Travis

The Tigers tweeted yesterday that the rotation will actually feature Scherzer once and Porcello twice, with both of his starts being in Texas. I assume that means the rotation goes: Verlander Porcello Fister Scherzer Verlander Porcello Verlander It's horrible to hear that Young won't be available, as he definitely was the difference (sometimes literally) in that ALDS. It goes without saying that Avila needs to step into that role and Cabrera and Martinez need to perform better, too. I'm surprisingly okay with Raburn taking over because, as GoWings hinted at, Ryan Raburn ******* hates left handed pitchers and proved it down the stretch by cranking the ball into the seats.

Yeah, Kronner is obviously a favorite of mine and I've thought for some time now that our captain situation will look exactly like that when the time comes.

I think the bullpen is far from solid, but Scherzer pitched great in relief. Benoit and Valverde have been great, but I'm glad Al-Al, Perry, Penny, and Schlereth kept their jackets on.

Went to a sports bar with some friends. WHAT A WIN! It's always great to knock off the Evil Empire, but the atmosphere was crazy in that place. I can't believe they did it. Fister was huge, Scherzer was great, and Benoit was good enough. Papa Grande looked insane out there, and the Tigers move on to Texas!

I don't think his name is Andrew, I think there was probably a query error that pulled Andrew Miller instead of the appropriate Miller.

I believe it. Having him throw 3 times in a week isn't a great idea, and you'd hate to make him throw tonight and risk wasting him for a potential game 1 in the CS.

Curtis Granderson single-handedly beat the Tigers that night. If that ball gets passed him, Burnett comes out and the Yankees are going out of the 'pen all night. If he doesn't make that diving catch on Peralta the run scores, it's 4-2, and Jhonny is standing on 2nd. Not to mention his own 2-run double. It was always really hard to root against Granderson, despite his new team. Now, though, he's a full-on Yankee and I no longer care for him.

Did the cameraman touch the top of Beltre's head before that? Comforting fact of the day: The last time Doug Fister took the mound in a clinching game it was on the road and the Tigers won the AL Central.

That's a demoralizing loss. Not feeling great about heading back to New York. In other news, Curtis Granderson is officially a member of the enemy and I hate him.

Saw Joey Mac, McCollum, and another Griffin I didn't recognize at the bar last night. MacDonald looked less than thrilled.

Adrian Beltre just hit his 3rd homer of the game to put the Rangers up 4 - 2.

That was an unacceptably inconsistent strike zone. Great win for our Boys, though! The fiancee was great and sat at a sports bar with me all night to watch. What a game!

I am really excited to see Nyquist in action. After the highlights he put on some NHLers, it'll be fun to see what he can do to AHL defenders.

Good for him. It seems like he really came into camp prepared, I'm excited to see him play - especially since I haven't seen any preseason games and he wasn't at the Red and White game.

The entire Valverde exchange:

With the announcement that Nyquist has been assigned to Grand Rapids, will this put to bed the idea that Brunnstrom might not make the team?

I dunno. I got my NHL Shop catalog awhile back and that had these ugly things in it.

You're right. I don't know why I typed Bonderman. Probably because I'm an idiot.

Bondo pitched game 1. Don't forget - JV was a rookie and Bonderman was an all-star. Fister in game 1 (again) and Scherzer in game 2. Verlander at home for game 3.

Yeah, I don't get how Penny made the roster. I assume Zumaya and Thomas' spots will go to Below and Pauley, though.

The Tigers just tweeted their ALDS roster – Avila Martinez Santos Betemit Cabrera Peralta Santiago Boesch Dirks Inge Jackson Kelly Ordonez Raburn Young Alburquerque Benoit Coke Fister Penny Perry Porcello Scherzer Schlereth Thomas Valverde Verlander Zumaya Apparently the inclusion of DL players Boesch, Thomas, and Zumaya means that their spot can be filled by any other player at any time - allowing for more fluidity in the line-up. edit: Inge is on the playoff roster, but was left out of the team's tweet.

I'd be completely content with an Ehrhoff-type deal. GIVE THE MAN WHATEVER HE WANTS

I thought there might be something there, too, but Weaver and Santana were both over on their innings already. With nothing to play for, I guess it's not terribly surprising. Amazing come backs (and meltdowns) in both of the Wild Card races. Times like this makes you understand why people don't want to expand the number of playoff teams. I think Tampa Bay's luck might run out. They had to play their asses off just to get in and might be out of gas before too long. That said - I hope their pitching staff quiets the Rangers first.

Yeah, I was somewhat surprised to see that. Not sure why they wouldn't be involved. Any chance this says something about Commodore's spot on the roster?

This shot of Howie shows the new Reebok wordmark on the back. Guess when I add the 'A' to my Kronner jersey it will be in reference to the 10-3 drubbing in St. Louis. =/