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Senior Member
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Detroit
Posts: 575
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Tigers win again!
Quote:
CLEVELAND -- They arrived in good shape, but left in better. You can't ask for more than that.
For those of you who no longer expect the wheels to fall off this Tigers season, but are still looking for signs of severe wobbling, your search continues.
It's unsure, though, if you'll ever find what you're looking for -- because every time the Tigers hit a bump, every time one of the tires gets a little flat, they still don't stray far from the road they've been on all season.
Their 4-1 victory Wednesday over the Indians was a case in point.
Despite splitting the first two games at Jacobs Field, the Tigers hadn't played what you'd call crisp baseball here. The opener was a ghastly game lasting nearly four hours. Most of the blame belonged to the Indians, but after scoring five in the first, the Tigers had trouble putting them away. So they weren't exactly faultless.
Tuesday's loss, with Kenny Rogers giving up seven runs in the first inning, had some fans looking for the nearest panic button. Not with the intention of pressing it, mind you, just to know its location.
Sort of like your household fire extinguisher. Even when there's no need to use it, knowing where it is can be a comfort.
Keeping focus
The wobble watchers thought they had something to fret about. Was this the first sign of a pitching problem? Or maybe not the first sign, considering Rogers hasn't been himself for a while.
The Tigers stoked the fire a bit by adding another pitcher Wednesday, purchasing the contract of Colby Lewis from Toledo and designating outfielder Alexis Gomez for assignment.
Manager Jim Leyland said the move was made because his pitching staff was "out of sync."
Then along came Justin Verlander -- and just like that, everything is fine again. After kicking up some gravel on the shoulder, the Tigers are back on the road.
Plus the cars behind them, the White Sox and Twins, aren't even as close as they appear to be in the mirror.
Such was the unspoken message of the Tigers-Indians series. Despite some flaws, the Tigers managed to win two of three -- and because of the way the teams behind them are bumping each other, fender-bending all over the place, it has never looked less likely the Tigers will be caught.
Because they're never bad for long. And, so far, never long enough for other teams to even think they're vulnerable.
"We can still be hunted, absolutely we can," Todd Jones said. "And we can't lose sight of that. But if we don't lose sight of that, we can't be. Does that make any sense?"
Certainly does.
The sense it makes is that if the Tigers stay as focused as they have been, and tend to their business as well as they've done for 101 games, who the heck can catch them?
"Grind it out, each game, each night," Jones said. "Plus we have too much starting pitching to sustain long losing streaks."
Rookie rights ship
Self-confidence hasn't been a problem, but there's no harm in having it reinforced from time to time -- which is what Verlander provided Wednesday.
Up against C.C. Sabathia, in a game that was scoreless through five, Verlander flinched less and later than his hefty, but talented counterpart.
Bunching their hits again after a leadoff walk to Marcus Thames in the sixth, the Tigers got a double from Craig Monroe, then a two-run double from Magglio Ordonez. After a single by Carlos Guillen, Brandon Inge's double-play grounder produced the third run. Verlander's only blemish was giving up a home run to Joe Inglett with two out in the bottom of the seventh.
Again, however, Verlander served the dual purpose of not only pitching scoreless innings, but also giving his teammates the luxury of trusting he would.
Scoreless after five? No problem. Verlander is on the mound.
Nobody says that exactly, but you can't fault them if they feel it.
"Playing defense behind him is awesome," Placido Polanco said. "I've been around a little bit now, and I've played with a lot of veteran guys, so I know how important this is. But he shows no tension at all. He's always relaxed. And he always looks so confident."
Some people call it mound presence. To which Leyland said, "When you have stuff like that, it's easy to have mound presence."
Whatever it is, it works -- for Verlander and the Tigers, who are 15-5 in his 20 starts.
This wasn't an entirely easy series, by any means. It wasn't an entirely pretty series, either. But it ended with a reminder of why the White Sox and Twins are knocking heads as far behind as they are. The Tigers don't wander.
It could be their pitching, or just the combination of everything, but that panic button is gathering dust. You don't even need to know where it is.
You can reach Tom Gage at tomo.gage@detnews.com.
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Tigers did well this game and stood firm.. was great to see. and this whole season has went pretty well, compaired to past seasons where some people would just look at the tigers as a joke.
They are now earning that new stadium. 
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Lets Go Tigers, Woohoo, Go PUDGE!!!!
*Proud Baseball and Hockey Fan*
*Back in Black - Ac/Dc* 
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