Tigers performing the rare baseball tank job

ON BASEBALL

I was lying on the couch Tuesday night, trying to come up with ideas to fill the next two hours of my life, when I noticed I had a new voicemail.

It was from my dad, saying that he was at the Tigers-Royal game back in Detroit. He had great seats, just a few rows behind the Royals' dugout, and he thought I might be able to see him — in his green shirt, he noted — on TV.

What the heck, I thought? Sure, I hadn't watched a Tigers' game since their devastating losses to the White Sox in early August. But what were my alternatives? Watch the "World Series of Poker?" I started up the laptop and logged onto mlb.com. One more 2008 Tigers game couldn't hurt, I figured.

Of course, I was wrong. Not only did I never spot green-shirted dad, but the Tigers played perhaps the most uninspired baseball I've seen from them in an absolutely uninspiring season of downs and more downs.

I tuned in during the fifth inning, with the Royals nursing a 4-0 lead. Kansas City quickly added a run and proceeded to shut down the "high-powered" Tigers' offense attack as if the Royals were pitching to little-leaguers. The Tigers didn't help themselves by swinging at almost every first pitch (note the mild hyperbole). It was as if (gasp!) they didn't feel like playing.

The game ended in a crisp 2 hours, 17 minutes, getting Dad home, I presume, with time to practice guitar and do some quality reading (at least he got something out of the night, I think).

But I wasn't thinking about that after a 1-2-3 ninth innings that took all of 89 seconds. Rather, I was thinking about the "T" word: Is there "tanking" in baseball, and if so are the Tigers in tanking mode right now?

It's funny. I've never, in my 24 years of following sports (yep, I started right after birth), thought of baseball teams calling it a season prematurely. NBA teams? Uh, duh. It happens every year (see: 2006-07 Boston Celtics, 2007-08 Miami Heat). It also occurs in the NFL, though it's harder to call out the tankers because of the size of football rosters.

Baseball teams tanking, though? I've never considered it. Instead, I've watched every year as teams completely out of playoff contention ruin the dreams of teams still in it. That's exactly what the Florida Marlins did to the choking Mets last season. And guess whom the Mets play this final weekend as they try to avoid a repeat? Yep, those pesky Marlins.

So in general, no doubt, my feeling for years has been spot-on. There's no quit in bad baseball teams. And this is great for September, because there are no gimme games for teams trying to sneak into October.

But still, after watching a mere five innings Tuesday, my gut tells me the Tigers have thrown in the towel on the season. And now, they're tied for last place with the lowly Royals. It's unbelievable, really.

Consider the unique circumstances around this bad baseball team. In March, many prognosticators were not only predicting the Tigers would make the playoffs ... they were saying they'd win the competitive Central Division ... and win the whole thing, you know, the World Series. Nobody was saying that about the Marlins, for instance, or the Royals. Players love to hope, but I have to think that members of both those teams thought they'd be in this position come September — playing the spoiler role.

Not the spoiled Tigers, however. After a big spending offseason, big, big things were expected. Tickets sold out at a record pace. Heck, I only made it to one game, a feat I'm not proud of.

So it's hard to imagine just how disappointed manager Jim Leyland and the players in the clubhouse are at at how the season has turned out. By mid-August, it was pretty clear that not even a great finish would propel the club into the postseason. Once September commenced, the season's story had been written.

So what did the Tigers' regulars have to play for in the final weeks? I'm not talking about the minor-league call-ups who are trying to make a positive impression. I'm referring to the regulars who have been on the big-league club all season. Leyland has already said that with a few exceptions, everyone is going to have to prove themselves all over again before the 2009 season. Starting spots will be up for grabs.

In other words, except for a few players, such as shortstop Edgar Renteria, who are trying to play their way into being retained by the team, this September's performance is meaningless. Players will be back; players will need to earn a spot in the lineup/pitching rotation.

Looking for a reason why Detroit has lost 11 of its last 12 games, almost entirely to non-playoff teams? I call it not caring that much about results. I call it tanking.

But let me be clear. While the Tigers will get a higher draft choice if they finish in fourth or fifth place compared to third, where they were for most of the season, I don't think that's a big motivating factor in baseball. It's a little different from the Heat's Pat Riley not showing up for games and resting his entire starting lineup during the home stretch of this past season so the Heat could get a chance at the No. 1 pick.

Baseball's draft is way too long. Sure-thing prospects are way too hard to nail down. Heck, teams even pass on the best players because they know their contract demands will be ludicrous.

The Tigers' lackadaisical play is more of a "let's-just-get-this-bloody-season-over-with" type of indolence. They simply don't care. Sure, they're still playing the game they love on cool, comfortable September nights, but there's no intensity on the field.

Detroit turned four double plays during the time I watched Tuesday, which was the only thing remarkable about its play. What caught my attention, too, was how unemotional the players were after each of the DPs. There were no smiles, no fist pumps, no signs of excitement. It was simply business as usual.

And another loss. Not even the thought of finishing beneath the lowly Royals can get these morbid Tigers roaring.

They've been dead for weeks now, in complete tank mode and thinking about 2009.

Tigers' closer situation a debacle

ON BASEBALL

Editor's Note: This, I promise, will be the last column I write this season about the Tigers' closer situation.

Hey Tigers fans, still happy that Todd Jones isn't your closer?

Here's a fun statistic for you: Jones saved 18 games in 21 tries. In five attempts, Fernando Rodney is 1-for-5. Yep, he's already blown more saves than the old, cranky guy with the mustache. Even more sad is the manner in which Rodney tanks. While Jonesy always went out in style, giving up two-run homers and the such, Rodney walks guys, hits guys, and then walks more guys.

Hey, that's no fun!

In all seriousness, though, do you really believe the underachieving Tigers are better off with Rodney as their closer? (Please don't answer that.)

Was Jones pitching well lately? No, no and no. His ERA (5.05) was atrocious, he had given up 25 hits in his last 16 2/3 innings, and he hit rock-bottom when Jermaine Dye blasted that season-killing home run on that morbid Friday night in Detroit awhile back.

Now, of course, we know that Jones was battling tendinitis in his right shoulder. He, reportedly, had been feeling discomfort for six weeks, but he didn't reveal the injury until a few games following his demotion, which occurred a day after the Dye home run. He said he hadn't felt the shoulder pain in a game until recently.

And the result is one Jonesy on the disabled list. It'll be at least a couple weeks until he's back. To the average Tigers fan, that's a good thing. They'd rather see Jonesy shot into space for 37 years than see him on a mound again.

But again, the issue comes back to this: If you're going to replace someone, you'd better have a replacement who you're confident will do a better job. Rodney is not a viable closer for the Tigers. At least not at this point in his career.

Rodney is a talented pitcher. There's no doubt about that. He's equipped with a volatile fastball and a nasty changeup. When those pitches are working, he's much harder to hit than Jones.

But the key to being a talented closer is control. Rodney has about as much control as the "Wild Thing" in "Major League."

Think about it: When a closer enters a game in the ninth inning, the other team's hitters haven't faced him. They don't know what to expect. The advantage is clearly his. If he throws strikes, he has a good chance of getting three outs. All he has to do is make the hitters beat him. Make them locate his 94 mph fastball. Make them guess what's coming with an 0-2 count.

The ability to throw strikes is one of the main reasons Mariano Rivera, arguably the best closer of all time, is so effective. He gets ahead of hitters and then throws that twisting heater wherever he likes. Batters are at his mercy.

Rodney is the antithesis of Rivera. He constantly falls behind hitters, and the only way to get back into the at-bat is by throwing the ball down the middle. Of course, Rodney prefers to walk guys. And any manager will tell you that in a one-run game, nothing is worse than a leadoff walk.

That, unfortunately, is Rodney's specialty. In 18 1/3 innings, Rodney has allowed 16 walks. That is simply unacceptable. He can't be trusted in one-run games.

Jones, on the other hand, has much better control. In 41 innings, he's issued 15 walks. Sure, his stuff isn't as hard to hit as Rodney's -- Rodney has 19 strikeouts to Jones' 14 -- but most of the time it's good enough to record a save.

I'm no baseball stats guru, but just because a batter makes solid contact with a pitch doesn't assure him of a base hit. Four balls, however, means the man in the batter's box is headed for first base -- that's a certainty. That, right there, is the difference between Jones and Rodney. Jones lets his defense save games for him. Rodney doesn't.

Before Sunday's 6-5 most-likely-season-breaking loss to the Rays -- Detroit's 18th one-run defeat and Rodney's fourth blown save -- manager Jim Leyland ripped his players, saying no one's job is safe. I would hope that one of the jobs in jeopardy is Rodney's.

But prior to that happening, Leyland should ask himself this: Who can I plug into the ninth-inning role that will do a better job? In this instance, of course, it's just about anybody. But the most obvious candidate, Joel Zumaya, continues to feel tightness in his right arm. Plus, his 18 walks in 20 2/3 innings is just as bad as Rodney's production. He, like his fellow flamethrower, doesn't possess the control to hold down the spot.

The other option is newly acquired Kyle Farnsworth, who was pitching well with the Yankees before being traded to Detroit for Ivan Rodriguez last Wednesday. But he didn't exactly make a good impression Sunday, blowing Detroit's 3-1 eighth-inning lead by allowing three runs. Also, like the other two, he's never been a full-time closer. His 27 saves doesn't exactly measure up to Jones' 319.

So what now? The options aren't exactly appetizing. The only Tigers reliever who has pitched well of late is left-hander Bobby Seay (2.41 ERA), who has a whopping one save for his career.

The Tigers sit six and a half games behind the tied Twins and White Sox with 51 games remaining. The chances of a turnaround are looking bleaker by the day, and the three-game stand that begins today in Chicago is a must-win series. Obvious statement of the day: Detroit can't afford to fall any further back.

The main objective with the bullpen, at this point, might be to groom it for 2009. That means trying to figure out whether Rodney or Zumaya can find enough control to be the Tigers' future closer. If not, then maybe G.M. Dave Dombrowski will go after Angels free-agent-to-be Francisco Rodriguez.

But if Detroit finds itself within five games of first place in a couple weeks when Jones returns -- and he's healthy -- the old fart should retake his place as the closer. No, not for 2009 or down the road. But for the final push toward October. To make this almost-lost season more like what it was supposed to be.

You can hate him all you want. You can boo him all you want. But the past week has shown us -- in a sick kind of way -- that Todd Jones remains the best closer the Tigers have got.

Even if that's a depressing thought.

Thursday, 7/19/07's main point: For two days, Tigers look like last year's version

ON BASEBALL

I'm going to try to finish this column quickly, because in a matter of hours, it could be B.S.

So let me get straight to the point: The Detroit Tigers looked like last year's version — the World Series edition — the past two games. In 1-0 and 3-2 wins over the Twins in the tricky Metrodome, the high-scoring, you-never-know-with-the-'pen Tigers did what they accomplished in '06.

Two phrases...

Timely hitting.

AND

Great pitching.

And by "great pitching" I'm not just referring to the Tigers' starting rotation, which we've known is arguably the best in the majors since the return of Kenny Rogers. No, I'm including that patched up bullpen, which finally seems to be coming into form, despite the continued absence of Joel Zumaya and Fernando Rodney.

Last season the Tigers weren't nearly as explosive offensively as they are this time around. They didn't have a hitter leading the majors in batting average and doubles and tied for second in RBIs (Magglio Ordonez), a hitter leading the majors in triples by a ginormous margin (Curtis Granderson) and a player second in runs (Gary Sheffield).

They were a good hitting team, but not a great one. They got the big hits when they needed them.

Well, the Tigers went back in time Tuesday and Wednesday night. They managed just 11 hits between the two games, but just about every one of them counted. Ordonez had the big RBI single in Tuesday's shutout. Wednesday night, Ryan Raburn doubled, Placido Polanco singled, and Ordonez brought them home with a double in the fourth inning.

Two innings later, Ordonez homered off Twins' ace Johan Santana, giving the Tigers the eventual winning run. So, basically, Maggs owned the night, but it should be mentioned that four of Detroit's six hits accounted for their runs. It is extremely important to take advantage of every opportunity you get against a pitcher like Santana, and that's exactly what the Tigers did on Wednesday.

At least with their bats.

I was more impressed with their pitching. That's what is going to keep them playing deep into October again. Especially the 'pen.

A year ago, the formula was pretty simple. The starter would go six or seven innings. If he went six, maybe Jamie Walker (now an Oriole) would step in for an inning. Then Zumaya or Rodney would take the eighth, and Todd Jones (I just call him Jonesy) would finish pitch the ninth. On Jones' off nights, Rodney would fill in. It was pretty darn simple. And, with the exception of Jonesy's scary outings (put two guys on with nobody out before retiring three straight), it was pretty automatic and quick.

This season has been the antithesis of '06's well-oiled routine. From night to night, we've been left to guess who will pitch prior to Jonesy. Guys have been called up. Then sent back down. To the DL and back. OK, no more dizziness.

But then came Tuesday... and Wednesday. It wasn't pretty. It certainly wasn't quick. But they got it done.

On Tuesday Macay McBride and Jonesy didn't allow a hit in two innings of work. On Wednesday, there was a bit more sweating, as four relievers were needed to survive the three innings leading up to Jonesy's one-hit ninth inning, which began with a Twins' base hit but then really lost its luster.

The previous three innings must have had Jim Leyland smoking inexorably. After allowing a run in the sixth, Jason Grilli stranded a runner at third to preserve a 3-2 lead. In the seventh, Chad Durbin survived a one-out, bases-loaded jam. In the eighth, Durbin and McBride stranded speedster Luis Castillo.

Whew!!

Again, the 'pen's work was as pretty and clean as a grafittied telephone pole, but it got the job done — giving it something in common with last year's 'pen. It's pretty clear that once Zumaya and Rodney return, at least one of the current 'pen's members — most like Grilli — will be sent down. There will simply be too much congestion, not enough relaxing space for the big guys like Zumaya and Jonesy.

But maybe until then — emphasis on maybe — Leyland has nothing to worry about.

The Tigers are hitting when they need to.

They're getting stellar starting pitching.

And their bullpen is getting its collective act together.

Which isn't too bad for a team with the best record in baseball.

Sunday, 7/15/07's main point: Tigers' Monroe no longer a starter

ON BASEBALL

Craig Monroe was a great ringleader of the ALCS champion Tigers last season.

Detroit's left fielder wasn't afraid of anybody, especially the Yankees. His fearlessness symbolized the Tigers' deepest penetration into the playoffs since Reagan was in the White House. Most important, Monroe was a clutch hitter. He hit the big home runs. He didn't take pitches when he couldn't afford to. Even in Game 1 of the World Series when the rest of the Tigers appeared starstruck, Monroe jacked a home run. He was the only Tiger who appeared ready for the occasion.

But all that is in the past now. This is 2007 — Jim Leyland will enforce this point until a pack of Marlboros is empty — and 2006 is irrelevent. Which is why the struggling Monroe should no longer be viewed as a big hitter in the Tigers' lineup but as the major weakness. Entering Sunday's game, Monroe was hitting just .220. And he wasn't exactly making up for that number with power stats (9 HRs, 41 RBIs). Additionally, Monroe has struck out 78 times in just 277 at bats (that's easily more than one K for every four ABs).

This isn't just a slump for Monroe, either. A slump is a period of weeks (or sometimes a month) in which a player struggles. Monroe has been awful at the plate since Opening Day. No one in the Tigers' organization will admit this, but it's very possible that Monroe simply isn't a great player — especially in Detroit's stellar lineup. Monroe's best season was 2004 when he hit .293. Since then he's hit .277, .255 and now .220. He's been on a downswing for sometime now, and the only reason we haven't noticed until now is because he knocked all those big hits last season.

Monroe doesn't necessarily have to be traded or released It can't hurt the Tigers to keep an extra outfielder. But as Leyland's lineups are starting to suggest, Marcus Thames — who entered Sunday batting .252 with 10 HRs (but added to that with a three-run HR) — is in the process of taking over Monroe's grass in left field.

Leyland is probably the most loyal manger in baseball. Just consider the patience he's had with closer Todd Jones despite some very rocky outings. But he knows that to give the Tigers the best chance to win, Monroe shouldn't be starting in left field. He could be a dangerous pinch-hitter with plenty of power, but right now he's not a starter.

At least not for the Tigers.