Max Scherzer succeeded last night where Verlander failed earlier this week. Scherezer pitched 6 innings with two walks and 7 strikeouts and allowed three runs compared to Beckett’s 7 innings with 4 runs allowed on 3 walks and two strikeouts. That was good enough for the Tigers inconsistent offense to take at least a game from the Red Sox on this four game series. Scherxer’s performance answered some trade rumors concerning him being shipped along with prospects for pitcher Zack Greinke. If Scherzer could just document what he ate and did all day in preparation and duplicate that every start maybe he’d be this consistently dominant. Even if Scherzer had this type of outing 2 out of 3 times he’d be an great addition to any starting staff and would quiet any trade questions. However, he’s closer to a 50/50 chance of dominance or ineptitude and that is unfortunate given the teams current offensive inconsistency. Prince Fielder and Delmon Young both had great offensive games and got the Tigers some all too infrequent hits with runners on. Hopefully some of these player will scrape together a string of good outings coupled with some decent starts and bullpen outings. If not, this team is headed even further into a hole.

In better news, there were positive updates from Austin Jackson, Al Albuquerque, and Doug Fister today. Jackson has begun to take some swings in an attempt to see how his abdominal strain feels and took 20-30 swings without and soreness. Albuquerque threw long toss from 150 feet without pain and will begin to throw from a mound in the next few days. Although Doug Fister just went on the 15-day DL, there was a belief that because it is a repeat of the same injury he went on the DL for already this season that it could be as much as a 8 weeks before he could return. The MRI confirmed though that it is not a more sever injury and should only be a little over a two week wait for him to return. Hopefully those additions back into regular playing time will be the spark that the Tigers need to get back on track.

Drew Smyly spent 3.2 innings outpitching Cy Young winner John Lester on Wednesday night and then nearly matching him for two more innings. He was holding the Red Sox scoreless until David Ortiz and rookie phenom Will Middlebrooks each hit 2 out 2 run homers to go a run up. With a Miguel Cabrera double in the 7th the Tigers went back to even only to lose it on an Adrian Gonzalez run scoring double in the 7th and a Kevin Youkilis homer in the 8th. The Tigers were unable to muster a response against the Red Sox bullpen and so clinched their own demise. This team just can’t seem to put everything together on a consistent basis.

Doug Fister must feel like he’s back in Seattle with the lack of run support he’s been getting so far this season. He’s technically averaging 5.5 runs of run support which is nearly a full run higher than Justin Verlander. However, Verlander has had a few less unfortunate happenings with the bullpen and offense. Fister has had no wins since coming back from the DL, but also has no losses. As much as I hate the Wins statistic for starting pitchers, the Loss statistic states that a pitcher, and in this case Fister, has not pitched poorly enough to ever have the lack of a win be his fault. This then brings again to mind the reasons for why the Tigers are struggling. The Tiger’s lack of offense has been a concern that’s been harped on quite a bit here and it reared it’s ugly head in the game last night. The game winning run was scored on a throwing error by Prince Fielder, but anyone when asked about the fielder  signing said the same thing, there will be no defense. Disappointment comes from unrealized expectations. The Tiger’s 2006 season was such an exciting time for the fans and organization alike because they weren’t expected to win their division much less the ALCS. The 2007 season was such a disappointment because after going to the world series the expectations for the team were elevated and the team failed, by one infuriatingly officiated game, to make the playoffs. Last season the Tigers were expected to do well and did in fact do quite well although many fans were disappointed by the lack of offense and poor bullpen showing in the ALCS that causde them to be ousted. This season came with a high amount of expectation because of the high profile addition of Prince Fielder to an ALCS team from the season before. No one expected the team to be good defensively with the move of Miguel Cabrera to 3rd base and Fielder his replacement being a less capable defender. This is why the bad throw by Fielder causing the Indians to go ahead in the 8th inning or that they even lost the game is not the concern. The concern that is continually growing among Tiger’s fans, coaches and administration is the compounding of poor defense and a less than stellar showing from a bullpen which also had high expectations resulting in losses rather than high scoring wins. This Tigers offense was expected to be free swinging and high scoring. The free swinging part has certainly occurred, but the scoring has not. Perhaps the team should cut down a little more on the free swinging and work more towards the high scoring. I can’t swear that swinging less freely and attempting to get more walks will actually result in more walks and increased scoring. However, one would think that it would work better than strikeouts and hitting into double plays on the first pitch.

Sadly this is not the type of twin killing Tiger’s fans would prefer or expect. It was a twin killing of the Tigers (Get it?! Because the Twins won and they beat the Tigers twice. Get it?!) not a killing of the Twins by the Tigers. How in the world is it possible that this lineup can lose two games to the worst team in baseball? I simply can’t fathom how it’s possible. The differences in career statistics, payroll, awards, and name recognition are staggeringly in the Tiger’s favor. What is the problem with the Tigers? Is it chemistry? Is it attitude? Is it approach to the game? I really can’t speak to the team’s mental state, and I certainly haven’t noticed a lack of team chemistry. What I can say is that there doesn’t seem to be any team urgency and I think that attitude starts with Jim Leyland. I truly think there are situations and games that he decides it’s acceptable to give away. I can’t say how many times I’ve thought and said out loud when watching a game that Leyland has given up on this game. I don’t necessarily think that Leyland treated today’s game that way, but I think his “right now doesn’t matter” attitude has seeped into the offense. There are always ups and downs with bullpens and so I don’t know that it’s the case with that group, but watching at bats by most of these hitters has me thinking they just don’t care about winning now. There are very few players that seem to have smart at bats in situations where one is needed. The team’s overall lack of walks is one perfect example of this, but also swinging away at pitches in the dirt and way outside, after the pitcher has walked the two previous batters on 9 pitches in the 8th inning with two men on, is the entire opposite of smart. I just don’t see how it’s possible to be urgent about wins and not think that getting as many runners on base as possible is important. If Leyland, Dombrowski, McClendon or whoever is the source of this attitude can’t get these guys to take some walks and really try and care about winning now then I’m actually somewhat nervous about making the playoffs. Historically Leyland’s teams have been terrible in the second half of the season. If they’re losing now and have a typical Leyland second half how will they make the playoffs? Is this being overly reactionary or spouting hyperbole? I certainly hope so, because I’d love for them to prove me wrong on that point.

Drew Smyly had his roughest start of the season so far after pitching 5 innings and allowing 4 runs on 5 hits including 2 hr’s and 1 walk and 4 K’s. He looked pretty good for most of the night, but allowed two 2-run home runs in the 1st and 4th inning on two pitches where he missed his location to the wrong two hitters. Other than that Smyly pitched pretty well and was still in position to get the win once he was replaced. He was replaced with Luke Putkonen who allowed 3 runs on on 4 hits and a walk in a third of an inning with one K. Not exactly a great showing for the rookie. Putkonen has looked impressive at times with velocity reaching as high as 97 mph and a very good curveball. Where has appears to struggle is when he throws the curveball too much because he can’t throw his fast ball for strikes. He might be better served to develop a change-up to go along with that curveball and fastball and of course not throwing as hard as he can without being able to place it.

As an upside the Tigers offense was very good for about 3 innings. The problem of course is that the game lasts 9 innings. They again showed a flash of the dominant offense they can be, but didn’t sustain it for long enough or score enough initially to pick up their pitchers. Prince Fielder had 3 hits and 2 RBI’s and raised his average nearly 20 points in one game. Cabrera also had 3 hits and Raburn and Young each chipped in 2 more. That’s right, I said Ryan Raburn had 2 hits in one game!! In May!! Of course he got both of them with no one on base, but he brought his average all the way up to .149 on the season. I can’t say with any semblance of logic or sanity and conceivable reason why a coach would continue to put someone 6th in the order that is hitting .149. The 3, 4, and 5, hitters are the ones most teams count on to drive in runs. This means they are also most likely to be on base if they’re successful in driving runners in. Why would a coach choose someone who has a total of 14 hits in 94 at bats (with 24 strike outs) and 2 RBI’s in one of the spots with the most RBI opportunities?! I truly can’t say what Jim Leyland is thinking. We’re all probably aware of what the definition of insanity is. If not, it’s repeating something over and over but expecting a different result. Is that not what the situation with Raburn is? The man has 5 years of statistics that say he is a fantastic hitter after the all star break. He also has three years of statistics that say he’s a horrible hitter before the all star break. Why not give him some at bats filling in for other guys on a day off during the first half and then gradually increase them until the all star break when guys who started hot will be struggling or there are injuries? Then after the all star break let him tear it up like he has shown he will do? I’m not mad about him being on the team or even getting playing time. I’m mad that he’s getting so much playing time at such an important lineup spot. He led the team last night in runners left on base with 5, although it;s tough to lay the blame squarely on him when the team left 27 runners on base. His total is nearly a fifth of those, but there were others with chances as well. Something needs to change and I’d say the most glaring issue is the bullpen come playoff time, but for now it’s the offense and it needs to step up.

The Detroit Tigers have begun to follow a common trend for them which is a few games of very poor offense followed by a single game of an offensive explosion. One of those outpourings of offense happened last night against Bartolo Colon and most of the Oakland bullpen. The Tiger’s scored 10 runs on 17 hits and a walk and used that offense to survive another horrible outing by the bullpen, more specifically Phil Coke and Colin Balester. Coke allowed two singles and a walk with two outs and Balester gave up a grand slam to the offensive powerhouse that is Brandon Inge. Very fortunately for Coke and Balester, Benoit and Valverde came in and closed out the game, Scherzer only allowed 2 runs during his start, and the offense scored 10 runs. This is exactly the reason the Tigers need to keep scoring runs. Bob Wojonowski asked on the Jamie and Wojo radio show whether or not fans would prefer terrific starting pitching like we’re currently getting, or a terrific offense. I would absolutely prefer the offense. Runs can cure a lot of issues and make up for a lot of flaws. This lineup was created with the expectation that the runs it would score would make up for the likely defensive shortcomings it would also create. The defensive issues, while somewhat present, have been far from problematic  or even the reason for losses. The bullpen and lack of offense have. As this last game has shown, a good start and a horrible bullpen performance, or even a decent start and a less than great bullpen performance, can be  made up for by a lot of runs. Is it the best way to win a World Series, but that’s not the situation the Tigers find themselves in. They have what is a much better than average starting rotation and what should be a very good bullpen along with what should be a very very good offense. That is far from the same as a lack of pitching and a lot of offense. The bullpen will (most likely) not continue to make those mistakes, but the starting rotation will most likely not be as good top to bottom as it has been so far. That means that what should absolutely have been better before now needs to get better and that is the offense and we’ve seen glimpses of what that can be. Keep Andy Dirks in the 2nd spot in the lineup and that offense will continue to blossom in my opinion.

The lone run scored last night was an attempt by Leyland to manufacture runs through a failed sacrifice bunt by Danny Worth, but was the offense doomed to failure with Brennan Boesch (.213) batting 2nd against a lefty and Ryan Raburn (.130) batting 6th against the Mariners second best pitcher? Is that really the best possible offensive lineup Leyland has to offer? Absolutely not. Andy dirks is hitting .417 with runners on base and .333 against left handed pitchers so far this season. Brennan Boesch is hitting .262 both with runners on base and against lefty’s. Which seems like the better option to bat behind a player with a .361 OBP? to you Ryan Raburn, who was playing the position Dirks likely would have been playing if he’d been in the lineup, is batting .222 with runners on and .129 against lefty’s this season. Which players seems like the better choice offensively to you? Should Tiger’s fans be insulted by Leyland’s apparent lack of interest in putting the best lineup out on the field every game? Most times fans hear coaches and managers in any sport use the term “we’re gonna stick with the hot hand.” Why is it that the Leyland doesn’t want to use this tried and true method to win games? Leyland remarked earlier this week regarding Ryan Raburn’s continued inclusion in the line up that he’s “trying to get his (Raburn’s) bat going.” What about that spells urgency to win right now? Why exactly do those at bats need to be in the 6th spot in the lineup where Johnny Peralta (who is currently surging) or even Brennan Boesch (who is struggling a great deal less than Raburn) could slide in and provide some actual offensive help? I truly feel as though either Jim Leyland is insulting the integrity each team owes to the fans to  put the best line up on the field every game, or he is truly an idiot who is not interested in winning games.

Also, last night Austin Jackson (the same Austin Jackson who stole 22 bases last season with a less than stellar .326 OBP) earned a leadoff walk in the 9th inning against Mariners closer Brandon League and went absolutely nowhere. First, if Dirks is batting there I’ll bet he doesn’t hit into a double play. Second, as even Rod Allen pointed out, League was very slow to the plate and practically begging Jackson to steal and put himself in scoring position. Why in the world would Leyland allow a guy that has been reported as being told adamantly by Tigers coaches to be patient to swing away and not call for a steal or for Boesch taking a few pitches so Jackson could steal and avoid the double play which occurred. Does Leyland just plain not care if the teams wins now? Does he think the Central Division is so weak that their isn’t urgency to win now? Is Leyland just that big of an idiot that he can’t see the possible ways he can create wins? I can’t say what it it that causes him to do these kinda of bone headed moves, but I for one feel insulted. And other Tigers fans should too.

The Tigers bats were silent yet again last night and squandered another great outing by a Tigers starter. Drew Smyly pitched another masterful 6 innings and allowed one run on 2 hits with 6 K’s. This rookie is beyond impressive. He came into the season as a relative unknown and with little to no hype or expectations and has shown scouts why he they all should’ve known his name before now. I do think that he probably should have been allowed to stay in the game longer as he’d only thrown 93 pitches and give him some extra time and see how well he’d continue to do, but Luke Putkonen did an admirable job for his first inning in relief. He did struggle a little in the 8th and although I love Duane Below I think in the situation he was in that he should have been left in to finish the inning. He allowed a lead off double to Michael Saunders and then Chone Figgins executed a sacrifice bunt (as he should) to move saunder to third base. Leyland then pulled Putkonen and brought in Below to create the sacred lefty lefty matchup. What is needed from a pitcher in that situation is a strikeout and for all of his positive attributes strikeouts are not really Below’s specialty. He’s primarily a location pitcher topping out around 92 mph with a lot of movement on his secondary pitches and more like Porcello in using ground balls to get outs more. Putkonen, on the other hand, throws 96-97 mph  and has a dirty curve ball which he used to strike out lefty Justin Smoak and righty Alex Liddi in the 7th inning. In that situation I think Leyland could have left Putkonen in to pitch to Jaso even though he’s a lefty. Still Jaso hit a base hit and then was thrown out by Ryan Raburn trying to turn it into a double. Below then got Brendan Ryan to ground out to Cabrera at 3rd base, but the damage had been done. Yes Below has only allowed 3 of his 11 inherited runners to scor and was pitching against a lefty, but I think Putkonen’s stuff puts you in a better position to get out of that jam.Yes this loss falls on the bullpen, and more specifically Luke Pukonen, but the situation could have again been avoided if the Tigers could have mustered any semblance of offense. With only 5 hits and one walk and 8 runners left on base, the Tigers offense that is supposed to be so powerful was held in check yet again with hardly a stressful situation created. Something needs to be done about the offense now.

The Tiger’s finally added some offense to good pitching and Justin Verlander needed it. Verlander did not have his normal dominant outing, but did do what he does better than any other pitcher and that’s pitch himself out of trouble. After scoring 5 runs in the first two innings, Verlander had a rough 3rd inning in which he allowed 3 runs, not to mention almost getting thrown out of the game along with Jim Leyland for arguing ball and strikes. The main source of that offense was Andy Dirks who had 3 RBI’s on 2 hits and scored Jackson, Boesch and Laird. Also chipping in on offense were Delmon Young with a 2 RBI double. Prince Fielder added a solo home run in the 7th to make it a 6-3 game until Phil Coke allowed a run on a walk and a hit. Benoit pitched a scoreless and runnerless 8th and then the game got very interesting. Valverde loaded the bases  on 3 walks and with two outs Don Kelly made a sensational catch on a foul ball down the right field line which caused him to flip over the fence into he stands after catching it and sealing the win. This showed the struggles of the back end of the bullpen causing issues, but how those issues could be easily overcome by simply scoring more runs as this lineup should. This win puts the Tigers at a win over .500 and two games behind the Indians for 1st place in the Central Division.

Doug Fister had about as good of a start as could be asked for whether or not someone is coming back from the DL. He threw seven scoreless  innings, scattering 4 hits, striking out 3 and only throwing 78 pitches. This type of showing is what Tiger’s fans have come to expect from Doug Fister since coming over from the Mariners. In many ways, Fister has been better than MVP and Cy Young award winning teammate Justin Verlander since joining the Tigers. He has a lower ERA, WHIP, and batting average against than Verlander and also has more wins. I’m certainly not saying that Fister is better than Verlander, but I’d say it’s clear the move to Detroit has been nothing but positive for the Tigers and Fister and that Verlander and Fister probably succeed in learning from and pushing each other. That spells nothing but good things for Tiger’s fans.

Sadly, Fister’s great start was accompanied by more lack of offense and a poor outing by Dotel for the 2nd game in the row. The Tiger’s offense left another 13 runners on base, only walked once, struck out 9 times, and only scored 2 runs.  Andy Dirks was again batting second, which I said earlier should have been the case coming out of spring training given ability to get contact compared to Boesch, and didn’t disappoint for the second game in a row. He had two hits and a walk and is currently hitting .333. Couldn’t agree with that move more. Now if only I could get Leyland to sit Raburn more often and move Peralta and Boesch up a spot we’d really be talking.

In the 9th Dotel blew the save without recording an out which left a runner on second and no outs all but securing the loss for the Tigers. Sadly, Dotel has not kept up his lights out pitching. Dotel has experience as a closer and along with his having not allowed a run this season until the previous game I certainly wasn’t concerned about his coming in to close the game with Valverde and Benoit both being unavailable and struggling of late. However, he failed to live up to his previous outings and allowed the save to be blown and the game lost. The back end of the bullpen has become a large area of concern recently for the Tigers. Am I concerned that it can’t or won’t be righted? No. Am I concerned that they were even in that situation because of a lack of offense? Absolutely. I’m not sure how much of a hole the Tigers can afford to get themselves into even in the weak Central Division. Another bat might be needed now and not just at the trade deadline.