TIGERS KNOCK OFF YANKEES

For the second straight game, a pitcher considered by many fans and members of the media to be too emotionally fragile to win a pressure game against a powerful line-up stopped the Yankees cold. Last night it was Kenny Rogers. Today it was Jeremy Bonderman. Perhaps fans don't know their players as much as they think they do! Bonderman allowed just 2 runs on 5 hits in 8 1/3 innings as the Tigers crushed the Yankees 8-3 and took the series from the Yankees 3 games to 1.

In my series preview, I had predicted that the Tigers would win the series because of superior pitching but never in my wildest dreams did I think that they would win so convincingly. At one point, they held "the best line-up ever assembled" scoreless for 20 straight innings. In the last two games, the Yankees actually looked overmatched. Beating the Yankees is one thing. Completely shutting them down is something else.

Just like the regular season, the Tigers primary strength in this series was pitching but they also did some hitting. And just as in the regular season, the leading hitter was the starting shortstop. Carlos Guillen had 3 more hits today to give him 3 straight multiple hit games. For the series, Guillen went 8 for 14 with 2 walks, 3 doubles and a homer. This stacks up quite well against MVP candidate Derek Jeter who went 8 for 16 with 1 walk, 4 doubles and a homer. This comes to no surprise to Tiger fans who know that the two shortstops have been statistically similary all year long.

The post-game celebration was a unique and down to earth affair that may very well change the way baseball teams celebrate for years to come. After carrying Jim Leyland off the field and briefly celebrating privately in the clubhouse, they brought the party to the fans. They shook hands with fans and even doused some of them with champagne. They will likely be accused by some of over celebrating a first round playoff victory but I thought it was well done and warranted. After years of frustration, this series was a tremendous release for fans and the city of Detroit. I think the celebration was pefectly appropriate.

Game 3: Tigers 6 Yankees 0

They said Kenny Rogers couldn't handle the pressure of a big game. They said he didn't have the stuff to stop the Yankee line-up. The Yankees hitters came into the game batting a combined .391 versus Rogers for their careers. Rogers proved everyone wrong tonight by blanking the powerful Yankees, a team he hadn't beaten since 1994, for 7 2/3 innings. His brilliant performance propelled the Tigers to a 6-0 shutout and a 2-1 lead in the series.

The 41 year old Rogers was replaced by 21 year old Joel Zumaya who got the last out of the 8th. I was surprised to see him come into the game because, with a 6-0 lead, I figured they would save him for tomorrow. He only pitched to one batter so he should still be ready for tomorrow. Fernando Rodney started warming up in the bullpen initially in the 7th but Zumaya took over pretty quickly. I may be reading too much into it but it makes me wonder if they saw something in Rodney that they didn't like tonight. He did start warming up again in the 8th when Zumaya came in.

I admittedly was one of the people who thought Rogers might be too much of a finesse pitcher to contain the Yankees. I did predict that they would hit the aging and ailing Randy Johnson. I was wrong about Rogers but right about Johnson. The Big Unit gave up 3 runs on 4 hits in the 2nd and 2 more runs on 3 hits in the 6th. The attack was paced by Placido Polanco, Carlos Guillen, Ivan Rodriguez and Sean Casey who had 2 hits apiece.

Carlos Guillen is showing the country that he shouldn't have to take a back seat to Derek Jeter. He is now 5 for 10 with 2 walks in the series. Another one who is showing off his stuff is Curtis Granderson. Granderson capped the scoring with a solo home run in the 7th. He is now 6 for 12 with 2 homers in the series.

As if the game itself was not great enough, ESPN viewers were treated to a couple of innings of the legendary Ernie Harwell. Growing up in Massachusetts in the days before cable TV and the internet, Harwell was my primary connection to the Tigers from the age of about 8 into my 30s. Like so many other Tiger fans, I spent countless nights of my youth, listening to Ernie on my radio late a night when I should have been sleeping. The 88 year old Harwell still has the perfect broasdcasting voice and enthusiasm of a man half his age. It was great to hear his voice and his stories one more time tonight. It was especially great to hear Jason Giambi stand there like the house by the side of the road and watch strike three go by.

It was an emotional night for Rogers, for the team and for fans who saw a post-season game in Detroit for the first time since 1987. I'm looking forward to hearing stories from fans who actually attended the game. The last two days, the Tigers have played like they did in the first 4 months of the year - great pitching, smooth fielding and just enough hitting. Actually they are playing better because they are doing it against the Yankees now. They still need one more victory in this series. Game 4 will be at 4:00 tomorrow as Jeremy Bonderman faces Jaret Wright. Bonderman has been unpredictable the last couple of months but tonight I'm very confident.

Game 2: Tigers 4 Yankees 3

The Tigers won a playoff game at Yankee Stadium today. It does not get any better than that. This game absolutely showed that they can play with the Yankees. It's still going to be a really tough series but I feel more confident right now than I did after game 1. They now have the home field advantage. That doesn't usually help this team much but I'd much rather see them play at home than at Yankee Stadium in post-season.

I had my annual eye exam at 4:15 so I missed most of the bottom of the 9th inning. I sat in the office for 15 minutes and they didn't call me in. I couldn't handle it anymore so I left the office and ran to my car. I turned on the radio just in time to catch the last out. I then ran back to the office and I was called into the office as I walked through the door. My eyes are fine.

My thoughts on the game:

• The young Tiger pitchers made us proud today. Justin Verlander walked 4 and allowed a 3 run homer to Johnny Damon but he got through 5 2/3 innings with no other runs scoring. He threw as fast as he has thrown at any point during the season (100 MPH or better on several pitches) and his pitches had great movement. If there was any evidence of fatigue, it was his control. Overall, he did well though.
  

• Joel Zumaya got me about as pumped up in the 7th and 8th innings as I've ever been watching a baseball game. He struck out Derek Jeter with one out in the 7th and then got Bobby Abreu on any easy grounder. Gary Sheffield lined to center fielder Granderson on the first pitch of the 8th. He then struck out Jason Giambi swinging on a 103 MPH fastball and Alex Rodriguez on a 101 MPH fastball. It was Vintage Zoom.
  

• I was really afraid Todd Jones would blow the game as I sat in the doctor's office. He had an excellent season in his closer role but no matter how many timss he gets the job done, he still scares me. He continued to show that he was an good off-season acquisition though.
  

• It's now Carlos Guillen 1 Derek Jeter 1 in the battle of MVP caliber shortstops. Guillen doubled and hit a game tying homer in 4 at bats. Jeter had a rough day going 1 for 4 with an error and he popped up a bunt attempt.
  

• Curtis Granderson had another big game today. He hit a sacrifice fly in the 5th and tripled in the go ahead run in the 7th. That triple was another of the unforgettable moments in today's game. Granderson is showing the Yankees something so far in this series. And don't forget Marcus Thames. He is clearly healthy again going 3 for 4 with 2 runs scored.

• Game 3 is tomorrow night. It will be Kenny Rogers against Randy Johnson. Rogers is the type of finesse pitcher who I expect might have trouble with the Yankee line-up. It will be important for the Tigers to hit Randy Johnson who has been suffering for back problems. I think they will. I'm expecting a fairly high scoring game.

Game 1: Yankees 8 Tigers 4

The Tigers lost their first playoff game in 19 years tonight 8-4 to the Yankees. It's late and I assume most of you saw the game so I'll just give some quick thoughts:

• First, I enjoyed the game. It was really exciting to finally see the Tigers in a playoff game. I never felt they were out of it until Mariano Rivera came in to pitch the 9th.

• I'm trying to stay optimistic but the Yankees line-up is amazing. It's literally an all-star line-up from top to bottom, perhaps the best line-up in the history of the game when all are healthy. They are an incredibly well disciplined team. It seems like they never swing at a bad pitch and when you give them something to hit they hit a line drive. It's quite a contrast to the free swinging Tigers.

• Nate Robertson was hit hard and may have been left in too long. I think Leyland was hoping he could get through the 6th before going to the big boys in the bullpen. He can't bring in Joel Zumaya for multiple innings every game especially when they are behind. I'm pretty sure we'll see Zoom pitch 2 and maybe even more tomorrow regardless of the score. Robertson gave up 7 runs on 12 hits though. It's tough to bring in the middle relievers against such a tough line-up but I expected Leyland to bring in Jason Grilli or somebody quicker than he did.
  

• With Rivera available for no more than one inning per game this series, the Yankee bullpen is very vulnerable and I was really hoping the Tigers could get to it before the 9th. I was surprised and happy to see Chien-Ming Wang removed in the 7th after just 93 pitches and after retiring 6 in a row. I was even more pleased to see Curtis Granderson greet Mike Myers with a home run. Nice performance by Granderson tonight. Magglio Ordonez came up as the potential tying run in the same inning but flied out to center.
  

• Pudge Rodriguez looked very bad tonight. He swung and missed on a hit and run in the 2nd and ended up going a very weak 0 for 4. They need better than that from him in this series.

• Derek Jeter will be regarded as a saint by the media after this one but I have to admit he put on a great show - 5 for 5 with a homer and 2 doubles.

• Game 2 will feature Mike Mussina and Justin Verlander and I think we can count of Joel Zumaya pitching a couple of innings as well. Hopefully, the two power pitchers will have better luck than Robetrtson did today.

Fielding Awards

Dave Studeman over at The Hardball Times gave out his annual fielding awards based on statistics and observation. He works with John Dewan, author of the Fielding Bible which means he has access to probably the best fielding stats around. He can't reveal the stats but I'm sure he used them in selecting his award winners. To read more about the stats, you'll need to buy the Bill James Baseball Handbook 2007. I wouldn't consider Dave's list to be the final answer on fielding (we still don't have that) but I trust it a lot more than Gold Glove awards or zone rating/range factor.

There are a lot of Tigers on his list. He names Kenny Rogers, Ivan Rodriguez and Brandon Inge as the best fielders at their positions. Curtis Granderson gets an honorable mention. Here are his comments:

One of the Detroit Tigers' strengths this year was their infield defense. Although Carlos Guillen and Placido Polanco don't rate particularly highly on the Studes Scale, Brandon Inge certainly does. He built on his fine 2005 with the best plus/minus stats of any third baseman this year. He also handled bunts well and seemed to really steady that Tiger infield.

The American League choice is easier. Corey Patterson has had a terrific year in the Camden Yards outfield. He seemed to have adapted to the American League very quickly and displayed superior range all year long. Honorable mention goes to Curtis Granderson and Gary Matthews.

Thirty-four-year-old Ivan Rodriguez is still going strong. He threw out 46% of basestealers this year; in fact, opponents only attempted .36 stolen bases per game against him—the lowest figure of any major league catcher. Plus, he allowed only .3 wild pitches/passed balls per game and did a fine job managing that young Tiger pitching staff.

Greg Maddux in the NL and Kenny Rogers in the AL. "Nuff said.

On another note, those who participated in the fielding survey I posted here a while ago will get their votes counted in this year's Fielding Bible. Also, the survey results should be available pretty soon. It's not too late to vote though.