- Andy Dirks has become the flavor of the day for Tigers fans, and justifiably so. While the offense has generally sputtered badly, he played a huge factor in the Tigers' two victories on their West Coast trip so far. But there is a word caution I will add here: Dirks got off to a fast start last season, too, and by the end of the postseason was solidly planted at the end of the bench. Tigers fans do tend to get carried with outfielders who show initial promise (Clete Thomas, Josh Anderson, Nook Logan, Brent Clevlen, Alexis Gomez). The jury is far from in on Dirks, or Brennan Boesch, for that matter.
Right now, the perception seems to be that Dirks is a better player than Boesch, but a month from now that could change. It's just the nature of the game.
- Seasons don't work in one long consistent stretch for players and subsequently teams. They go up and down. Then it's all added up at the end. A key element for a winning ball club, though, is getting significant contributions from one player until he slumps, and then another, who had been slumping, to start then hitting. And to, of course, have enough every day players who are consistent throughout a given season. Same with pitching. Last season, for example, third baseman Wilson Betemit's contribution to the Tigers was very important. Brad Penny had a 7-4 record with a 3.51 ERA during a period when the Tigers were scuffling as a team. By the postseason, both had long before ceased being contributors.
The fact the Tigers have hit this poorly, had a significant injury to a starting pitcher Doug Fister and dealt with a testy off-the-field issue in involving Delmon Young, and still have an above .500 record, is a good sign.
- I think the Tigers are going to OK. Cleveland will play hard and relatively well. The Indians are solid and have a good bullpen. It's difficult to not be impressed with Manny Acta as a manager. Ultimately, the Indians just don't have Tigers starting pitching nor firepower. The White Sox have improved in some ways, but their bullpen issues are confounding.
- Oakland is the perfect fit for Brandon Inge. The A's .216 team batting average is the worst in the major leagues. He has hit a couple grand slams for the A's, but is still hitting just .222 for Oakland and .179 overall. The A's are paying him a pro-rated $400,000 per year to get them through a season they are clearly headed no where. Inge is the updated version of Billy Beane's "Moneyball" player: Low on-base percentage, high strikeout ratio, low cost, zero expectations.
- Jim Leyland should not keep playing Ryan Raburn when he is hitting .130. It's gotten to the point of absurdity. Ramon Santiago is the bigger issue, though. He needs to hit well enough against right-handed pitching so that Leyland can set up some sort of platoon at second base with Danny Worth or Raburn - should he snap out of his slump. It might be a good idea for Leyland to play Worth a few days in a row to see what he can do. He isn't going to hit any worse than Santiago and Raburn so far (that would be impossible) and he is an excellent middle infielder.