Tagged: Lineup
Game 2 – Starting Lineup and Thoughts from Opening Day
Today’s game against the Boston Red Sox is nationally televised on FOX at 4:05 PM.
Here is the lineup:
1) Jackson (8)
2) Boesch (9)
3) Cabrera (5)
4) Fielder (3)
5) Young (6)
7) Avila (2)
8) Dirks (DH)
9) Raburn (4)
SP: Doug Fister
As far as opening day goes, the excitement didn’t really start until the late innings, finally giving something for fans to get on their feet for, with the exception of reigning AL MVP Justin Verlander putting on a pitching clinic. He was absolutely lights out for 8 innings and his curveball looks as good as I have ever seen it…and it’s the first day of the year. Bodes well for Tigers fans, as long as Jose Valverde doesn’t blow the gems in future outings like he did Thursday, giving up 2 runs in the 9th to tie the game. But Austin Jackson, who had a solid day at the plate and actually looked comfortable for once, came through with a bases loaded single in the bottom of the 9th for the walk-off win on opening day. There were a lot of positives to take away from the first game of the year, not to mention a record opening day crowd. The city is hungry and I think this team will produce.
Cross your fingers for no repeats of ’08.
Game 115 – Detroit Tigers Lineup
Big series with the Cleveland Indians starting this evening at Progressive Field. Here is Detroit’s starting lineup:
1) Jackson (CF)
2) Boesch (LF)
3) Dirks (RF)
4) Cabrera (1B)
5) Martinez (DH)
6) Peralta (SS)
7) Guillen (2B)
8) Avila (C)
9) Kelly (3B)
Fister is starting on the mound.
I like this lineup against Masterson. Kelly has good career numbers against him, and Martinez appears to be healthy enough to play, which bodes well for Detroit. I’m also excited to see Fister pitch again. I like his stuff and think he can really help this ball club down the road.
It should be a good matchup this evening! Definitely a huge series for both teams.
Game 114 – Detroit Tigers Lineup
The Tigers will be going for the sweep of the Kansas City Royals this afternoon, getting a great start to their road trip and continuing their dominance over KC this year. Here is this afternoon’s lineup:
1) Jackson (CF)
2) Boesch (LF)
3) Raburn (3B)
4) Cabrera (1B)
5) Ordonez (DH)
6) Guillen (2B)
7) Peralta (SS)
8) Avila (C)
9) Dirks (RF)
Scherzer is on the mound.
A few things to note. I am having a hard time understanding why Ryan Raburn is in the 3rd slot against Bruce Chen. He does not have impressive numbers batting in the 3rd spot in the order, nor does he have any spectacular stats against Chen himself. Magglio Ordonez is batting .364 in his career against the Royals lefty, so I just don’t quite understand this move. Austin Jackson is only 1 for 12 lifetime against Chen, but his defense (i.e last night) plays an important role in getting him in the lineup, even if he is struggling at the plate.
Also of note, Victor Martinez is not in the lineup. He left last night’s game with what they are calling a mild sprain of his knee, and Victor said that the tingling feeling he had when it happened started to go away as he was walking to the club house. Let’s hope that this is just a minor issue and won’t hinder his performance the rest of the way, because Martinez has been a huge catalyst for the Tigers offense this year.
Scherzer holds a 1.42 ERA over the Royals this seasons, and has a 2.73 ERA for his career. I like the matchup this afternoon and like the chances of Detroit walking out of town with a victory to complete the sweep.
Their next stop? Cleveland.
Game 112 – Tigers Lineup
Here is tonight’s starting lineup:
1) Jackson (CF)
2) Boesch (LF)
3) Ordonez (RF)
4) Cabrera (1B)
5) Martinez (DH)
6) Peralta (SS)
7) Guillen (2B)
8) Avila (C)
9) Betemit (3B)
Porcello is starting on the mound this evening.
Game time is 8:10 PM.
I really like this lineup, and Porcello has been rock solid as of late. The Royal’s starter, Felipe Paulino, will be facing the Tigers for the first time this year after coming over in a trade with Colorado earlier in the year. He pitched six scoreless innings against Cleveland in his last start.
The key to tonight’s game will be Porcello’s ability to keep the ball low and induce groundballs while staying within the zone. When he starts to get the ball up or can’t spot his fastball is when he struggles the most. Hopefully his month of July was a sign of something to come, because it really looked like he was transforming into a more dominant pitcher, one that the Tigers could really use alongside Verlander down the stretch.
Game 111 – Tigers lineup and preview
It’s a beautiful day for baseball, and a perfect day to complete a sweep of the Texas Rangers! Let’s see the lineup Leyland will go with this afternoon.
1) Dirks (CF)
2) Kelly (1B)
3) Boesch (LF)
4) Cabrera (DH)
5) Martinez (C)
6) Guillen (2B)
7) Betemit (3B)
8) Raburn (RF)
9) Santiago (SS)
Starting pitcher is Brad Penny.
Game time is 1:05 PM.
Not exactly the same lineup I would envision to finish off a series, but then again, it makes sense. Rangers starter Alexi Ogando is a tough pitcher (Tigers currently hitting a mere .188 off of him) and Leyland has 5 switch hitters in the lineup. Nobody on the Tigers roster has any outstanding numbers against him, so it really doesn’t matter who is standing in the batters box today. Any advantage Leyland can get while Ogando is in the game, and if the Tigers can get him out, he will take. Tigers starter Brad Penny has been hit around a bit lately, so hopefully he can give the team a solid performance today and at least keep them in the game.
We can only hope the role players come through today and produce, given the opportunity. It would be nice if my prediction about this series was wrong and the Tigers finish off the sweep, completing the season series with an impressive 7-2 record against the AL West leading Rangers.
Go Tigers!
Game 110 – Lineup
After winning the first game of the series last evening, Leyland is rolling out a similar lineup this evening.
1) Jackson (CF)
2) Boesch (LF)
3) Ordonez (RF)
4) Cabrera (1B)
5) Martinez (DH)
6) Peralta (SS)
7) Raburn (2B)
8) Avila (C)
9) Betemit (3B)
Starting pitcher is Doug Fister, making his Tigers debut.
Game time is 7:05 PM.
As I mentioned early this morning in a tweet (@optimisttiger), it is not surprising to see Raburn in the starting lineup this evening. He is 6-9 in his career against Rangers starter Matt Harrison, including 2 HRs and 6 RBI. Carlos Guillen is 0-4 in his career facing Harrison, so I see where this move makes sense for Jim Leyland tonight.
It’s always exciting for a pitcher to make his debut for a new team, and for some reason, I am very excited to have Fister in our rotation. I think he is just as solid as our top 3 guys and I really think he will contribute down the stretch. Giving the team a chance to win is all that is really needed, and I have little doubt that he is capable of doing so.
Game 109 – Lineup
Here is this evening’s lineup for the series opener against the Texas Rangers:
1) Jackson (CF)
2) Boesch (LF)
3) Ordonez (RF)
4) Cabrera (1B)
5) Martinez (DH)
6) Guillen (2B)
7) Peralta (SS)
8 ) Avila (C)
9) Betemit (3B)
Scherzer is pitching.
Leyland doesn’t run this lineup out with great frequency, but I feel like it gives the Tigers the best chance to win. It’s hard to figure out his strategy when it comes to deciding who plays and who doesn’t, but this is the most all-around solid lineup that the Tigers can field on a daily basis.
On another note, the Tigers have just announced that they have designated LHP David Purcey for assignment. Could this be the end of his brief stint in a Tigers uniform? Remember, he was traded for 2B Scott Sizemore back in May, a move that many fans felt was made in haste when Sizemore wasn’t producing as expected at the plate.
By the way, Sizemore has batted .243 with four homers and 23 RBI in 44 games since being traded. Purcey, meanwhile, has an ERA over 7.00, giving up 15 earned runs and 20 walks in 18 1/3 innings for the Tigers. I wasn’t keen on the trade to begin with because I didn’t feel like Sizemore was given a completely fair shot, but I definitely don’t like the trade now.
Oh well. You win some, you lose some. Let’s just hope the Fister/Pauley deal works out better!
The Optimist Tiger 