World Series Games 2, 3, & 4: An Abrupt End

It's over.

We can't even believe we're writing this right now, but it is what it is. A fantastic, exciting, thrilling end of the season has culminated in a stunning, abrupt 4-game sweep at the hands of the San Francisco Giants. We're still in shock. There wasn't even anything to really cry or be too upset about. It wasn't a slow, painful loss. It was so…sudden.

The three of us were at Game 4, and it was fun. Until we lost. But even then we knew: this was not our year. We're not sure what the Giants did to become so dominant so sudden, but we're pretty sure its going to involve them all owing a debt to Hades or something.

But we're done talking about the disappointment. Even though the ending was shitty as can be, this CANNOT take away from our amazing run in this crazy year.

Our boys, who a month and a half ago looked too inept to win the division, made it to baseball's biggest stage. They played in the last game of the season. They made it to a World Series. Plus, we witnessed the first Triple Crown in 45 years courtesy of Miguel Cabrera and another Cy Young-deserving performance from Justin Verlander. Prince Fielder returned in triumphant fashion to the D, and fit seamlessly into the clubhouse. And you know what?

It will only get better next year.

Yes, we have to wait a few (four) months until Spring Training. But it will be worth it. Victor Martinez himself is returning to us, making an already formidable offense downright terrifying. Hopefully Dave Dombrowski will figure out a way to get Anibal Sanchez to return to the Fab Four, making our pitching staff as good as we've ever seen in the D.

Plus, we've got some scary good upcoming talent. Avisail Garcia, anyone? Kid may still need some work, but he's going to be good. And don't even get us started on (future outfielder?) Nick Castellanos. Those two are major reasons to get pumped about upcoming seasons.

And finally, Leyland is coming back. While some may not like this idea, and while we're certainly not 100% behind everything he does, Leyland just managed this team to a World Fucking Series after underperforming all year. He deserves some credit for this amazing year. The 1-year contract extension is perfect.

While we're ALL going to need a few days (or weeks, or months) to recover from this tragic ending to our season, we need to all remember how far this team went and how much further they can go next year. That's the beautiful thing about this team--even in the darkest of times, the future is very bright. We can't wait to see what it brings.

World Series Game 1: Wait…What?

Ahem.

So.

That game did not turn out as expected. Like, really, really not as expected. Crazy shit was happening and we kept looking around the room like, "Is this a joke? Are we on Punk'd? What in the world is going on here?"

First off, Justin Brooks Verlander did not look anything like Justin Brooks Verlander. Sure, he gave up his standard first-inning home run (to one persistent Panda). Annoying, but not unexpected and not anything our boys couldn't bounce back from. And then the third inning happened and all hell broke loose. A ball that should have been easily fielded by Miggy hit the bag and errantly rolled into left field. This seemed to shake our sweet JV, as he subsequently gave up 3 more runs in the inning and 4 more overall, including an RBI single to Barry Zito.

'Tis true. BARRY ZITO. That was when we knew the laws of nature/physics/the Gods were not on our side this game. We especially knew it when Delmon Young grounded into the weirdest double play ever, when Gregor Blanco robbed us not once but twice on identical plays, and JV was out of the game by the fifth inning. Unreal.

We would like to know--what kind of voodoo witch magic did the Giants cast to get such improbable wins? Who or what did they sacrifice to which god? Did they sell their souls to the devil? We're not sure, but that game was such a shit show of Improbable Things You Never Thought Would Happen that we're wiling to believe anything at this point. It was almost funny!!!

Almost.

You know what we need our Tigers to do now? Get pissed. Get angry. Get revenge. Justin Verlander has carried our team pitching-wise all year long. Now it's time for our team to come back in Game 2 and avenge him. We all know this team can bounce back from disappointment. The Giants and their Panda have had their fun. It's our team's turn now.

And for all you people giving up on our team already (we know you're there! We see you!!!): FOR SHAME. The sky is not falling, the world is not ending, and our team is nowhere close to being done. This was only a minor setback, and now it's time for our boys to step up on the world's biggest stage.

A Message from The Tigers: Roaring Rampage of Revenge

Uma's only saying what Tigers fans are all thinking...

"Looked dead, didn't we? 

Well, we weren't. But it wasn't from lack of trying, we can tell you that. Actually, that umpire's missed call put our team in a slump--a slump we were to lie in for four months. When we snapped out of it, we went on what the ESPN announcers refer to as 'A Roaring Rampage of Revenge.' We roared, and we rampaged, and we got bloody satisfaction. 
We've beaten a hell of a lot of teams to get to this point, but we've only got one more. 

The last one. 

The one we're driving to right now. 

The only team left. 

And when we arrive at the World Series, we are gonna

BEAT THE GIANTS."



DEATH LIST FOUR

1. Chicago White Sox

2. Oakland Athletics

3. NEW YORK YANKEES

4. San Francisco Giants

If you readers don't get what was just referenced above, watch Kill Bill. You won't regret it, and maybe you'll blame us less for doing something so cheesy. But goddammit, we're excited. Our boys clawed their way out of mediocrity and disappointment and are now in the World freaking Series. Tigers vs. Giants. Verlander vs. Zito. It all starts tonight.

The Tigers have red on their ledger, and they'd like to…wait, wrong movie. Whatever. To Game 1 we go!!!

ALCS Games 3&4: Pitch Perfect

Do you hear that?

That is the sound of thousands and thousands of people jumping on the Detroit Tigers bandwagon. Why would they be doing that? Well…

Because the Detroit Tigers are going to the WORLD SERIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

With some of the best collective pitching we have ever seen, the Tigers swept (!!!) the Yankees (!!!!!) in the ALCS at home and are advancing to the Big Show. Sure, the national media may be focusing more on the Yankees losing than our boys winning, but it's all good. Because we Tigers Faithful know what our team has done this year. We know how far they have come. Hell, a month ago our boys were 3 games out of the AL Central lead with 15 left to play, and many fans were calling it a season. But our team believed. And we believed. And we got to witness an absolute blowout last night, highlighted by great pitching by Max Scherzer and Phil Coke and booming offense courtesy of four home runs.

Speaking of Phil Coke, how awesome is it to see him step up in such clutch situations? The last three games were closed by him, two of those being two-innings worth of work. When he spiked his glove (which he later referred to as a "she") for the final out, we lost it. Actually, we were losing it from the moment Prince Fielder caught that ball and our boys stormed the field.

We're going to the World Series. The Detroit Tigers are going to the World Series. It doesn't seem real. Sure, the three of us have supported the team all year and never gave up the faith and all that jazz, but we didn't know they could ever win the American League in such a dominant fashion. All year the team has been trying to find their groove, and they found it at just the right time. Cabrera won the Triple Crown. Our starting pitchers, all around the same time, started not just getting good, but getting really good. And our hitters, while not being the most bombastic offense ever, actually started to get clutch hits and rally. It all pieced together at the same time.

And while we're very happy/surprised for Delmon Young, the real MVP has to go to the Fab Four: Fister, Sanchez, Verlander, and Scherzer. Two runs given up? Total? In four games? Against the Yankees?!?!? Granted, whoever the Tigers face in the World Series is going to be a tougher offensively, but still. So. Freaking. Impressive.

We're so, so happy for our boys. We're so happy for Jim Leyland. We're happy for the organization, the fans, and especially the city of Detroit. And the best part?

We ain't done yet.

This isn't 2006 anymore. Our boys don't just want to make it to the World Series: they want it all. As exciting and emotional as this season has been, it can still get better. And we can't wait to see what happens next.

ALCS Game 2: When Life Gives the Other Team Lemons...

…make some sweet, victorious, clutch lemonade.

Hear him ROAR!!!!!

Sure, the Yankees and their fans may bitch and moan about the obviously erroneous call at 2nd, where Omar Infante clearly did not beat a tag by Robinson Cano. And they should be mad. But they were already losing 1-0 due to a fantastic pitching performance by Anibal Sanchez (who just keeps getting better). And so of course the Tigers took advantage of the situation, plating two runs thanks to Miguel Cabrera and Avisail "Little Mig" Garcia.

Speaking of Avisail: what an asset he's been in this postseason! Can you imagine where we'd be if Brennan Boesch made the squad instead? Probably not up in this series 2-0. Maybe not even in the ALCS at all. Kid's gonna be a star one day, and this postseason sure has given him an opportunity to shine.

Also: we never expected to take two out of two games from New York to start off. Though Lord Jeter has regrettably gone down with an injury, the Yankees are still very good, and their hitting is bound to pick up some time. But now look: going into Detroit up two games to none with our two best pitchers on the mound. It's not over--definitely not--but you are fooling yourselves if you think we're not in great position right now.

How excited are you for Game 3 tonight??? Close to peeing your pants like us? Justin Verlander could be the death blow that the Yankees have been dreading. Our offense and shaky bullpen just need to come through tonight, and we should be fine. It's gonna be a fun night!

ALCS Game 1: Never Say Die

What a game.

How do you even begin with this one? Where do we even start? The story lines in this postseason drama were all over the place. But we will say one thing for starters: we are proud of our boys. So. Goddamn. Proud.

Doug Fister pitched amazing. Terrifyingly, but amazing. Boy got out of not one, not two, but three bases loaded jams in the first six innings. To add more drama/fear in our hearts, he took a hard hit ball of his wrist in the third that looked like it had "Season Over" written all over it. But he is (or at least appears to be) fine. Someone else, however, really is not (more on that later).

After Dougie left in the 6th, our boys in innings 7-8.5 were excellent. Runs were scored with clutch hitting (oh, HEY, Delmon Young!), great defensive plays were made (Juh-honny! A-Jax!) and solid bullpen relief was thrown (Coke! Benoit!). Really, really good baseball put the good guys up 4-0. With Valverde coming in to pitch the 9th, we smiled to ourselves, satisfied. Even HE couldn't mess up twice in a row, right? Even HE could protect a 4-run lead!

Except he didn't.

Our stomachs sank as the Potato, whom we had so trusted in last year's postseason appearances, gave up a two run homer to Ichiro Suzuki. Our jaws dropped as Jim Leyland left Valverde in the game to face Mark Teixeira and Raul Ibanez, two people who have been known to hit a few home runs in their day. And then our hearts broke as Valverde walked Teixeira and subsequently gave up a game-tying home run to Ibanez.

We fumed. We raged. We were devastated. Twitter was in an uproar, with many declaring the game to be lost. Most were, at the very least, calling for the removal of Valverde as closer and speaking out against the horrible managerial choice that Jim Leyland made (and rightfully so). Not many were optimistic about a win.

No one told that to the other 24 Tigers on the playoff roster.

Sure, they looked hella frustrated. JV grimaced furiously, murder in his eyes. Miggy punched a water cooler (and AJax tried to right it). Fister seemed to be in stunned disbelief. But they rallied. They fought. And, through stellar pitching from Octavio Dotel and Drew Smyly and clutch hitting and poor defense from the Yankees, they won.

Talk about grit. Talk about guts. Talk about a team that wants this. If anything, this season has prepared our boys on how to take the tough blows that games can deal out and how to rally. If taking your lumps in the regular season equates to being graceful under pressure in the postseason, then the Tigers narrow win over the White Sox for the Central Crown was so, so worth it. That was one of the best wins of the season for many reasons, but mostly because they did it as a TEAM. One star alone rarely wins the game by himself.

Speaking of stars, the extended game, which initially gave so much joy to the Yankee fans, later caused them immense, horrible pain as the Captain himself went down with a broken ankle. As much as we like to jest and overdramatize here at April in the D, we didn't want to see Jeter go like this. We hope he has a speed recovery.

Winning Game 1 puts our boys in an awesome position. With Verlander pitching Game 3 at home, today's game looks pretty much like do-or-die for the Yankees. As much as we hate them (and as much as we loved Nick Swisher making an ass out of himself in the outfield last night. Hee hee!), we understand that they are a GOOD TEAM. Just because Jeter is gone does not mean they're going to roll over for us.

This series is off to a very dramatic start. It doesn't do wonders for our blood pressure, but this is what the playoffs are all about. Drama. Action. Romance Heartbreak. Victory. All have appeared in the series so far--and we've only seen one game!

Now buckle up kids…it's on to Game 2!!!

ALDS Roller Coaster: Games 3, 4, and 5

Well everyone, it wouldn't be the Tigers if it wasn't dramatic, right? At least our boys are consistent in making our hearts stop!  What matters now isn't that we lost two games in the middle, but that the Tigers are going to the ALCS to face the hated New York Yankees. Just saying that surprises us a little.  A few weeks ago, it didn't look to likely that we'd be here, but now that we're here, we look good.

So, let's talk about the games shall we?

Game 3: Athletics-2 Tigers-0
 This was kind of disheartening to watch.  No one wants to be shut out in the post-season, especially when it the series win was just dangling there for the taking like a carrot on a stick. It felt especially disheartening for us Tigers fans because we've only been shut out twice this season, which is the lowest shutout rate in the majors. There were a few positives about this game though, despite the fact that we lost.  Annabelle Anibal Sanchez looked really good out there.  He made a couple of mistakes that cost him early in the game, but the A's are a talented team, and holding them to two runs was a pretty impressive feat.  Prince Fielder came very close to scoring for us, but he got robbed by an impressive outfield play by Coco Crisp. Another promising sign was that Juh-honny Peralta got on base THRICE. Is this a sign that dormant Juh-honny is awakening? Probably not, but we hope so!

Game 4: Athletics-4 Tigers-3
Our reaction to game four was to reach for the nearest cyanide packet. To come so close to making it to the ALCS was particularly disheartening, especially considering the impressive efforts of Max Scherzer, Alex Avila, and Avisail Garcia.  We were winning 3-0 for Christ's sake! We had the sparkling wine out and ready!  But then it all went to hell when Valverde came on the mound. To be fair to Jim Leyland, there really wasn't another choice.  Valverde was 19-20 during regular season save opportunities, so who are you going to put on the mound during the division series in a save situation? Your closer?  Or Kid F**king Rick who's never pitched in a save situation in his life?  Phil Coke and Joaquin Benoit were available too, but we'd be calling for Leyland's head regardless of who pitched that terrible ninth and lost it for us.  We don't want to talk about it anymore.  It was a dark time for us all.

Game 5: Tigers-6 Athletics-0
This was one of the best games we as Tigers fans have ever had the pleasure to watch. Justin Verlander proved for the 120380523568th time why he is the ace of our pitching staff, pitching a complete game shut out with eleven (count 'em, eleven) strikeouts.  JV said after that it was the game he was most proud of as a pitcher, including his no-hitters, and we can see why.  Watching those A's swing and miss at his filthy pitches was absolutely joyful.  In the third game, our hitting failed us, and in the fourth game our pitching failed us, but Game 5 showed Tigers fans just exactly what can happen when all of the Tigers are on.  The A's were a great opponent, but when Justin Verlander pitches like that, nobody stands much of a chance.  Our hitting manufactured plenty of runs for Justin to play with, but in the end, all he needed was one.  Sorry to play the spoiler, A's, but the Tigers are heading to the ALCS!

So. Tomorrow the Tigers take on the Yankees at Yankee Stadium in what will likely be an epic rematch of last years dramatic ALDS.  The Yankees are definitely looking for blood, but for some reason, we're pretty happy here at April in the D that it's the Yankees and not the O's.  It'll make reaching the World Series that much sweeter.  Perhaps we do have the worst record out of any team that made the post-season, but at this point, the regular season is in the past.  What matters now is the tools we have, and the Tigers have threats in excess.  Doug, Max, Ani, and Justin each showed just what exactly they can do on the mound, and we have faith that the Tigers offense will come through when it counts.

TO THE ALCS WE GO! (Congrats to those of you who have tickets to the games.  Get loud and show everyone just what exactly the D is made of!)

ALDS Games 1&2: A Series of Fortunate Events

First things first: 2-0, BABY!!! TWO GAMES UP!!! ONE GAME FROM CLINCHING!!! EAT IT, OAKLAND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh, those silly Tigers! Giving us such bad breathing and heart problems that we almost pass out/die! Making those two games (especially Game 2, good GAWD) as close as close can be! Making us literally shriek in terror in public places and scream like we're being murdered but we're actually just watching a Don Kelly (!!!) walk-off sac fly! YOU SILLY, SILLY PEOPLE!!!!

Game 1 wasn't so terrifying. After Verlander gave up a leadoff home run, he was dominant, going seven innings and only allowing a handful of hits. The offense gave us just enough breathing room to comfortably get the win, and the Tigers won what might have been their most important game: one that Verlander pitched. Also, fun fact: Alex Avila's home run was the only RBI that was a hit. All of the Tigers other runs in the series so far have come from sacrifices, outs, or errors on Oakland's part.

Speaking of Oakland--they may be So Hot Right Now, but they were as sloppy as the Tigers were these past two games. Youth and energy works well for a race to the playoffs, but will Oakland do to us what they did to Texas and sweep? We don't think so. The energy in Oakland will be amazing, but we think our boys have enough experience and moxie to take the A's down.

We like that word. Moxie. We should use it more often.

Moxie is also not a word not often applied to Don Kelly (at least we don't think so) but he definitely had it in spades when he hit that amazing, breathtaking, majestic grand slam sac fly to help Detroit take Game 2.  And what a Game it was! After the fearsome pitchers duel that was Doug Fister and some Random Lefty The Tigers Should Have Taken Advantage Of But Didn't, the bullpens of both teams turned the game into an absolute vortex of a shit storm. 

Errors were made, wild pitches were thrown, and heart attacks were induced by both sides. When the dust settled, Al Albuquerque had kissed a baseball (truth) and Joaquin Benoit had given up two stolen bases, a wild pitch and a home run, but SOME HOW we were still tied at the bottom of the 9th.

And then Don Kelly happened.

Infante and Cabrera singled and Fielder walked to give our boys the bases loaded with one out and Don Kelly to the plate. Now, we could see what was going to happen. Good ol' DK was gonna ground into a Tigers-patented double play or strike out. He had never walked-off before. Who said he was gonna do it now?

Don Kelly said, that's who. He hit a soaring sac fly that left no doubt that the victory belonged to the Tigers, and our boys rushed the field in what could have been the most empowering and heartwarming moment of the season thus far. Us fans laughed, cried, and passed out from exhaustion/relief/joy. This just goes to show: in the playoffs, anyone can be a hero. And that day it was Don Kelly.

Ah, but really--bless those boys. Because now we're going into Oakland needing to only win one game. It's no secret: we would LOVE to just clobber those guys now and be done with it, but we're not naive. We know Oakland is going to try and give it everything they've got tonight. They have to. But then again, so will we. 

Let's end this tonight, boys. To battle we go  !

A Crowning Season

We meant to do submit the first part of this post a few days ago, but since we're lazy slackers we're combining the AL Championship (!!!) post with Miguel Cabrera's Triple Crown(!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) one. Enjoy!!

We Get by with a Little Help from Our Friends

First things first.

BACK-TO-BACK AL CENTRAL CHAMPS, MOTHERF*****S!!!!!!

With all the hardships and underachieving, with all the naysayers, with all the bad luck and tough breaks--this one sure feels sweet. Perhaps we are not as confident in the Tigers' playoff chances this year, but this AL Central victory seems that much more rewarding because of all the crap we had to put up with all season long.

However good our starting pitching staff was these past eight games (pretty damn good), and however clutch certain members of our offense were (Prince Fielder in game 159, anyone?), this team could not have done all that they did alone. Major, major thanks goes out to the Angels, the Indians, the Royals, and the Rays for giving that White Sox team such a hard time.

Mostly, though we need to thank the White Sox themselves. They did this to themselves. With the division practically in their hands after our boys lost to them in Chicago, all they had to do was basically play .500 ball. They did not do that. Winning 3 of their last 13 games is not the way to wrap up a division title, and the Tigers made sure they paid.

We know we're going to play on Saturday at home against the A's, who basically, by the way, did to the Rangers what the Twins did to us back in 2006. Mad props. Yes, they're so hot right now, but we believe our boys can take them--especially with Verlander and Fister guaranteed to start two games at home. Of course, anything can happen. But as per usual, we are staying positive.

Our boys definitely took the road less traveled on their way to a championship, but that's cool. In the end it all paid off--and the future looks even more promising.

Royally Awesome

Two division champions were decided last night, as well as who would be playing in the Wild Card games. But what else was decided last night, you ask? Hmmm…. did it have some thing to do with this?

That's right. He did it. And we still can't believe it happened.

If you had asked us even yesterday afternoon what we would have preferred, a Triple Crown winner or a postseason bid, we would have said postseason. But now we're not so sure. After the emotional and amazing scene we witnessed last night, Miguel Cabrera finally getting some major recognition for a feat that hadn't been seen in 45 years was the highlight of the season. Triple. Freaking. Crown.

Jim Leyland played it beautifully, by the way. Letting Miggy receive a standing O from the crowd (thanks Kansas City!!!) and have his moment in history was amazing to see and brought tears to our eyes. For someone so humble and so non-attention-seeking, Miguel Cabrera now has his moment.

We're not sure if we can even process this fully. In all seriousness, Mike Trout has had an amazing, amazing season and is a great player/person, but Miguel Cabrera has made history. In our minds, he cannot be denied. 

From the bottom of our hearts, we want to thank Miguel Cabrera for bringing this amazing moment to us, to the Tigers organization, to Detroit, and to the baseball world. But mostly, to himself. He's earned all the praise that's going his way.

The playoffs start in two days at home. What with the Triple Crown and the Tiger's recent surge, the atmosphere is going to be bananas. We can hardly wait.