Posts Tagged ‘Kenny Rogers’
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More Random RangernessSeptember 4th, 2008
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Finally, the Rangers get the 3-game sweep they’ve been looking for all year, knocking off the really, really, really, really awful KC Royals. This is not only the Rangers first 3-0 series of the season, it’s their first EVER 3-0 trip to Kaufmann Stadium. Of course, the sweep would have meant more if it had come in April, May, June, or July, or if the Rangers hadn’t preceded the whitewash with a 3-14 streak that wiped out three months of hard work, but who are we to complain?
Speaking of complaining, in a battle, when one army is beaten and surrenders, they will wave a white flag. In wrestling, a beaten foe can ‘tap out’ on the mat. After aerial combat for mates, the losing male of the Asian Red-Billed Sparrow will show submission by laying prone on the ground in a silhouette of the American Bald Eagle, similar to the back of a U.S. Quarter. (I might have made that last one up…) I just mention this because the Rangers called up Nelson Cruz this week.
Speaking of Nelson Cruz, I’ve actually been very impressed by the Rangers this season. While Cruz was destroying the pitchers in Triple A, Texas passed over him several times as they needed outfield help. I don’t know whether this was a conscious effort to give guys like Brandon Boggs an audition, a signal to Cruz that they’ve seen what he can offer, or an attempt to shake Nelson into believing that he needed to mentally toughen up, but it was refreshing. Maybe the next 30 games will give us a chance to see if Cruz can handle the majors or if he is the Latin Crash Davis.
Speaking of the last month of the season, it should be interesting to watch, if for no other reason than to see if Michael Young can extend his streak of consecutive 200-hit seasons to six. 45 hits in 30 games is an awful lot to ask, but do you want to bet against the man? If Ian Kinsler can come back and if Josh Hamilton can stagger to the finish line of his first full major league season, Michael could have an outside shot at it. And it gives us something to cheer for.
Speaking of cheering for the Rangers, ESPN’s “Baseball Tonight” poll to determine the greatest player for each franchise surprised me when they rolled through Texas. Dollars to donuts, I would have bet that it was Nolan Ryan in a landslide. But out of more than 41,000 votes cast, Pudge Rodriguez squeezed him out, 35% to 33%, even if he’s a Yankee now. (I still haven’t gotten over that. I would rather watch “The Thin Red Line” again than see Pudge in pinstripes…) Juando got 12%, followed by A-Rod, Frank Howard, Raffy, and Michael Young. Charlie Hough, Buddy Bell, and Ruben Sierra rounded out the list with less than 1% of the vote apiece. Read more
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Disappointments AboundAugust 7th, 2008
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Could it be new All-Star shortstop Edgar Renteria? What about legendary slugger Gary Sheffield or former 22-game winner Dontrelle Willis? Nate Robertson and Kenny Rogers posted impressive years in 2006, but bullpen stalwarts Todd Jones and Fernando Rodney are certainly strong candidates…
If you’re still oblivious to the topic du jour, or maybe more appropriately, de la saison, who most greatly deserves the designation “biggest disappointment” in Detroit this year? Here are your candidates: Read more
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Indians Shoot Up the Standings, Tigers WatchMay 16th, 2008
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Don’t look now, but finally there is a team taking control of the American League Central. Unfortunately for Tigers fans, it’s not your team.
The Cleveland Indians have recovered from their first month’s struggles, taking reign over what many expected to be baseball’s most competitve division. Much press has been devoted to the remarkable string of games the Indians rotation has put together, not surrendering an earned run in 48 1/3 consecutive innings. Cliff Lee has forgotten he’s Cliff Lee, C.C. Sabathia has shrugged off his horrendous beginning, and Fausto Carmona has given up more than three runs in a start just once. This leads to the obvious question, why can’t Tiger hurlers overachieve?
Appearing to be destined to disappoint, Detroit starting pitching looks both inexperienced and old. Wild, ineffective, and wildly ineffective would also sum the group up. Kenny “The Gambler” Rogers is now called The Gambler because every time he takes the mound, he is gambling not giving up three runs in the first inning. Speaking of giving up a boatload of runs early, Nate Robertson has put together one good start in eight games. Jeremy Bonderman has not grown out of his first inning troubles, but is earning a hefty $8.5 million this year. And Dontrelle Willis cannot fairly be judged because of injuries, though his first start was unique and unimpressive—five innings of one-hit, seven walk baseball. That leaves Justin Verlander, the supposed ace of the staff. He is two-for-nine in quality starts and has mysteriously lost five miles per hour on his fastball.
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Scuffling Rotation Soon to Subtract Its’ Most Productive MemberMay 14th, 2008
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The Charlotte Knights shelled starting pitcher Dontrelle Willis on Monday, spoiling his second rehabilitation start for Triple-A Toledo. Expected to be his second-to-last outing before being recalled to Detroit, Willis gave up 5 earned runs in 5 2/3 innings.
Against a less-than-impressive Charlotte squad, the six-year veteran and former Cy Young Award runner-up could not escape the sixth inning. After retiring three straight batters in the opening frame, Willis gave up two homers in the second. He fought back to retire the next three in sequence and did not give up another hit until the fifth. In the sixth, he surrendered four hits and an intentional walk, leading to three more earned runs. Though he pitched well through five innings, can Detroit afford to add another starter who cannot fight past the fifth or sixth inning?
Manager Jim Leyland said Willis will replace Armando Galarraga after one more rehab stint against Columbus on Saturday. Selected to remain in the rotation are Justin Verlander, Kenny Rogers, Jeremy Bonderman, and Nate Robertson. Excluding Bonderman, each pitcher sports an ERA above 5.80, with Verlander topping out at 6.43.
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An Offense Enlightened, A Rotation in OrbitApril 25th, 2008
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After hitting the snooze button the first two weeks of the season, Detroit bats have vaulted out of hibernation. The Tigers completed their second sweep of the year on Thursday, dismantling Texas 37-10 in a three-game series at Comerica Park. Whether by long ball or bases on balls, the Tigers scored their most runs in three consecutive games since putting up 47 against Baltimore in August 1993.
Expected to light up the scoreboard this season, Jim Leyland’s crew tormented Texas pitching in front of the home fans. Despite injuries to designated hitter Gary Sheffield and second baseman Placido Polanco, the Tigers pounded out 35 hits and took 20 walks in the series. Centerfielder Curtis Granderson finally re-joined the starting lineup after missing the first twenty-one games. Detroit’s spark plug batted lead-off, provided a home run, three runs batted in, and three walks. Read more
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Stop! Don’t Panic YetApril 10th, 2008
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The Detroit Tigers upped their payroll from $95 million in 2007 to $138 million this season, making theirs the second highest in baseball. This splurging has so far proven ineffective.
After adding coveted veterans Miguel Cabrera, Dontrelle Willis, and Edgar Renteria to the books, owner Mike Ilitch has been blessed with just one victory in Detroit’s first eight games.
Is it time to panic? Conventional wisdom says no.
If the 2007 season showed us anything, it is that slow starts do not set the tone of a season. Just ask the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs, and Colorado Rockies. They all rose from the ashes to reach the playoffs last year. The less-than-impressive Phillies began 3-10 and stormed past the free-falling Mets in September. The flailing Cubs once dropped six in a row, falling to 22-31 but pulled themselves up by season’s end to capture the NL Central. And the Rockies completed one of the most impressive runs of our generation, streaking all the way to a World Series after compiling an 18-27 record. Read more
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Red Sox, Daisuke Tame Tigers in Home OpenerApril 10th, 2008
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Amazing what an off day and the Fenway crowd can do. Not to mention some new jewelry.
After a lost weekend in Toronto that saw the Red Sox drop three straight to the Blue Jays in rather lethargic fashion (outscored 23-9 while committing six errors), the hometown nine from Boston, at long last, returned to the Fens for yet another opener—only this time, their own.
Yes, it took a while; 19-days and some 16,000 air miles spread across the Far East, West Coast, and the provinces of Central Canada to be exact. But with the tiring three-nation tour now behind them, the Red Sox undoubtedly enjoyed the ceremonious Back Bay homecoming.
Packed with stars and filled with pre-game festivities, the dual-purpose opener officially rang in the new baseball season for the Red Sox while also capping off the World Series run from a year ago with the raising of another championship flag and the handing out of diamond- and ruby-studded rings.
Yet it was another prized jewel on display April 8 that ended up stealing the show as Daisuke Matsuzaka delivered a shutout performance against the still winless Detroit Tigers in his 2008 Fenway debut, earning his second victory on the young season.
