"I finally got ticked off to where I didn't hold it in,'' Leyland admitted. "There was one thing that sticks out, and that was the straw that broke the camel's back.''Leyland didn't say what it was but Danny Knobler suggested that it could be that they seemed to give up after they fell behind 11-0:
Leyland wouldn't say what that one thing was, but past explosions have been set off by a feeling that the Tigers gave in when they got down in a game. Sunday, after Joe Crede's sixth-inning grand slam gave the White Sox a double-digit lead, the Tigers made the next nine outs on just 24 pitches.Billfer theorizes that it could have been Zach Miner's control problems leading up the White Sox second grand slam. My theory is that it really wasn't one thing but something that had built up and that Leyland used one particular event (whatever it was) as an example because the message sounds more genuine that way. In actuality, none of us knows what set him off and the only thing that matters is that they start playing a lot better.
Most of us remember his most famous tirade early in his tenure as Tigers manager. Many have credited that outburst with their great 2006 season. I never bought into that notion although I admit it may helped a little just because they had never seen him like that before and he caught them by surprise. Will his latest tongue lashing help? I don't know if one team meeting can cure all that ails them right now but, if nothing else, they certainly deserved a scolding the way they've been playing.
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