The American Freedom Network

Still In First – Mid-Season Update

For those of you in the Detroit Tigers diaspora, an update on where our boys of summer are.  When last I wrote, before the season began, it was to analyze the roster, the competition, and to predict a first-place finish for the Bengals.  The season is well-past the one-third mark, and the Tigers have been in first for a month, in spite of:

*Magglio Ordonez, the #3 hitter and 2007 AL batting champion, hitting around .270 with 2 home runs and barely more than 20 RBI.
(He’s signed through 2011 at $15 to $18 million per year.)
*Gary Sheffield, projected at the #5 hitter, is having a fine season – for the New York Mets, after being released at the end of spring 
training, because he was not hitting.  Detroit’s eating his $14 million dollar contract.
*Carlos Guillen, a three-time All-Star (at shortstop, third base and first base) and Sheffield’s replacement in the #5 hole, had 60
at-bats before going on the DL, and he’s facing season-ending surgery, if things don’t improve – fast.  ($11 million contract.)

*Jeremy Bonderman, projected at no worse than the #3 starter, pitched in one game after coming off rehab for last-year’s season-ending surgery, and went back on the  DL.  He may be done for 2009.  ($12.5 million contract.)  If/when he returns, his velocity makes a return to his 200+ strikeout form of 2006 vintage unlikely.
*Marcus Thames, whose 1HR-per-13 at bats ratio over the last four years is fourth-best in the league, just returned from the DL,
after a month-long absence.
*Nate Robertson ($7 million) and Dontrelle willis ($11 million) have both been non-productive this season, with Robertson barely
hanging on to a bullpen job and Willis back on the DL.
*Armando Gallaraga won 13 games as a rookie in 2008, while losing 4.  This year, he’s winless since April, and is at 3-7.
* Detroit’s backup catchers have combined for three hits this year.

What other team could have this much go wrong and still be in first?  They have as much salary on the DL or not performing, etc., as some teams spend for their entire payroll.  How do they do it?  Five reasons:
1.)  The top three starters – Verlander, Jackson and Porcello (the latter a favorite for rookie-of-the year) are nearly unbeatable.  They 
are dominant, hard-throwing and so good that veteran slugger Aubrey Huff (Baltimore) said that Verlander-Jackson was the best
1-2 punch he’d ever faced.  The bullpen is very adept at converting their leads into saves, as well.
2.)  Miguel Cabrerra is one of the three best hitters in baseball.  (Albert Pujols and Joe Mauer get my votes for the other two spots.) 
He’s had some help from Brandon Inge (3B) and Curtis Granderson (CF), who are both on a pace for 30+ home runs – career bests
for each.
3.)  Airtight defense.  Inge is an acrobat without peer at the hot corner; Adam Evrett is one of the best defenders in the game at
shortstop; Placido Polanco is slumping at the plate (80 points below his .344 mark in 2007), but still plays gold glove defense at second, where he holds the record for most
consecutive errorless games (186).
4.)  Leadership.  Jim Leyland is a master strategist and a leader of men who gets the maximum out of every player, and the front
office is willing to take risks, even to the point of trading for yet more salary, in spite of all the bad contracts the Tigers have now. 
GM Dave Dombrowski is fortunate to work for an owner like Mike Illich, who has shown, as owner of the Detroit red wings, that
he will do and spend whatever it takes to win.  Good drafting and generally good trades have compensated for contracts gone bad –
so far.
5.)  The competition.  Minnesota hasn’t caught Detroit despite having two-time batting champ Joe Mauer back behind the plate.    
(Besides being the only catcher to win a batting title in league history, he’s hitting over .400 this year.)  Kansas City opened up
fast, but even Zack Grienke’s 8-1 start couldn’t keep them in first.  Chicago is plagued by aging stars who under-perform. Cleveland
started with a long losing streak, and has never righted the ship, in spite of loads of young talent.

All of the above may change; Cleveland is notorious for late-season hot streaks, Minnesota always pulls a kid from nowhere to plug a hole in the rotation or the lineup, and even Chicago might get some of their hitters untracked long enough to make life miserable for Detroit.  But, then again, some of Detroit’s woes might fade.  perhaps Gallaraga returns to form, or Guillen doesn’t need surgery and returns to the lineup, or Bonderman makes it back for a September push, like he swears he will.  With all the breaks against them, Detroit is in first.  if i were them, I’d rather have all Detroit’s problems than those of their rivals, who are looking up at them every day in the standings. 
So, I stand by my prediction of a first-place finish.  Detroit – the city – and Michigan, as well, could sure use some good news, with GM and Chrysler bankrupt, the Auto Czar running everything without a “Ford” logo on it,, unemployment headed for 20%, the last remains of Tiger Stadium meeting the wrecking ball, active discussions about plowing much of Flint back into meadowland, 20 counties across the state turning paved roads back into gravel to save money, and so on… we could use some good news, and right now, the Tigers, in spite of all their bad news, are all we have (if being in first can be called bad news…).