GoWings1905

I do hope Crosby plays again, but where was he calling for head-shots to be banned when it happened to Marc Savard?

Completely stunning and tragic. Sometimes in life there are no words and this is one of them. RIP McCrimmon, Salei, Liv, Demitra and everyone else. I wanna puke thinking about Rusty just having a kid.

What a team. Putting it all together when it matters the most. Not to really play pick your poison and there's still plenty of baseball left for either scenario, but I think the Tigers are much better suited to get the Yankees in the ALDS. Verlander twice hopefully washes out Sabathia and Fister is better than anything they are throwing out. Boston really scares me and the Tigers never seem to win a damn game at Fenway. Or do you take your chances with JV twice in a short series regardless and knock out what appears to be a stronger team before a longer series? All I know is this is the most fun I have had watching baseball since 2006.

Fister > Jimenez Oh and we still have Jacob Turner too.

Definitely agree. It seems like the Tigers are really gaining steam from the national media now too as a serious contender to win the AL. This game tonight is absolutely unreal. 16 runs and 22 hits in the 6th inning! About to sweep the White Sox and essentially end their chances to win the division. Plus, the Tigers x-factor to playoff success hasn't given up a run on the mound either. This team is becoming very special and looks more dangerous as the season progresses.

Just got back from the game... 21 wins for JV and now the Tigers magic number as well! Comerica was packed too; awesome atmosphere at the park tonight. Magglio got a standing ovation from the fans behind the Tigers dugout after he ran that ball down in the outfield. I thought that was pretty cool. Maggs has meant a lot to this team and he has accepted his new role with a lot of class. Now I hope Penny and/or Scherzer can come up with a solid start and bury the White Sox.

How does Zbynek Michalek "suck"? The Penguins were one of the best defensive teams in the league last year. I don't think we have any room to be talking about lackluster defense and shoddy goaltending.

You can make your case without calling our fan base "idiots". There are plenty of us here that agree the Penguins will finish at least top four in the East. In fact, if Crosby comes back, I think they are the favorites to win the conference.

Young team coming off a championship -- they were bound to have a dropoff last season. Not to mention, they obviously lost a TON of depth which was the biggest reason they won it all in the first place. Brunette was a nice move; he's better than Kopecky. They still have elite talent up front and a shutdown top defensive pairing. I do agree the Campbell loss was significant and I think their depth on defense is rather weak, which is why I picked the Red Wings to win the division. Beyond that, I expect the Blackhawks to bounce back and definitely make the playoffs. I think the Canucks, Sharks, Red Wings and Kings are locks to make the playoffs so which other four teams do you see as being better than Chicago?

Not so great series against the Royals, but they at least salvaged a sweep with a couple nice comeback wins. Big series this weekend against the White Sox. Actually, the next two series for the Tigers could really help them seal the deal in the Central.

East: 1. Capitals 2. Penguins 3. Bruins 4. Sabres 5. Lightning 6. Rangers 7. Flyers 8. Canadiens West: 1. Canucks 2. Kings 3. Red Wings 4. Sharks 5. Blackhawks 6. Blues 7. Flames 8. Predators

I got home in the 8th right as V-Mart drilled the double to tie it. Obviously Cabrera is the best hitter on the team, but man is Victor Martinez some kind of clutch. Big hit for Betemit too -- he has been a really solid addition. Stoked to watch Turner pitch tomorrow. I don't expect him to pitch much more than this start because of innings, but it is nice to see him inching closer to becoming a part of the rotation.

Santiago with the walk-off homer! Stay away for good please, Carlos. Another terrific start for Fister too. Definitely the second best pitcher in the rotation right now.

The past two games are why I can't really have high hopes should the Tigers make the playoffs. 20 runs allowed to two horrible teams. Yeah, maybe in a short series JV wins twice and someone else steals a game but beyond that, where are the quality starts going to come from in a longer series? Max is usually either lights or gets absolutely rocked, Fister has actually been quite solid and both Penny and Porcello have ERA's exceeding five. Which in the larger picture is another puzzling component for me regarding the Tigers. Everyone in the front office boasts about how the rotation (besides Penny) is under club control for the near future. Am I missing something or is that not as much of a positive as we are made to believe? It COULD be a good thing, but I personally don't ever see Porcello as reaching his massive potential. At least not with the Tigers throwing the defense they do on most nights out there. Turner looks to be can't-miss, but there's going to be an adjustment period for him just like JV.

Abby also needs to keep his stick on the ice with 5 minutes left in a playoff game. Other than that, I don't even see him really in any danger of losing a regular spot in the forward rotation. Miller/Mursak probably battle for the 12th forward spot unless Emmerton, Conner or Brunnstrom kill it during training camp and the pre-season games. EDIT: Left out Conner in his own thread.

I love the consistency lately. Earlier in the year, you weren't sure what Tigers team was going to show up game-to-game. Right now, they are playing a lot of close games and you EXPECT them to come through and win. The bullpen has really rounded out nicely and will be even more deep when Al Al comes back. Only thing I really want in the last month is one or both of Porcello and Penny to step up and become a solid number 4 starter. JV is the MVP. He means more to the Tigers than any other player in consideration. Are the Tigers even a .500 team without Verlander? The Yanks and Red Sox would still be in contention without Granderson, Ellsbury, Gonzalez although obviously those guys are all having incredible years as well. I can't include Bautista because the Jays are just an average team and voters definitely consider that or else Cabrera wins it last season over Hamilton.

The Tigers are rolling right now. Bullpen has been lights out, offense has been steady like always and the rotation is improving of late. Not great, but better outings from both Penny and Porcello the past start each respectively. Fister has been nothing short of terrific since coming to the team. I think he's easily the number three starter in hopefully a playoff rotation. Young has been a really strong move as well. Driving in runs and getting big hits in front of Cabrera in the 3-hole. DD deserves some major credit for those additions without losing guys like Turner, Oliver and Castellanos. The Indians gave up their two best pitching prospects and Fister has definitely outperformed Jimenez so far. I don't want Guillen back either. The Tigers are fine with some combination of Santiago/Raburn/Worth/Rhymes at second the rest of the way. Schedule shapes up quite well down the stretch... the Indians back at .500 exactly are the only team remaining at that mark. Big lead right now, but I don't want it to come down to the final week like 2006 and 2009. We need to be able to set the rotation so JV starts Game 1 no matter what.

I'm taking back my one nice post about Brandon Inge because I hate him more than ever now. Seriously, a guy is on a big league roster hitting .180. He is back on the team only because apparently people think it's 2006 still and he can still play defense even though all indications this season show even that is questionable at best. The ONLY role he serves on the team and he cost the Tigers TWICE tonight in the same inning and lost them the game. The homer was a fluke and now he can't even play defense worth a damn. Unacceptable and absolutely pathetic. I can't even believe how routine that third out SHOULD have been. You go to first every single time on that play. It wouldn't have mattered if he hadn't botched a double play ball before that. Go back to Toledo where you belong and stay there. I will take Betemit's "s***ty" defense and .300 batting average every day of the week. Can't wait to hear how nice of a guy he is while I puke more from this loss.

WOO! The Tigers have looked like the best team in the division easily the past two nights. Scherzer and Fister both with very impressive starts and the offense rolling too. Since I've been quite tough on him, I will give credit where it's due. Brandon Inge went to Toledo to work hard and that HR tonight was a well-deserved moment. I still don't think he should start every day, but I am happy he was able to come back up and show signs of improvement at the plate. That double was the hardest I have seen him hit the ball in a very long time. Props to a classy teammate and professional. I want to sweep the Indians so bad tomorrow. You can sense this division tilting to the Tigers and putting the Indians 4.5 back would be really nice heading to Tampa and Minnesota. Wish JV was starting still, but maybe Porcello can continue the trend of solid starting pitching from someone not named Verlander.

As others have stated, Holmstrom almost has to play with Datsyuk or he's useless at even strength. Unfortunately, his skating and passing is so bad that there are far better options on the first line. Obviously though Homer still has a ton of value on the power play. My guess is Babcock goes with Datsyuk and Zetterberg apart more often than not, which I prefer at this point because hopefully they can each individually make their own respective wingers better. Franzen - Datsyuk - Holmstrom Cleary - Zetterberg - Bertuzzi Hudler - Filppula - Eaves Abdelkader (Miller) - Helm - Mursak

GREAT win tonight! That's the Max Scherzer the Tigers need to win the division. I have to say the news after the game dampered the win a bit for me. Apparently, the Tigers aren't done giving dead weight playing time. Here, I thought they were on the right track with no more Guillen and Maggs. .177 is back on the team because... I guess Betemit hitting .285 isn't cutting it for Leyland. If Inge is anything more than a defensive replacement or an OCCASIONAL starter against left-handed pitching, it will be a complete joke. Though I expect nothing less from the manager that batted a .220 hitter with no power third every night until the GM forced his hand. The defense blows as it is and Kelly was starting quite a bit and coming in late in games as it was. That situation was playing out fine IMO. If any roster move needed to be made before September 1st, it should have been to get another catcher up to give Avila some rest. V-Mart can barely run still and Avila's bat is too important to wear him out for September.

Ugly, ugly loss last night on so many levels. Those are the type of games that cost you a division. I don't know what I hate more about Jim Leyland: his beyond bizarre line-ups or his horrible bullpen management. So, on Monday in a one-run game he uses Daniel Schlereth who ruins the Tigers chances of winning. Tuesday, he brings in two of his three actual reliable arms on the roster right now with a six-run lead. Wednesday, he uses a long reliever in the 8th inning and his closer who has nearly a 7.00 ERA in non-save situations. I actually don't mind Raburn pinch-hitting in that spot. What the hell is Jackson going to do besides strikeout? Maybe Raburn runs into one and ends the game. The only other player left on the bench was Magglio and he's a double play machine. I dislike the Mariners trade quite a bit now. This is why the Tigers farm system can never catch up. Overpayment big time for a 4th starter and a reliever who has looked brutal in very few appearances so far. I don't mind losing Furbush all that much, but Wells and two of the Tigers top ten prospects is a joke. Ruffin could have easily become a huge part of the Tigers bullpen next season if they don't bring Valverde back. This Cleveland series scares the hell out of me. Especially since Jimmy feels it's better to send Porcello and his 5 ERA out there on Sunday instead of the best pitcher in baseball. I do not understand that at all. Then again, I guess that's par for the course with Leyland.

Paws could have played second tonight with Verlander pitching. Seriously though, I think it does make quite a bit of sense to start Santiago based on the pitcher. Porcello and Fister both pitch to a ton of contact. Maybe field a "stronger" defensive line-up those games like tonight with no Raburn or Betemit. I think Justin gives up a couple singles once in awhile to challenge himself. He just toys with hitters when there are guys on base. I think he really should be in the MVP discussion. He means more to the Tigers than any other single player on a contending team.

Good point on the Tigers not just dumping Maggs. I don't think he deserves that either as I am grateful of everything he has done for the Tigers, but I don't see him having any value left for this season. Even if he pinch-hits against lefties and singles to right, you still have to take him out again for a pinch-runner in close games. I also never have understood Cabrera batting fourth. Especially with Jackson, random player and Maggs hitting ahead of him like we have seen for stretches the past two years. I would personally prefer to see one of Peralta or Avila hitting in the top two. I never really considered Young batting leadoff, but I actually really like that idea. Just my thought... Young - Avila - Cabrera - Martinez - Boesch - Peralta - Betemit - Worth - Jackson. Thanks for the info on the Mariners deal. I really hope it doesn't end up being Ruffin; he's going to be a great pitcher.

Yeah, I agree. One in the infield is bad enough defensively, but both Betemit and Raburn is a disaster. I actually am in the real minority in that I don't mind Raburn. He's a really solid utility player who has hit well lately and is better suited to getting his starts in the outfield. Unfortunately, the Tigers go through second baseman like Leyland does cigarettes and the only real option left to get Raburn playing is back at second base. It is obviously an issue that has to get addressed this off-season. I'm with you guys though - the Tigers are giving up way too much defensively with Raburn at second. The best solution seems to be tell Magglio goodbye and call up Rhymes or Worth to split time with Santiago. I'm fine with Betemit's defense as we knew he was mediocre defensively coming in, but he has provided more than enough with his bat to compensate. Also, the PTBNL in the Young deal was announced as Oliveros today. Still love the trade; wish Schlereth would have gone instead. Speaking of that, does anyone know who the Mariners got as the PTBNL in the Fister deal? I was on vacation when the trade happened and there was speculation it was going to be Ruffin, but I never saw anything further.