Tag: Magglio Ordonez

Post-Game Reading: Game 2 Edition

  • Magglio Ordonez went three-for-three in Game 2, but he almost retired at midseason.

  • Interesting scoop here from Danny Knobler on Dave Dombrowksi’s dogged pursuit of Doug Fister. Teaser: “Over a three-week period, we called [the Mariners] a couple of times a day. Sometimes three times.”

  • Ian O’Connor says that Yankees’ Game 4 starter A.J. Burnett should strike fear in New York fans, not the Tigers lineup:

    A.J. Burnett is the Yankees’ worst nightmare, a pitcher with good stuff and bad everything else. He isn’t wired to carry the burdens tethered to a 2-1 division series lead, never mind a 2-1 division series deficit.

    And yet there he is lurking around the bend, ready to follow Verlander versus Sabathia with a misadventure his team can’t afford to weather in the early hours of October. If Mariano Rivera is the indomitable closer, Burnett is the indefensible opener.

  • Buried deep in this piece from Knobler we find out that Kenny Rogers is throwing out the first pitch Monday night before Game 3.

  • And to think I used to like A-Rod:

    “I’m assuming over the next day or two or three that there will be some big at-bats I’ll be waiting for,” Rodriguez said. “Two outs, runners in scoring position all over the place. It’s something that I relish.”

  • Nice article on Scherzer and Alex Avila in The New York Times.

    Avila tracked the ball, moving slowly, and stole a glance at the railing, before he stepped onto the plastic on-deck circle, which he later said felt like a slip-and-slide.

  • Jose Valverde declares the series over … but not really.

  • Great stuff from Ian on Scherzer showing the world that the Tigers are more than a one-man rotation.

  • Happy 42nd Birthday to former Tigers catcher and minor-league manager, Matt Walbeck. Today’s the 52nd birthday of Dave Beard, who pitched in two games for the 1989 Tigers.

    • A Tigers-Phillies Dream Series? Not According to The Weather Channel

    When the weather is bad in Detroit and most other Midwest and Northeast cities in April and early May, fans complain, as they should, about the crummy conditions at the ballpark. Bad weather in October is much more bearable because, hey, it’s the postseason and it’s supposed to be cold. Besides, not every team gets the pleasure of playing in the fall. So we deal with it.

    The folks at The Weather Channel posted a story titled “A Fantasy World Series Pairing … Weather-Wise” and of all the possible World Series scenarios, a Tigers-Phillies matchup ranks as the worst:

    Philadelphia’s Weather Basics:
    Average Highs, Oct. 19-27: 63-66 degrees
    Average Lows, Oct. 19-27: 45-47 degrees
    Earliest Measurable Snowfall: Oct. 10, 1979 (2.1 inches)

    Detroit’s Weather Basics:
    Average Highs, Oct. 19-27: 57-60 degrees
    Average Lows, Oct. 19-27: 40-42 degrees
    Earliest Measurable Snowfall: Oct. 12, 2006

    (snip)

    Spending an October night in either of these stadiums has the potential to turn ugly. In the 2008 World Series between the Phillies and the Tampa Bay Rays, rain delays held up Games 3 and 5 in Philadelphia, the rain delay in Game 5 actually lasting two days. A storm system came through the area and forced a Monday night game to be postponed until Wednesday, when the Phillies finally won the championship-clinching game.

    Detroit is also no stranger to nasty World Series weather. In their 2006 series against the St. Louis Cardinals, the Tigers hosted Games 1 and 2, which had first-pitch highs of 56 and 44 degrees, respectively. When the series shifted to St. Louis for Games 3-5, the temperature for any of those three games never made it above 53 degrees, and Game 3 had a first-pitch temperature of 43 degrees.

    All of it true. Game four of the 2006 ALCS the 4 o’clock-ish game-time temperature was 45 degrees or so. By the time Magglio Ordonez launched his pennant-clinching homer, it was in the high 30s.

    Didn’t matter. I wouldn’t have wanted to be anywhere else. Same goes for this year. Snow or no snow, if I can get a ticket to the World Series in Detroit, I’m there.

    2010: The Year in Lists

    A year ago, we were still stinging from Game 163 and not certain how the Tigers would respond to a crushing end to the 2009 season. Would they regress to 2008’s disappointment or regroup to erase the memory of the ’09 collapse?

    The answer was: they’d be relevant. And that, ladies in gentlemen, is the extent of the analysis in this post. Instead of a deep dive into 2010, let’s look at the year in the form of randomly selected lists:

    2010 At A Glance*

    • Record: 81-81, 3rd in American League Central, 13 games back of Minnesota
    • Days in First: 13, the last on July 10
    • Biggest Lead: 1, last on July 7
    • Farthest Behind: 15.5 on Sept. 15
    • Most Games over .500: 11, last on July 10
    • Most Games under .500: 5, last on Aug. 19
    • Longest Winning Streak: 7, June 11-18
    • Longest Losing Streak: 7, July 11-20
    • Most Runs Allowed: 15, June 9
    • Most Runs Scored: 13, Aug. 15
    • Longest Game (innings): 14, July 19
    • Times Shutout by Opponent: 10
    • Times Opponent Shutout: 5

    Continue reading “2010: The Year in Lists”

    No-Brainer: Ordonez Returns

    Magglio Ordonez’s reported one-year, $10 million deal to return to the Tigers is surprising in that it’s both shorter and less-expensive than many anticipated. Once the Jayson Werth and Carl Crawford contracts were signed, everyone following the free-agent market expected Ordonez’s asking price to skyrocket.

    On the other hand, it shouldn’t be surprising at all. My sense was that he had a deep sense of loyalty to the Tigers and owner Mike Ilitch, and not only because they paid him handsomely in 2005 when most other clubs were afraid to risk big money on his balky knee. And, by all accounts, Ilitch treated Ordonez with special care during the 2009 season when the slugger’s wife was seriously ill.

    In the end, his contract was essentially a hometown discount. And that has got to drive Scott Boras insane.

    The Non-Sequiturs: Trick or Treat Edition

    pumpkin.jpgEach October, I’m astounded to learn that Halloween is the second-largest retail holiday of the year. I’m not a fan of Halloween, though I do like the occasional, or frequent, Kit Kat.

    It’s a treat to be able to watch the World Series on Halloween, though the Aubrey Huff and Edgar Renteria sightings are undoubtedly the “trick” part of the equation.

    • In our highest vote-gettin’ poll of the season, Fungo readers were emphatic on what the Tigers’ next offseason move should be: target Nationals’ slugger and free-agent-to-be Adam Dunn.

      Twenty-four percent (148 voters) of the 628 readers casting votes selected Dunn as their top choice. Here are the runners up:

      • Sign Jason Werth (16%, 103 Votes)
      • Sign Victor Martinez (15%, 97 Votes)
      • Trade for a starting pitcher (14%, 88 Votes)
      • Pickup Jhonny Peralta’s option (14%, 88 Votes)
      • Sign Magglio Ordonez (12%, 73 Votes)
      • Other (5%, 31 Votes)

      Thanks to everyone who voted and a special thanks for those that left comments. It was a great discussion. Keep those comments rolling in.

      Continue reading “The Non-Sequiturs: Trick or Treat Edition”

    Tuesday Tananas: Fred Lynn, Ted Power and Don Draper

    bananas.jpgIs it just me or were there a lot of Aug. 31 trades made back in the day? Back in the late ’80s and early ’90s it seemed that Oakland was always adding a big name at the deadline — Willie McGee, Ruben Sierra, Harold Baines. Just asking.

    No Hitters? No-Hitter!

    Thumbs Down.jpgIt seems awfully unfair for a guy to throw a no-hitter against a team that evidently has no hitters, doesn’t it?

    In the spirit of full disclosure, I didn’t see any of Monday night’s bizarro-rama — Max Scherzer also had a no-hitter going into the sixth?! — because I was out at a family thing. (I think I would have put my marriage in jeopardy had I attempted to participate in Baseball Tonight Live on ESPN.com while at the restaurant.)

    Nevertheless, I listened to the Rays’ announcers call the ninth inning on XM Radio on my way home. What a weird experience that was. The last time the Tigers were no-hit — June 2, 1990, by Randy Johnson — I couldn’t have listened to the Seattle feed even if I wanted to.

    Whoa. Got off track there.

    Anyway, what are Tigers fans supposed to do now? Their team is still — astonishingly — a mere three games out of first place at the end of July. You can’t give up on them, can you?

    After all, on July 26, 2009, the eventual division champion Twins were one game under .500 and in third place just four games out.

    Apple to apples? Not even close. Even though the Twins lost Justin Morneau they surged. Without Magglio Ordonez the Tigers are already showing signs of retreat.

    So what if the Tigers pick up a hitter or two this week? Does Adam Dunn give them enough of a jolt — and protection for Miguel Cabrera? More than Aubrey Huff did last year. Would it help to bring Jermaine Dye back from retirement home? What about Carlos Delgado? Or Joe Crede?

    Now this post has taken a turn toward the absurd. But that’s what we’re facing, isn’t it?

    Even if Dave Dombrowski manages to add a few pieces will they be enough. It’s hard to believe they would be.

    But he better get someone to hit the ball. Otherwise, Matt Garza‘s no-hitter might not be the last we see against the Tigers this year.