Interleague Play Begins

Although the Detroit/Colorado "rivalry" doesn't quite have the sizzle it did in the 90s when the Red Wings and Avalanche were consistently at each others' throats, the Tigers and Rockies managed to put a pretty entertaining game together and - best of all - the Tigers got the win. Porcello had another very strong outing (6.0 IP 1 ER 6 H 2 BB 3 K) to win his fourth consecutive game. Leyland referred to him as "Nolan frickin Ryan" - high praise indeed for a 20 year old. The Nolan Ryan comparisons might be a tad bit hasty, but the fact remains that Porcello has been outstanding in May, going 3-0 and allowing only 3 runs in 3 starts. The future looks very, very bright for the young hurler.

Colorado starter Ubaldo Jimenez also put forth a strong outing - 7.0 IP 3 ER 6 H 1 BB 7 K. Gerald Laird scored one of the runs with a very heads-up play by scoring from third on a wild pitch that did not get far away from the catcher at all. The other two runs were courtesy of a two run blast from Binge who continues to boggle my mind both by batting .279 and leading the team in home runs (12). I keep telling myself that Binge has to cool off eventually, but we're now 40 games into the season so it's not as though he's just pulling a 2006 Chris Shelton impression. Maaaybe this is legit?

The second game of the series pits Armando Galarraga against Jason Marquis, formely of the Cubbies. Galarraga has been brutal since his great start (last 4 games: 0-3 10.90 ERA 9:12 K:BB) and is very close to losing his spot in the rotation. Not many expected Armando to repeat his impressive performance from last year, but he certainly was not expected to be this bad. I hope he can find some way to right the ship because it would be very unfortunate for him to fall from grace in this manner. His struggles have been somewhat masked because almost everyone is talking about the D-Train's last start when he threw 6.1 innings of one hit, no run ball last Tuesday (5/19) to get his first win as a Tiger. This is way too early to say since it was only one good start (and he was very shaky in his first outing), but I'll do it anyway obviously... how amazing would it be for the Tigers if Willis returned to anywhere near his 2005 form? The Tigers already have one of the best performing rotations in baseball so far this season (fourth in the AL in team ERA @ 4.17) and to go from possibly being forced to cut a guy you owe $22 million to having a legit starting pitcher would be stunning. Keep the train rolling Dontrelle.

Binge Redeems Himself

I don't think I'm making an overstatement when I say that Spring Training is perhaps the most important part of the season. With that in mind, imagine my excitement when I saw that Binge went 2-for-2 today, thus vindicating himself vis-a-vis the last post.

The pinnacle of greatness

Then I read the rest of the box score. Binge's throwing error, the only Tigers' error of the game, led to three unearned runs.

Jackass

This may come as a surprise to some, but Binge is only on the team because of his fielding. I know, it's shocking. But when you hit .205/11/51, you better be a damn good fielder. In fact, you better be Rey Fucking Ordonez. There's two major differences between Rey Ordonez and Inge, however.

1. Rey Ordonez's lifetime BA was .246 to Inge's .237
2. Ordonez was a shortstop.

I can't for the life of me figure out why Inge is an option at third base. His numbers were acceptable when he was catcher, but barely. But there's a reason why some the greatest hitters in recent history (e.g., Brett, Schmidt, Boggs, Jones) have played third base: it's the easiest position to play except for first base. Even left field requires you to be able run fast. The Tigers need to bring up Mike Hessman. He can't hit for average, but neither can Inge. Plus, Hessman will put up 25+ homers per year. He's nowhere near the fielder Inge is, but who cares. We're talking about third base.

Big Z's Key to Success: Tamales

No Guitar Hero as well, obviously.

Rock on Joel... Wait, actually don't.

Joel Zumaya, by all accounts, has been dominant throwing BP so far this spring training. To what does he credit his return to form? The doctors that surgically repaired his shoulder? Pitching coach Rick Knapp? An intense offseason conditioning and rehabilitation program? Nope, none of the above. Tamales are his muse apparently.

Only in baseball can an athlete (and I use that term loosely for a lot of baseball players) put on 40 pounds of pure fat and have the coach think this is a good thing.

"'I thought he lost too much [last year],' manager Jim Leyland has said."

I love you baseball.

Since when is The Detroit News going to Brandon Inge to assess pitching talent though?

"Brandon Inge, one of the hitters who faced Zumaya, called the session 'pretty dominating. He had an incredible curveball.'"

This Brandon Inge is still the one playing for the Tigers... right? The same guy who hit .205 last year and had 94 strikeouts in 347 at bats. No offense Binge, but I'll wait for the verdict on Zumaya until I hear it from someone a little more skilled at hitting the ball. I bet every curveball looks "incredible" to you.

This is Binge striking out. You will see it approximately 140 times next year.

Nonetheless, perhaps I am just a glutton for punishment but I am excited for the upcoming baseball season. The Tigers aren't expected to be great by any means, but just having baseball back always feels good. Plus Big Z is healthy again - let's just hope he can stay that way. Todd Jones is gone. I just hope Brandon Lyon can capture some of that magic he had at the beginning of last season with the Dbacks. Cabrera now has a full year under his belt at first base. Rick Porcello, the Tigers' 2007 1st round draft choice, is looking good and has a shot to make the team. Also, while the Tigers didn't make any huge moves in the offseason, neither did the rest of the AL Central. Okay, so the Twins got Joe Crede. The guy has missed 180 games in the last 2 seasons... let's temper our expectations here people.