NO EXCUSES FOR BRUTAL BASEBALL!

Posted by bigD | May 4, 2008 .

The recent start by the Detroit Tigers has me greatly puzzled. There have been a few positives but they are more then dominated by the negatives. The good thing is the season is only one month old but when the hell is this predicted strong Tigers team going to live up to the hype? There is no way 14 wins in 31 games is cutting it. The Tigers are just lucky there is so much parity in the American League this season. It has allowed them to stay in the hunt despite an under .500 record. Simply put this team has been a disappointment and I don’t care if they swept both the brutal Texas Rangers and the hobbling New York Yankees recently. This Tiger team needs to prove they really are the team people predicted they would be and stop this poor play. Anyway, on that note, here is my top 10 list of the biggest disappointments thus far in the 2008 Detroit Tigers season…

10. Coaching – It’s tough to blame the coaching staff because they are so well respected but let’s face it, coaches are judged primarily on 1 thing – overall record and clearly with the Tigers being 14-17 at this point, they aren’t getting the job done and this staff clearly isn’t getting the most out of it’s players like it should. Are the players lazy? Did they buy into all the World Series talk too soon? Are they just plain overrated? It really doesn’t matter. Excuses simply shouldn’t be made. Again, it all comes down to the success rate and 3 games under for a team who should be at least 5 over at this point tells the story. The players haven’t responded enough yet to the coaching of the Detroit Tigers this season so some blame MUST be put in this area. That being said, it’s not like Jim Leyland can grab a bat and rip it so it’s the players that must respond to him. So far I think they’ve only partially done so.

9. Joel Zumaya and Fernando Rodney – They haven’t pitched at all but because of what a huge loss both of them being hurt really is this is a huge factor not only for what they are capable of doing but also for the intimidation that they can bring, especially Zoom, Zoom. They need to get healthy and back in that bullpen ASAP and at least show glimpses of 2006 in order for Detroit to take the next step and play the caliber of baseball they should be playing in the first place. This is still a huge disappointment and certainly one of the biggest of the year.

8. Dontrelle Willis – He had massive control problems when he actually did pitch this season and threw too many pitches because of it. His freak “slip off the mound” injury wasn’t expected and was really a tough luck fall. Armando Galarraga has filled in nicely for the most part so this loss wasn’t as big as initially thought and the D-Train is due back shortly. This loss still has to be noted though as a key factor considering all the money they brought him in for and all that he has shown for it so far is a few barely above average outings and an injury. Case closed.

7. Jason Grilli – It’s hard to put him on this list too simply because we weren’t expecting much from him anyway. He lost his 2006 success in 2007 and he became the dog of the Detroit fans. This year he had a rough start to the season and at that point enough was enough. He seemed to get better in late April but at that point it was all about improving Grilli’s trade value since the Tigers wanted to bring up Cruceta. Grilli was shipped to Colorado in exchange for a minor leaguer. He claimed he knew it was coming. Perhaps if Grilli would have pitched like he knew it was coming late last season he wouldn’t have been forced to leave in the first place. So long, Jason!

6. Jacque Jones – I don’t really think much was expected of him either but certainly more then what he’s shown. I mean come on, .173 at this point? He was a slow starter last season in Chicago also hitting low .200’s but this is absolutely ridiculous. Defensively he’s been strong but offensively Jones has been anything but impressive. The only reason he’s still on this Tiger’s team is because he’s a left handed bat that the Tigers desperately need. That’s it. I swear, if I watch Jones hit into one more double play! AHHHHHH!!!

5. Brandon Inge – Did we actually expect him to hit over .250 anyway at this point? He had a strong start offensively then tailed off becoming the typical Brandon Inge we know and put up with. Defensively he is still nothing short of amazing. To be able to play 8 positions on the field (maybe even pitcher if the Tigers blew a team out of the water and were out of bullpen candidates) and to play them well proves his worth but he just plain can’t hit and the Tigers continue to suffer for it. Detroit realizes the error of their ways to offer Inge the big contract he got but that’s what a 27 HR season packed with big defensive plays will do for a guy. I still think in some way he’ll be traded before the All-Star break. I wouldn’t call Inge a distraction but his continued lack of offensive ability puts him on this list.

4. Ivan Rodriguez – His power numbers and batting average look like they are definitely on the permanent decline. Experts said before the year even began that his numbers will go down drastically at some point soon and sadly, I think this is the year. Detroit won’t re-sign him again so this is probably his last year in a Tiger uniform and what do we expect? A .257 batting average at this point with just 1 HR? Defensively I think he’s at a point now where he’s overrated slightly despite the fact that it’s still the strongest point of his game. He has to be high up this list because he just hasn’t gotten the job done. What more can be said? His career speaks for itself but he might be at the point now where he may never get his stats up again.

3. Gary Sheffield – I recently went to the 4 gamer in Toronto’s Skydome between the Tigers and Jays earlier in April and I remember yapping it up with some other Tiger fans there. One lady in particular was a huge Sheffield basher and basically said she thinks he’s washed up, should retire and that he should stop using excuses as to why he can no longer get the job done. I partially agree with her but let’s face it, this guy simply cannot stay healthy and the Tigers pay for it. How many DH’s let alone 3^rd hitters strut up to the plate with a .185 batting average nowadays? It’s absolutely atrocious. He’s 3^rd in the lineup now on basically his name and the possibility of the old Sheff returning for the odd at-bat. Make no mistakes about it though, he’s 3^rd on this list because he gets out way too many times for a 3^rd hitter and it has cost the Tigers HUGE so far this season. I fear the end of Sheff.

2. Placido Polanco – He had the worst start I’ve seen in ages. He doesn’t have a lot of power so when he’s slumping he can really do a team in and he has thus far. The fact that he hits the ball either on the ground or pops up most of the time is a good example of that. His .239 average is a far cry from the .341 last season but he’s starting to turn things around and he’s definitely a streaky hitter that can go on surges. We haven’t really seen one of those hot streaks yet this year though. Like many players on this Tiger team, I believe Polanco is one of those players who is directly influenced by who you have in or out of the lineup. I think that Polanco is a different hitter and ballplayer when Curtis Granderson hits in front of him. Did you notice that once Granderson came back Polanco started hitting again? Coincidence? I think not. With Granderson in the game you obviously have more base-runner potential and someone on base when Polanco hits improves him 100% since he’s always hit tremendously with runners in scoring position. I think Placido will pull out of this slump eventually but for now, face it, he has to be right up here on this list of huge disappointments thus far.

1. Justin Verlander – He’s so cocky and so talented but it’s time for him to sit back and ask himself… “What have I actually done this season that can make me remain so cocky in the first place?” A 1-5 record? A 6.28 ERA? This was supposed to be the ace of the staff. This was supposed to be a fire-baller who would win 20 games. This was supposed to be the year that Verlander takes the next step to true dominance. Well what the hell has happened to him in the first month of the season? Mind you, he hasn’t gotten a lot of run support but I simply cannot defend an ERA over 6.00. The truth is, this is way too talented a pitcher to be 1-5 and quite frankly I am upset, disappointed and borderline disgraced by what I have seen out of Verlander thus far. Can I be anymore direct then that?

This is the most disappointed I have been with a Detroit Tigers season (thus far) since their playoff collapse in 1987 against Minnesota. All the hype thus far has been for nothing. There is such a fuss being made about this “stacked” team almost to .500 after a terrible start. The truth is there shouldn’t even be a thought like that one being made in the first place. To even be under .500 after April is absolutely ludicrous and it’s time for more fans like myself to speak out and tell Detroit how pissed off they are by this underachieving, under-producing Tigers team. No one is to blame individually (I blame every single one of them) although there are individuals who have absolutely stunk thus far. There have been injuries but with a team and lineup this loaded you cannot use injuries as the excuse. The Tigers have legit backups and enough to carry them until these players are healthy again so again, there is really no excuse. I am also so sick and tired of hearing people say they aren’t panicking. Well I AM PANNICKING and the truth is if the Tigers don’t get their act together soon this highly rated team will prove one thing… THEY ARE OVERRATED!

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NO EXCUSES FOR BRUTAL BASEBALL!

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