, and I just couldn’t get over it," he said. "I hated that wall, and it was destroying me." Five months after the accident, Ritter began having thoughts of suicide. It wasn't until Ritter's first wife, Grace Riley, checked in on Ritter in early October that the extent of his depression finally became apparent. Riley found Ritter angry and spilling over with emotion, and she called police at the advice of Ritter's psychiatrist. Officers escorted him to Green Oaks Psychiatric Hospital, where he stayed overnight for an evaluation. He was picked up the next day by his son. "Seeing the humiliation on his face," Cliff Ritter said, "it was the worst day of my life." Ritter hated the stay at Green Oaks, but he’s thankful it happened. Seeing the plight of the other patients helped shake his suicidal thoughts. He kicked his medication, stopped seeing a psychiatrist and turned his life over to God. Though he'd already been baptized once as a Catholic, Ritter decided to be baptized against at Lake Pointe Church in Rockwall. Ritter says he's about 75 percent recovered physically, but 100 percent changed as a person. He walks and runs three miles each day, he's much closer with his children, and he's a proud grandpa of a 4-year-old boy. "It was terrible what happened, but it brought our whole family closer," Ritter's son Cliff said. "Now he’s content, and he knows why he's living, and he's trying to take advantage of every second." Ritter still has high expectations for his team, but he's not quite as consumed with Mesquite's on-field accomplishments as he once was. Now, he takes as much joy out of watching his grandson play T-ball as he does out of a big Skeeter win. "I see things differently now," he said. "I see serenity. I see peace. I’m more compassionate."

What do we do with Delmon Young?

Dave Dombrowski has kind of said that MLB has already administered enough punishment to Young.  It that correct?  Is it enough?  Some folks are saying to release him - is that fair?  should he be traded so we get something for him?  Is his slow start due to some of his shenanigans?  What say ye?